Study of student costs using activity based costing methodology - aair

Explanation of the secondary cost allocation
6. Analysis of Student Costs
The following table summarises the total of student costs per EFTSU. 21
Student costs: Total student costs per EFTSU
Average Faculty costs
Average Administrative costs
Total
Undergraduate
Part-time
Full-time
6,076
4,398
3,501
2,235
9,577
6,633
Part-time
7,180
4,264
11,444
Postgraduate
Full-time
8,043
2,929
10,972
The results of the financial model revealed:
1. Only small variations in central administration or support costs between part-time and full-time
students.
2. The vast majority of central administration costs which reflect centralised overheads and support
activities, are dependent on actual student numbers as opposed to EFTSUs; the only exceptions are
library costs and computing costs which are affected by student workload.
3. A number of support activities within faculties are dependent upon student numbers and are
unrelated to student workload, eg. course development and administration.
4. As a university average, the total cost of part-time undergraduate students when viewed in terms of
cost per EFTSU is 44% higher than full-time undergraduate students.
The broad conclusions from the study were:
1. Student cost is not proportional to a student’s workload (or EFTSU);
21 Ibid., Figure 3.