Career Advisor

Accounting course plan

By Career Advisor

Question: I want to be an accountant when I leave school but I don’t
know what courses I need to take at university.HELP!!!

Lissy

Answer: You will need to enroll in an Accounting Degree program in order to be an accountant. This is usually taught in the School of Business at your University.

I don’t know the exact University you are or will be attending so here is some information from the University of Edinburgh’s web site about their accounting degree.

http://www.business-school.ed.ac.uk/ug_study/prospective_students/account_courses/index.html

How do I become a qualified accountant?

For those students who wish to go on to become professionally qualified accountants following graduation, the University of Edinburgh’s Accounting courses will provide a high level (usually the maximum available to Accounting graduates) of exemption from the professional examination requirements. For example, our two MA degrees with Accounting (the MA joint honours degree in Business Studies and Accounting, and the MA joint honours degree in Economics and Accounting) are both fully accredited by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland and qualify for the maximum available exemptions from the professional examinations that lead to the professional qualification of Chartered Accountant.

What does the course actually involve?

Accounting is taught over four years: Accountancy 1A and Accountancy 1B in the first year; Accountancy 2A and Accountancy 2B in the second year; Advanced Financial Accounting, Auditing, and Management Accounting Applications in the Junior Honours Year; and students choose from a selection of courses and undertake a dissertation in Senior Honours year.

First Year

Two courses are available in the first year, Accountancy 1A and Accountancy 1B. These courses are intended to cater for broadly two types of students:

• Those who require only a general understanding of the subject, and who do not intend to proceed further with its study
• Those who intend to specialise in accounting at university or after graduation

Accountancy 1A: This course runs in the first semester and forms an introduction to financial accounting dealing with the nature and scope of accounting, the preparation of financial accounting reports, issues in external financial reporting, and the analysis and use of financial accounting information.

Accountancy 1B: Taken in the second semester this course is an introduction to management accounting including costing, decision making and planning, and control. Students wishing to take accounting courses in the second year must have already passed both Accountancy 1A and Accountancy 1B.

First year accounting courses normally consist of three one-hour lectures, and a one-hour tutorial per week. On occasions one of the weekly lectures may be used as a workshop at which several members of staff are present to help students through an accounting problem. The course topics are chosen so that, overall, a self-contained and integrated course is presented. Tutorials will normally involve completing a practical exercise and/or discussing topical accounting issues.

The course makes use of microcomputers and the students will be expected to become familiar with such technology by making use of the appropriate computer laboratory facilities. An introductory course of three hours in the lab is followed by a number of computer exercises during the academic year. It would be an advantage for students to have mathematical skills of at least Scottish Higher or AS Level. The standards expected are high, and there is a limited system of continuous assessment in operation. Unfortunately due to pressure of numbers, students failing this course at the first diet will be allowed only one resit attempt.

Second Year

The second year consists of two semester length courses (Accountancy 2A and Accountancy 2B) which will normally be taken consecutively. Accountancy 2A: This course progresses from Accountancy 1A, and deals with some of the more complex aspects of Financial Accounting, specifically the regulatory framework of corporate reporting, the preparation of published financial statements including the use of accounting standards, tangible and intangible assets, liabilities and related issues, overseas involvement and accounting for groups. This course also includes an introduction to taxation. Accountancy 2B: Progressing from Accountancy 1B, this course deals with more advanced management accounting, specifically advanced costing systems, budgeting and standard costing, and current practice in management accounting. This course also includes a module on intermediate level taxation.

Junior Honours

Junior Honours courses comprise:

• Advanced Financial Accounting: Alternatives to historic cost accounting; advanced interpretations and analysis; issues in financial reporting.
• Auditing: Auditing as an investigative process; auditing as communication; auditing as a professional and societal activity.
• Management Accounting Applications Organisational segmentation; management control; management accounting in the public sector.

Senior Honours

Students can choose from the following Senior Honours courses:

• Accounting and Everyday Life
• Advanced Management Accounting
• Audit Practice
• Issues in Accounting and Auditing Regulation
• Comparative International Accounting
• Public Sector Accounting
• Theoretical and Practical Issues in Financial Accounting

In any one year the actual number of these options on offer will depend on staff availability.