Funding : the University of Malta’s main challenge

Abstract

The higher education sector in Malta has witnessed a sharp increase in enrolments in the past 20 years. This could inter alia be attributed to policy changes aimed at increasing the participation rate at higher education. However, this and the current economic downturn have made funding more challenging. The University of Malta (UoM) operations are mainly funded through grants on recurrent and capital expenditure issued yearly by the Government of Malta. This paper outlines the current funding structure of the UoM and relate this to student numbers over the years so as to determine whether the UoM has experienced a decline or otherwise in funds per student. The paper also analyses the financial impact of achieving a target participation rate of 35 per cent by 2020 in tertiary education including the effect of the projected increase in student numbers on stipends awarded to full-time University students.