One of the peculiarities of the modern stage of world development is that the formation of knowledge economy and the role of human capital is increasing. Lifelong learning is becoming the norm, and the ability to constantly learn and acquire new skills is seen as an important characteristic of the labor force. Higher education is becoming widespread, and the share of the labor force with higher education in post-industrial society is estimated to be around 30%-40%. The estimated return on investment in higher education is 12%. In recent years, there have been significant and controversial changes in the financing of education. In many countries, public higher education systems do not have sufficient resources to meet rapidly growing demand. The growing contribution of the private sector to higher education is becoming a steady trend in all countries. Households, companies and philanthropic foundations are becoming important sources of financing for the development of universities and colleges.All this raises the problem of creating such financing mechanisms that would provide for the expanding production of human resources.