Dr Maria Correia

Dr Pascal Frantz

This course is compulsory on the MSc in Accounting and Finance. This course is available on the MSc in Accounting, Organisations and Institutions. This course is not available as an outside option to students on other programmes.

Students on the MSc in Accounting, Organisations and Institutions wishing to take AC415 Management Accounting for Decision Making are required to attend Section 3 (Introduction to Management Accounting). Section 3 cannot be taken concurrently with AC490 Management Accounting, Decisions and Control.

Students on the MSc in Accounting, Organisations and Institutions wishing to take AC416 Topics in Financial Reporting are required to attend Section 4 (Introduction to Financial Accounting). Section 4 cannot be taken concurrently with AC491 Financial Accounting, Reporting and Disclosure

The objective of the course is to provide students with the necessary background required for core accounting and finance courses. The course is structured in five main sections:

Section 1 - Quantitative Methods

This section equips students with essential quantitative tools for technical MSc courses, covering introductory topics in basic calculus, probability, and statistics.

Section 2 – Introduction to Finance

This section introduces students to the time value of money, cost of capital, and the valuation of projects and firms.

Section 3 - Introduction to Management Accounting

This section focuses on the use of accounting for internal planning and control. Key topics include basic cost concepts, cost-volume-profit (CVP) analysis, and cost allocation methods.

Section 4 - Introduction to Financial Accounting

This section introduces fundamental accounting concepts and the main financial statements. It emphasises the perspective of external users—such as investors and analysts—highlighting how financial information is interpreted and used, particularly for valuation purposes.

Section 5 – Ethics

This section discusses ethical decision making in the context of financial services

Teaching takes place before the start of AT.

A detailed reading list will be provided at the beginning of the course.

Illustrative texts:

Thomas, W., W. Tietz, T. Suwardy, K. Chern, W. Harrison, C. Horngren. Financial Accounting (IFRS), 12th ed., Pearson.

Weetman P. and D. Jubb. Financial and Management Accounting: an Introduction, 9th ed., Pearson.

This course is not assessed. However, students will be given application exercises to complete on their own or in groups.