• Offered for Year: 2024/25

• Module Leader(s): Mr Donald Halliday
• Demonstrator: Dr Khansaa Tezeny

• Owning School: Newcastle University Business School
• Teaching Location: Newcastle City Campus

Semesters

Your programme is made up of credits, the total differs on programme to programme.

Aims

This module aims to enable students to:-

* acquire professional knowledge to prepare financial statements, or information for inclusion within the financial statements, for individual and group entities within the current international legal and regulatory framework

* critically analyse comparative entity performance and financial position from published financial statements and other publicly available information and make recommendations for further action while recognising that information may be incomplete

* critically use online resources to access relevant information about entities and to support the continuous development of their knowledge and understanding.

The module focus is on accounting to meet external user needs. The emphasis is on interpretation and analysis, as well as the construction, of accounting information. In addition the emphasis is on a critical evaluation of underlying assumptions.

Outline Of Syllabus

The legal structure of organisations, particularly companies and groups of companies
Principal and agent issues
Users, their information needs and the content of financial statements
The international regulatory framework for financial reporting and the efficient working of the international capital markets
Systems of data recording – evidencing, recording and summarising transaction data, the income statement, balance sheet and cash flow statement and other primary financial statements.

Preparation of Financial Statements:
Data collection, analysis, processing and summarisation
Accounting treatment of major items (e.g. revenue, inventory, receivables and payables, non-current assets, taxation)
Constructing accounting statements: Income statement, balance sheet and cash flow statement
Comprehensive Income and Changes in Equity
The role of audit

Analysis and interpretation of company financial statements including ratio analysis:
Business performance and efficiency, including profitability and asset utilisation
Operating segments and their contribution to overall performance
Liquidity and working capital management
Gearing and financial structure
Investor ratios

Analysis and interpretation of company accounts using cash flow statements:
Operating activities
Investing activities
Financing activities

Construction, analysis and interpretation of consolidated financial statements:
Types of control and their implications for financial reporting
Group financial statements including subsidiaries, associated companies and joint ventures
Acquisition accounting and equity accounting
Goodwill, measurement and reporting issues

Teaching Methods

Teaching Activities

Teaching Rationale And Relationship

The teaching and learning activities are designed to engage students in a rich and varied collection of resources to encourage independent critical thought, discipline, engagement and continual self assessment with a view to continuous achievement of the module leaning outcomes.

Assessment Methods

The format of resits will be determined by the Board of Examiners

Exams

Formative Assessments

Formative Assessment is an assessment which develops your skills in being assessed, allows for you to receive feedback, and prepares you for being assessed. However, it does not count to your final mark.

Assessment Rationale And Relationship

The formal examination tests students’ knowledge and skills outcomes in financial and management accounting, focusing on the preparation, interpretation and application of relevant information.

The examination will be a mix of essay questions and objective test questions

Reading Lists

• NBS8135's Reading List

Timetable

• Timetable Website: www.ncl.ac.uk/timetable/
• NBS8135's Timetable