FollowToday’s accounting degree program is designed to prepare students to be competitive in the business world’s vast accounting job market. Accounting itself is all about the systematic approaches to handling business records, mostly financial. To that end, students of this discipline can expect to become proficient in math, accounting ethics, record-keeping practices, and more. Perhaps the best way to discover what’s in store for students of this degree, however, is to take a look at some of the coursework included in the typical accounting program today. For that better look at what to expect, here are some of those required courses and what they are all about.
Related resource: The Top 15 Best Affordable Online Master’s in Accounting Degree Programs
Principles of Accounting
No matter the length of the degree program, all students can expect to take Principles of Accounting or a similar course. This introductory-level course introduces students to all of the basics of the skill which include generally accepted accounting practices (GAAP), business ledgers, and journals. The basics of accounting systems are also introduced here – assets, liabilities, accounting cycles, and bank reconciliation methods. With this course and several others completed, students can then move on to more advanced accounting courses such as Intermediate Accounting.
Intermediate Accounting
Intermediate accounting, as touched on above, comes after the student’s introductory accounting courses have been completed. At this level, more advanced concepts come into play. Students here will learn about the actual standards of accounting along with how to prepare specific financial statements, managing the time value of money, and how to identify and work with various types of assets and liabilities. Long-term and short-term accounting also begin to come into play in this course.
Business Law for Accountants
Business law is an important subject area, especially when it comes to legality and ethics in accounting practices. There are numerous government bodies involved with accounting oversight and standards enforcement today. The American Institute of CPAs, or AICPA, lists five, major, overseeing government agencies involved in accounting practice, and students working toward a career in accounting will need to know all about these agencies and standards. Business Law for Accountants is one of the primary courses made to teach this particular material.
Global Business
Global Business is an economics-based course that takes students on a tour of the ins and outs of business operations on the global scale. How does geography affect business and income? What are the purposes of and differences between offshoring and outsourcing? How do borders affect intellectual property claims and status? These are the kinds of questions answered in the required Global Business course.
Introduction to Probability and Statistics
As far as general education courses required by accounting schools, multiple math courses are to be expected. Intermediate algebra and college algebra will come first, and once completed, most students will then just have one more math course to complete: Introduction to Probability and Statistics. In this advanced math course, the student will learn the basics of statistics and probabilities, summarization, data analysis, sampling, and study design.
With one of today’s progressive accounting degrees, grads can expect to find great business roles and career applicability for years to come. A look at some of the accompanying courses and lessons taught therein is a great way to find out what to expect of such a degree program. In conclusion, for those interested in learning more about the field of accounting or the educational parameters surrounding entry to the field, the American Accounting Association is a highly recommended resource with which to inquire even further.
