Activity-based costing and Marine Corps Formal Schools budgeting

Abstract

The purpose of this thesis is to evaluate the current practice for budget estimation and resource allocation in Marine Corps Formal Schools for potential improvement. The methodology used devises a budgeting system that reflects variation in activity level, or output requirements, and how costs change when student throughput changes. While the evaluation is relevant to Marine Corps Formal Schools in general, the research focused on an approach taken by the Marine Corps Engineer School for the development and design of its Cost Estimation and Resource Allocation Model and the potential for application in any Marine Corps school. The spreadsheet modeling technique employs the concepts of activity-based costing for cost estimation, resource allocation, and budget execution. The thesis addresses the shortcomings of current budgeting practices by applying a modeling technique that was designed to facilitate cost identification for direct and indirect course costs, as well as allocation of overhead and general/administrative costs, thereby providing for the association of costs with varying outputs.