Chart of Accounts

The categories of the new Functional Chart of Accounts for Qatar University, proposed in 2010-11 are similar (but not exactly the same) to the specific definitions used by most American universities that follow the NACUBO guidelines. At QU, for example, the expenses of Deans and other departmental administrators are retained in Instruction rather than categorized under Academic Support.

Qatar University’s budget and expenses functional distribution maintains the entire department under one functional category. In the future, when the University develops an expenditure recharge system, distributions by function should be modeled based on the NACUBO definitions.

Chart of accounts

Description of Functions

Instruction and Departmental Research (I&DR)

The I&DR category includes the budget and expenditures for all credit and non-credit courses in academic, foundation, or any tutorial instructional courses in regular semesters and summer sessions. It includes the salaries and operating costs for Deans and other departmental administrators.

Research

Qatar University’s research category includes the budgets and expenditures for all activities which produce research, including specifically budgeted internal research grants, research laboratories, institutes and centers, as well as research sponsored by external agencies, companies, and the State of Qatar.

Public Service

The public service category includes conferences, public advisory programs, and other non-instructional activities and services (for example: structural and other testing, carbon dating for the community and businesses, etc.)
This category also includes continuing education programs offered to Qatar’s community and the budget and expenditures of the External Relations Department.

Student Services & Activities

This category includes the budgets and expenditures for student services administration, admissions, registration, and registrar. It includes counseling and career guidance, student activities, student organizations, cultural events, student newspapers, and intramural and intercollegiate athletics. It also includes student financial aid administration and student health services.

Academic Support Services

This category includes budgets and expenditures for all libraries, galleries, the Office of Faculty and Instructional Development, the Core Curriculum Program, and the Faculty Senate. Eventually, when recharging is in place, it will also include the portion of the Information Technology Services designed to give support to academic computing and audio-visual services. At the moment, this category does not include expenditures related to Deans.

Institutional Support Services

Physical Plant Maintenance

This category includes the budgets and expenditures for the administration, supervision, operation, maintenance, and preservation and protection of the University’s physical plant (both buildings and grounds). Expenditures include janitorial and utility services, building repairs and alterations, care of grounds and outside facilities, security, waste disposal, facility planning and management, and property and liability insurance. Any space or capital leasing would also be part of this category.

Institutional Support/Shared Services

This category includes the budgets and expenditures of the Information Technology Services Department and Housing Department.  These will be redistributed once a recharging system is eventually in place.

Institutional Management

This category includes the budgets and expenses of the Board of Regents, Office of the President, Law offices, the Office of the VPCAO, the VPCFO, and the VP for Institutional Planning and Development. Student Affairs and Research expenditures are reported separately.
It also includes the expenses of Finance, Human Resources, and Procurement. Eventually, once the recharge system in place, it will also include the portion of Information Technology Services expenditures needed to manage this system.

Financial Aid

Financial aid includes the direct monetary support to undergraduates and graduate students, scholarships and fellowships, and student loans. Also included are student salaries for Qataris.

Auxiliary Services (proposed)

This category would include operations related to Food Services, student’s residence halls, and bookstores.

Plant Construction & Improvement

Some higher educational institutions are required to depreciate fixed assets and, therefore, have elected to establish reserves for maintenance and replacement of physical plant. These calculations are based on the useful lives of buildings and its component parts such as roofs, plumbing and electrical systems, etc. These reserves are then budgeted to sustain the maintenance and renewal of such facilities.

Fiduciary Management Services:

When the university has a significant endowment fund, the administration will establish, with the guidance of a Board committee, a group to supervise such resources. Often, an outside firm with specific expertise is also engaged. Budgets and expenses for this service are recorded in this category.