Students

ACCG611 – Principles of Accounting

2018 – S1 External

General Information

Download as PDF
Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit Convenor
Leisa Henness
leisa.henness@mq.edu.au
Contact via accg611@mq.edu.au
NA
To be advised via consultation schedule in Week 2
Teaching Assistant
Cissy Zhan
cissy.zhan@mq.edu.au
Contact via accg611@mq.edu.au
Unit Moderator
James Lau
james.lau@mq.edu.au
Contact via james.lau@mq.edu.au
Rahat Munir
rahat.munir@mq.edu.au
Credit points Credit points
4
Prerequisites Prerequisites
Admission to MAccg(Adv) or MAccg or MAcc(CPA) or MAcc(Prof) or MAcc(Prof)MCom or MBioBus or MIntAccg or MCom or MIntBus or MIntBusMIntComm or MIntBusMIntRel
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description
This unit provides students with a graduate-level understanding of accounting as a business process of recording, measuring, classifying and reporting economic, financial and other related information and transactions for use by a variety of stakeholders. Students completing this unit are expected to be able to prepare, analyse and discuss financial reports in various business contexts. Classes cover the core aspects of the preparation and basic analysis of financial statements and the underlying accounting policies and principles.

Important Academic Dates

Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  • Explain the purpose of accounting and accounting processes and appreciate the role of accounting in business sustainability and ethical decision making.
  • Identify, record and process business transactions in the accounting system and report their effect by preparing structured financial statements.
  • Undertake basic analysis of the financial statements of organisations, through ratio analysis.
  • Explain the importance of budgeting and costing in an organisation and prepare and use such information to make business decisions.
  • Participate in group work activity and communicate the results of group work

General Assessment Information

What is required to pass the Unit?

To achieve a passing grade for the unit students MUST obtain an overall mark greater than 50%.

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due
Assessed Coursework 20% No Weeks 3,7,9 &12
Class Tests 25% No Weeks 4 and 10
Final examination 55% No University examination period

Assessed Coursework

Due: Weeks 3,7,9 &12
Weighting: 20%

Participation in Discussion Forum (20%)

Students will respond to a discussion forum in Weeks 3,7, 9 and 12. The discussion questions will be based on assigned homework. Each response will be marked out of five.

Submission

Submission is required on online through ilearn.

Extensions and penalties

No extensions will be granted. Students who do not participate in the discussion forum will be given a mark of a zero for this assessment task. This penalty will not apply in the cases for which an application for Special Consideration is made and approved.
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Explain the purpose of accounting and accounting processes and appreciate the role of accounting in business sustainability and ethical decision making.
  • Identify, record and process business transactions in the accounting system and report their effect by preparing structured financial statements.
  • Undertake basic analysis of the financial statements of organisations, through ratio analysis.
  • Explain the importance of budgeting and costing in an organisation and prepare and use such information to make business decisions.
  • Participate in group work activity and communicate the results of group work

Class Tests

Due: Weeks 4 and 10
Weighting: 25%

Students are required to attempt two class tests.

The first test will be a 25 minute online multiple choice test at the end of Week 4. The test is weighted 10% and will serve as an early diagnostic indicator of student performance.

The second class test will be an online test at the end of  Week 10 . The test will be weighted 15% and be of 1 hour and 20 minutes in duration.

Detailed information about the class tests will be released on iLearn in Week 8 of seminars.

Submission

Both tests will be completed online.

Extensions and penalties

No extensions will be granted. Students who have not attempted the class tests will be awarded a mark of 0 for the test.

This penalty does not apply for cases in which an application for Special Consideration is made and approved and in this case there will be a supplementary test. 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Explain the purpose of accounting and accounting processes and appreciate the role of accounting in business sustainability and ethical decision making.
  • Identify, record and process business transactions in the accounting system and report their effect by preparing structured financial statements.
  • Undertake basic analysis of the financial statements of organisations, through ratio analysis.
  • Explain the importance of budgeting and costing in an organisation and prepare and use such information to make business decisions.
  • Participate in group work activity and communicate the results of group work

Final examination

Due: University examination period
Weighting: 55%

Submission

A 2 hour closed book final examination for this unit will be held during the University Examination period. Detailed information will be available on ilearn prior to the Week 13 seminar.

The University Examination period in Session 1 2018 is Tuesday 12 June through Friday 29 June.

You are expected to present yourself for examination at the time and place designated in the University Examination Timetable. The timetable will be available in Draft form approximately eight weeks before the commencement of the examinations and in Final form approximately four weeks before the commencement of the examination: http://students.mq.edu.au/student_admin/exams/

Grade

Grade descriptors and other information concerning grading are contained in the Macquarie University Grading Policy which is available at: http://www/mq/edu/au/policy/docs/grading/policy.html. 

Students will be awarded one of these grades. All final grades in the Department of Accounting and Corporate Governance are determined by a grading committee and are not the sole responsibility of the Unit Convenor. The final grade awarded reflects the corresponding grade descriptor in the Grading Policy. 

Extensions and penalties

The only exception to not sitting an examination at the designated time is because of documented illness or unavoidable disruption. In these circumstances you may wish to consider applying for Special Consideration. If a Supplementary Examination is granted as a result of the Special Consideration process the examination will be scheduled after the conclusion of the official examination period. Please note that the supplementary examination will be of similar format as the final examination. The Macquarie University examination policy details the principles and conduct of examinations at the University, The policy is available at: http://www.mq.edu.au/policy/docs/examination/policy.html

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Explain the purpose of accounting and accounting processes and appreciate the role of accounting in business sustainability and ethical decision making.
  • Identify, record and process business transactions in the accounting system and report their effect by preparing structured financial statements.
  • Undertake basic analysis of the financial statements of organisations, through ratio analysis.
  • Explain the importance of budgeting and costing in an organisation and prepare and use such information to make business decisions.
  • Participate in group work activity and communicate the results of group work

Delivery and Resources

Classes

The materials for each week will be made available online (ilearn) by the Friday of each teaching week.

Students are expected to spend 150 hours working on this unit. As a guide a student should spend these approximate amounts of time on each of the following activities:

Expectations and Workload

Activity No.

Activity Description

Hours

1

Reviewing online material each week

39

2

Assessment Task 1 (Assessed Coursework – weighting 20%)

20

3

Assessment Task 2 (In-class tests - weighting: 25%)

20

4

Assessment Task 3 (Final examination – weighting: 55%)

20

5

Readings/self-study/tests and exam preparation

51

Consultation

Consultation is available every week commencing from Week 3. The consultation schedule will be provided on ilearn.

Required Textbook and Recommended Texts and/or Materials

Carlon, S., McAlpine-Mladenovic, R., Palm, C., Mitrione, L., Kirk, N. and Wong, L. (2016). Financial Accounting: Reporting, Analysis and Decision Making, Wiley, QLD, Australia.

The prescribed textbook (with Wiley Plus) can be purchased directly from the Co-op Bookshop on campus or online via the following link: http://www.wileydirect.com.au/buy/financial-accounting-5th-edition/. In addition, copies of the textbook are available in the reserve section of the library. Note that WileyPlus is not a required learning material in ACCG611 yet can be used as a revision tool.

Unit Web Page

Course materials, including lecture notes, homework solutions, videos and revisions materials (prior to final examination) are available on the learning management system (ilearn).

Technology Used and Required

In this unit, students require computer technology sufficient to regularly access the learning materials on the unit ilearn webpage via the internet.

Unit Schedule

Seminar Week

Week Commencing

Topic

 

Assessments

1

Monday 26th February

An overview of accounting and the role of ethics in accounting

 

 

2

Monday 5th March

The role of sustainability in accounting

 

 

3

Monday 12th March

Accounting cycle, accounting equation and double-entry accounting

 

Discussion Forum

4

Monday 19th March

Recording transactions

Class test 1 (diagnostic online test)

 

5

Monday 26th March

Preparing adjusting entries Part 1

 

 

6

Monday 2nd April

Preparing adjusting entries Part 2

 

 

7

Monday 9th April

Preparing financial statements and closing entries

 

Discussion Forum

8

 

Monday 30th April

 

 

Preparing worksheets and bank reconciliation statements

 

9

Monday 7th May

 

Introduction to accounting for inventory

 

Discussion Forum

10

Monday 14th May

 

Introduction to ratio analysis

 

Class test 2

 (in class)

11

Monday 21st May

Introduction to cash budgeting

 

12

Monday 28th May

Introduction to cost volume profit analysis

Discussion Forum

13

Monday 4th June

Opportunity for consultation with staff

 

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/strategy-planning-and-governance/university-policies-and-procedures/policy-central). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

Undergraduate students seeking more policy resources can visit the Student Policy Gateway (https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/student-policy-gateway). It is your one-stop-shop for the key policies you need to know about throughout your undergraduate student journey.

If you would like to see all the policies relevant to Learning and Teaching visit Policy Central (https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/strategy-planning-and-governance/university-policies-and-procedures/policy-central).

Student Code of Conduct

Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/study/getting-started/student-conduct​

Results

Results shown in iLearn, or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit ask.mq.edu.au.

Student Support

Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/

Learning Skills

Learning Skills (mq.edu.au/learningskills) provides academic writing resources and study strategies to improve your marks and take control of your study.

Student Services and Support

Students with a disability are encouraged to contact the Disability Service who can provide appropriate help with any issues that arise during their studies.

Student Enquiries

For all student enquiries, visit Student Connect at ask.mq.edu.au

IT Help

For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/. 

When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use of IT Resources Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.

Graduate Capabilities

Capable of Professional and Personal Judgement and Initiative

We want our graduates to have emotional intelligence and sound interpersonal skills and to demonstrate discernment and common sense in their professional and personal judgement. They will exercise initiative as needed. They will be capable of risk assessment, and be able to handle ambiguity and complexity, enabling them to be adaptable in diverse and changing environments.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • Explain the purpose of accounting and accounting processes and appreciate the role of accounting in business sustainability and ethical decision making.
  • Identify, record and process business transactions in the accounting system and report their effect by preparing structured financial statements.
  • Undertake basic analysis of the financial statements of organisations, through ratio analysis.
  • Explain the importance of budgeting and costing in an organisation and prepare and use such information to make business decisions.
  • Participate in group work activity and communicate the results of group work

Assessment tasks

  • Assessed Coursework
  • Class Tests
  • Final examination

Discipline Specific Knowledge and Skills

Our graduates will take with them the intellectual development, depth and breadth of knowledge, scholarly understanding, and specific subject content in their chosen fields to make them competent and confident in their subject or profession. They will be able to demonstrate, where relevant, professional technical competence and meet professional standards. They will be able to articulate the structure of knowledge of their discipline, be able to adapt discipline-specific knowledge to novel situations, and be able to contribute from their discipline to inter-disciplinary solutions to problems.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • Explain the purpose of accounting and accounting processes and appreciate the role of accounting in business sustainability and ethical decision making.
  • Identify, record and process business transactions in the accounting system and report their effect by preparing structured financial statements.
  • Undertake basic analysis of the financial statements of organisations, through ratio analysis.
  • Explain the importance of budgeting and costing in an organisation and prepare and use such information to make business decisions.
  • Participate in group work activity and communicate the results of group work

Assessment tasks

  • Assessed Coursework
  • Class Tests
  • Final examination

Critical, Analytical and Integrative Thinking

We want our graduates to be capable of reasoning, questioning and analysing, and to integrate and synthesise learning and knowledge from a range of sources and environments; to be able to critique constraints, assumptions and limitations; to be able to think independently and systemically in relation to scholarly activity, in the workplace, and in the world. We want them to have a level of scientific and information technology literacy.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • Explain the purpose of accounting and accounting processes and appreciate the role of accounting in business sustainability and ethical decision making.
  • Identify, record and process business transactions in the accounting system and report their effect by preparing structured financial statements.
  • Undertake basic analysis of the financial statements of organisations, through ratio analysis.
  • Explain the importance of budgeting and costing in an organisation and prepare and use such information to make business decisions.
  • Participate in group work activity and communicate the results of group work

Assessment tasks

  • Assessed Coursework
  • Class Tests
  • Final examination

Research and Practice, Global and Sustainability

This unit addresses global and sustainability issues as direct areas of study and as necessary implications arising from the materials, assessment and academic discussion and debate in classes/seminars. We promote sustainability by developing the ability of students to research and locate information within the accounting discipline. We aim to provide students with an opportunity to obtain skills which will benefit them throughout their career.

The unit materials have a reference list at the end of each chapter/module/text containing all references cited by the author. These provide some guidance to references that could be used to research particular issues.

Changes since First Published

Date Description
25/02/2018 Change references to Disruption to Studies to Special consideration inline with new policy.