MAccFin (Hons) Accounting and Finance

Course details On this course you will usually be taught by a range of staff with relevant expertise and knowledge appropriate to the content of the unit. This will include senior academic staff, qualified professional practitioners and research students. You will also benefit from regular guest lectures from industry. Year 1 Core units Economics for Accounting & Finance: You'll develop an understanding of the operation of markets, including the interaction between related markets along with an understanding of the impact of economic policies on business and society in the context of a global economy. Introduction to Accounting: This unit aims to provide you with a sound foundation in the fundamentals of accounting, together with a basic understanding of the regulatory framework. Professional Studies & Quantitative Techniques: You'll develop knowledge of the fundamental mathematical processes, techniques and ideas used in the collection, presentation, analysis and interpretation of data. Law for Accounting & Finance: This unit will embed the core legal principles and concepts within the legal environment for a graduate operating in the finance sector. Business Management: Providing you with an introduction to marketing, human resource management and organisational change in the context of business management in a global environment. Basic Statistical Techniques: By the end of this unit you'll be able to calculate a range of basic statistical techniques and interpret the results and perform various significance tests. Year 2 Core units Management Accounting: Providing you with the practical ability to deal with fundamental cost and management accounting issues. Business Tax Planning: This unit will equip you with a working knowledge of the UK taxation system as it impacts upon business decision making and encourages you to critically evaluate the principles underlying the UK system of taxing business. Professional Studies: The aims of this unit are to develop relevant transferable academic and vocational skills. Advanced Academic English: If you don't have IELTS 7.0 or above you must complete this unit, which seeks to consolidate and refine the language and study skills required for effective academic performance at Honours Level in UK higher education. Financial Reporting: You'll expand upon your theoretical knowledge of financial accounting and critically apply the principles to a consideration of alternative methods of accounting and to the practice of accounting in more advanced applications. Audit & Control: The unit's main emphasis is on the statutory audit process, although the work of internal audit will also be considered. Corporate Financial Management: You'll cover the theory relating to investment, financing and dividend decisions and apply appropriate techniques to assist with the three key decision areas. Year 3 You may choose to complete an optional (minimum) 30-week work placement which can be carried out anywhere in the world. The placement year offers a chance to gain experience and make contacts for the future. Year 3/4 Core units Advanced Accounting Theory & Practice: This unit will develop your understanding of the theoretical aspects of financial reporting and teach you how to apply this to technical issues. Perspectives on Business Strategy: You'll gain an insight into the differing perspectives used to develop and implement business strategy. Advanced Management Accounting: You'll gain an understanding of the role of management accounting in all aspects of management control systems, particularly in the development and use of performance management systems and the strategic control of organisations. Company Study: This unit will enhance your skills in both computerised and non-computerised information retrieval, analysis and presentation. Option units (choose two) Law of Business Tax: This unit will enable you to examine the impact of taxation on the economic decisions of individuals and the scope for personal tax planning. Risk Modelling & Management: This unit aims to provide you with a significant awareness and understanding of risk within a modern business environment and the risk management processes necessary to control such risk. Financial Regulation: The unit provides insight into key financial regulatory theories, forms and rationale of regulation that are highly relevant to those seeking to operate within the financial services sector. Taxation - Economics & Policy: You'll discover an insight into the impact of taxation on the economy, ways of appraising taxes and consideration of alternative types of tax policies, resulting in a broad knowledge of taxation issues. Environmental Reporting: This unit aims to equip you with the ability to account and report on environmental matters and critically appraise the usefulness of such information. Forensic Accounting: This unit aims to define the role of the forensic accountant, primarily when acting as an expert witness, and to introduce techniques that can be applied to provide solutions for parties involved in legal cases. International Taxation: The aim of this unit is to provide a technically and academically challenging examination of the issues in international taxation faced by multinational corporations and individuals. Indirect Tax: You'll evaluate the application of VAT to specific business sectors in the UK and its interaction with the EU and overseas jurisdictions in the context of cross-border trade. Law of Business Tax: This unit will enable you to examine the impact of taxation on the economic decisions of individuals and the scope for personal tax planning. Investment Management: You'll explore the current features of capital markets and savings products which will prepare you for business and personal investment. Company Law: You'll extend your competence in the field of Company Law, and gain the necessary knowledge to apply Company Law at an advanced level. Research Study: The aim of the unit is to provide you with the opportunity to develop skills in conducting effectively a research project, and acquire specialist knowledge within an area relevant to your programme of study. Please note that option units require minimum numbers in order to run and may only be available on a semester by semester basis. They may also change from year to year. Year 5 Core units Financial Markets: Gain an understanding of the types of financial markets, their links and roles in modern economies, and the quantitative and qualitative research techniques that apply to this field. Money & Banking: The functions of money and banking and their importance in the economy. You'll learn about interest rates and yield curves, monetary policy issues and banking regulation at an international context, along with contemporary issues in money and banking. Advanced Accounting and Financial Analysis: You'll learn about the principals involved in producing financial statements, outline the theoretical and regulatory framework financial accounting operates in and offer techniques for analysing corporate financial reporting. Financial Econometrics: Mathematical, programming and statistical tools used in the real world for analysing and modelling financial data. You'll use these tools to model asset returns, the stock, bond and exchange rate, and measure risk using different software. Choose either: Research project: An opportunity to undertake a significant piece of self-managed research in an area that interests you. Or: Applied wealth management: Identify appropriate investment strategies for a wealthy, private client. Portfolio construction & theory: Gain knowledge of finance theory and how to structure portfolios of financial assets in this context. We are a training provider for the Chartered Institute of Securities and Investment’s (CISI) Chartered Wealth Management Qualification. This means that if you select these two units, you will have the opportunity to sit the CISI’s examinations (additional fees will apply) and if successful you’ll receive a wealth management professional qualification alongside your Master’s degree. Scheduled learning and teaching activities The emphasis of this course is in guided independent learning, which helps you develop into a self-motivated learner. When not attending lectures and seminars, you will be expected to read around the subject. Your typical week’s activities will include reading books and journal articles, working on group projects, preparing presentations, conducting library research and writing your assignments. The hours below give an indication of how you can expect to spend your time during each year of this course. Year 1 – 19% of your time will be spent in timetabled learning & teaching activities Learning and teaching: 225 hours Independent learning: 975 hours Non-assessed learning and teaching: 19 hours Year 2 – 18% of your time will be spent in timetabled learning & teaching activities Learning and teaching: 217 hours Independent learning: 975 hours Non-assessed learning and teaching: 2 hours Year 3 (optional placement year) Year 3/4 - 18% of your time will be spent in timetabled learning & teaching activities Learning and teaching: 186 hours Independent learning: 1014 hours Non-assessed learning and teaching: 3 hours Year 4/5 - 16% of your time will be spent in timetabled learning & teaching activities 53% of the course is assessed by coursework Year 1: 40% Year 2: 53% Year 3: 0% (optional placement year) Year 3/4: 48% Year 4/5: 75% Throughout the course you will be assessed by coursework culminating in your final year research project, but you will also undertake group work and written exams. Programme specification Programme specifications provide definitive records of the University's taught degrees in line with Quality Assurance Agency requirements. Every taught course leading to a BU Award has a programme specification which describes its aims, structure, content and learning outcomes, plus the teaching, learning and assessment methods used. Download the programme specification for MAccFin (Hons) Accounting & Finance. Whilst every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the programme specification, the information is liable to change to take advantage of exciting new approaches to teaching and learning as well as developments in industry. If you have been unable to locate the programme specification for the course you are interested in, it will be available as soon as the latest version is ready. Alternatively please contact us for assistance. 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