OECD (2000)

Educational Expenditure by Resource Category
Chart B5.2.
Distribution of total expenditure and distribution of current
expenditure for tertiary education by resource category (1997)
Current expenditure
Capital expenditure
Compensation of teachers
Compensation of other staff
Compensation of all staff
Other current expenditure
% of total expenditure % of total expenditure
100
80
100
80
OECD mean
60
40
20
0
60
40
20
0
KOR
TUR 1
ESP
HUN 1
GRC 1
JPN
PRT
DNK
ITA 1
POL 1
DEU
FRA 2
CHE 1
MEX 1
CZE 1
USA 3
AUS
NOR 2
IRL 1 FIN
ISL 2
NLD
CAN
AUT
BEL (Fl.) 2
UKM
% of current expenditure % of current expenditure
100
100
Capital expenditure is
considerably higher at
the tertiary level than
at the primary, secondary
and post-secondary
non-tertiary levels
because of the much
higher cost of facilities
and equipment.
B5
80
80
60
60
40
40
20
20
0
0
KOR
TUR 1
ESP
HUN 1
GRC 1
JPN
PRT
DNK
ITA 1
POL 1
DEU
FRA 2
CHE 1
MEX 1
CZE 1
USA 3
AUS
NOR 2
IRL 1 FIN
ISL 2
NLD
CAN
AUT
BEL (Fl.) 2
UKM
SWE
1. Public institutions.
2. Public and goverment-dependent private institutions.
3. Includes post-secondary non-tertiary education.
Countries are ranked in ascending order of current expenditure.
Source:
OECD.
At the same time, the proportion of current expenditure spent on staff is
considerably lower at the tertiary level than at the primary/secondary/postsecondary
non-tertiary level. OECD countries, on average, spend 33 per cent
of current expenditure at the tertiary level on purposes other than the compensation
of educational personnel. This is explained by the much higher cost of
facilities and equipment in higher education.
DEFINITIONS
The distinction between current and capital expenditures is the standard
one used in national income accounting. Current expenditure is that on goods
and services consumed within the current year, which has to be made recurrently
in order to sustain the production of educational services. Capital
expenditures is that on assets which last longer than one year, including outlays
on construction, renovation, major repair of buildings and new or replacement
equipment. The capital expenditure reported here represents the value
of educational capital acquired or created during the year in question − that is,
At the tertiary level,
countries tend to devote
a higher proportion
of current expenditure
to services which
are sub-contracted
or bought in.
Data refer to
the financial year 1997
and are based on
the UOE data collection
on education statistics
administered in 1999
(for details see
Annex 3).
© OECD 2000
101