By statute, vocational colleges fall under the authority of the Ministry of Education. Since 1991 they have been run as independent, non-profit institutions which comply with objectives and frameworks laid down by the Ministry. Governance and financing set great store by a system which is decentralized, flexible, market-led, product orientated and which promotes development and innovation.

A board of 6-12 members is responsible for the overall management of the individual college: one from the county council, one from the local council and the remaining number being equally distributed between the local employer and employee organizations representing the trades and vocational disciplines covered by the college. The board appoints a managing director, who is in charge of the day-to-day management. The board lays down the annual scope of activities of the college and approves the accounts and the budget on the recommendation of the managing director. The board is accountable to the Minister of Education.

Vocational colleges are financed by annual state grants allocated according to fixed objective criteria, first and foremost the activity level of the college reflected in the annual number of full-time students.

One full-time student per year is a unit which represents one student for 40 weeks, 40 students for one week, 10 students for four weeks and so on. One week consists of 32-36 lessons.

Finance in the form of state grants for teaching follows the so-called taxi-meter principle, i.e. fixed rates per full-time student. Taximeter rates differ according to the level of costs of the individual programmes.

Grants for administration consist of a basic amount and a possible additional amount (depending on the size of the college, the number of training programmes and so on), plus an amount according to a fixed rate based on the number of full-time students in the previous year.

Finance for operation and maintenance of buildings is appropriated according to a fixed rate of space requirements annually per full-time student.

Coverage of capital costs (rent, mortgage) is adjusted on the basis of
1) space per full-time annual student the previous year in relation to 2) the fixed standard space norm per student.

In this way colleges are ensured appropriation according to the annual number of students.

Finance is appropriated as a "lump sum grant". Colleges are free to make their own priorities irrespective of whether the means derive from taximeter grants for teaching or from adjustable grants for other costs. This means that the individual college will be able to save up for future investments.

Grants for research and development are allocated to the colleges by the Ministry of Education on application and after a specific assessment of the individual projects. As a guide the Ministry fixes for each year an order of priority of fields of research and development.



Monitoring of Vocational Education and Training Programmes
The social partners are an integrated part in the monitoring of the vocational education and training programmes in Denmark. The Ministry of Education lays down the objectives and frameworks of the education and training programmes. This takes place in co-operation with The Council for Vocational Education and the trade committees. The social partnes are represented in both organs. At the individual college, the local educational committee participates in the planning of the education and training programmes.