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2012/2013  BA-HA_HU8N  Financial Accounting

English Title
Financial Accounting

Course information
Language English
Exam ECTS 7.5 ECTS
Type Elective
Level Bachelor
Duration Summer
Course period NOTE: The course schedule is at the moment ONLY available at www.cbs.dk/summer
Time Table Please see course schedule at e-Campus
Study board
Study Board for BSc in Economics and Business Administration
Course coordinator
  • Dorothy L. McAleer
    Patricia Plackett - Department of Operations Management
Main Category of the Course
  • Financial and management accounting
Last updated on 12-06-2012
Learning objectives
At the end of this course, students should be able to:
  • Read and understand the primary components of a set of financial statements prepared using international or U.S. generally accepted accounting principles.
  • Explain the role of financial accounting in the allocation of capital in a worldwide economy based primarily on capitalism.
  • Analyze transactions and explain how they affect the financial statements.
  • Prepare the primary types of journal entries, apply the accounting cycle, and present the income statement, balance sheet, statement of cash flows and the statement of shareholder equity.
  • Explain how financial statements reflect judgment made by management and accountants, and how this judgment can be impaired by bias induced by contracts based on accounting numbers.
Examination
Financial Accounting
4-hour written exam:
Type of test Written Exam
Marking scale 7-step scale
Second examiner No second examiner
Exam period Summer Term
Aids Please, see the detailed regulations below
Duration 4 Hours
Exam aids: Students may bring a non-programmable handheld calculator (not a mobile phone or any other device that communicates) and an English dictionary. In addition, the student may bring a paper copy of the corporate annual report provided in the final regular class session, including markings made by the student.

Course content
As the language of business, financial accounting focuses on how firms report about themselves financially to outsiders (e.g., stockholders, potential investors, creditors, regulatory agencies, etc.). You should find the course important and useful throughout your career and in many other courses in a business program. 
 
This course covers some of the most important material in a business curriculum: the nature of the financial reporting process and the basic accounting principles, conventions, and concepts underlying the current reporting environment of externally reported financial statements. No prior knowledge of accounting is assumed. The course begins with an introduction to accounting terminology and the three basic financial statements required of most businesses.  The initial pace is fast, and students are strongly advised to keep up with the assignments.  There is a "building block" effect for materials covered, and failure to keep up with the assignments will adversely affect your performance. Most students have found that the "crisis approach" to studying is not appropriate for this course.
 
We will adopt a user perspective, emphasizing the analysis and interpretation of financial statements by working with actual financial statements. However, to do this effectively requires some knowledge of accounting – debits and credits, journal entries, etc., so you will have to know these aspects of the course material. Throughout the world, financial statements are prepared according to sets of rules, generally either International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) or U.S. generally accepted accounting procedures (GAAP). We will highlight important differences around the world as we discuss the various financial statement elements.
 

 
The course’s development of personal competences:
 
This course will provide the successful student with the basic ability to read and understand externally reported financial statements.
Teaching methods
The primary teaching method is lecture, in-class exercises and homework assignments.
Expected literature
Required course textbook: Financial Accounting: A Global Perspective, by Libby, Libby and Short, 7th edition (international), published by McGraw-Hill.
Last updated on 12-06-2012