Organisation and Governance

The basic characteristics of the administration of education are its further democratization and decentralization as well as broadening the autonomy given to the education establishments. The administration of school education is organised on four levels: national, regional, municipal and school level. The Ministry of Education, Youth and Science (MEYS) is a specialised body of the Council of Ministers for the administration of education.

Functions of the State in the management of Higher Education

The State shall provide conditions for unrestricted development of higher education, as well as conditions for access to higher education through:

1. elaborating and implementing national policies for the higher education development and ensuring higher schools' academic autonomy;
2. overseeing the quality of specialist training and research;
3. subsidising tuition at public higher schools; providing, under certain conditions, scholarships and dormitories for students;
4. creating and maintaining a system of granting loans for the purposes of paying tuition fees and for support and providing, under certain conditions, social benefits for undergraduate and graduate students, doctoral candidates (doctoral students), and trainees engaged in specialised and professional studies;
5. providing property to public higher schools and granting tax and other concessions to all higher schools in the performance of their activities;
6. organising the operations of the National Evaluation and Accreditation Agency;
7. prescribing the terms of formal recognition applicable to diplomas granted by institutions of higher education both in Bulgaria and abroad.

The State shall exercise its functions in the management of higher education through the National Assembly and the Council of Ministers. The state authority vested with the implementation of national policies in the area of higher education shall be the Minister of Education and Science.

The National Evaluation and Accreditation Agency under the Council of Ministers is the specialised state authority vested with the assessment, accreditation and quality control of the higher schools’ activities.