Course description

• Course content
• Learning outcome
• Admission
• Overlapping courses

• Teaching
• Examination
• Evaluation

Course content

The course aims to give the students fundamental knowledge, both theoretically and practically on cost accounting. There will be a focus on how managers or leaders could use cost accounting as a control mechanism (both in small and large institutions).  The course will combine lectures with case studies and assignments related to the health economics sector.

The course intends to give some background for students aiming at an accounting/ management position in hospitals and other medical services, but may also give relevant background knowledge for accounting work at more administrative levels.

Learning outcome

Knowledge

You will know:

• About cost assignment
• Factors influencing choice of an optimal cost system
• The differences between costing systems (such as ABC)
• Joint and by-product costing
• Process Costing and understand when it should be applied
• The content of cost-volume analysis
• Opportunity costs
• Process costing
• The relevance of cost and revenues for decision-making
• That alternative cost accumulation systems have an effect on income
• Queue Theory and Logistics in Health Services.
• Measuring relevant costs and revenues for decision-making
• Practice on problems

   

  Skills

  You will learn:

• Methods to conduct overhead analysis
• To explain equivalent units
• How to perform a cost-volume analysis
• Distinguish between joint and by-products
• About absorption costing  and variable costing systems
• Pros and cons for absorption and variable costing
• Linear cost and revenue functions
• About cost-volume analysis in a multiproduct setting
• The importance of quality factors
• The book value of equipment
• Opportunity cost
• To describe the ABC  (cost hierarchy, profitability analysis hierarchy, resource consumption model
• Motivate clinicians to focus on costs in their leadership
• Evaluate differing logistical models and do basic simulations of their costs

   

  General competence

  You will be able to:

• Understand the pros and cons for choosing different costing systems and understand how it could be applied in a health care setting

Admission

Students who are admitted to study programmes at UiO must each semester register which courses and exams they wish to sign up for in Studentweb.

If you are not already enrolled as a student at UiO, please see our information about admission requirements and procedures.

Overlapping courses

5 credits overlap with HME4304 ¨C Cost accounting and budgeting (discontinued)

Teaching

Each topic will be accompanied with a clinical problem from hospital services. The students will prepare for lectures by trying to solve current problems ahead of lectures, and the solution will be presented during the lectures.

Examination

Written exam (3 hours).

Grading

The Board at the University of Oslo has decided to introduce detailed guidelines for all examinations, which take place at the University. The description of the grading should be clear and transparent. This is done to ensure alignment between learning outcomes, assignments, and grading. The Faculty of Medicine has developed a web page with information regarding exams and the grading procedures (norwegian version).

Examination support material

Four types of calculators are allowed to be used during the examination:

• Citizen SR-270X
• Citizen SR270X BTSPU
• Casio FX-82MS
• TI-30XIIS.

Language of examination

For students at Eu-HEM: English

For students at HEPAM: The problem set will be given in English. Answers can be given in Norwegian, Swedish, Danish or in English.

Grading scale

Grades are awarded on a scale from A to F, where A is the best grade and F is a fail. Read more about the grading system.

Explanations and appeals

• Explanation of grades and appeals

Resit an examination

For HEPMA students:

• Illness at exams / postponed exams
• Resitting an examination

For Eu-HEM students:

An EU-hem student cannot present her or himself for the examination in a course more than two times. There will be held re-sits for EU-hem students who have failed an exam or who have legitimate absence (usually illness) in January and August. If you are entitled to a re-sit you must contact the student advisor via email no longer than one week after the result of the exam has been published.

Withdrawal from an examination

It is possible to take the exam up to 3 times. If you withdraw from the exam after the deadline or during the exam, this will be counted as an examination attempt.

Special examination arrangements

Application form, deadline and requirements for special examination arrangements.

Evaluation

The course is subject to continuous evaluation. At regular intervals we also ask students to participate in a more comprehensive evaluation.