Diploma in Accounting

This Quality Assured Level 3 Diploma in Accounting will provide students with an in depth knowledge of the topic area.

It is an ideal starting point for anybody wanting to become an accountant. It is also useful for a general manager wanting more information about the finances he or she has to manage. People considering starting their own business will also find the course useful as a means to learn what records are important and how to keep their accounts. Accountancy is the art of communicating financial information about a business entity to users such as shareholders and managers. The communication is generally in the form of financial statements that show in money terms the economic resources under the control of management and how those resources have been used to enhance value. Ten carefully created modules will take students from the basic fundamentals underlying the subject of accounting to the various concepts that are used by accountants to keep records of capital expenditure for an organisation.

The modules have been organised to provide students with an appropriate sequence to develop a sound knowledge in accounting. At the end of each module there is exam preparation to complete. This will help to prepare the student for the final examination.

The modules are of different length and difficulty. Some of them have references to carefully selected websites to provide the student with further practice, summaries and examples of topics covered in the lesson. Students will learn the concepts of financial record-keeping techniques, consequences of effective financial accounting, businesses profitability, performance, costing and budgeting. Such financial information is primarily used by managers, lenders, investors, tax authorities, regulators, and other decision makers to make resource allocation decisions between and within companies, organizations, and public agencies. It involves the process of recording, verifying, and reporting of the value of assets, liabilities, income, and expenses in the books of account.

Accounting helps businesses in the measuring, monitoring and planning of their operations. People skilled in accounting are able to tell whether or not the business is performing well financially, the strengths and weaknesses of the business and to communicate their results to the owners of the business. Accounting is about recording, classifying and summarising data. A certain grade of judgment and good analysis together with accounting techniques are required. The course consists of the following ten modules:

Module One - Purposes of Accounting and Records

This module introduces the subject and explains why we do what we do! Why it is necessary to have accurate financial records and how the most basic transactions are recorded.

Module Two - Verification of Records - Accounts and Balance Sheets

We now go beyond the ledger and start to think about compiling the most basic forms of financial statements. Why does the balance sheet balance? What is gross profit and what relationship does it have to net profit?

Module Three - Types of Business Organisations, Accounting Concepts and Further Aspects

Not all businesses are set up in the same way. What are the differences and what do they mean? Why are they important? Accounting concepts are the rules and the assumptions made in order to create accounts. You will be taught these vital principles.

Module Four - Internal Final Accounts of Limited Companies, Ratio Analysis and the Assessment of Business Performance

The accounts of limited companies are different from those of a sole trader or a partnership. You need to know how they are different and why they are different. So a huge chain of supermarkets makes a bigger profit than a local family owned store. No surprises there! But which is making a higher % net profit? Which is showing a higher % return on the capital tied up in the business? That is where ratios come in. You will be shown all the important ones.

Module Five - Introduction to Budgeting and Budget Control

If you are in any senior position in any business you are going to be controlling a budget. It goes with the territory. But what is a budget and why does it matter?

Module Six - Stock Valuation, Incomplete Records and Sources of Finance

Before a profit figure can be calculated we have to ascertain the value of the inventory at the end of the year. But what figure is the correct figure? What rules should we apply? Not all businesses maintain a full set of accounts. So how do we produce financial statements for a business without full double entry accounts? Or if the records have been destroyed by a fire, or inventory has been stolen, how do we arrive at accurate figures? That is the science of incomplete records!

Module Seven - Accounting Standards, Published Accounts and Partnership Accounts

This deals with the correct format for producing accounts. How much detail has to be provided and in what format?

Module Eight - Manufacturing Accounts

Factories need a special type of account. They have inventory of raw materials, partly finished goods and completely finished goods. Each one of these items must be accounted for and the correct profit calculated. To do this we have to create a "Manufacturing Account". You will learn how.

Module Nine - Costing

Costing is the science (some would say art) of deciding which cost goes where and why. It is not as simple or straightforward as you might think. There are various methods and rarely one correct answer for any question.

Module Ten - Capital Investment Appraisal, Budgeting, Further Considerations and Social Accounting

Is an investment sound? Should we buy machine A or machine B? Which one we buy might depend on a lot of factors such as our cost of capital. Perhaps we shouldn't buy either and just contract out that part of our manufacturing. The techniques you learn in this section will help you to make the correct decisions based on the information you have. You can also contact your tutor if you feel you need more practice in any of the topics covered in this course. Textbooks

This course is self-contained so you will not need to use any extra textbooks. However, you may find useful to read other books on this subject. The following books have been recommended:

• Business Accounting 1 - Frank Wood & Alan Sangster, FT Prentice Hall. ISBN 0273655523
• Business Accounting 2 - Frank Wood & Alan Sangster, FT Prentice Hall. ISBN 0273655574
• Business Accounts - David Cox, Osborne books

Entry Requirements

All students must be 16 years of age and above.

Level 3 Diploma courses require a minimum prior learning to GCSE standard in order that students can manage their studies and the assumed knowledge within course content.

Study Hours

Approximately 20 hours per unit

Assessment Method

Final online multiple choice examination.

Please note that you can enrol on this course at anytime.

Award

Diploma in Accounting

This course is Quality Assured by the Quality Licence Scheme

At the end of this course successful learners will receive a Certificate of Achievement from ABC Awards and a Learner Unit Summary (which lists the details of all the units the learner has completed as part of the course). Please note that this ABC certificate is only available to students enrolling on or after 01.04.15.

The course has been endorsed under the ABC Awards Quality Licence Scheme. This means that Oxford Learning College has undergone an external quality check to ensure that the organisation and the courses it offers, meet certain quality criteria. The completion of this course alone does not lead to an Ofqual regulated qualification but may be used as evidence of knowledge and skills towards regulated qualifications in the future.

The unit summary can be used as evidence towards Recognition of Prior Learning if you wish to progress your studies in this sector. To this end the learning outcomes of the course have been benchmarked at Level 3 against level descriptors published by Ofqual, to indicate the depth of study and level of demand/complexity involved in successful completion by the learner.

The course itself has been designed by Oxford Learning College to meet specific learners' and/or employers' requirements which cannot be satisfied through current regulated qualifications. ABC Awards endorsement involves robust and rigorous quality audits by external auditors to ensure quality is continually met. A review of courses is carried out as part of the endorsement process.

ABC Awards is a leading national Awarding Organisation, regulated by Ofqual, and the Welsh Government. It has a long-established reputation for developing and awarding high quality vocational qualifications across a wide range of industries. As a registered charity, ABC Awards combines 180 years of expertise but also implements a responsive, flexible and innovative approach to the needs of our customers. Renowned for excellent customer service, and quality standards, ABC Awards also offers Ofqual regulated qualifications for all ages and abilities post-14; all are developed with the support of relevant stakeholders to ensure that they meet the needs and standards of employers across the UK.

How can I progress

For more information on how to progress after completing this course, please click here

Additional Information

You will receive a certificate from the College. A digital version is included in the price and will be emailed to you within 5 days of taking your online exam.

Should you require an embossed hard copy of your certificate to be sent to you by Special Delivery post, you can order this separately after taking your exam.

The course can be enrolled upon by students Internationally. There are no deadlines for enrolments.

To view the differences between our qualifications, please click HERE

What's Included

Online study materials to enable the student to successfully complete the Diploma. Support is provided by the tutor department for the duration of the course (1 year). Certification upon completion. All examination fees.