Accounting and Finance

Given the constant changes in business environments, how can financial accounting help managers create budgets, improve efficiency and develop short- and long-term strategies to stay competitive?

You'll study the core principles, concepts and policies in financial accounting and examine the necessary adjustments that underpin the preparation of final financial statements of sole traders, partnerships and limited liability companies.

You'll also gain practical experience with key accounting tools used by industry to prepare, analyse, and interpret financial statements, preparing you for the rest of your degree.

With the increasing complexity of financial securities and investment strategies in the financial market, quantitative skills are essential for people working in the Big Four accounting firms, global banks and hedge funds.

You’ll develop a broad understanding of basic mathematical and statistical concepts, from probability distributions to basic calculus, and develop analytical skills that are vital for accountants and financial professionals.

You’ll gain quantitative skills and practical skills in Excel to help you progress in your studies.

Business Economics explores the constantly evolving economic world within which actuaries work, providing context and developing economic insights that can inform real-world business decisions.

You'll be equipped with the knowledge and tools needed to understand the workings of competitive markets, and the interaction of consumers and suppliers, using a variety of models and examples to investigate decision-making in the economy. The practical roles of money, capital and labour, and the involvement of government in influencing the big-picture of the economy, will be tied to the interests of business, with a strong foundation of economic theory underpinning real-world examples and illustrations. Theories are challenged, economic conventions are interrogated, and different viewpoints are considered to ensure a practical and relevant understanding of economic issues.

The module is designed to satisfy the standards of subject CB2 of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries examinations for exemption purposes.

Management accounts act as a constant for businesses in a dynamic and rapidly changing environment, making them crucial for success and valuable to organisations. You'll apply management accounting tools and techniques to assist managers in making profit planning decisions, controlling company performance, and evaluating long-term investments to grow.

Through developing skills in how to become a business partner, analytical problem-solving and decision-making skills you’ll be ready to analyse economic results, identify growth opportunities and advise managers on how to drive sustainable performance across their organisation.

Practitioners in accounting and finance fields currently face many challenges around environmental, social, and governance (ESG) decisions. Ethical conduct is essential to maintaining the integrity of financial information, promoting investors' confidence and upholding the standards of the profession.

Your professional ethics will determine how you behave when doing your job and help you act responsibility. You will examine codes of conduct issued by several professional organisations (ACCA, ICAEW, CFA, etc) and explore various factors influencing professional judgement in accounting and finance decisions.

You will also develop the knowledge and skills necessary to navigate ethical dilemmas and make sound ethical decisions in your professional career.

Finance is at the centre of everyone's decisions. In a world of tricky economic conditions and volatile financial markets, how can companies and investors apply the main principles of finance when undertaking investment and funding decisions?

You'll gain the knowledge and skills needed to evaluate various financial decisions, such as raising capital in financial markets or from financial institutions, investing in real assets or financial assets, and selling and trading securities.

You'll become proficient in using the Bloomberg terminal to gain a better understanding of financial market operations and you'll learn how companies and investors use this information and the main principles of finance to take funding and investment decisions to deliver profits and sustainable growth.

Finance is at the centre of everyone's decisions. In a world of tricky economic conditions and volatile financial markets, how can companies and investors apply the main principles of finance when undertaking investment and funding decisions?

You'll gain the knowledge and skills needed to evaluate various financial decisions, such as raising capital in financial markets or from financial institutions, investing in real assets or financial assets, and selling and trading securities.

You'll become proficient in using the Bloomberg terminal to gain a better understanding of financial market operations and you'll learn how companies and investors use this information and the main principles of finance to take funding and investment decisions to deliver profits and sustainable growth.

Almost all listed companies in the European Union and the United Kingdom have to prepare financial statements that comply with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRSs). With a thorough understanding of how financial statements are prepared under IFRSs, managers of mid-sized companies will have the skills needed to identify trends and potential threats, and actively track their financial performance in real-time.

In this module you’ll develop the knowledge and skills to understand and apply IFRSs. You’ll also learn the theoretical framework for preparing and analysing financial statements. Learning how to apply IFRSs will give you the necessary skills to become a successful accounting and finance professional.

Strategic management helps guide the smallest start-ups through turbulent markets, empowering them to navigate complexities and innovate. It can also steer the largest corporations towards sustainable success by optimising resources, envisioning the future, and charting a course towards growth and sustainable global impact.

This module is designed to give you an overview of strategic analysis, strategic decision-making and strategic processes within and between organisations. It explores approaches to strategic management as well as concepts, frameworks and issues in strategic management.

By taking a case study-focused approach, this module fosters critical thinking and problem-solving skills. It will help you to contribute meaningfully in your future career, as employers seek individuals capable of strategic thinking.

Management accountants are the strategic business partners who can help companies thrive and succeed. How do they do so, and with what tools?

In this module, you’ll use management accounting tools and techniques to help managers assess companies’ performance and evaluate long-term investments.

You’ll develop analytical, problem-solving and decision-making skills which will allow you to analyse economic results. This will help you identify growth opportunities and advise managers on how to drive sustainable business performance.

Corporate finance is concerned with the way companies can efficiently manage financial resources. Managers are concerned about provision of resources (capital funding decisions) and allocation of scarce resources (investment decisions). What factors do they consider when deciding how to fund their operations and where to invest?

In this module, you’ll examine the underlying financial economic theories and concepts that help managers to run sustainable businesses. You’ll develop analytical and problem-solving skills to advise managers on investment opportunities, capital structure decisions, dividend policies, and merger and acquisitions activities.

What are the legal responsibilities of businesses and individuals towards customers, suppliers, the environment, the workforce, and the public? This module covers key aspects of contract, negligence, company, and employment law. It looks at the formation, control, and performance of legally compliant contracts, organisational structures, employee treatment, and duty of care.

You’ll learn to apply legal knowledge to business-related client disputes. In the process you’ll enhance your problem-solving skills and boost your confidence in analysing and debating legal issues. By applying the law to real-world business scenarios, you’ll deepen your understanding of relevant business law and gain insight into making and supporting responsible business decisions.

Many large companies operate as groups and are required to prepare consolidated financial statements. In this module, you’ll develop a critical understanding of the principles and practices that underpin the preparation and interpretation of these reports, and learn how to apply international financial reporting standards.

When preparing these reports, you’ll also make ethical assessments of managers’ stewardship and examine the information needs of various stakeholders. This module will help you deepen your financial accounting knowledge and help you develop your technical and analytical skills which you can use to address complex accounting standards and current issues in financial reporting.

In an ever-changing financial world offering a wide variety of investment opportunities, investors and portfolio managers face the challenging task of identifying securities and allocating assets optimally to earn risk-adjusted returns. This module addresses these issues by covering various contemporary asset pricing and security valuation models, as well as modern portfolio construction techniques.

You’ll build on your knowledge of market and industry analysis and use real-world securities market data to construct optimal portfolios. You’ll also use a range of methods to evaluate their performance.

This module will present you with the opportunity to explore current issues in financial markets including responsible, ethical, and sustainable investing. It will prepare you for a variety of roles in the investment industry such as financial analysis, investment advice, and portfolio management.

Effectively assessing and managing risk is essential for corporate survival and growth. The risk management module provides a comprehensive overview of effective oversight and value generation principles, focusing on financial risk dynamics.

You’ll rigorously examine advancements in risk governance, regulatory frameworks, and industry risk management practices, focusing on in-depth evaluations of financial risk. You’ll gain a detailed understanding of financial risk types through real-world examples and emerge with specialised insights into managing these financial risks in a professional context.

The module empowers you to explain complex risk management concepts, think critically in uncertain situations, and systematically approach risk-related problems.

In today's business context there is a wealth of data available. Many businesses currently struggle to transform that data into useable information that they can use to make meaningful decisions. We'll learn to extract insights from historical data through interactive visual analytics, communicating complex information effectively and gain hands-on experience in using data to drive positive change in business, environment and society.

We'll also explore advanced techniques for pattern recognition and forecasting, providing the ability to foresee future outcomes and trends. We'll explore real-world case studies from diverse industries, offering a deep understanding of how data analytics is integral to sectors like supply chain management, marketing, healthcare and finance.

By the end of this module, you'll be equipped with the skills and knowledge to transform data into actionable insights and predictions, making an impact on any organisation that you work at.

More businesses are incorporating sustainability as a core corporate strategy. Sustainability issues are becoming increasingly important to customers and investors. Navigate through ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) regulation and industry initiatives which are designed to improve transparency and accountability, encourage companies to adopt sustainable practices and protect investors from greenwashing. You will gain analytical skills that will help you integrate sustainability into financial decisions taken by both corporate managers and professional investors.

For centuries taxation has been an important fact of national life. Without tax it would be impossible to pay for the country's defence services, its health, welfare and social services, its schools and universities and its transport systems. In addition, taxation is a means for government to influence our everyday activities. In this module you'll be introduced to how the taxation system operates in the UK, providing a core knowledge of the underlying principles and major technical areas of taxation as they impact the activities of individuals and businesses. Through case studies, practical examples and discussions, you'll gain a core understanding of the various UK taxes. We will explore the areas of tax compliance, reporting obligations and develop effective tax planning strategies. In this module, you will gain a deeper appreciation of how taxation impacts on every area of our personal and business lives.

Gain the knowledge and skills required for meeting the strategic needs of businesses in the digital age. You will develop competences in the application of management accounting techniques to complex organisational problems, learn how to analyse data, solve problems related to cost, pricing, variances and performance management and convey your solutions in a succinct and impressionable manner for the purpose of planning, controlling, evaluation and decision-making.

Apply your learning, experience, skills and curiosity to varied contemporary accounting and finance issues. Under the guidance of academics, alumni and businesses, you'll be given the autonomy to select, investigate, report on and defend a contemporary accounting and finance problem or topic leading to the development of a business case or dissertation.

Auditing of companies' financial accounts help increase transparency as it assures stakeholders and potential investors that companies' accounts are reliable, unbiased, and faithful representations of companies' financial performance. You'll gain a thorough understanding of a range of auditing topics together with an appreciation of the regulatory and social environment within which auditing process takes place. Through real-life case studies, you will gain technical knowledge and critical thinking skills that will help you undertake efficient auditing processes and provide assurances to all interested stakeholders.

Gain a comprehensive understanding of the rapidly evolving financial technology landscape. You'll delve into the core concepts and emerging trends in the fintech industry, equipping you with the knowledge and skills necessary to navigate this dynamic field. You'll explore contemporary market developments, evaluate challenges and opportunities and immerse students in the innovative world of fintech. Topics may include but are not limited to: decentralized finance, disruptors in the industry, blockchain, cryptocurrencies and cybersecurity. Students will gain a comprehensive understanding of fintech, making them the prime candidates for roles in financial innovation-driven companies.

Making decisions is crucial for managers and businesses, as they shape our lives and impact outcomes at work. However, making smart decisions in the face of complexity and uncertainty can be challenging. How can data support our decisions in such uncertain contexts? Together we'll explore various quantitative and graphical methods that help identify, represent, and evaluate different possibile options and make optimal decisions. These tools will equip you to make sound decisions in uncertain situations, enabling you to influence and lead effectively. By the end of the module, you'll have a deep understanding of informed decision-making methodologies. You'll learn how to analyze problems, identify potential solutions, and evaluate outcomes in uncertain conditions.