What are the main trends on university financing in Latin America? Which models would be appropriate, considering the functions of the institution? These are the major questions dealt with in the article. Based on illustrative trends, and considering the economic scenario of the region, the text initially deals with alternatives on the role of the State and sets out contrasts between financing proposals originating from BID and Unesco for developing countries. Discussing resource allocation models, the article addresses the diversification of funding sources; conditional contracting as related to markets and government interference, in the light of the European experience; university management as the administration of a complex institution, in which academic and entrepreneurial approaches necessarily face each other; the ethical responsibility for efficiency and the preservation of autonomy. Concluding the analysis, the text argues in favor of one of the models discussed, which involves institutional evaluation, this being understood as a required ingredient of accountability and as a mediation among society, State and university.
