Funding

The main source of public higher education institutions’ funding is constituted of subsidies from the state budget. In order to cover operating costs, public higher education institutions use the following resources: 

• tuition fees, 
• study-related fees, 
• proceeds from further education,
• proceeds from public higher education institution’s property,
• proceeds from intellectual property,
• proceeds from school’s own financial funds,
• other proceeds from the main activity of the public higher education institution.

Funding from the state budget is provided to

• public higher education institutions from the budget of the Ministry of Education, Science, Research and Sport of the Slovak Republic,
• military higher education institutions from the budget of the Ministry of Defence of the Slovak Republic,
• police higher education institutions from the budget of the Ministry of Interior of the Slovak Republic,
• healthcare higher education institutions from the chapter of the Ministry of Health of the Slovak Republic (SK).

The ministry provides subsidies to public higher education institutions for the implementation of accredited study programmes; research, development and artistic activity; higher education institutions’ development; and for social support of students. The ministry provides subsidies to public higher education institutions under a contract.

The decisive factors when determining the subsidies for the implementation of accredited study programmes are the number of students, number of graduates, costs of the provided study programmes, integration of the higher education institution, quality, graduates’ employment outcomes and other perspectives associated with providing tuition.

Higher education institution’s income can also be constituted of subsidies from budgets of municipalities and higher territorial units. Another tool for funding science and technology in Slovakia is also Slovak Research and Development Agency. The agency is an organisation of the Ministry of Education, Science, Research and Sport of the Slovak Republic and it was founded for the purpose of supporting research and development in Slovakia by providing funding from the state budget for implementation of projects.

Public higher education institutions can use loans from banks to fund their research and development activity and capital expenditure, if approved by the higher education institution’s academic senate and administrative board. 

Financial autonomy and control

Subsidies from the state budget for the activity of higher education institutions are earmarked.

Public higher education institutions create the following financial funds from their profit:

• reserve fund,
• reproduction fund (designed for procurement of movable and immovable property),
• scholarship fund,
• fund for the support of study of students with special needs,
• social fund

A public higher education institution will use at least 40% of its income for generation of a reserve fund. A public higher education institution shall use the reserve fund for balancing the loss for previous year and for covering the unsettled loss from the previous years, if the public higher education institution shows such a loss. If a public school does not show any unbalanced loss, it may use the finances from the reserve fund to supplement its other financial funds. 

The public higher education institution will give its financial statement at the end of each calendar year and will present it to the Ministry at the date set by the latter for clearing financial relations with the State budget. At the same time, public higher education institutions are obliged to submit a budget proposal for the respective financial year to the ministry every year.

The ministry performs the inspection of public higher education institutions’ management.

Fees within public higher education

Full-time study at public and state higher education institutions is free of charge.

Students who exceeded the regular length of study of a study programme or who study more study programmes of the same degree have to pay tuition fees. The amount of tuition fees is determined by each higher education institution by means of internal regulations; however, it cannot exceed the maximum tuition fee amount defined by law. In academic year 2019/20, the annual tuition fees for full-time study programmes must not exceed 2,350 €,  in academic year 2020/21 must not exceed 2,450 €.

Part-time study at public and state higher education institutions is provided for a fee. The amount of the maximum annual tuition fees for an academic year for part-time study programmes is determined by a provision of the Ministry of Education, Science, Research and Sport of the Slovak Republic. The maximum annual tuition fee for academic year 2019/20 is 2,380 € for bachelor study programmes and 3,570 € for master study programme, for academic year 2020/21 it is 2,400 € for bachelor study programmes and 3,600 € for master study programme.

Public higher education institutions are legally obliged to publish the amount of tuition fees and study-related fees for the next academic year at least two months before the date when the application process starts.

Details on higher education study fees can be found in National Student Fee and Support Systems in European Higher Education.

If a student studies a study programme longer than the standard length of study without a serious reason, he/she must pay annual tuition fees set by the higher education institution for each extra year of study.

Study-related fees and tuition fees for foreigners are determined by the higher education institution. Tuition fees and study-related fees for students studying under international agreements will comply with the provisions of these agreements. The amount of fees is determined by the school’s internal regulations.

Public higher education institutions may require that applicants for study pay fees for the material provision of the admission procedure. The fees are derived from the higher education institution’s real expenditure connected with this action. 

Public higher education institutions may also require students to pay the following fees:

• for the issue of documents on the study and their copies, 
• for the issue of documents on completion of the study, if required in a foreign language (except for the diploma supplement, which is issued free-of-charge), 
• for the issue of copies of the documents on completion of the study and 
• for the recognition of equivalence of credentials.  

The fees’ amount is determined by an internal regulation of the higher education institution and derived from the real expenses incurred by the higher education institution in association with this operation.

The tuition fees and study-related fees may be reduced, remitted or their due dates may be deferred by the Rector, with regard to student’s study results, social situation and health, or other facts deserving special consideration, in accordance with the principles listed in the Statute of the higher education institution.

Tuition fees and study-related fees at private higher education institution are set by each higher education institution individually in their internal regulations.

Financial support for learners' families

Financial support for students’ families is provided indirectly in the form of family allowances and tax bonus.

More details can be found in chapter Early Childhood and School Education Funding: Financial support for learners' families.

Financial support for learners

Students are provided financial support directly in the form of scholarships and loans and indirectly in the form of subsidies for social support of students.

The indirect forms of social support include mostly the following services:

• catering and housing with regard to higher education institutions’ possibilities with an allowance for expenses associated with catering and housing,
• financial support and organisational support of sports activities, cultural activities, and university pastoral centres,
• discounted travel tickets.

Merit-based scholarship 

Higher education institutions grant students merit-based scholarship from the special-purpose funds of the state budget or their own sources by means of a scholarship fund. It aims to award the best students and motivate others to improve their study results.

Subsidies from the state budget are provided to higher education institutions in such a way, that 10% of the best full-time bachelor and master students at each higher education institution could be granted merit-based scholarship of an average 500 €. Criteria are set by each higher education institution or faculty.  Students are entitled to such scholarship provided they meet all criteria set by the higher education institution. The number of students granted the scholarship, as well as the amount of the scholarship, is in the higher education institution’s competence. The higher education institution publishes a list of students who were granted the merit-based scholarship.

Higher education institutions can grant merit-based scholarship to students of selected fields of study also beyond the basic merit-based scholarship. The list of the fields of study concerned is made by the ministry in the methodology of distribution of state budget subsidies for the respective year. The subsidy from the state budget will be provided in such a way that in 2020 15% of students could be granted a scholarship of an average of 1,200 €. The use of the funds is earmarked for students of selected fields of study and in special cases limited only to bachelor study programmes.

With regard to the resources available, a higher education institution can grant the special scholarships to students and graduates who completed their study not later than 90 days prior to being granted the scholarship. Special scholarships are granted primarily for the outstanding fulfilling of study duties, for having excellent results in the area of studies, research, development, artistic or sports activities, eventually, as a one-time or regular welfare benefit. Conditions for granting special scholarships are defined in the scholarship regulations of the higher education institution.

Need-based scholarship 

The social scholarship is designed for all higher education institution students who study at schools located in the Slovak Republic and who have a permanent residence in the Slovak Republic. Conditions are set by the Ministry of Education and they are the same for all higher education institutions. The amount of need-based scholarship depends on the income of family members who are assessed together with the student.

Only first-time full-time higher education students can be awarded need-based scholarship.

If the applicant studies at more higher education institutions, he/she applies for the need-based scholarship only at one higher education institution. The need-based scholarship is granted for a maximum period of four calendar months. Afterward, it is possible to apply for the scholarship again.

The monthly amount of need-based scholarship in academic year 2019/20 is 10-295 €.

The monthly amount of need-based scholarship in academic year 2020/21 is 10-300 €.

Students with special needs may be granted need-based scholarship also after exceeding the standard length of study provided it is due to their health disability.

PhD scholarship

Full-time PhD students with a permanent residence in an EU member state are entitled to scholarship over the standard length of study, which they will receive after registering for study.

The monthly scholarship amount is defined by a legislative regulation.

The state pays for students’ health insurance. Students can apply for social insurance (pension, sickness and unemployment insurance) as a voluntarily insured person.

Student loans

The system of social support also includes soft loans to students from the Fund for Education Support (SK). 

The fund for education support provides loans on concessional terms to selected target groups: 

1. higher education institution students, 
2. pedagogical employees of schools, 
3. professional employees,
4. PhD programme students, 
5. higher education institution teachers, research staff and art staff at higher education institutions up to the age of 35.

Applicants for loans must

• be citizens of the Slovak Republic,
• have the status of a Slovak citizen living abroad or
• be citizens of the European Union, who have right of permanent residence in the Slovak Republic, or be a family member of such citizen.

The loan must be paid back in 10 years at most. The amount of loan in academic year 2020/2021 is set to be 500-4000 € for bachelor and master degree students and 500-7000 € for PhD students.

The fund can provide a loan to a student only once in any given academic year and for a maximum of 6 academic years, which do not have to be consecutive. These are non-earmarked loans.

Private education

Private higher education institutions secure funding for their educational, research, development or artistic and other creative activity themselves.

The ministry of education may, after a statement of bodies representing higher education institutions, and with the approval of the Government, provide subsidies to the private higher education institution based on a request for the implementation of accredited study programmes, research, development or artistic activity and for the development of the higher education institution.

Private higher education institutions can receive dedicated funds for research and development projects.

The ministry provides private schools with subsidies for social support of students. 

The private higher education institution shall determine its tuition fees and fees associated with the study at a private higher education institution in its internal regulation. It will publish the amount of tuition fees and study-related fees for the next academic year at latest two months prior to the last day when applications for study can be submitted.

Private higher institutions are obliged to create and publish an annual report on their activity and submit it to the ministry; institutions which received subsidies from the state budget must submit an annual management report in the form and by the time determined by the ministry.

Legislative references 

National Council of the Slovak Republic, 2002.  Act No. 131/2002 on higher education and on the change and supplement to some acts as amended by subsequent provision (Zákon č. 131/2002 Z.z. o vysokých školách v znení neskorších predpisov) (last accessed 10/01/2020).

National Council of the Slovak Republic, 2005. Act No. 172/2005 on organization of the state support of research and development and on the supplement to Act No. 575/2001 of Law Code on organization of activities of the Government and organizations of the central state administration, as amended by subsequent provisions (Zákon č. 172/2005 Z.z. o organizácii štátnej podpory výskumu a vývoja a o doplnení zákona č. 575/2001 Z.z. o organizácii činnosti vlády a organizácii ústrednej štátnej správy v znení neskorších predpisov) (last accessed 17/07/2019).

National Council of the Slovak Republic, 2012. Act No. 396/2012 on the Education Support Fund (Zákon č. 396/2012 Z.z. o fonde na podporu vzdelávania) (last accessed 19/09/2019).

National Council of the Slovak Republic, 2003. Act No. 553/2003 on remuneration of some employees performing work in public interest and on the change and supplement to some acts (Zákon č. 553/2003 Z.z. o odmeňovaní niektorých zamestnancov pri výkone práce vo verejnom záujme a o zmene a doplnení niektorých zákonov) (last accessed 10/01/2020).

Ministry of Education, Science, Research and Sport of the Slovak Republic, 2006. Decree No. 102/2006 on granting social scholarship to students of higher education institutions as amended by subsequent provision (Vyhláška č. 102/2006 o priznávaní sociálneho štipendia študentom vysokých škôl v znení neskorších predpisov) (last accessed 31/05/2019).

Ministry of Education, Science, Research and Sport of the Slovak Republic, 2018. Provision setting the maximum annual tuition fee for academic year 2018/2019 for part-time study programmes  at public and state higher education institutions Opatrenie, ktorým sa ustanovuje suma maximálneho ročného školného na akademický rok 2019/2020 pre študijné programy v externej forme štúdia uskutočňované na verejných vysokých školách a štátnych vysokých školách (last accessed 20/06/2019).

Ministry of Education, Science, Research and Sport of the Slovak Republic, 2019. Provision setting the maximum annual tuition fee for academic year 2020/2021 for part-time study programmes  at public and state higher education institutions Opatrenie, ktorým sa ustanovuje suma maximálneho ročného školného na akademický rok 2020/2021 pre študijné programy v externej forme štúdia uskutočňované na verejných vysokých školách a štátnych vysokých školách (last accessed 22/06/2020).

Ministry of Education, Science, Research and Sport of the Slovak Republic, 2019. The methodology of distribution of state budget subsidies to public higher education institutions for 2019 (Metodika rozpisu dotácií zo štátneho rozpočtu verejným vysokým školám na rok 2019) (last accessed 21/08/2019).

Ministry of Education, Science, Research and Sport of the Slovak Republic, 2018. Methodological guidance. (Metodické usmernenie - Základ na určenie školného a poplatkov spojených so štúdiom) (last accessed 20/06/2019). 

Government of the Slovak Republic, 2018. Regulation of Government No. 388/2018  laying down increased scales of remuneration for employees in the performance of public service tasks (Nariadenie vlády č. 388/2018, ktorým sa ustanovujú zvýšené stupnice platových taríf zamestnancov pri výkone práce vo verejnom záujme) (last accessed 27/02/2020).