Abstract. This paper presents the results of research on child involvement in supplementary education. This research was conducted by HSE in partnership with the Levada Center as part of the 2013 Education Markets and Organizations Monitoring project. The survey covered over 2,000 par-ents of school students involved in supplementary education provided by various institutions. Correlations between various parameters of student involvement in supplementary education (the rate and continuity or discontinuity of service consumption, the choice of supplementary educa-tion programs and institution types, and the place of supplementary education during free time and holidays) and family characteristics (place of residence, financial status, and cultural and ed-ucational background) are analyzed. Some solutions are suggested on how to overcome difficul-ties produced by differences in policies and the real situation in the field of supplementary edu-cation. For instance, the authors claim that national policies oriented at children from vulnerable socioeconomic backgrounds and those living in rural areas should be a combination of two in-struments: information, which raises parental awareness of and motivation for their children's supplementary education, and social support to disadvantaged families, including the introduc-tion of vouchers for supplementary education services, setting quotas for publicly funded places in high-quality supplementary education programs, and targeted financing for supplementary ed-ucation programs in rural schools and schools for difficult students.