Kostenko I. Optimization of economic relations in the system of higher education of Ukraine from the standpoint of public utility.

The thesis at aimed at deepening theoretical and methodological bases and developing practical recommendations as for directions of economic relations optimization in the system of higher education of Ukraine from the standpoint of public utility. To this end, the paper generalizes and systematizes the scientific and methodological principles of formation and optimization of economic relations in the higher education system, substantiates the regularity of the relationship between the level of education and economic development of the countries, offers a comparative analysis of structural indicators of higher education market development, identifies the main factors influencing the cost of higher education services in Ukraine, proposes models of supply and demand for higher education services in Ukraine in terms of individual specialties and identifies the impact of tuition costs on demand for educational services. It also provides practical recommendations for ways to optimize economic relations in the system of higher education in Ukraine from the standpoint of public utility. The scientific and methodological approaches to the formation of economic relations in the system of higher education are generalized and the productive and selective functions of education are singled out. A significant role of the higher education system is vertical social mobility, which serves as a social elevator in society as the increase in the level of education affects the social status and income differentiation. On the other hand, education is a mechanism for selecting the population according to their educational level; the data on the educational level indicates the potential productivity of the employee in various fields. The abovementioned approaches make the study of the effectiveness of investment in education from the perspective of various participants in this process relevant. The economic basis for obtaining higher education services for the population is additional income from raising the level of education, and the potential cost of education is the invested capital. The public utility of higher education services in the work was considered as a utilitarian function. The practical significance of the results of the thesis is determined by the possibility of using the main provisions, conclusions and recommendations of the research. The influence of external factors on the demand of Ukraine’s ES has been determined, indicating the need to reform the wage-setting mechanism in order to increase the level of income differentiation of the population, which will correspond to their educational level. The influence of internal factors on the demand and supply of the ES of Ukraine was analyzed, among which targeted placement of openings by the state order, indicating the need for the executive authorities to review the distribution mechanism and places by state order and their quantity. Studies of the mechanism of tuition cost formation in HEIs under the conditions of state regulation in the context of educational optimization indicate the projected redistribution of the ratio of private and public services in the higher education system. Consistent policy on the part of the executive should take into account the formation of the required number of licenses in private education to meet the demand for higher education services for the population, as well as the creation of preferential lending programs for obtaining higher education, based on credit efficiency due to interdependence discount rate, in order to increase the solvency of the population and ensure the function of higher education services as a factor of vertical social mobility. An important role for the development of Ukraine is played by increasing the level of cooperation between HEIs and stakeholders.