§ Mrs. LawrenceTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the average expenditure per postgraduate student was in(a) the UK, (b) the US and (c) the OECD in the last year for which figures are available. [174132]
§ Alan JohnsonInternational comparisons of expenditure on higher education cover all 'tertiary' education which includes both under and postgraduate study. The OECD's "Education at a Glance 2003" gives figures for the year 2000, the latest year for which comparable figures are available. It shows expenditure per higher education student per year in the UK was US $9,657, above the OECD average (US $9,571). Expenditure per student was highest in the USA (US1156W $20,538). At current rates of exchange, equivalent figures in sterling are: UK £5,461, OCED £5,413 and USA £11,615.