Course description

Offering a challenging and intellectually stimulating learning experience, our MSc Accounting and Finance prepares you for ACCA professional level examinations alongside a highly respected masters qualification.

• Develop your financial techniques and knowledge to an impressive level through an exciting combination of technical and strategic learning
• Improve your employability with key skills in critical thinking, communication, team work, leadership and management
• Learn in an accredited ACCA and CIMA study centre, drawing on the expertise of professionally qualified staff who have both industry and academic experience
• Take the opportunity to go on a short to medium-term finance internship, so that you benefit from relevant work experience while studying for your masters
• Add substance to your CV; by completing this course, you can apply for exemptions from ICAEW and CPA Australia professional qualification.

Enhance your career prospects

We deliver thorough and inspirational training. You’ll extend your practical skills in the core areas of finance and accounting, gain a strong theoretical framework of knowledge and develop important research and analytical abilities.

The MSc offers a dual approach to learning which will help you create a CV of real interest and substance. You can start working towards your ACCA professional level papers in parallel to studying for your masters qualification, with comprehensive support and guidance from your personal tutor throughout.

When you’ve completed the course, you’ll be fully equipped to advance your career within an increasingly complex and global business environment.

Making it real

We link the academic content of the course to real life business scenarios throughout. Via challenging consultancy projects, you’ll work with employers and leading professionals who will share their experiences with you and bring you up to date with latest developments in finance and accounting.  

They deliver guest lectures, offer professional mentoring, give their input to assessments, and provide live case studies to bring a new dimension to your learning.

Many employers also offer our students short-term or medium-term finance-related internships, either on a paid or voluntary basis. The list of opportunities is broad. You could, for instance, make a difference to a local community organisation: our students have enjoyed internships with Derby Museum and the Citizens Advice and Law Centre in Derby.

Be inspired by our expertise

You’ll be taught by a dedicated team of professionally qualified (CIMA, ACCA, CIPFA and ICAEW) accountants who have many years of teaching, learning and assessment experience in higher education and professional accountancy programmes.

Among them are staff who have also taught on ACCA and CIMA courses so are ideally placed to help you prepare for your external professional papers. They also include active researchers whose work underpins and enriches the course.

Build your networks

The College of Business, Law and Social Sciences is proud of its role at the heart of the regional business community. We provide you with an academic experience that connects you to this business world, improving your networking skills and building your professional contacts.

Our MSc Accounting and Finance students have taken part in our Geldards Debate Series and our Network of Entrepreneurs events, and have attended talks by inspirational senior figures such as Sam Rush, CEO of Derby County Football Club. All these opportunities give you a broader picture of business in action.

A dynamic learning experience

Class sizes are small so you’ll enjoy plenty of guidance in a friendly and stimulating atmosphere. Because the MSc attracts students from across the world, you’ll also be able to deepen your knowledge of accounting and finance in other countries and the cultural implications of business practice.

In our Financial Markets Lab you can gain hands-on experience of trade floor activities and financial market analysis. It gives you the chance to work with data direct from the stock exchange to simulate what it’s like to work in such a fast-paced arena.

We encourage you to take part in a wide range of extra-curricular activities and these can lead to an additional award to show employers the breadth of your experience. Our special Futures Award for the Finance Professional enables you to build a portfolio showing what you have achieved above and beyond your studies – from networking to volunteering, from taking part in competitions to attending leadership workshops.

It’s all about demonstrating your ambition, confidence, independent thinking and professional behaviour to help you secure your ideal job and achieve greater success in your career.

How you will learn

You will learn through a mixture of lectures, group work, discussions, workshops, case-study analysis, practical analysis and personal networking.

How you'll be assessed

The MSc Accounting and Finance uses a range of assessment methods including case study evaluation, time constrained assignments, reflective writing, research-based papers, presentations and group work.

We have also introduced assessments that will enhance your digital literacy capabilities, such as reporting via video and presenting data using infographics.

Who you'll meet

Our staff are passionate about their subject disciplines and committed to your success. The team includes:

Juliet Hogsden, Programme Leader, and a senior lecturer in taxation and financial accounting. Juliet's research area is the not for profit sector.

Parminder Johal, Head of Economics, Accounting and Finance, whose professional interests centre on how higher education can be aligned to the ever-changing nature of the accountancy profession and employers’ needs. Her research focuses on investigating accounting practices within SMEs, family-owned businesses and across international borders.

Elaine Conway, Senior Lecturer in Accounting and Finance, whose research interests span business development and improvement, corporate social responsibility, corporate financial performance and accounting standards development.

David Thompson, Lecturer in Accounting and Finance,who specialises in advanced audit and assurance as well as governance, risk and ethics.