Undergraduate Course: Developments in Financial Accounting (ACCN10028)
Course Outline
| School | Business School |
College | College of Humanities and Social Science |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 10 (Year 4 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Available to all students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | Understanding the classic financial accounting research papers building the foundations of modern financial accounting research; understanding the contemporary and contentious financial accounting topics; how accounting income relates to equity value and cost of capital; earnings attributes and the relation between accruals and cash flows; the issues around financial statement presentation, such as the presentation of comprehensive income, disclosure vs. Recognition; accounting conservatism; the meaning and mechanisms of off-balance sheet items; positive accounting theory & how earnings are managed through accruals, real transactions and classification shifting; the differences between principle vs. rule based accounting standards and their relevance in the harmonisation of accounting standards.
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| Course description |
The course extends the knowledge developed in Advanced Financial Accounting in meaningful ways. First, the course covers accounting for some complex corporate transactions outside the scope of Advanced Financial Accounting. Second, the course enhances students¿ abilities to critically evaluate research in quantitative accounting papers. Third, the course advances students¿ intellectual competence by providing them with more in-depth knowledge of, and a more rigorous approach to, accounting standards and financial accounting issues. The knowledge and skills developed in the course need to be used on a regular basis by graduates working in financial accounting and related areas.
SYLLABUS
- Empirical evaluation of accounting income;
- Accounting income and equity value;
- Accruals and cash flows;
- Positive accounting theory & earnings management;
- Real activities management & classification shifting;
- Accounting conservatism;
- Accounting quality & cost of capital;
- Financial statement presentation;
- Off-balance sheet items;
- International harmonisation of accounting standards.
STUDENT LEARNING EXPERIENCE
This course aims to equip students with essential knowledge and skills to understand and evaluate financial accounting research. This course helps students further develop core skills of a financial accountant beyond previous courses (eg., Accountancy 1A&2A, Advanced Financial Accounting). This course enables students to develop evidence-based analytical, critical and communication skills through individual and group coursework.
This course elaborates on the classical and contemporary topics in financial accounting research. By reading and discussing the prescribed journal articles, students are given the opportunity to understand how quantitative financial accounting papers are written, what matters to accounting regulators and practitioners, and how financial accounting research is conducted to address their core concerns.
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Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | Accountancy 1a and Accountancy 2A, Advanced Financial Accounting equivalents |
| High Demand Course? |
Yes |
Course Delivery Information
| Not being delivered |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- Understand and critically discuss how accounting income relates to equity value and cost of capital.
- Understand and critically discuss the issues around financial statement presentation, such as the presentation of comprehensive income, disclosure vs. recognition.
- Understand and critically discuss accounting conservatism.
- Understand and critically discuss positive accounting theory and how earnings are managed through accruals, real transactions and classification shifting.
- Understand the differences between principles-based and rules-based accounting standards and their relevance in the harmonisation of accounting standards
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Reading List
There is no specific textbook. Academic journal articles are available in electronic journals through the university library. Students are expected to find, download and read the listed journal articles before coming to class.
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Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
- a good understanding of the classic financial accounting research papers building the foundations of modern financial accounting research;
- a good understanding of the contemporary and contentious financial accounting topics;
- the ability to analyse and critically evaluate a financial accounting model and a financial accounting research paper.
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| Keywords | DFA |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr John Zhang
Tel: (0131 6)51 5542
Email: |
Course secretary | Ms Caroline Hall
Tel: (0131 6)50 8336
Email: |
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