BCOC 138 Cost Accounting Key Facts
- Course: BCOC 138 Cost Accounting
- Programme: Bachelor of Commerce (General), B.Com (G), BCOMG, CBCS, Semester IV
- Syllabus: 4 blocks, 19 units
- Term-end exam: 100 marks, 3 hours, attempt any five questions of 20 marks each
- Assignment: 30% weightage; 15 October 2026 is the last date for December 2026 candidates
- This file: 14 questions: 9 theory and 5 numerical, 5 shown in full on this page
- Papers analysed: December 2023, June 2024, December 2024, June 2025, December 2025
- Get the full file: WhatsApp 9899436384
BCOC 138 Solved Guess Paper is a 14-question answer file for IGNOU's Cost Accounting course, written from five real term-end papers held between December 2023 and December 2025. It gives you full theory answers plus five worked numericals, and it is aimed squarely at the December 2026 term-end examination.
BCOC 138 Cost Accounting is a compulsory core course in the fourth semester of the IGNOU Bachelor of Commerce (General) programme under CBCS. Most students do not struggle with the theory here. They lose marks on formats: a Stores Ledger that does not balance, a Contract Account without working notes, a Reconciliation Statement with an item on the wrong side.
That is the gap this file is built to close. Below you can read five complete sample answers, check the full unit list, and decide for yourself whether the rest is worth asking for on WhatsApp.
1. What the BCOC 138 Solved Guess Paper Contains
The file holds 14 model answers: 9 theory questions and 5 numericals, spread over all four BCOC 138 blocks.
On the theory side you get the comparison of cost and financial accounting, the meaning and objects of cost accounting, methods of costing, material control, purchase procedure with centralised buying, FIFO and LIFO pricing, labour turnover, overhead classification and apportionment, and a four-part short-notes question.
The five numericals are the formats IGNOU keeps returning to: a Stores Ledger on FIFO, an Overhead Distribution Summary, an Operating Cost Statement for a bus, a Contract Account with profit on an incomplete contract, and a Reconciliation Statement. Each one shows working notes and totals that tally.
Every theory answer starts with the textbook definition, keeps the list count the IGNOU book uses and ends with a short conclusion. That is not decoration. In a paper where most questions carry 10 + 10 splits, a clear structure is what keeps an examiner reading.
2. BCOC 138 Guess Paper: 5 Sample Questions with Solutions
Here are 5 of the 14 answers in full, two theory and three numericals, so you can judge the quality before you ask for the file.
We picked these because they cover the most repeated ground in recent papers. The other nine answers follow exactly the same style.
Cost Accounting vs Financial Accounting, and limitations of Financial Accounting
Question: Differentiate between Cost Accounting and Financial Accounting. Also state the limitations of Financial Accounting.
"Cost accounting is that part of management accounting which establishes budgets and standard costs and actual costs of operations, processes, departments or products and the analysis of variances, profitability or social use of funds."
Points of difference
- Purpose: cost accounting ascertains the cost of goods or services, while financial accounting presents operating results and the financial position of the business.
- Users: cost accounting serves management; financial accounting serves shareholders, creditors, employees and society at large.
- Audit: cost accounts need not be externally audited; financial accounts need an independent audit for a true and fair view.
- Classification: cost accounting groups expenses into material, labour and fixed or variable overheads; financial accounting records debit and credit entries.
- Statements: cost accounting uses cost sheets, process accounts and contract accounts; financial accounting prepares the Trading and Profit and Loss Account and the Balance Sheet.
- Profit analysis: cost accounting finds profit or loss on each product, job or process; financial accounting shows the result of the business as a whole.
- Units: cost accounting also tracks physical units such as labour hours and machine hours; financial accounting uses money alone.
Limitations of financial accounting
- It gives no detailed operating data for each department, process or product.
- It does not split expenses into direct and indirect, or fixed and variable, so controllable items stay hidden.
- It sets up no proper control over materials and labour, so wastage goes unchecked.
- It fixes no standards against which cost items can be compared.
- It gives too little cost data for fixing selling prices.
- It is historical and compiled only at period end, so cost data is not available at short intervals.
- Without product-wise cost and profit, the causes of profit or loss cannot be analysed properly.
Conclusion: The two systems differ in purpose, users and presentation but serve the same organisation. The gaps in financial accounting created the need for cost accounting, and the two work best together.
Material control, its requirements and advantages
Question: Define the term 'Material Control'. Discuss the basic requirements and advantages of an efficient system of material control.
"Material control may be defined as the regulation of the functions of an organisation relating to procurement, storage and usage of materials in such a way as to maintain an even flow of production without excessive investment in material stock."
Basic requirements
- Proper coordination of every department involved in purchasing, receiving, testing, approving, storing and paying for materials.
- Centralised purchase of materials.
- Standard forms for the receipt, issue and transfer of materials.
- A materials and supplies budget so that economy is achieved.
- A system of internal check over purchases.
- Well-organised storage that prevents deterioration, pilferage, wastage and evaporation.
- A perpetual inventory system showing the quantity and value of stock at any time.
Advantages
- Continuous supply of materials, so production is not held up.
- Minimum capital locked up in stock.
- Lower cost of storing and issuing materials.
- Less loss from spoilage, pilferage and theft.
- Perpetual inventory makes closing-stock valuation accurate.
- Materials are bought at reasonable prices.
- Management gets the data it needs to frame purchase policy.
Conclusion: Efficient material control keeps production flowing with the least investment and adds directly to the efficiency and profitability of the business.
Stores Ledger Account on the FIFO method
Question: Prepare a Stores Ledger Account using FIFO. Jan 1 opening stock 500 units @ ₹20; Jan 5 purchased 300 units @ ₹22; Jan 10 issued 400 units; Jan 15 purchased 400 units @ ₹24; Jan 20 issued 500 units; Jan 25 purchased 200 units @ ₹25; Jan 28 issued 300 units.
Working principle: under FIFO the earliest lot is issued first, and its price applies until that lot runs out.
| Date | Receipt qty | Rate | Receipt ₹ | Issue qty | Issue ₹ | Balance qty | Balance ₹ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 1 | 500 | 20 | 10,000 | — | — | 500 | 10,000 |
| Jan 5 | 300 | 22 | 6,600 | — | — | 800 | 16,600 |
| Jan 10 | — | — | — | 400 | 8,000 | 400 | 8,600 |
| Jan 15 | 400 | 24 | 9,600 | — | — | 800 | 18,200 |
| Jan 20 | — | — | — | 500 | 11,000 | 300 | 7,200 |
| Jan 25 | 200 | 25 | 5,000 | — | — | 500 | 12,200 |
| Jan 28 | — | — | — | 300 | 7,200 | 200 | 5,000 |
Working notes: Jan 10 issue = 400 @ ₹20 = ₹8,000. Jan 20 issue = 100 @ ₹20 + 300 @ ₹22 + 100 @ ₹24 = ₹2,000 + ₹6,600 + ₹2,400 = ₹11,000. Jan 28 issue = 300 @ ₹24 = ₹7,200.
Conclusion: Total issues for the month are ₹26,200 and closing stock is 200 units @ ₹25 = ₹5,000. Under FIFO the closing stock carries the latest purchase price, while issues were charged at the older prices.
Operating (service) costing for a bus
Question: A bus runs between two towns 20 km apart, making 4 round trips a day for 25 days a month. Capacity 50 passengers, average occupancy 80%. Cost of bus ₹12,00,000 (life 10 years); driver ₹12,000 p.m.; conductor ₹8,000 p.m.; insurance ₹24,000 p.a.; taxes ₹18,000 p.a.; diesel and oil ₹15,000 p.m.; repairs and maintenance ₹5,000 p.m. Calculate operating cost per km and per passenger-km.
Working notes: (1) Km per month = 4 round trips × 40 km × 25 days = 4,000 km. (2) Passenger-km per month = 4,000 × (50 × 80%) = 4,000 × 40 = 1,60,000. (3) Depreciation = ₹12,00,000 ÷ 10 = ₹1,20,000 a year = ₹10,000 a month.
| Particulars | Amount ₹ |
|---|---|
| A. Standing (fixed) charges | — |
| Driver's salary | 12,000 |
| Conductor's salary | 8,000 |
| Insurance (24,000 ÷ 12) | 2,000 |
| Taxes (18,000 ÷ 12) | 1,500 |
| Total standing charges | 23,500 |
| B. Running and maintenance charges | — |
| Depreciation | 10,000 |
| Diesel and oil | 15,000 |
| Repairs and maintenance | 5,000 |
| Total running charges | 30,000 |
| Total operating cost (A + B) | 53,500 |
Conclusion: Cost per km = ₹53,500 ÷ 4,000 = ₹13.375. Cost per passenger-km = ₹53,500 ÷ 1,60,000 = ₹0.334, roughly ₹0.33.
Reconciliation of cost and financial profit
Question: Net profit as per cost accounts is ₹50,000. Find the profit as per financial accounts from these adjustments: (i) works overhead over-recovered in cost accounts ₹3,000; (ii) office overhead under-recovered in cost accounts ₹2,000; (iii) interest on investments received ₹5,000; (iv) loss on sale of fixed asset ₹4,000; (v) depreciation, cost ₹10,000 and financial ₹12,000; (vi) closing stock overvalued in cost accounts by ₹1,500; (vii) dividend received ₹2,000; (viii) income tax provided ₹6,000; (ix) notional rent charged in cost accounts ₹3,000.
Rule used: start from costing profit, add incomes found only in financial books, over-absorption and notional charges, then deduct financial-only expenses, under-absorption and stock overvalued in cost books.
| Particulars | Add (+) | Less (−) |
|---|---|---|
| Net profit as per cost accounts | 50,000 | — |
| Works overhead over-recovered in cost accounts | 3,000 | — |
| Interest on investments (financial books only) | 5,000 | — |
| Dividend received (financial books only) | 2,000 | — |
| Notional rent charged in cost accounts | 3,000 | — |
| Office overhead under-recovered in cost accounts | — | 2,000 |
| Loss on sale of fixed asset (financial books only) | — | 4,000 |
| Depreciation under-charged in cost accounts | — | 2,000 |
| Closing stock overvalued in cost accounts | — | 1,500 |
| Income tax provided (financial books only) | — | 6,000 |
| Totals | 63,000 | 15,500 |
| Profit as per financial accounts (63,000 − 15,500) | 47,500 | — |
Conclusion: After adjusting financial-only incomes and expenses, over and under absorption, the stock difference and the notional rent, profit as per financial accounts is ₹47,500.
Nine more answers sit in the full file, including the Contract Account with the two-thirds profit rule and the Overhead Distribution Summary with secondary distribution.
3. How the IGNOU BCOC 138 Guess Paper Was Built
We read the five most recent BCOC 138 term-end papers, December 2023 to December 2025, logged every topic and kept the ones IGNOU repeats.
If you want to test our picks yourself, the original papers are on our IGNOU Previous Year Question Paper page. The pattern that jumps out is how steady the numericals are: a Stores Ledger, a Distribution Summary or a Reconciliation turns up in almost every recent session.
Theory moves around more, but it circles the same chapters. Material control and purchase procedure both appeared in December 2025 after showing up earlier in 2024 and 2025. The table below shows each topic in the file against the sessions where it was actually asked.
| Topic | Sessions asked | Times (of 5) | In the file |
|---|---|---|---|
| Operating (service) costing numerical | Dec 2023, Jun 2024, Dec 2024, Jun 2025 | 4 | Sample 4 above |
| Meaning, objects and need of cost accounting | Jun 2024, Dec 2024, Jun 2025 | 3 | Full file, Q2 |
| Overhead classification and apportionment theory | Dec 2023, Dec 2024, Jun 2025 | 3 | Full file, Q8 |
| Stores Ledger numerical | Dec 2023, Jun 2024, Dec 2025 | 3 | Sample 3 above |
| Overhead Distribution Summary numerical | Dec 2023, Jun 2024, Dec 2025 | 3 | Full file, Q11 |
| Contract Account numerical | Dec 2024, Jun 2025, Dec 2025 | 3 | Full file, Q13 |
| Reconciliation of cost and financial profit | Dec 2024, Jun 2025, Dec 2025 | 3 | Sample 5 above |
| Cost vs financial accounting, limitations | Dec 2023, Dec 2025 | 2 | Sample 1 above |
| Material control requirements and advantages | Dec 2024, Dec 2025 | 2 | Sample 2 above |
| Purchase procedure and centralised buying | Jun 2025, Dec 2025 | 2 | Full file, Q5 |
| FIFO and LIFO pricing theory | Dec 2024, Jun 2025 | 2 | Full file, Q6 |
| Short notes: ABC, Halsey plan, idle time, inventory turnover | ABC in Jun and Dec 2024; Halsey and idle time in Dec 2023 and Jun 2024; turnover ratio in Jun 2025 | 1 to 2 each | Full file, Q9 |
| Methods of costing and their industries | Jun 2024 | 1 | Full file, Q3 |
| Labour turnover, causes and control | Dec 2024 | 1 | Full file, Q7 |
These are the BCOC 138 important questions by the only measure that counts, what IGNOU actually set. No guess paper can promise the exact December 2026 questions, and we will not pretend otherwise. What it can do is put your revision hours on the chapters with the strongest track record.
4. BCOC 138 Cost Accounting Syllabus: All 19 Units
BCOC 138 has 4 blocks and 19 units: Basic Concepts, Material and Labour, Overheads, and Methods of Costing.
The unit list below follows the IGNOU self-learning material published on eGyanKosh. The last column tells you honestly where this guess paper covers a unit and where you should lean on the textbook instead.
| Block | Unit | Key exam topics | In this file |
|---|---|---|---|
| Block 1: Basic Concepts | 1. Nature and Scope of Cost Accounting | Limitations of financial accounting, objects of costing, installing a costing system | Q1, Q2 |
| Block 1: Basic Concepts | 2. Cost Concepts and its Ascertainment | Cost unit and cost centre, elements of cost, methods of costing | Q3 |
| Block 2: Material and Labour | 3. Procurement, Storage and Issue | Purchase requisition, purchase order, goods received note, centralised buying | Q4, Q5 |
| Block 2: Material and Labour | 4. Inventory Control | Stock levels, EOQ, ABC analysis, inventory turnover ratio | Q9 (a), (d) |
| Block 2: Material and Labour | 5. Pricing the Issue of Materials | FIFO, LIFO, average methods, Stores Ledger | Q6, Q10 |
| Block 2: Material and Labour | 6. Labour: Basic Concepts | Time keeping, time booking, idle time, labour turnover | Q7, Q9 (c) |
| Block 2: Material and Labour | 7. Accounting for Labour | Wage payment methods, Halsey and Rowan premium plans, overtime | Q9 (b) |
| Block 3: Overheads | 8. Classification and Distribution of Overheads | Element, function and behaviour classes, primary and secondary distribution | Q8, Q11 |
| Block 3: Overheads | 9. Absorption of Factory Overheads | Absorption rates, under and over absorption and its treatment | Not covered, revise from book |
| Block 3: Overheads | 10. Machine Hour Rate | Standing and running charges of a machine, rate computation | Not covered, revise from book |
| Block 3: Overheads | 11. Treatment of Other Overheads and Activity Based Cost Allocation | Administration and selling overheads, peculiar items, activity cost drivers | Not covered, revise from book |
| Block 4: Methods of Costing | 12. Unit Costing | Cost sheet, tenders and quotations | Not covered, revise from book |
| Block 4: Methods of Costing | 13. Job Costing | Job cost sheet, batch costing, job vs contract costing | Not covered, revise from book |
| Block 4: Methods of Costing | 14. Contract Costing | Notional profit, work certified and uncertified, profit on incomplete contracts | Q13 |
| Block 4: Methods of Costing | 15. Process Costing | Process account, normal and abnormal loss, abnormal gain | Not covered, revise from book |
| Block 4: Methods of Costing | 16. Joint Products and By-Products | Apportioning joint costs, physical unit and sales value methods | Not covered, revise from book |
| Block 4: Methods of Costing | 17. Valuation of Work-in-Progress | Equivalent production, WIP valuation in process costing | Not covered, revise from book |
| Block 4: Methods of Costing | 18. Service Costing | Transport costing, passenger-km and tonne-km, cost per unit of service | Q12 |
| Block 4: Methods of Costing | 19. Reconciliation of Cost and Financial Accounts | Reasons for difference, reconciliation statement, memorandum account | Q14 |
If you are still building your base in the uncovered units, pair this file with our BCOC 138 Study Material. A guess paper sharpens revision; it does not replace a first reading of the book.
5. BCOC 138 Practical (Numerical) Questions Index
BCOC 138 has no separate lab practical file; its "practical" marks come from numericals, and this file carries five of them with full working.
In the recent any-five pattern a single numerical is worth 20 marks, a fifth of the paper. Every one of the last five papers carried at least three of these five formats, so reproducing them cleanly is the fastest route to safe marks.
| File Q | Numerical format | Unit | What the working shows | On this page? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Q10 | Stores Ledger Account, FIFO | 5 | Lot-by-lot issue pricing and a running balance after each issue | Yes, Sample 3 |
| Q11 | Overhead Distribution Summary | 8 | Primary distribution on floor area, machinery value, headcount and HP, then service departments re-apportioned 60:40 and 50:50 | Full file only |
| Q12 | Operating Cost Statement, bus | 18 | Km and passenger-km working, standing vs running charges, cost per km and per passenger-km | Yes, Sample 4 |
| Q13 | Contract Account | 14 | Plant depreciation at site, notional profit, and the two-thirds rule scaled by cash received | Full file only |
| Q14 | Reconciliation Statement | 19 | Which items are added and which deducted when moving from costing profit to financial profit | Yes, Sample 5 |
6. BCOC 138 Exam Pattern and Marking
The BCOC 138 term-end exam is 3 hours for 100 marks, and since December 2024 students have had to attempt any five questions of 20 marks each.
June 2024 was the exception. That paper had a compulsory Section A of 40 marks and a Section B of 60 marks where you picked three. You can check the current format on the official December 2025 BCOC 138 question paper from IGNOU.
| Session | Instruction on the paper | Marks per question |
|---|---|---|
| June 2024 | Section A (all questions, 40 marks) plus Section B (any three, 60 marks) | 10 each in Section A, 20 each in Section B |
| December 2024 | Answer any five questions | 20 each, often split 10 + 10 or 4 + 10 + 6 |
| June 2025 | Attempt any five questions, equal marks | 20 each, mix of 10 + 10 theory and full numericals |
| December 2025 | Attempt any five questions, equal marks | 20 each, several full numericals on the paper |
Aim for about 450 words on a full 20-mark theory answer and about 250 words on each 10-mark half. Your assignment counts for 30% of the final result, so do not let it slide while you prepare. Students taking several B.Com papers together can find the rest of the set under our BCOMG guess paper collection.
7. A 4-Week Plan for BCOC 138 Important Questions
Spend the first two weeks on the five numerical formats, the third on theory and the last on timed practice.
- Week 1: Stores Ledger on FIFO and LIFO, then the Overhead Distribution Summary. Write each one twice from a blank page until totals tally without looking.
- Week 2: Operating costing, Contract Account and Reconciliation Statement. For the contract, learn the profit rule by heart, because that is where most marks slip.
- Week 3: Theory in pairs that IGNOU likes to combine: cost vs financial accounting with its limitations, material control with purchase steps, overhead classification with apportionment bases.
- Week 4: Two full three-hour papers under time. Keep process costing, joint products and machine hour rate as light revision only, since none of them appeared in the December 2025 paper.
These Cost Accounting important questions cover most of what a pass-focused student needs. If your target is a high score, add the cost sheet from Unit 12 as well, since it came up in both December 2024 and June 2025.
8. Get the Full BCOC 138 Solved Guess Paper on WhatsApp
Send a WhatsApp message to 9899436384 and our team will share the complete 14-answer PDF with you.
You have already read 5 answers on this page. The full file adds the remaining 9: meaning and objects of cost accounting, methods of costing, purchase steps with centralised buying, FIFO and LIFO theory, labour turnover, overhead classification and apportionment, four short notes, the Overhead Distribution Summary and the Contract Account.
The file sits alongside guess papers for other course codes in our IGNOU Solved Guess Paper library. Stuck on a step after you get it? Ask on the same WhatsApp number.
9. BCOC 138 Guess Paper FAQs
What is included in the IGNOU BCOC 138 Solved Guess Paper?
The file has 14 model answers for Cost Accounting: 9 theory questions and 5 numericals. The numericals are a FIFO Stores Ledger, an Overhead Distribution Summary, a bus Operating Cost Statement, a Contract Account and a Reconciliation Statement. It also includes a topic frequency grid from five past papers and a short list of chapters that are safe to keep for light revision only.
Is the BCOC 138 guess paper useful for the December 2026 exam?
Yes. It was prepared for the 2026 term-end exams using the five most recent papers, December 2023 to December 2025. Those papers show a steady pattern, with the same numerical formats and theory chapters returning session after session. No guess paper can promise exact questions, but this one keeps your revision on the topics IGNOU has actually been setting for Cost Accounting.
How many questions do I have to answer in the BCOC 138 exam?
In the December 2024, June 2025 and December 2025 papers you had to attempt any five questions, each worth 20 marks, in three hours for a total of 100 marks. June 2024 used a different layout with a compulsory Section A of 40 marks and a Section B of 60 marks. Check the instructions on the paper itself before you start writing.
Which BCOC 138 important questions are asked most often?
Operating costing for a vehicle or bus is the most repeated, appearing in four of the last five papers. The Stores Ledger, Overhead Distribution Summary, Contract Account and Reconciliation Statement each appeared three times. On the theory side, the meaning and objects of cost accounting and overhead classification with apportionment also came up three times each between December 2023 and December 2025.
Does the BCOC 138 guess paper include practical questions?
BCOC 138 has no lab practical, so its practical marks come from numericals, and the file includes five of them fully solved. Each one shows working notes, the correct format and balanced totals, which is how method marks are earned. Three of the five, the Stores Ledger, the bus costing and the Reconciliation Statement, are shown in full on this page as samples.
How can I get the complete BCOC 138 guess paper with answers?
Send a message on WhatsApp to 9899436384 mentioning the course code BCOC 138. Our team will share the complete PDF with all 14 answers, including the nine that are not shown on this page. You can use the same number afterwards to ask about any step in a numerical or any theory answer that you find difficult to follow.
Which BCOC 138 Cost Accounting blocks does the guess paper cover?
It draws questions from all four blocks: Basic Concepts, Material and Labour, Overheads, and Methods of Costing. Coverage is deepest in Blocks 1 and 2 and in the high-scoring numericals of Block 4. Units such as process costing, joint products, machine hour rate and job costing are not covered, so revise those from the IGNOU textbook if you have time.
Is the BCOC 138 guess paper an official IGNOU publication?
No. It is a study aid written and published by Unnati Educations, an independent coaching and study material provider in Delhi. The answers follow the IGNOU BCOC 138 self-learning material and recent term-end papers, but the file is not issued, approved or endorsed by IGNOU. Always check official exam notices and the syllabus on the IGNOU website before your exam.