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Indian Journal of Finance and Banking; Vol. 4, No. 1; 2020 
                                       ISSN 2574-6081   E-ISSN 2574-609X 

Published by Centre for Research on Islamic Banking & Finance and Business, USA 

84 

 

Comparing the Applications of Management Accounting between 
Vietnamese Public Universities by the Degree of Autonomy 

 
 
 

Oanh Thi Tu LE PhD 
 University of Labour and Social Affairs, Hanoi, Vietnam 

E-mail: oanhletu@gmail.com 

 
Phong Thi Thu Tran 

Hanoi Open University, Vietnam 
E-mail: thuphonghou@gmail.com 

 
 

Abstract 

This study was conducted based on a survey of 53 public universities in Vietnam to evaluate the applications of 

management accounting in universities according to the following metrics: (i) Cost classification; (ii) Conducting and 

evaluating budgets; (iii) Management responsibility; and (iv) Using information to make short-term and long-term 

decisions. The results showed that public universities have some interest in management accounting information, especially 

responsibility accounting. However, management accounting information which has not been used much in Vietnamese 

universities includes controllable and uncontrollable costs and variance analysis between actual results and estimates. 

Regarding the degree of autonomy, fully or partially autonomous universities tend to apply management accounting more 

than non-autonomous universities in terms of the cost per student, the fees for repeat classes, and management 

responsibility. The research results showed the need to use management accounting information when universities increase 

their autonomy. 

 
JEL Classification: M40, M41, M49. 
 
1. Introduction 
The system of public universities plays an important role in the economics of each country by the higher education system 
development. Along with the international integration trend, higher education is changing rapidly in all ways. University 
autonomy is inevitable for the development of education and training. Therefore, universities in general and public 
universities in particular need to constantly improve the quality of training and branding. Public universities are state-owned 
training institutions which are funded by the state budget to establish, finance operations. The activities of public 
universities must comply with the principles of authorized state agencies (Vu, 2017). 

University autonomy is the freedom of a higher education institution for its operations neither the management 
nor influence of the government (Anderson & Johnson, 1998). According to Vietnam’s Education Law (2005) university 
autonomy includes regulations on personnel, academic autonomy and finances. The degree of university autonomy is 
associated with the model of autonomy and is always changing to suit the socio-economic context of each country (Nguyen, 
2020). The models of autonomy classify different degrees of autonomy including (1) non-autonomous (state control); (2) 
semi-autonomous and (3) independent. As of December 2018, Vietnam had 171 public universities (accounting for 
72.45% of the total number of universities) (Nguyen, 2020). Facing the challenge of fierce competition of international 
integration, public universities in Vietnam have been given autonomy in their operations. The assignment of university 
autonomy was stipulated in the Vietnam’s Education Law (2005) conducted under Resolution 77/NQ-CP issued on 
October 24, 2014 on Piloting the renovation of public tertiary during 2014 - 2017. Furthermore, the Decree 
16/2015/ND-CP of the Government which stipulates the autonomy mechanism of public institutions has marked a 
change in management goals of public university. According to this Decree, the right of autonomy and self-responsibility of 
public universities includes (i) performing tasks; (ii) organizational structure and personnel; (iii) financial autonomy. 
Autonomy in performing tasks includes the right to identify the missions, the visions, and autonomy in recruitment 
activities, training, scientific research and international cooperation. Autonomy in organizational structure and personnel 
presents in the freedom to recruit, manage and use employees. Financial autonomy means that a university has to take 
responsibility for finance issues, generate revenues and use financial resources instead of being granted by the State. 
Recently, according to a report of the Ministry of Education and Training (2018) university autonomy has made positive 
changes such as reducing administrative procedures, increasing initiative and flexibility in the implementation of universities’ 
activities. This transformation does not only stem from the objective demands and the change of the environment of 
education but it is also motivated by the regulations and policies issued by the Party and the Government. 

  
Keywords:    Management Accounting, Public Universities, Autonomy, Vietnam. 

 
.      

mailto:thuphonghou@gmail.com


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Thus, by shifting from a state control model to a more autonomous model, public universities must operate more 
effectively and efficiently. Management accounting is one of the effective tools to help university administrators to have 
timely, complete and predictive information to support decision making (Truong, 2010). Management accounting has 
shifted from providing simple information to providing information for short-term and long-term decision-making. 
Purpose of management accounting is to improve operational efficiency and profitability by providing information for 
planning, controlling, and decision making (Sunarni, 2013). 

Vietnam has overcome many difficulties since 1986, the Innovation time and has accomplished great 
achievements of historical significance (Le et al., 2020). The third and fourth industrial revolutions have brought not only 
tremendous opportunities, but also significant challenges. The 4.0 revolution has brought Vietnam opportunities for 
development in all economic, cultural and educational fields. Vietnam's education in general has achieved the certain 
achievements and (Le, 2020). The university autonomy is indispensable to fit the challenges. This process still has many 
shortcomings that need to be improved. The paper aims to compare differences in the applications of management 
accounting among public universities in Vietnam by the degree of autonomy. 

  
2. Literature Review 
The applications of management accounting and changes of information regarding the assignment of autonomy in 
universities have received attention from many researchers. 

Le (2017) considered management accounting as a tool for financial autonomy in public universities. The author 
proposed the classification of variable costs and fixed costs; identified cost objects according to training level and training 
system; assessed the impact of cost fluctuation on financial performance of the school. 

Yasmiza et al. (2017) analyzed the role of management accounting in Malaysian public universities. The research 
showed that administrators of Malaysian Universities were interested in the most important types of accounting information 
including reports, budgets and strategic management accounting. The research also showed that teamwork and willingness to 
take responsibility are the most demanding skills of accounting in Malaysian public universities. 

 The research on management accounting in public universities was investigated current situation of responsibility 
accounting in Ugandan public universities (Owino et al., 2016). The study found that there existed responsibility accounting 
systems in public universities in which costs and revenues were accrued and reported from faculty and from faculty to university 
management, the head of the department has the authority to manage their estimates of budget allocation. However, 
responsibility accounting which follows the model of decentralization in public universities is not emphasized. The reporting 
system of public university is mainly formal, which affects the use of information of the Board of Directors to make decisions. 

Agasisti & Johnes (2010) investigated the evaluation of efficiency in Italian universities in the rapid changes of 
higher education environment in Europe when the government delegated financial autonomy to universities. Research results 
showed that changes in cost structure and technical efficiency reduce profitability in universities. 

Horne & Hu (2008) evaluated the performance of Australian universities. By estimating the cost-effectiveness of 
36 universities in the period of 1995-2002 by random marginal analysis, the results showed that universities do not work 
effectively when evaluating the use of costs. Therefore, it suggested assigning responsibility to individual managers to have 
better costs control. 

Agasisti & Johnes (2010) evaluated the strategic management accounting in four major Italian universities in the 
rapidly changing environment of European universities from the mid-1980s when the government gave financial autonomy 
to universities. This change created challenges for administrators and accounting systems of universities. The study analyzed 
and recommended strategic management accounting for these universities in two aspects of resource allocation and new 
training programs. 

Cropper & Cook (2010) pointed out that many universities are not satisfied with their cost accounting systems 
and are seeking ways to change them. As financial resources of universities become more limited due to financial autonomy, 
it is necessary for universities to offset the costs with the revenue from training courses to better manage resources.  

Thus, the above studies have shown the importance of management accounting for universities in the context of 
the economy movement, the requirements of implementing autonomy mechanism. Researches have also shown a link 
between management accounting information and the application of management accounting techniques to improve 
universities performance. To assess if there is a difference in management accounting by the degree of autonomy has not 
been mentioned and this is an urgent issue for Vietnam while implementing the transition from state management to 
implement university autonomy. 
 
3. Methodology 
The study was conducted through sending questionnaires via email to 138 universities in Vietnam. The questionnaire 
was divided into 5 main parts: (i) Identification of operating costs; (ii) Budgeting activities; (iii) Assessment of 
management responsibility; and (iv) Using information in decision making; (v) Information of public university. The 
identification of operating costs was conducted using Yes/ No questions. The remaining questions used 5 -point Likert 
scale, in which 1 = Strongly disagree and 5 = Strongly agree. 

  

 

 



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Table 1. Autonomy Degree 

 

 Autonomy Degree N % 

Non autonomy 8 15.1% 

Semi autonomy 29 54.7% 

Full autonomy 16 30.2% 

Total 53 100% 

 

Source: Compiled by the authors based on research results 

 
Regarding characteristics surveyed public universities (Table 1), the number of questionnaires sent was 138, and 

the number of answers received was 53 that are equal to 40% in the response rate. The number of samples needed to 
conduct the study is 41 (Nguyen & Nguyen, 2015) at this rate, so the collected sample is sufficiently reliable to 
implement the research. Out of 53 surveyed universities, 16 were fully autonomous (30.2%), 29 were semi-autonomous 
(54.7%) and 8 universities were not autonomous. The structure of the surveyed universities is suitable for analysis because 
Vietnamese public universities are in the process of becoming fully autonomous. The number of non-autonomous 
universities is less than the number of autonomous. 

 

Table 2. Years of establishment  

 

 Years of establishment  N % 

< 10 years 3 5.7% 

10 - 20 years 9 17.0% 

20 - 50 years 16 30.2% 

> 50 years 25 47.2% 

Total 53 100% 

 

Source: Compiled by the authors based on research results 

 
In terms of number of years of establishment (Table 2), most of surveyed universities had been established for over 

50 years (25; 47.2%). The next most common group was universities which had been established for between 20 and 50 
years (16; 30.2%). The rest were universities which had been established for less than 20 years. Specific characteristics of 
Vietnamese public universities established early, with a long history of establishment and development. 

 

Table 3. Location of university 

 

 Location N % 

Northern 30 56.6% 

Central 11 20.8% 

Southern 12 22.6% 

Total 53 100% 

 

Source: Compiled by the authors based on research results 

 

Regarding location, the majority universities were located in the North of Vietnam (30; 56.6%). The number of 

universities located in the Central and the South of Vietnam were relatively equal (the rates are 20.8% and 22.6% 

respectively (Table 3). Regarding region, out of 138 public universities in Vietnam, the number of universities in the North 

accounted for 54%; the number of universities in the Central took up 20% and the number of universities in the South 

accounted to 27% (Vu, 2017). The distribution rate of the sample of 53 public universities surveyed is equivalent to the 

overall. 

 
4. Research Results 

4.1 Cost Classification   
Identifying the type of cost is always an important content of management accounting since it is the basis for evaluating 

and analyzing the effectiveness of cost control and providing information for managers to make decisions. Therefore , the 

survey used the Yes/No questions to investigate the current situation of cost classification of universities based on th e 

following classifications: (1) Variable and fixed costs; (2) Direct and indirect costs per student; (3) Direct and indirect 



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costs per faculty or department; (4) Cost factor (salary, scholarship, outside services); (5) Controllable and 

uncontrollable costs. The results are shown in Figure 1. 

Figure 1. Comparing the cost classificaion  

Source: Compiled by the authors based on research results 

 

According to Figure 1, all universities had implemented cost classification by factor. However, non-autonomous 

universities and partially autonomous universities are more interested in variable costs and fixed costs, direct and indirect 

costs (from 50% to 70%) than fully autonomous universities are (40%). In contrast, fully autonomous universities tend to 

keep track of controllable and uncontrollable costs more than the other two groups do (88%). 

 
4.2 Conducting and Evaluating Budgets 
Budgeting is a mandatory step for public universities to make reports to the government. Therefore, 100% of public 

universities make annual budgets for this purpose. However, from the perspective of management accounting, the cost 

budgeting is for the purposes of cost control, comparing actual results with estimates; evaluating cost budgets by division 

(faculty, department); analysis of variances according to price and quantity factors; finding causes of variances to adjust for 

future budgeting. The survey used the 5-point Likert scale (from “Strongly disagree” to “Strongly agree”) and compared 

mean values, actual budgeting situation of public universities. The results are shown in Figure 2. 

Figure 2. Comparing budgeting by the degree of autonomy 

Source: Compiled by the authors based on research results 

50%

63%

50%

100%

25%

60% 60%
67%

100%

43%41%
35%

41%

100%

88%

1. Variable costs and
fixed costs

2. Direct and indirect
costs/student

3. Direct and indirect
costs/department

4. Factor Costs 5. Controllable and
uncontrollable costs

Non autonomy Semi autonomy Full autonomy

3.88 

3.38 

2.88 
3.00 

4.20 

3.40 
3.63 

4.00 4.12 

3.59 

3.24 

3.82 

1. Estimates and actual
variances (entire university)

 2.  Estimates and actual
variances (each department)

3.  Factor variance analysis 4. Finding the varianve cause

Non autonomy Semi autonomy Full autonomy



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Figure 2 indicates that, in general, partially and fully autonomous universities tend to implement more budgets 

than non-autonomous universities. Specifically, variances between the estimates and actual results (the entire university, each 

department) among these 3 groups of universities are relatively similar, (mean values ranging from 3.4 to 4.12, which 

correspond to a score of “agree”). There is a significant difference regarding variance analysis by factor and cause among 3 

groups of universities, in which, partially and fully autonomous universities had similar results (mean values ranging from 

3.8 to 4.0), non-autonomous universities had the lowest mean value. 

 
4.3 Management Responsibility 
The management responsibility in public universities refers to the decentralization, the level of responsibility assigned to 

each department, the individual in charge of the department, thereby helping to control operational efficiency. To find out 

the difference in the management responsibility by the degree of autonomy of universities, a comparison of mean values 

were made. The results are shown in Figure 3. 

 
Figure 3. Comparing management responsibility   

Source: Compiled by the authors based on research result 

                  The group of non-autonomous universities had lower mean values regarding the management responsibility 

(mean values ranging from 2.7 to 3.63) (Figure 3). Particularly, the assignment of cost responsibility to each department 

and individual in charge of each department had not received much attention. Partially autonomous universities and fully 

autonomous universities had relatively similar results. Specifically, partially autonomous universities had slightly higher 

mean values, especially regarding the responsibility to service centers. 

 

3.63 

2.75 

3.50 3.50 

4.07 
3.73 

4.13 

3.97 

4.24 

3.65 

4.35 
4.24 

1. Obvious management
decentralization

2. Assign responsibility to
segment

3. Assign responsibility to
service centers

4. Leaders responsible for their
department results

Non autonomy Semi autonomy Full autonomy



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Figure 4. Comparing the evaluation criteria 

Source: Compiled by the authors based on research results 

 

Base on criteria used to evaluate performance including controllable and uncontrollable costs/profits, segment 

profits, RI, ROI (Figure 4), groups of universities had similar results with mean values of approximately 3.0. The partially 

autonomous universities and partially autonomous universities had higher mean values than non-autonomous universities. 

Partially autonomous universities used these criteria the most (mean from 3.13 to 3.37). Autonomous universities tend to 

use these criteria less. 

 
4.4 Information for Decision Making  
Regarding the use of management accounting information in making short-term decisions, 100% of universities’ leaders 

used management accounting information. The basic information used include breakeven point, class size, cost per student, 

implementation of joint training programs, tuition fees for short-term training courses, wage per teaching hour. A 

comparison of the use of information in decision making by the level of autonomy in is shown in Figure 5. 

 

Figure 5. Comparing the use of information in making short-term decisions 

Source: Compiled by the authors based on research results 

3.00 3.13 3.00 3.00 
3.13 

3.37 

3.73 

3.20 

2.88 

3.41 
3.41 

2.88 

1. Controllable and
uncontrollable costs / profits

2. Segment profit 3. Residual Income (RI) 4. Return on investment
(ROI)

Non autonomy Semi autonomy Full autonomy

3.8 4.0

3.5

4.0

3.5

4.0

3.7
3.6

3.8
3.9 4.0 4.0

3.7 3.7 3.8
3.9

4.1 4.1

1. Breakeven point
/ course

2. The again class
scales

3.Unit cost per
student

4. Joint training 5. Short-term
tuition fees

6. Unit price of
lecture hours

Non autonomy Semi autonomy Full autonomy



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Universities were relatively consistent when using the information to make decisions about the breakeven point 

analysis, wage per teaching hour and joint training programs (mean values ranging from 3.7 to 4.0, which correspond to a 

score of “agree”) (Figure 5). Fully autonomous universities tend to use management accounting information to make 

decisions more than the other two groups. Partially autonomous universities and fully autonomous universities had similar 

results. The only significant difference is using information for making decisions about short-term training courses. Non-

autonomous universities used such information to varying degrees. Particularly, they used the information to determine the 

class size joint training programs more than the other two groups and used the information about the cost per student and 

tuition fees of short-term courses less than the other two groups. 

When comparing the use of information for making long-term decisions such as the balanced scorecard, activity-

based costing or responsibility accounting (Figure 6), groups of universities had relatively similar results (mean values 

ranging from 3.5 to 4.1). Responsibility accounting information was used the most, which was followed by activity-based 

costing. All groups did not support the balanced scorecard. Fully and partially autonomous universities used this 

information more than non-autonomous universities. 

Figure 6. Comparing the use of information in making long-term decisions 

Source: Compiled by the authors based on research results 

5. Discussion and Conclusion 
Study on the applications of management accounting in public universities according to the degree of autonomy reflect the 
similarities of universities that they implement cost classification by factors, make annual budgets, compare the variance 
between the estimates and actual results. In addition, the Board of Administrators attaches great importance to management 
accounting information to make decisions. However, three groups of universities also had certain differences, namely: 

  Regarding cost classification, controllable and uncontrollable costs which are essential in cost control are used 
more by fully autonomous universities than the other two groups. However, fully autonomous universities did not pay much 
attention on cost classifications to prepare reports for decision making. Namely, variable costs and fixed costs are used to 
make decisions regarding additional options; direct and indirect costs per student serve as a basis for determining breakeven 
points for training courses, training majors, joint programs; Direct and indirect costs for each department serve as a basis for 
decision making, cost control for each department, faculty, and unit. 

 Regarding budgeting, fully autonomous and partly autonomous universities pay more attention on variance 
analysis by factors and finding the causes than non-autonomous universities. This limits the provision of appropriate 
information to find nature of the differences, responsible individuals or departments to make necessary adjustments in the 
next accounting period.  

 In terms of management responsibility, autonomous universities (fully and partially) had similar assessments of 
management responsibility. However, they rated the management responsibility higher than non-autonomous universities. 
Particularly, fully autonomous universities had the highest assessment of those management responsibilities, especially 
responsibility to service centers, which indicates that the autonomy requires universities to have efficient use of finances. The 
results of performance evaluation criteria are similar. Specifically, fully and partially autonomous universities used evaluation 
criteria more than non-autonomous universities. The assignment of rights and responsibilities will help service centers 
improve their performance. 

3.8 

3.5 
3.6 

3.8 3.9 
4.0 4.1 

3.6 

1. Responsibility accounting 2. Activities Based Costs (ABC) 3. Balance Score Card

Non autonomy Semi autonomy Full autonomy



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In terms of the use of relevant information relevant for decision making, fully autonomous universities tend to 
provide and use more management accounting information. This means that management accounting information is more 
useful to the administrators when universities shift to the autonomy mechanism. Non-autonomous universities provide 
information inconsistently. Regarding information for making long-term decisions, the balanced scorecard is still a complex 
method that had not been used much by universities compared to responsibility accounting. With the autonomy 
mechanism, public universities in Vietnam had paid great attention to responsible accounting information. 

The results reflected characteristics of Vietnam universities in transition from the state's funded mechanism to 
autonomy. Although universities need changes to adapt and improve the effectiveness, employees are no changes and their 
thinking still has the influence of the protection mechanism. This change needs a process. On the other hand, management 
accounting in universities is still quite new in Vietnam. Without autonomy, universities are used to providing information 
according to the requirements of the state, which is stereotypical. Therefore, the importance of information in decision 
making has not been given. Information on costs, cost classifications, variance analysis on implementation and budget for 
the adjustment in the next period, assigning management responsibilities to each department on costs and revenue, cost-
volume-profit analysis ... have not really been paid attention. When shifting to autonomy, universities must operate as 
businesses, self-balancing finance and management accounting. The comparison of the application of management 
accounting between Vietnamese Universities by the degree of autonomy has been different. Accordingly, fully autonomous 
universities have focused on applying management accounting more than partially autonomous ones, while partly 
autonomous universities have also applied the management accounting better compared to non-autonomous universities. 
This finding indicates the necessity of using management accounting information when public universities are given 
autonomy.  

 
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