Course overview

The Financial Management and Accounting BA (Hons) degree aims to enable you to make a valid contribution to managerial and accounting functions of any organisation such as sole traders, firms of partnerships, private and public companies, and charitable organisations.

Why you should study this course

• further enhance your knowledge of mathematical and business principles, as well as the theories and concepts involved in investment risk and professional ethics
• develop and embed your sense commercial awareness
• demonstrate an understanding of the work of a finance organisation
• comprehend the role a finance organisation plays in collaboration with the companies for which the organisation works
• fit flexible studies around your other commitments and prepare for the world of work with this career-focused course.

How you'll learn

Our teaching methods for the degree courses are varied depending on which course/modules you take, offering a number of teaching styles to suit the needs of our students, so in addition to lectures, we also utilise a blended learning approach, including online aspects, workshops and group work. We also operate an open-door policy, with additional availability via email and our current online learning platform, Aula.

Progression through the modules develops knowledge and skills, including communication (written and oral), study skills, research methods, project management, presentation and career development. We will also encourage you to consider your employability and/or entrepreneurial development.

Unlike traditional institutions, there are no end-of-year exams. Instead, learning is assessed through coursework and phase tests, which are more reflective of our learning model.

Teaching contact hours

The number of full-time contact hours may vary from module to module, however, on average, it is likely to be around 20 contact hours per week. Additionally, you will be expected to undertake significant self-directed study of approximately 30 hours each week, depending on the demands of individual modules.

The contact hours may be made up of a combination of face-to-face teaching, individual and group tutorials, and online classes and tutorials.

As an innovative and enterprising institution, the university may seek to utilise emerging technologies within the student experience. For all courses (whether on-campus, blended, or distance learning), the university may deliver certain contact hours and assessments via online technologies and methods.

Since COVID-19, we have delivered our courses in a variety of forms, in line with public authority guidance, decisions, or orders and we will continue to adapt our delivery as appropriate. Whether on campus or online, our key priority is staff and student safety.

Assessment

The learning outcomes of modules, assignments and projects will be clearly stated. Your work will be marked according to how well you achieve these learning outcomes and your final feedback will refer to each outcome, as well as provide an overall percentage grade.

Assessment methods vary and include, practical class and project performance, written practical reports, project thesis, oral presentations, tutorial tasks and assessments which take place in week three and week six of each six-week block. This course will be assessed using a variety of methods which will vary depending on the degree selected or the module.

Assessment methods could include:

• Coursework (all years)
• Phase tests (all years)
• Presentations (degree)
• Research/reports (degree)

The Coventry University Group assessment strategy ensures that our courses are fairly assessed and allows us to monitor student progression towards achieving the intended learning outcomes.

Careers and opportunities

Upon successful completion of the Financial Management and Accounting BA (Hons), you will be able to:

• evaluate the legal, ethical and social context, in which accounting can be seen as operating in the accountancy profession - business entity, the capital markets and the public sector
• apply the main current technical language and practices of accounting in regard to recognition, measurement and disclosure of financial statements, managerial accounting, auditing and taxation on a national and international basis
• critically evaluate the main current technical language and practices of accounting in regard to alternative recognition rules and valuation bases, accounting rules applicable nationally and internationally, different managerial accounting methods used in management control and decision-making.
• apply the relevant skills in recording and summarising transactions and other economic events, preparation of financial statements using international standards, performance measurement of managers and business entities, management control, analysis of financial ratios or performance indicators, discounted cash flow analysis, budgeting and forecasting, and financial options and associated risks. These skills must be in the contexts in which accounting data and information is processed and provided within a variety of organisational environments.
• critically evaluate contemporary theories and empirical evidence, concerning the operation and effects of accounting, in the contexts of accounting and accountability, accounting and corporate governance, accounting and capital markets, accounting and sustainability, and auditing
• appreciate the nature of the contexts in which finance can be seen as operating, including knowledge of the institutional framework necessary for understanding the role, operation and function of markets and financial institutions (e.g. the economic, ethical, legal, political, regulatory, social and tax environment, both national and international, the firm, the capital markets and the public sector)
• develop an understanding of the financing arrangements and governance mechanisms and structures of business entities, and a better appreciation of how theory and evidence can be combined to assess the effectiveness and efficiency of such arrangements (e.g. decisions as to sources of finance and financial structure of the pricing of corporate securities, the market for corporate control, corporate governance, financial planning and the international dimensions of finance).

Where our graduates work

Key graduate job titles may range from Chartered and Certified Accountants, Finance and Investment Analysts, Taxation Experts, and Financial Managers and Advisors (additional qualifications may carry additional fees and eligibility criteria).