Curious about studying Accounting and Finance - BA (Hons)at Abertay University? We've gathered all the key details—entry requirements, modules, fees, and more. Hear from real students by checking out reviews, or take the next step by booking an open day to explore it for yourself.
Bachelor of Arts (with Honours) - BA (Hons)
Abertay University
Full Time
Sep 2026
4 Year
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Join our professionally accredited Accounting and Finance degree and learn how to work at the financial heart of any business. Accredited by four professional bodies, this practical degree gives you all the knowledge and skills you need to start your career in accounting and finance.We put employability at the forefront by focusing on the latest themes in financial management. You’ll have the option to study abroad and/or go on a work placement.
Work placements and study abroad options* Professional body accreditation from CIMA, ACCA, AIA and ICAS. * International study and work placement options. * An enhanced CV filled with activities such as Entrepreneurial Brains Made on Campus (EMBC) in association with Germany’s Stuttgart Media University. * If you want to start your own business, or work as a freelancer, our business incubator, Bell Street Ventures is here to help you. You’ll graduate with a CV packed with projects like the IBM Universities Business Challenge, and ready to start your career in accountancy, auditing or corporate finance. You'll develop the key management skills you need to deliver a financially and environmentally sustainable performance for any organisation. And, whether your ambition is to start your own business or work for someone, your skills will be relevant all over the world. ### Scotland's Top Modern University for Student Satisfaction Abertay is widely regarded as THE place to come for student satisfaction and high quality teaching. But don't just take our word for it: *
Top Scottish Modern University- Guardian University Guide 2027. *
Scotland's Top Modern University for Student Satisfaction- The Complete University Guide 2027 and Times Good University Guide 2026. *
UK Top 10 for Student Experience- The Times Good University Guide 2025 and The Daily Mail University Guide 2024.
This module seeks to expose students to regulatory frameworks that underpin the preparation of financial statements for different forms of business organisations. It also seeks to develop students ability to prepare partnership accounts and limited liability companies general-purpose financial statement based on relevant standards issued by the IASB. Indicative content - Introduction to accounting and reporting frameworks: Accounting framework for a sole trader, a partnership and a limited liability company. - Partnerships: Legal background. appropriations, admissions/retirements, dissolutions and conversion to a limited company. - Financial statements for limited liability companies: Preparation and presentation of general purpose financial statements based on the provisions of relevant IASs/IFRSs issued by IASB. - Accounting treatments for current assets (inventories IAS2, trade receivables) - Accounting treatments for non-current assets (tangible/intangible/impairment IAS36) - Calculation and interpretation of accounting ratios and trends; Earnings per shareIAS33 limitations of ratios. - Prepare and report financial performance to address financial information users and stakeholder needs. - Financial Reporting and basic group accounting with associates IFRS3, IFRS10
This module introduces students to the principles of taxation and the fundamentals of accounting modelling. It forms the first of two accredited modules in Taxation, providing a foundation in key tax concepts and their application. Alongside this, you’ll gain practical experience in developing accounting models to meet a range of taxation and accounting needs, using Microsoft Excel as a professional tool for analysis and problem'solving. Indicative content - Introduction to taxation: General introduction to UK tax system; Administration of tax system; Tax evasion; Tax avoidance; HMRC Charter; Introduction to Income tax. - Sources of income: Basis of assessment and allowable expenditure; Capital expenditure; Personal allowances and reliefs; Income and losses arising from property; Employee’s liability for National Insurance contributions. - Income from employment: Basis of assessment; Employment income; Non-taxable employment income; Deductible expenses; Administration of the Pay As you Earn (PAYE) system; Benefit-in-kind. - Income from self-employment: The calculation of trading profits; Disallowed and allowable expenditure; Trading income allowance ; Basis periods for trading income; Commencement of trade; Cessation of trade; Change of accounting date; Capital allowances; Trading losses and relief; partnerships.
This module introduces the core principles of business analytics, focusing on descriptive and predictive approaches. Designed for students with or without prior higher'level study in statistics, it builds on introductory concepts to develop practical skills in analysing and interpreting data. You will learn how to summarise and visualise information, identify patterns and trends, and apply predictive techniques to support effective decision'making in business contexts. Indicative content - Control and Quality of Decisions: Explore whether decision'making is rational or emotional, what makes for a good decision, and whether it is an art or a science. Study the role of data and information, the characteristics of good information, and the applications of big data and analytics, including their use in the finance function to create organisational value. - Basic Business Data Analysis Using Excel: Apply digital technologies in the finance function to demonstrate trends and patterns, prepare trend equations using graphical methods or regression analysis, and evaluate the limitations of forecasting models. - Business Decision'Making in Practice: Examine the opportunities and challenges of emerging technologies in business, review the key features of data protection and privacy regulations when handling data, and engage with business simulations to apply decision'making in realistic contexts.
Please note: If you are a Direct Entrant (new student) to this year of study and have not previously taken module ABE101, then you MUST take ABE201 as your Term 2 microcredential module. If you have previously taken ABE101, then you are NOT permitted to take ABE201 in Term 2. Starting university brings new opportunities and challenges, and every student’s journey is different. This microcredential helps you settle into life at Abertay and build the habits that lead to success. You’ll hear from current students sharing their own tips, and reflect on the areas you most want to develop. You’ll get to know Abertay’s systems, explore what makes a successful student and practise core skills such as time management, referencing, academic writing style and using support services. By the end, you’ll have the tools and strategies you need to thrive at university. Indicative content - Navigating Abertay Systems: Get to know the key systems you’ll use at Abertay—such as MyLearningSpace, MS Teams, OASIS and MyAbertay—and learn how to use them effectively. - Expectations of University and You: Explore what’s expected of you as a student and what you can expect from the university. Topics include the code of conduct, independent and blended learning, how courses are structured, health and safety, and the Abertay attributes. - Abertay Discovery Tool: Complete the Discovery Tool to identify your strengths and areas for development across five themes: studying at university, academic skills, digital skills, careers and employability, and wellbeing. - Fundamentals of University: Learn how modules work, how assessments are set, and how to use assignment briefs and feedback to improve your work. - Understanding, Searching and Evaluating Information: Develop strategies for finding and assessing reliable information, building your confidence in research and study skills. - Successful Student Behaviours: Practise the habits that help you succeed: managing time, avoiding procrastination, effective note-taking, preparing for classes, developing a growth mindset, and making use of student support services. - Referencing: Understand academic integrity and why referencing matters. Learn how to avoid plagiarism, create in-text citations and reference lists, and use digital tools to manage your sources. - Sounding Academic: Discover what lecturers mean by “academic style” and how to use the right language in your writing. Learn the rules of academic writing, how to paraphrase effectively, and how expectations differ between school/college and university. You’ll also explore how assessments, marking and feedback work.
The basics of management accounting in its role in shaping long term decisions, in planning and in control and presenting reports to management. Indicative content - Further issues in costing : Overhead allocation, apportionment and absorption; compilation of process costing statements and joint costing statements using FIFO and Weighted Average considering opening and closing stocks; throughput costing. - Marginal costing: Cost-volume profit analysis for multi-product. Absorption and Marginal costing compared. - Capital investment appraisal: Investment appraisal methods; Net Present Value, Payback, Internal Rate of Return and Accounting Rate of Return. Strengths and weaknesses of these methods. Sensitivity analysis applied to capital investment appraisal. - Working capital: The nature and importance of working capital. Management of working capital. Determining working capital needs. - Variance analysis: Calculation and interpretation of variances. Reconciliation of actual to planned performance by means of variances. Distinguish between planning and operational and operational variances. Role of MRP and ERP systems in supporting standard costing systems. Material mix and yield variances, sales mix and quantity variances.
This module develops and applies aspects of the law of contract and examines commonly encountered commercial and consumer transactions. Indicative content - Introduction to Legal Systems: Explore the nature of law, the distinction between civil and criminal law, the Scottish and English legal systems, the structure of the courts, sources of law in the UK, European Union law and institutions, and key legislation including the Human Rights Act 1998, Equality Act 2010 and Scotland Act 1998. - Introduction to the Law of Contract: Study the nature and formation of contracts, validity, contract terms, electronic and distance contracts, breach of contract and available remedies. - Introduction to Employment Law: Examine employment contracts, dismissal, minimum wage, forced labour and anti'slavery rules in global supply chains, restrictive covenants, redundancy and data protection. - Agency and Partnership: Analyse the creation of agency relationships and authority, the relationship between agents and third parties, the definition of partnership and the rights and responsibilities of partners. - Introduction to Company Law: Learn about the formation and constitution of companies, types of company including social enterprises, company officers and record'keeping, separate legal personality, piercing the corporate veil, and remedies such as unfair prejudice petitions and derivative proceedings.
Introduction to corporate finance. Gain knowledge of the main sources of corporate finance and the ability to apply key techniques to use and manage finance in large and small organisations. Indicative content: - Time value of money: Future Value and Present Value; Annuities and Perpetuities; Quotes rates, Effective Annual Rate and Annual Percentage Rate. - Bond valuation: Bond Pricing; Bond Ratings; Interest Rate Risk; Determination of Bond Yields. - Equity valuation: Ordinary and Preference Shares; Cash Flow Valuation. - Capital budgeting: Net Present Value, Payback Rule and Other Investment Criteria; Pro forma Financial Statements; Special Cases of Discounted Cash Flow; Scenario Analysis; Sensitivity Analysis; Break-Even Analysis. - Risk and return: Expected Returns and Variances; Systemic and Unsystematic Risk; Diversification and Portfolio Risk; Systemic Risk and Beta; the Security Market Line and CAPM. - Cost of capital: The Cost of Equity; the Cost of Debt and Preference Shares; the Weighted Average Cost of Capital. - Financial leverage and capital structure policy: The effect of Financial Leverage; Capital Structure and the Cost of Equity; Modigliani & Miller Propositions and the value of the firm; Optimal Capital Structure; the Pecking-Order Theory. - Dividends and pay-out policy: Cash Dividends and Dividend Payments; Does Dividend Policy Matter? Low vs. High-Dividend Pay-out; Shares Repurchases. - Short-term financial planning and management: Reasons for holding Cash; Understanding Float; Investing Idle Cash; Determining the Target Cash Balance; Optimal Credit Policy; Inventory Management.
The use of management accounting for management control and advanced numerical techniques in decision-making. Indicative content: - Control: Examine divisional performance appraisal, transfer pricing, and aspects of modern management practice, including accounting issues across different sectors such as social enterprises. Develop skills in preparing business plans, management reports and applying life'cycle costing. - Decision Analysis: Gain an introduction to Activity Based Costing and Activity Based Management, and explore decision'making under uncertainty using tools such as decision trees and the value of information. - Strategic Management Accounting Techniques: Study value management through value chain analysis and economic value added, and apply strategic management accounting techniques including target costing, linear programming, learning and experience curves, regression analysis, cost estimation and forecasting. Consider performance analysis in not'for'profit organisations and the public sector. - Economic Goals and Performance Evaluation: Analyse the goals of profit, non'profit and public sector organisations, and how these influence organisational behaviour. Explore shareholder wealth and its role in decision'making, alongside sustainable business decisions and the ethical dimensions of financial decision'making.
You'll be introduced to the main principles of UK taxes for corporate bodies and individuals. Indicative content - Taxation: A general introduction to taxation. Appreciation of the administrative procedures followed by the tax authorities in assessing and collecting taxes. - Trading Income: The nature of business profits assessable under the UK tax system. The computation of taxable profits and basis of assessment. The calculation of capital allowances. Setting-off of income tax losses for businesses run by sole traders and partnerships. - Taxation of the Individual: Independent taxation. Sources of income including benefits in kind. Personal allowances and reliefs. Losses arising from property income. An employee’s liability for National Insurance contributions. - Value Added Tax: Principles, outputs and inputs, exemptions, zero rated, partly exempt businesses. - Corporation Tax and Corporate groups: Compilation of income assessable including capital gains. Rates of tax. Financial years and payment of tax. The effects of close company status.The use of losses in a single company context. The treatment of groups of companies and consortia. The application of capital gains tax provisions on transactions of companies. - Management of Personal Taxation: Calculation of capital gains/losses and liabilities arising on disposals. Principles of inheritance tax and treatment of liabilities arising on lifetime gifts and on death. Inter-relationship of taxes and identification of opportunities to minimise or defer taxation liabilities. - Tax planning and Overseas Taxation: Inter-relationship of taxes, planning, anti-avoidance and tax management. Overseas aspects of personal and corporate taxation.
The application of financial accounting theory and practice to current issues in accounting, and the development of international financial accounting theory and practice. Indicative content: - Statements of cash flows IAS7: Preparation of statements of cash flows. Cash and cash equivalents; classification of cash flows by activities, Indirect and direct methods. The Interests, dividends and taxes on cash flows. Working capital changes and cash flows. - Accounting for groups: The conceptual basis of accounting for the investment of one entity in another entity; preparation of group accounts including inter- company balances, unrealised profit on inter-company sales and acquisitions during the year. - Accounting treatments under IAS and IFRS: Provisions IAS37, post balance sheet events IAS10 Leases, IAS17, IFRS16 Financial instruments. IAS32, IAS39, IFRS7, IFRS9.
Consideration of the role played by financial accounting in the context of international business and the financial reporting and accounting complications caused by multinational business activities. Module content - International financial reporting and harmonisation: Drivers for international financial reporting; accounting as an international language of business; general financial reporting models; the process of harmonisation and the theory of international disclosure. - The concept of valuation in accounting: Income measurement and capital maintenance; Income measurement under the conditions of certainty and uncertainty. - Accounting for changing prices: Criticism against historical cost accounting; current purchasing power accounting; replacement cost accounting; realisable value accounting and current value accounting; fair value measurement and IFRS 13. - Accounting treatments for foreign currency transactions: How to treat foreign currency transactions - N on-financial reporting: Non-financial reporting, Corporate governance and ESG reporting requirements and performance in accordance with relevant standards including ethical guidance in the context of reporting and performance
The module expands on the material covered in corporate finance, offering you the opportunity to study further investment and financing decisions, short-term capital management, and corporate governance. Indicative content - Capital budgeting: Investment appraisal methods, strengths and weaknesses of these methods, cash flow projections, project analysis and evaluation, sensitivity analysis. - Capital structure: MM propositions without taxes and with taxes, agency theory and agency costs, pecking order theory, trade-off theory, market timing theory etc., practical issues in capital structure policy. - Working capital management: Inventories management, accounts receivable management, accounts payable management, cash management, treasury management, working capital funding strategies. - Corporate governance: Definitions, agency theory, conflict between managers and shareholders, conflict between majority shareholders and minority shareholders, a variety of governance mechanisms, such as ownership structure, board of directors, executive compensation, corporate control market, and shareholder activism etc., corporate governance codes around the world. - Portfolio management and cost of capital: Capital allocation line (CAL), capital market line (CML), security market line (SML), the beta coefficient, the market risk premium, and the Sharpe ratio, WACC, CAPM, APT, Fama & French three-factor model. - Market efficiency and equity valuation: Weak market efficiency, semi-strong market efficiency, strong market efficiency, behavioural finance, discounted dividend valuation, free cash flow valuation, market-based valuation, residual income valuation, private company valuation, applications and processes of equity valuation.
International Financial Management involves international investing and ï¬nancing decisions that are intended to maximise the value of firms that are engaged in some form of international business. These firms as known as Multinational Corporations (MNC). Indicative content - The international financial environment: Overview of the MNC and the environment in which it operates (Goals of the MNC, international flow of funds, international financial markets). - Exchange rates: Factors that affect exchange rates (Determination of exchange rates, links between inflation, exchange rates and interest rates). - Managing exchange rate risk: Functions involved in managing exposure to exchange rate risk (measuring exposure to exchange rate movements, hedging that exposure). - Management of long-term assets and liabilities: How MNCs manage long-term assets and liabilities (information needs, capital budgeting, cost of capital, country risk, long-term financing decisions, international portfolio investment). - MNC portfolio investment: Domestic and international investment in real projects and financial investments.
You’ll be introduced to the principles, theory and practice of auditing and how they apply in real-world business contexts. You’ll explore why auditing matters — socially, economically and professionally — and examine the legal, ethical and regulatory frameworks that govern the work of auditors. You’ll learn how to plan and conduct audits using risk-based approaches, evaluate audit evidence and understand the audit process from start to final report. The module also covers current issues in auditing, including fraud detection, corporate governance, sustainability assurance and the use of technology in audit practice. Indicative content - Audit Theory: The postulates of auditing and the enduring principles of auditing. Agency theory and auditing. The nature and value (usefulness) of key accounting information. Internal and External users. - Legal and professional considerations: Rules of professional conduct (independence etc.). Quality control and process monitoring. Companies Acts - Legal status of an audit; auditor appointment, resignation and removal; auditor rights, duties and remuneration; professional responsibility and liability. - Current issues: The auditor's responsibility for discovering fraud and error; Quality control and monitoring; Corporate Governance; Limiting the auditor's liability; Non- audit engagements undertaken by the auditor. - Risk based auditing: Business risk and its impact on audit risk; Analytical procedures; Understanding the industry; Audit planning. - Audit objectives: Testing controls; Balance sheet assertions; Types of tests; Types of evidence; Sufficiency and reliability of evidence. - The audit process: Specific balance sheet items and related profit and loss account cycles. Audit completion procedures - events after the balance sheet date, contingencies, management representations and the overall review of financial statements. - The audit process: Characteristics of information systems and control over systems reliability. Use of the computer as an audit tool. Applying Computer Assisted Audit Techniques (CAATs). Introduction to group and specialised audits (e.g. Financial services). - Reporting and completion: Reports to management. Statutory audit reports. Special reports.
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