Accounting and Finance MSc
16 Months Full-Time | January Start
Option for Placement Year
Option for Study Abroad
International
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Option for Placement Year
Option for Study Abroad
During this Accounting and Finance Masters, you will assess and apply key technical accounting and finance procedures to real-world scenarios, gaining a thorough understanding of global financial markets and accounting systems. You will cover topics such as financial planning, corporate reporting and analysis, financial management, auditing, corporate governance, business ethics and international markets.
A key feature of this course is the integration of accounting and finance modules throughout the taught programme. You will critically evaluate the introduction of technology such as big data, blockchain and the digitalisation of corporate reporting within the Accounting profession.
Aimed at those with an interest in problem-solving and critical thinking, this course welcomes those who have studied accountancy, finance, business, mathematics or economics. It is also suitable for those who have gained relevant professional experience and want to continue to improve their career prospects. As an Accounting and Finance student, you will develop as an effective accountant, finance manager, financial analysis and acquire transferable intellectual, research and professional skills.
Expect to develop employability skills through business-relevant and research-rich learning; you will gain an understanding of how global economic and financial challenges impact business activity and how organisations interact within the business environment. You will also gain the skills needed to critically evaluate current accounting and finance practices, business ethics guidelines and corporate governance frameworks to propose solutions to global challenges.
Why choose Northumbria to study Accounting and Finance MSc?
Newcastle Business School is accredited by the prestigious Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB). According to AACSB, “Approximately 6% of the world's schools offering business degree education have achieved AACSB accreditation, demonstrating a commitment to high-quality, rigorous standards, innovation, and continuous process improvement”. Read more about our 'double' AACSB Accreditation.
See other similar courses you may be interested in: Finance MSc
During this Accounting and Finance Masters, you will assess and apply key technical accounting and finance procedures to real-world scenarios, gaining a thorough understanding of global financial markets and accounting systems. You will cover topics such as financial planning, corporate reporting and analysis, financial management, auditing, corporate governance, business ethics and international markets.
A key feature of this course is the integration of accounting and finance modules throughout the taught programme. You will critically evaluate the introduction of technology such as big data, blockchain and the digitalisation of corporate reporting within the Accounting profession.
Aimed at those with an interest in problem-solving and critical thinking, this course welcomes those who have studied accountancy, finance, business, mathematics or economics. It is also suitable for those who have gained relevant professional experience and want to continue to improve their career prospects. As an Accounting and Finance student, you will develop as an effective accountant, finance manager, financial analysis and acquire transferable intellectual, research and professional skills.
Expect to develop employability skills through business-relevant and research-rich learning; you will gain an understanding of how global economic and financial challenges impact business activity and how organisations interact within the business environment. You will also gain the skills needed to critically evaluate current accounting and finance practices, business ethics guidelines and corporate governance frameworks to propose solutions to global challenges.
Why choose Northumbria to study Accounting and Finance MSc?
Newcastle Business School is accredited by the prestigious Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB). According to AACSB, “Approximately 6% of the world's schools offering business degree education have achieved AACSB accreditation, demonstrating a commitment to high-quality, rigorous standards, innovation, and continuous process improvement”. Read more about our 'double' AACSB Accreditation.
See other similar courses you may be interested in: Finance MSc
Level of Study
Postgraduate
Mode of Study
16 months Full Time
1 other options available
Department
Newcastle Business School
Location
City Campus, Northumbria University
City
Newcastle
Start
January 2025
Fees
Fee Information
Modules
Module Information
There will be the opportunity to visit a Chartered Accountancy firm and become familiar with the professional services these firms provide, such as; payroll, consultation and auditing.
You will be encouraged to take responsibility for your own learning, demonstrated through directed learning tasks included in each module.
Assessment is varied, it will include written assignments, oral presentation and exams. You will also undertake a 15,000-word dissertation, consultancy project, or management enquiry. Our experienced staff will be assigned to you on an individual supervisor basis to support your chosen topic.
Full details on the modules for this course can be found below.
The teaching team on this course consists of highly qualified academics, who boast extensive experience in research and knowledge across accounting, finance and economic fields. You will be taught by scholars from various backgrounds, each bringing their expertise to enhance your learning experience.
You will have access to a range of learning support services in addition to direct academic assistance. These will include workshops facilitated by library staff teaching you how to reference correctly and improve your academic writing abilities. You will also be able to access a variety of online support materials through the electronic learning portal. This will include; lecture recordings, access to specialist software and webcasts.
The academics who teach this course
Based in City Campus East, Newcastle Business School is comprised of 24,000 square meters of purpose-designed academic accommodation at the cutting edge of design and technology.
The ground floor presents a Harvard style lecture theatre that can accommodate up to 400 people. The 4th floor contains a dedicated suite for postgraduate teaching. It concludes teaching rooms, IT labs and a comfortable lounge area for both group and independent work.
Our City Campus Library is open 24/7 and achieves some of the highest levels of student satisfaction in the UK. It has held the Cabinet Office accreditation for Customer Service Excellence since 2010.
The academic support you will receive throughout the six specialist modules will also be complemented by the use of data browsing and analysis software. This will include DataStream, Bloomberg, Financial Analysis Made Easy (FAME), E-views and STATA. This software will be used to investigate, analyse and forecast the empirical nature of real-world accounting and financial problems.
You will develop your own advanced research skills and critical understanding whilst working alongside active researchers at the forefront of research in the Accounting and Finance fields. You will be encouraged to ask and explore innovative research questions, reflecting upon the research process before culminating in the production of a 15,000-word dissertation.
To further enhance your career opportunities, you can benefit from our career guidance service, offering you advice for CV writing, portfolio building and interview preparation. This course will also help you develop the key employability skills that leading employers in this field are looking for.
You will be introduced to the many changes that automation and other technology have brought to these industries. This will help you stand out as a pioneer in this field, giving you a competitive edge in the world of employment.
You will also have the opportunity to undertake a consultancy project in place of a dissertation. This will involve working with an external organisation to help solve a current business problem. The project will be carried out in a small group with combined independent and group work, giving you valuable practical experience to boost your CV.
Upon graduation from this course, you will be able to move into a range of careers in both the accountancy and financial sectors, including: stockbroker, external auditor, chartered accountant, tax advisor, business development manager, strategic consultant.
Applicants should normally have:
A minimum of a 2:2 honours degree in any discipline, or substantial experience of working in a business organisation. It is recommended that your previous studies have included quantitative elements.
International qualifications:
If you have studied a non-UK qualification, you can see how your qualifications compare to the standard entry criteria by selecting the country that you received the qualification in from our country pages. Visit www.northumbria.ac.uk/yourcountry
English Language Requirements:
International applicants are required to have a minimum overall IELTS (Academic) score of 6.5 with 5.5 in each component (or approved equivalent*). The University accepts a large number of UK and International Qualifications in place of IELTS. You can find details of acceptable tests and the required grades you will need in our English Language section. Visit www.northumbria.ac.uk/englishqualifications
Full UK Fee: £10,460
Full International Fee: £19,750
Scholarships and Discounts
ADDITIONAL COSTS
There are no Additional Costs
* At Northumbria we are strongly committed to protecting the privacy of personal data. To view the University’s Privacy Notice please click here
Module information is indicative and is reviewed annually therefore may be subject to change. Applicants will be informed if there are any changes.
AF7023 -
Financial Planning and control (Core,20 Credits)
Financial Planning and Control module consolidates current advances in theory and research into the field of management accounting. It will develop your analytical and interpretative skills concerning the practical concepts of financial planning and control and problem structuring, financial information and the practical issues surrounding the role of management accounting within an organisational context, critical examination of the role of accounting in the areas of managerial decision making, strategic cost management approaches, planning, control (including budgeting), transfer pricing, divisional performance measurement and behavioural implications.
More informationAF7024 -
Corporate Reporting and Analysis (Core,20 Credits)
Corporate Reporting and Analysis module focuses on corporate reports and financial statement analysis. To achieve the module goals and learning objectives, this module will comprise topics, such as a consideration of corporate reports use and usefulness, the regulation of corporate reporting, form and content of financial reports, and a critical understanding of the conceptual framework of the IASB. This module will facilitate a critical review and discussion of financial statement characteristics and International Accounting Standards. Furthermore, the module will introduce students to different financial analysis techniques that facilitate the critical assessment and interpretation of accounts and corporate financial performance. This module will also discuss the development of Integrated Reporting and its future. Additionally, the module will help you to identify and evaluate different types of Impression Management in corporate reports. Finally, the module will introduce and incorporate the contemporary topics in accounting, such as big data, digitalisation, automation, and other technologies that shape the future of accounting profession.
More informationAF7025 -
Audit, Corporate Governance and Ethics (Core,20 Credits)
You will be able to develop your knowledge and critical appreciation of Audit, Corporate Governance, and Ethics. This module will combine theoretical and practical knowledge of the audit process, fraud detection and professional ethics and engage with academic research about audit and its role in society. It will enable you to gain knowledge of the principles of the auditing profession using international standards on auditing and to examine the practice of auditing and the underlying concepts, including the need for an independent audit and the development of the role of internal and external auditors in the business society; audit risk and assurance; and audit evidence. It will also connect to the international aspects of corporate governance, including audit committees, corporate governance models and theories, and the role of corporate governance in recent corporate scandals.
More informationBM9718 -
Research Methods and Analytics for Business Practice (Core,20 Credits)
In this module you will learn about a comprehensive range of research methods and business analytics techniques. This will equip you with the knowledge and practical skills necessary for you to conduct research at Masters’ level and prepare you to complete a Master’s Dissertation, Consultancy Project or Management Enquiry. By the end of the module you will know how to apply both quantitative and qualitative data collection and business analysis techniques. In quantitative techniques you will learn about sampling, questionnaire design, statistical inference, and hypothesis testing while qualitative techniques covered will include methods such as interviewing and focus groups. Analysis methods such as content analysis and thematic analysis will also be covered. In addition, you will gain some understanding of research philosophy (positivism and interpretivism) and research ethics and you will be able to write a research proposal to bring these ideas together.
Furthermore, this module will provide clear, critical, and analysis of data, you will also be able to consider the use of analytics implementation skills, where you will be introduced to analytics software such as SPSS. SPSS statistics analysis is one of the powerful solutions that is designed to help businesses and researchers to solve problems by various methods (geospatial analysis, predictive analytics and hypothesis testing).
GA7000 -
Academic Language Skills for Postgraduate Business Students (Core – for International and EU students only,0 Credits)
Studying away from your home country can differ due to cultural and language differences in teaching and assessment practices. This
module is designed to support your transition to postgraduate level study in the use and practice of subject specific skills around assessments
and teaching provision in your chosen subject. The overall aim of this module is to further develop your abilities to read and study effectively
for academic purposes; to develop your skills in analysing and using source material in seminars and academic writing and to develop your
use and application of language and communications skills suitable for a postgraduate level of study.
The topics you will cover on the module include:
• Understanding postgraduate assignment briefs.
• Developing advanced academic writing skills, including citation, paraphrasing, and summarising.
• Practising advanced ‘critical reading’ and ‘critical writing’
• Planning and structuring postgraduate level academic assignments (e.g. essays, reports and presentations).
• Avoiding academic misconduct and gaining credit by using academic sources and referencing effectively.
• Speaking in postgraduate seminar presentations.
• Presenting your ideas
• Giving discipline-related postgraduate level academic presentations, experiencing peer observation, and receiving formative feedback.
• Postgraduate level speed reading techniques.
• Developing self-reflection skills.
MN0491 -
Corporate Financial Management (Core,20 Credits)
The module introduces you to core concepts regarding the objective of finance, how capital is first raised and then deployed into wealth creating operations and then how wealth is then returned to the providers of capital in an optimal way. At the end of the module you should be able to demonstrate in-depth knowledge of the fundamentals of corporate finance and develop the skills and ability to analyse corporate finance decisions in both quantitative and qualitative terms. You will also undertake an individual research project looking into capital market efficiency.
More informationMN0492 -
International Financial Markets and Institutions (Core,20 Credits)
In this module you will gain a fundamental understanding of the concepts and theories operating within international financial markets, the financial institutions/participants that comprise the market and its regulation. Your learning will begin a the macro level, examining the financial system as a whole, the different institutions that comprise it, their roles within it and how they are regulated (with specific reference to banking). You will learn about market dynamics – what drives markets and finally what drives the markets for specific instruments, namely money market instruments, equities and fixed income. To apply the knowledge acquired in this module, you will be using financial information and data. You will also use basic financial arithmetic and statistics through Microsoft Excel.
More informationNX0477 -
NBS Masters Consultancy Project (Optional,60 Credits)
This option is offered as an alternative to the NBS Masters’ Dissertation on all 1-year MSc programmes and in the second semester of year 2 on the 2-year programme variants with Study Abroad and with Advanced Practice (if the students select an Internship in semester 1), again as a Dissertation alternative. It is also offered as alternative to the Management Investigation on the MBA.
On this consultancy based module you will enhance your individual effectiveness and employability skills by locating the learning and development in an organisational context. In doing so, you will promote personal and group development, commercial awareness, and a range of inter-personal, intellectual and practical skills and knowledge centred on and demonstrated through a group negotiated real-time work-based project.
The content of the management report will be unique. The nature and scope of the area of your investigation will be defined and agreed in collaboration with the organisation and the University supervisor. The syllabus will include:
• Conducting research in organisations.
• Identifying researchable questions.
• Consultancy and project management skills.
• Research methods and doing a literature review
• Presentation, communication and report writing skills.
• Analysing findings.
• Writing recommendations and action plans.
• Reflecting on work based experiential learning.
In undertaking this project based module, you will critically reflect and evaluate upon organisational practices and their relation with academic theory, and in doing so, provide practical and actionable recommendations through an investigative management report.
The assessment for your module consists of a Group Consultancy Report (7,000 words) and Final Client Presentation, weighted at 60%, alongside an Individual Assignment comprising a Literature Review (4000 words) and a Reflective Learning Statement (2,000 words), weighted at 40%.
NX0480 -
The Newcastle Business School Masters Dissertation (Optional,60 Credits)
In this module you will gain an understanding of the academic skills that are required to produce a Masters Dissertation. By the end of the module you will have written a 15000 word Masters dissertation. The areas included are:
• Justification for the choice of topic
• Appropriate understanding, awareness and critical analysis of existing and up to date literature evidenced by a comprehensive and well-referenced literature review with an extensive reference list
• Selection, justification and application of an appropriately rigorous methodology - including limitations of the approach selected
• Clear statement of the findings of the research
• Critical analysis of the findings
• Explicit links between the analysis and the conclusions supported by critical argument
• Evidence of original work or thought for example in the form or context of the data collected, analytical process or application of findings
NX9734 -
Masters' Management Enquiry (Optional,60 Credits)
The Masters’ Management Enquiry module is a student-led individual project that enables you to undertake a significant piece of assessed
work commensurate with a capstone module and is offered as an alternative to the Masters’ Dissertation and Masters’ Consultancy Project.
The module aims to provide you with an opportunity to demonstrate an authentic engagement with managers and/or professionals in your
discipline (this enquiry has to be discipline specific), and to integrate the knowledge you have developed during your programme to explore
the theory in practice. The learning on this module is experiential and problem based, where the focus is upon you discovering, probing and
questioning key practice-based issues. Through the module you will be offered the opportunity to develop and enhance key transferable
employability skills including; time management, project management, communication (written, aural and verbal), negotiation, persuasion and
influence, discovery, initiative, problem-solving and analysis.
The module has five thematic areas; explore, review, engage, reflect and connect. These form the key elements of the assessed submission
which is a single 15,000 word report.
Part A (35%, 5,000-5,500 words)
Explore: Interviewing a manager and/or professional in your discipline. In this interview you will either explore a key issue which you feel the
discipline is facing or, alternatively, explore with the manager or professional the key issues that they feel they are facing in practice. It is
expected that you will apply non-verbatim documented conversation and provide evidence of the key ideas emerging within the submitted
enquiry report (e.g. within the appendices).
Review: Critically examining the academic and practitioner literature to support the exploration, displaying an ability to critically assess and
appraise the knowledge of your discipline related to a specific key issue arising from your exploration.
Part B (65%, 9,500-10,000 words)
Engage: Displaying an authentic engagement with the discipline problem/issue identified in Part A, by collecting/generating and analysing
further live data (beyond the initial interview) regarding the discipline problem/issue. This live data may be primary data (e.g. further interviews
with, or questionnaire to, managers and/or professionals in practice) or secondary data (e.g. industry data). Application of appropriate,
ethically-considered, research methods and appropriate qualitative or quantitative data analysis.
Reflect and Connect: Demonstrating an ability to critically evaluate and reflect on the issues arising from the Management Enquiry.
Demonstrating how you have connected and fed-back to the participants of the Enquiry (usually the manager and/or participants) your key
findings to provide clear prioritised, well-justified, practical and actionable recommendations for change/enhancement/improvement to existing
practice to show how the recommendations would potentially affect workplace professional decision making.
The following alternative study options are available for this course:
Sep start
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