Abstract: Financial autonomy in general education institutions in Vietnam has been and will be drawing great attention from researchers, scholars, and macro policy makers. This study aims to evaluate the current situation of financial autonomy in general education institutions in Vietnam and the effectiveness of financial autonomy policies. On that basis, the authors propose some solutions for the State to make proper investments in Education and Training and implement educational socialization, supporting schools in social resources mobilization, improving education quality, and reducing financial burden for the State. The research uses desk research methods, qualitative methods of focus group discussion, in-depth interviews, and observation during the survey. The findings reveal that several general education institutions in Vietnam have achieved success in financial autonomy implementation, mobilizing diverse resources for their sustainable development. However, a lot of institutions in Vietnam are hesitant when it comes to financial autonomy because they are worried that they do not have sufficient necessary conditions to ensure success. On this basis, the authors recommend that the State needs to re-plan and organize the general education institution system in Vietnam, investigate and evaluate the current autonomy status across the system, and develop a financial autonomy roadmap for the institutions. For general education institutions, it is necessary to make detailed financial plans for each academic year or each period, including forecasts of revenues, expenditure, and investments in teaching activities, facilities, extracurricular activities, ensuring transparency in disclosure of income and spending, especially tuition fees and other fees. Besides, the institutions need to assist parents and the community to oversee and be engaged in the management. Moreover, it is important to enhance the capability to use accounting and financial management software, modern financial tools to supervise, analyse, and maximize their financial activities, avoiding incidents and waste, and improving effectiveness in resource exploitation.

Keywords: general education institutions, financial autonomy, university autonomy, education policy, university autonomy policy, general education autonomy, financially autonomous

Pages: 1249-1260