An Analysis of the “Kihonkin” of Private School Corporations

Its Role in University Management

Abstract

　 “Kihonkin” is the amount of property that a private school corporation should maintain. Although the accounting standard, including the concept of “Kihonkin”, to be followed by private school corporations was enacted in 1971，there has been hardly any research into “Kihonkin” within the framework of higher education research. The purpose of this paper is to present the results of basic research, at the level of the concept and that of actual situations, into the “Kihonkin” of private school corporations, especially private university corporations.

　 “Kihonkin” is added from the university’s imputed income（often called “revenue” at universities in the United States）．According to the rules of the accounting standard, it is expected that the consumer income-the amount of the remainder calculated by deducting the amount added from the imputed income to “Kihonkin”-will correspond to the consumer spending（also often called “expense”）．Therefore, the greater part of the amount of “Kihonkin” is assumed to be maintained by depreciation at the concept level.

　 In addition, by using both macro data and regional data, it has proved possible to confirm on the basis of the following facts that the concepts of the accounting standard have in the main been achieved. 1. The greater part of “Kihonkin” has not been acquired from the debt, but from the imputed income. 2. The greater part of the amount of “Kihonkin” has been maintained, and the maintenance of “Kihonkin” has been largely achieved by depreciation.

　 On the basis of these results, it can be reasonably argued that the accounting standard, including the concept of “Kihonkin”, has played a major role not only in the management of private universities and private university corporations but also in the popularization of higher education in Japan.