Analysis of Private and Social Costs of Education in Malaysia: An Overview

Expenditure on education is an investment because it generates future income. Educational expenses paid by households are private costs and the total expenses incurred by the public are social costs. The objective of this paper is to analyze the cost of education for each level of education. The results of the analysis show a direct relationship between costs and varying levels of education. The cost of primary education also varies by type of school. Daily expenses appear to have contributed the most in terms of private costs of education for primary and secondary schools, while fees and cost of living are the major components at the tertiary level. The total of private costs for examination class, particularly Form Three and Five, were higher due to the willingness of parents to pay for their tuition fees. Meanwhile, the financial constitution at the higher level of education involving first year students is at its highest peak because various initial requirements involving fees are needed to proceed with their studies. The cost of private education for 17 years of schooling is almost MYR120,000 per student while the social costs have increased to almost five-fold in the last decade. However, the findings of this analysis should be interpreted with caution because the data are cross-sectional and forgone earning is not included. A further research can be carried out by using panel data and larger sample.