Tuition fees at universities will rise: what the Ministry of Education and Science said about contracts
1 April 07:30
In Ukraine, tuition fees for private students at higher education institutions are likely to rise again in the coming academic year. Representatives of the Ministry of Education and Science made this announcement during a briefing, according to "Komersant Ukrainian"
The Ministry of Education and Science attributes this trend to rising university costs, primarily due to salary increases for staff and the need to establish special funds.
According to Deputy Minister of Education Mykola Trofimenko, by 2025, tuition fees for contract-based education have already risen by nearly 30%, and this trend is likely to continue.
The ministry emphasizes that universities should not “dump” the price of education if they want to retain staff and ensure a high-quality educational process.
Why tuition at universities is getting more expensive
The Ministry of Education and Science attributes the price increase primarily to rising costs at the universities themselves. Mykola Trofimenko stated that university staff salaries were raised by 30% as of January 1, 2026, with another 20% increase planned for the future. That is why, according to the ministry’s logic, the price of contract-based education must be “adequate” and correspond to the actual cost.
Separately, the Ministry of Education and Science noted that the state has increased funding by 10% for displaced educational institutions from frontline territories, but these funds are not factored into the calculation of the cost of education. In other words, this additional funding does not mean that tuition will automatically become cheaper.
What the Ministry of Education and Science Says About “Expensive” Education
Oleg Sharov, Director of the Directorate for Higher Education and Adult Education, emphasized during the same briefing that quality higher education cannot be cheap. According to him, the state pays for state-funded students, while families pay for contract students. He also stressed that Ukrainian higher education remains cheaper than in many European countries.
Sharov also explained that without raising tuition fees, Ukrainian institutions risk losing faculty members who will seek employment abroad. In other words, the Ministry of Education and Science’s argument boils down to the fact that higher tuition fees are seen as one way to retain the educational system’s human resources.
What this means for students and parents
For families paying for tuition, this means a high probability of further increases in contract fees as early as the new academic year. At the same time, specific amounts will depend on the university, the major, and the institution’s internal policies, since there is no uniform rate for all universities.
The most vulnerable to such price hikes may be popular majors in large cities, where tuition is already high. At the same time, the ministry signals that it does not consider the current price to be inflated; on the contrary, it calls it economically justified.
What about state-funded spots and refusals of state-funded enrollment
At the same time, the Ministry of Education and Science has drawn attention to the situation with state-funded spots. According to Oleg Sharov, in 2025, the number of applicants who declined state-funded spots decreased to 4.3%. For comparison: in 2022, this figure was 5.7%, in 2023—8.8%, and in 2024—10.8%.
The ministry attributes the previous increase in refusals to the appeal of educational grants introduced in 2024. At the same time, the share of unconfirmed contract offers currently remains at 25%, although the Ministry of Education and Science expects this figure to decrease.
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