Higher education funding policies in the BSR countries and higher education tuition expenses and thematic field indices in Latvia

The present article aims at analyzing higher education funding policies in Latvia and the Baltic Sea Region (BSR) countries. The paper also aims to determine tuition expenses per one student within different education cycles as well as thematic field indices used in the tertiary education system in Latvia by means of direct calculation. To reach these aims, the authors performed analysis of research literature on higher education funding policies. They also have investigated the factors that have an impact on these policies in Europe. Based on the results of content analysis, the authors 1) analyzed higher education policies of the BSR countries; 2) developed a research methodology for determining tuition expenses and thematic field indices in the tertiary education system of Latvia; 3) by means of direct calculation, determined tuition expenses per one student and tuition expense indices within different education cycles for Latvian higher education institutions (HEIs).Within the framework of the research on higher education policies in the BSR countries and the contributing factors it has been concluded that higher education institutions have full autonomy; each country applies different public funding calculation formulas and implements different funding models.Having conducted the research on higher education tuition expenses and thematic indices the following conclusions have been made: to ensure a high-quality study process it is necessary to systematically upgrade and purchase equipment; determining the thematic field indices by study program, the aspects of regional factors should be taken into account; the number of students differs at various study programs.