The block grants for higher education institutions will consist of four subcategories:
| • | Institutional factor grants. |
| (3.1) | Research Output Grants |
| (3.1.1) | The National Plan proposes that: |
| • | Research resources should be concentrated in institutions where there is demonstrated capacity and/or potential based on approved mission and programme profiles. |
| • | There should be greater accountability for the use of research funds. |
| • | Research productivity should be enhanced. |
In line with these proposals, the new funding framework makes no provision for research input grants. Instead, research funding, apart from research development funds (which are discussed below) will be determined solely on the basis of research outputs.
| (3.1.2) | Research output grants will be determined on the basis of the following: |
| • | Publication units (as in the current formula). |
| • | Research masters and doctoral graduates. |
The Ministry recognises that basing research funding on publication units and graduate outputs may not be adequate in relation to the emerging national research policy framework, including the emerging higher education quality assurance framework. The Ministry is therefore committed to considering the inclusion of additional indicators of research outputs in future years, as new national research policies are developed and implemented.
| (3.1.3) | The allocation of research funds to institutions will be determined on the basis of two sets of research output calculations as follows: |
| • | An actual weighted total of the research outputs produced by each institution. |
| • | A normative weighted total of the research outputs, which each institution should have produced in accordance with benchmarks laid down by the Minister of Education. |
The annual research output grant of an institution will be based on the proportion its actual total represents of the normative total for the system. Any shortfall between an institution’s normative and actual research output may be allocated to it as a research development grant on the submission of an approved research development plan. During the initial years of the introduction of the new framework, the research development grants for which institutions may be eligible will be added to their block grants, without the prior submission of a research development plan. The Minister of Education will indicate in the Annual Ministerial Statement the time-frame for the linking of the research development grants to the submission of research development plans. However, it is imperative that institutions in their current planning and budgeting take into account that in future the research development grants would not be available as part of the block grant.
| (3.1.4) | The Minister of Education will on an annual basis in the context of the MTEF three-year rolling projections determine the following in respect of the research output grants: |
| • | What constitutes research outputs. |
| • | The weightings to be attached to the different research outputs. |
| • | The benchmark ratios of research outputs in relation to instruction/research staff in universities, universities of technology and comprehensive institutions. |
| • | Whether formal applications have to be submitted for the use of research development funds. |
| (3.2.1) | The National Plan for Higher Education emphasises the importance of improving student success, throughput and graduation rates from their current low levels. In line with this, the funding framework makes provision for teaching output grants to act as an incentive to encourage institutions to put in place steps to improve their success, throughput and graduation rates. |
| (3.2.2) | In the short-to-medium-term teaching output grants will be determined on the basis of completed non-research degrees and diplomas. The inclusion of degree credits in the determination of teaching output grants will be considered in the longer-term. However, the Ministry accepts that the new dedicated distance education institution merits attention as a special case in relation to the inclusion of degree credits. The Ministry is committed to undertaking the necessary investigations relating to the dedicated distance education institution, with a view to making the necessary adjustments in the 2005/2006 MTEF triennium. |
| (3.2.3) | Research masters and doctoral graduates will not be considered for inclusion in the determination of teaching output grants as they are included in the determination of research output grants (discussed in 3.1 above). |
| (3.2.4) | Teaching output grants will be determined on the basis of the following: |
| • | An actual weighted total of the teaching outputs produced by each institution. |
| • | A normative weighted total of the teaching outputs which each institution should have produced, in accordance with benchmarks laid down by the Minister of Education. |
| (3.2.5) | The annual teaching output grant of an institution will be based on the proportion its actual total represents of the normative total for the system. Any shortfall between an institution's normative and actual teaching output totals may be paid to it as a teaching development grant. During the initial years of the introduction of the new framework, the teaching development grants for which institutions may be eligible will be added to their block grants, without the prior submission of a teaching development plan. The Minister of Education will indicate in the Annual Ministerial Statement the time-frame for the linking of the teaching development grants to the submission of teaching development plans. However, it is imperative that institutions in their current planning and budgeting take into account that in future the teaching development grants would not be available as part of the block grant. |
| (3.2.6) | The Minister of Education will on an annual basis in the context of the MTEF three-year rolling projections determine the following in respect of the teaching output grants: |
| • | What constitutes teaching outputs. |
| • | The weightings to be attached to teaching outputs. |
| • | The benchmark ratios for teaching outputs in relation to the head count totals of enrolled students. |
| • | Whether formal applications have to be submitted for the use of teaching development funds. |
| (3.3) | Teaching Input Grants |
| (3.3.1) | Teaching input grants will be generated by enrolled totals of full-time equivalent (FTE) students, which (i) have been weighted according to ratios contained in a teaching input grid; (ii) conform to student enrolment plans approved by the Minister of Education. |
| (3.3.2) | The teaching input grid, which will be contained in the Annual Ministerial Statement, is based on aggregations of educational subject matter categories (CESM categories), which are subject to weightings by funding group and course level. |
| (3.3.3) | The teaching input grid will be reviewed and adjusted if: |
| • | New national academic policies are introduced. |
| • | Course classifications and levels are changed. |
| • | Future cost analyses, which would be undertaken at regular intervals, indicate that the location of fields of study within o the grid should change. |
| (3.3.4) | The Ministry’s approval of institutional three-year rolling plans, which will include approval of student enrolment plans will be consolidated into system wide totals of FTE student places to be funded by government during the next MTEF triennium. |
| (3.3.5) | An institution’s teaching input grant for any given year will be generated by the actual total of FTE student enrolments, adjusted, if necessary, in line with the student enrolment plan approved by the Minister of Education. The adjustment process would be as open and transparent as possible. Institutions would be invited to make submissions to explain deviations in their FTE enrolled totals from those approved by the Minister. |
| (3.3.6) | The Minister of Education will on an annual basis in the context of the MTEF three-year rolling projections determine the following in respect of the teaching input grants: |
| • | The teaching input grid groupings, its weightings by Classification of Education Subject Matter categories and its aggregations by course level. |
| • | The planned totals of FTE student places (i) for the higher education system; (ii) for each higher education institution. |
| • | The adjustment of FTE enrolled student totals for any given year to enable them to serve as proxies for the planned FTE student places needed for the calculation of the grant. |
| (3.4) | Institutional Factor Grants |
| (3.4.1) | The current funding framework makes provision for institutional set-up subsidies, which compensate institutions for basic running costs, irrespective of the size of their student body. A similar provision has not been included in the new funding framework as it is inconsistent with the fundamental principle of the new framework, that is, that government funds higher education, not to defray costs, but for the delivery of teaching-related and research-related services. |
| (3.4.2) | However, institutional adjustment factors will be included to take account of special circumstances related to the teaching services offered by institutions. In the initial years of the implementation of the new framework, the teaching input grants of institutions may be adjusted to take account of these two special circumstances: |
| • | The proportion of disadvantaged students enrolled by the institution, and the additional teaching input required to deal with these students under-preparedness for higher education studies. |
| • | The approved size of the institution in terms of its FTE enrolments, and the economies of scale, which result from increased enrolments. |
| (3.4.3) | The Minister of Education will on an annual basis in the context of the MTEF three-year rolling projections determine the following in respect of the institutional factor grants: |
| • | The categories of students that are deemed to be disadvantaged. |
| • | The institutional weighting factor for calculating disadvantage. |
| • | The institutional weighting factor for calculating size. |
| (3.4.4) | The Ministry is committed to the introduction of an institutional factor to take into account the needs of multi-campus institutions, which would emerge as a result of the current institutional restructuring process. The Ministry will, during 2004/05, undertake investigations into the operations of the newly merged and other multi-campus institutions to determine the basis for the allocation of an appropriate institutional factor. |
