BA (Hons) Accounting & Finance

Core units:

• Fundamentals of Business & Management: This unit aims to develop your understanding of the business context across industry and sectors globally. You will cover the key issues and challenges facing businesses going forward and the essential role of people in dynamic, resilient and complex organisations. You will explore key functional business areas including marketing, finance, accounting, economics, people management, and organisational behaviour.  
• Academic & Professional Practice: You will build your confidence in both academic and professional skills. This unit will cover the academic skills which will be required at degree level study and you’ll practice them throughout the unit with support from key university services including the library and study skills team. There will also be the opportunity for you to reflect on and develop your own professional skills through interactions with employers, careers services and online resources. 
• Fusion Business Project: You will undertake a business project based on a real issue or problem. The Fundamentals of Business & Management unit will support you in understanding key issues and challenges which could form the basis for your project. Projects will be undertaken in workplaces, community settings or part of research processes related to your chosen field of study. You will be allocated an academic mentor who will support you in developing and undertaking the project.  

Our particular focus in the first year is to ensure that you understand diverse areas like law, economics, accounting, business management, quantitative analysis and finance in the context of how a business is run, thus focusing on the connectivity between these areas in the world of business. 

Core units:

• Economics for Accounting & Finance: You'll develop an understanding of the operation of markets, including the interaction between related markets along with an understanding of the impact of economic policies on business and society in the context of a global economy.
• Introduction to Accounting: This unit aims to provide you with a sound foundation in the fundamentals of accounting, together with a basic understanding of the regulatory framework.
• Business Context: This unit will equip you with the understanding of how to translate knowledge in economics, law, statistics, finance, accounting in a business context.
• Law for Accounting & Finance: This unit will embed the core legal principles and concepts within the legal environment for a graduate operating in the finance sector.
• Quantitative Analysis: This unit will develop your understanding of basic mathematical principles and how they are applied in accounting and finance. It will provide you with the essential techniques used to collect, present, analyse and interpret data and show how quantitative methods may be used to provide reliable management information.
• Introduction to Financial Markets: As an introduction to financial markets, you will gain a level of conceptual understanding that will allow you to critically evaluate the fundamentals of finance and its implications in the current scenario.

The second year emphasises on embedding subject related skills like a working knowledge of accounting software and excel skills whilst also ensuring that you learn softer skills such as presentation skills, assessment centre practice and CV building experience. The aim is to ensure that you are ready to successfully engage with the placement recruitment process.

Core units:

• Management Accounting: Providing you with the practical ability to deal with fundamental cost and management accounting issues.
• Financial Reporting: You'll expand upon your theoretical knowledge of financial accounting and critically apply the principles to a consideration of alternative methods of accounting and to the practice of accounting in more advanced applications.
• Corporate Financial Management: You'll cover the theory relating to investment, financing and dividend decisions and apply appropriate techniques to assist with the three key decision areas
• Accounting Information Systems: You will progress and enhance your IT skills through the use and application of industry-standard software. The unit will also provide an understanding of the accounting profession and put the use of such software into context. You will learn how to apply business process thinking in SAP ERP Information systems as tools within financial and management accounting. 

Option units Block A (choose one):

• Business Tax Planning: This unit will equip you with a working knowledge of the UK taxation system as it impacts upon business decision making and encourages you to critically evaluate the principles underlying the UK system of taxing business.
• Asset Valuation: You will gain a thorough understanding of the structural overview of the financial markets, particularly the role and impact of financial market participants. You will be able to analyse and evaluate equity securities market using appropriate valuation concepts and techniques, particularly fundamental analysis.

Option units Block B (choose one):

• Money, Banking & Financial Markets: This unit aims to provide a solid grounding in monetary economics and the financial system.  It seeks to provide a basis for understanding and analysing the working of financial markets and for assessing the relative effectiveness of monetary policy as a means of tackling macroeconomic problems.
• Audit & Control: The unit's main emphasis is on the statutory audit process, although the work of internal audit will also be considered.

You may choose to complete an optional (minimum) 30-week work placement which can be carried out anywhere in the world. The placement year offers a chance to gain experience and make contacts for the future.

The final year will emphasise on embedding research skills, which will ensure that you are able to apply this important transferable skills to your graduate role. We achieve this by exposing you to the impactful research conducted by our senior academics and professors in the department, therefore enriching your grounding in different methods of research. This will then be applied in either a research study context or to the study of a live company, thus ensuring that you can demonstrate research application.

Core units:

• Advanced Accounting Theory & Practice: This unit will develop your understanding of the theoretical aspects of financial reporting and teach you how to apply this to technical issues.
• Contemporary Issues in Accounting & Finance Research: You will develop an appreciation for current research in accounting and finance and become equipped with a broad range of research skills. Key topics will include, hypothesis formation; ethical procedures; questionnaire designs; and quantitative and qualitative methodologies.

Option units Block C (choose one):

• Investment Management: You'll explore the current features of capital markets and savings products which will prepare you for business and personal investment.
• Perspectives on Business Strategy: This unit gives you insights into the differing perspectives used to develop and implement business strategy. From its roots in finance and economics, the field of strategy has developed its own language, tools, models and methodologies, which are used throughout businesses and other organisations in many parts of the world.  This unit introduces you to that language and gives you experience working with the toolkit and understanding its limitations.
• Public Finance & Policy: As Nation-States begin to raise taxes to address unprecedented levels of public debt, we will consider their decisions, targets, and taboos. We will debate the underlying principles and theories on which our tax policies have evolved. This unit aims to provide a technically and academically challenging examination of public finance, in theory and in practice. 

Option units Block D (choose one):

• Company Study: This unit will enhance your skills in both computerised and non-computerised information retrieval, analysis and presentation.
• Research Study: The aim of the unit is to provide you with the opportunity to develop skills in conducting effectively a research project, and acquire specialist knowledge within an area relevant to your programme of study.

Option units Block E (choose one):

• Risk Modelling & Management: This unit aims to provide you with a significant awareness and understanding of risk within a modern business environment and the risk management processes necessary to control such risk.
• Financial Regulation: The unit provides insight into key financial regulatory theories, forms and rationale of regulation that are highly relevant to those seeking to operate within the financial services sector.
• Derivatives & Alternative Investment: The unit starts with the historical precedents, runs through current developments and emphasises the technical details of valuation of all derivatives and alternative investment. This unit also provides problem-based analysis of Alternative Investment strategies, focusing on governance and valuation.

Option units Block F (choose one):

• Corporate Social Responsibility & Environmental Reporting: This unit will equip you with the ability to account and report on environmental topics, with emphasis on both the regulatory and reporting framework needed to account for environmental issues. You will gain the ability to critically appraise the usefulness of such information.   
• International Taxation: The aim of this unit is to provide a technically and academically challenging examination of the issues in international taxation faced by multinational corporations and individuals.
• Advanced Management Accounting: This unit will cover the role of management accounting in all aspects of management control systems, particularly in the development and use of performance management systems and the strategic control of organisations.
• Business Taxation: The unit will cover the effects of taxation in the various stages in the expansion of a business, from sole trader to corporate group, and provide you with a thorough understanding of the tax regime faced by businesses in their most common forms and of the more common tax planning strategies that may be adopted.

Please note that option units require minimum numbers in order to run and may only be available on a semester by semester basis. They may also change from year to year.

Programme specifications provide definitive records of the University's taught degrees in line with Quality Assurance Agency requirements. Every taught course leading to a BU Award has a programme specification which describes its aims, structure, content and learning outcomes, plus the teaching, learning and assessment methods used.

Whilst every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the programme specification, the information is liable to change to take advantage of exciting new approaches to teaching and learning as well as developments in industry. If you have been unable to locate the programme specification for the course you are interested in, it will be available as soon as the latest version is ready. Alternatively please contact us for assistance.

Our accounting, finance & economics courses offer an optional placement year, which is a vital part in developing well-rounded and industry-ready graduates. We are proud that our students have played their part in the success of top firms including JP Morgan, IBM, PricewaterhouseCoopers and Motorola. The average salary for our Accounting, Finance & Economics placement students is £15,000–£19,999 per annum.

What’s more, you can also choose to undertake your placement abroad, giving you the opportunity to develop yourself personally, academically, and professionally and gain skills to help you stand out in the job market.

Our students perform very well on placement and a number of firms return to us year-on-year to source BU placement students.

Although it is ultimately your responsibility to find a placement, we give you all the support you could need. 

Our dedicated Placement Officers circulate job opportunities and offer CV, covering letter and interview coaching to ensure you have the best chance to compete for some of the top placement positions in industry.

• Mazars
• IBM
• CC Young
• Charles Stanley
• GE
• FP Wealth Management
• EDF Trading
• Morgan Stanley
• JP Morgan
• Prescient
• Norwegian Cruise Lines.

AccessBU: AccessBU provides you with the opportunity to tell us about your circumstances that are not always evident in your UCAS application. This widening access initiative also considers relevant criteria such as being in care or if you live in an area with a low participation rate in Higher Education - if you are eligible, your offer could be up to 16 UCAS tariff points below the published tariff.

Apprenticeships: We recognise the transferable knowledge and skills gained through apprenticeships and welcome applications from students with a Level 3 Advanced Apprenticeship recognised by the Institute for Apprenticeships. Each application will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

Deferred entry: We are happy to consider eligible applicants for deferred entry. If you have already submitted your application, please submit your deferral request through our website. 

Direct entry: We welcome applications from students who have previously studied at degree level at other institutions and wish to transfer onto a BU course. Our Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) procedure enables credit awarded from one institution to contribute to a BU award, subject to an application process. Please visit our RPL webpage for more information.

Mature applicants: We recognise that mature applicants may have a wealth of experience rather than formal qualifications, so we’ll consider your application on these merits if included in your application. You’ll need to apply to BU in the usual way through UCAS and you may be invited to an interview to discuss your suitability for the course based on the experience you tell us about in your application.

We select candidates for this course by looking at your application; there are usually no interviews or selection activities needed. For that reason, make sure your application really stands out from the crowd, and leave us in no doubt as to why you should be joining BU. You can find some handy hints about filling in your UCAS form on our how to apply web pages.

We look at individual applications and make a tailored offer based on your potential to succeed on the course considering a range of factors, including your academic achievements, work and other experience, reference and personal statement, and in some cases, your performance at an interview or a portfolio review. Typically, we make an offer at the bottom of the tariff range.

AccessBU gives you the chance to tell us more about you and your life experiences if you haven’t had the same educational opportunities as other applicants. If you are eligible for AccessBU, your offer could be up to 16 UCAS Tariff Points below the published tariff.

Our offer-making will typically be based on your most recent qualifications, including any required subjects where applicable. We'll consider all qualifications when assessing your application, although these may not be part of our offer.

If you do not meet the criteria of your original offer, we may still offer you a place. We will review your whole application and consider all academic qualifications (including those not in the offer) to see if you have the academic potential to succeed on the course. If we feel the answer is yes, we will confirm your place.

Your learning across accounting and finance – complemented by options to specialise in particular areas – means this course can open up a wide variety of opportunities.

Graduates work for a broad spectrum of organisations, taking up roles such as:

• Account Officer
• Business Development Adviser
• Accountant or Finance Executive
• Graduate Financial Adviser
• Business Analyst
• Capital Management Analyst
• Audit Associate. 

The skills you learn stand you in good stead for your continuing professional development too – giving you more control over your career direction.

Once you have completed an undergraduate Honours degree, you can further develop your education by studying for a postgraduate degree. Please visit our postgraduate section for further details about our range of Master’s degrees.

Research degrees  

If you are a BU graduate you are eligible for a 20% ‘loyalty’ discount on the published fees for further programmes with us!   

Depending on your qualifications and experiences, you can choose to undertake a MRes or PhD level research degree. Bournemouth University has a strong accounting & finance research foundation within our Department of Accounting, Finance & Economics through a number of research centres, which explores theory, education and professional practice.  

Visit our postgraduate research courses for further details about research degree options with the Bournemouth University Business School and the funding options available. 

As a student at BU we will provide many things to support you and there will also be additional costs you may encounter as whilst studying at BU. The information below will help you understand our provision and what you need to budget for.

What’s included in your tuition fee?

Your tuition fee covers expenses associated with your course, including tuition materials, access to facilities, mandatory field trips and the following:

• Materials for laboratory and mandatory field-based teaching activity.

• Support for finding placements (UK or abroad) and fieldwork, and non-financial support whilst on placement if this is part of your course of study.
• A range of student services – advisors, help desks, counsellors, placement support and careers service.
• Access to Brightspace, our virtual learning environment, which offers a responsive and personalised learning experience with powerful learning analytics capabilities, integrated social media and advanced video features.
• The Library – access to a wide range of electronic resources (databases, e-journals and e-books), print and multimedia collections, subject librarians and study spaces.
• IT labs (some open 24/7), wireless network, AV equipment to borrow.
• Free software download to your personal device of Microsoft Office 365 ProPlus while you are studying, as well as access to applications provided on AppsAnywhere, subject to licensing and compatibility restrictions. 
• Peer Assisted Learning (PAL) scheme.
• Disability and additional learning support, according to individual circumstances.
• The BU Language Centre to help you develop/improve foreign or English language skills
• 24 hours a day, 365 days a year security team.

​Additional costs

We are committed to offering you value for money and ensuring there are no hidden costs while you are studying with us, therefore we have listed below any additional costs you may incur that are not covered by your tuition fee:

• Laptops, tablets and mobile devices and any software used on personal devices. Access to a personal computer is strongly recommended for your study. If you are experiencing financial difficulty, visit our website for information regarding hardship funds.
• Textbooks, general stationery and other supplies. Our award-winning library is stocked with a large range of textbooks and online resources, free of charge. The Students’ Union shop stocks a wide range of stationery supplies.
• Accommodation and living costs. Our accommodation price guide can be found on our website. 
• Travel costs to and from the University campus. An annual bus pass can be purchased alongside your rent if you are living in halls of residence/Unilet accommodation or may be purchased separately.
• Travel costs to and from your placement (both in the UK and overseas) if this is part of your course of study. Information about funding your placement year can be found on our website.
• Travel costs for optional field trips, outdoor wear and footwear for mandatory and optional field trips (if applicable).
• You will need to meet the cost of any Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check if required by your placement setting, including any Post Office verification charges.
• Clothing or equipment costs required for your placement if this is part of your course of study.
• SportBU membership.

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While all aspects of the programme, including required field trips, are included in the fee, additional, optional or extra curricula activities may be available for which a student contribution is required.

If you need to repeat one or more units during the course of your studies (with or without attendance) the pricing will be pro-rata of the full time fee.

Dr Hany Elbardan has a PhD in accounting (Brunel University), MSc and BSc (Hons) in accounting (Alexandria University). He is an Associate Professor in Accounting & Finance in the Business School within Bournemouth University. In addition to his university work, he acted as a consultant at GHEM consultants, UK (2015-2017).  

His research interests include accounting, accounting information systems, ERP systems, internal and external auditing, internal control, risk management, managerial accounting and Corporate Governance. He has published his research in refereed international journals such as Information Systems Management, Journal of Enterprise Information Management and Journal of applied accounting research. Hany is a member of the editorial board of the International Journal of Management Science and Business Administration, Journal of Organizational Studies and Innovation and Organisational Studies and Innovation Review.  

Dr Tuan Vu joined Bournemouth University in September 2017 as a Lecturer in Accounting & Finance. Prior to that he had held a position as a part-time lecturer at the University of Exeter on various Accounting and Finance modules. He also had worked as a CFA exams tutor for a MSc programme on Financial Analysis and Fund Management.  

Tuan has obtained his PhD in Accounting at University of Exeter in 2017. He has also passed all the CFA exams (from level 1 to level 3) and shortly, he will be qualified as a CFA Chartered Holder. 

Tuan is a Senior Academic, as of July 2021. 

Dr Suranjita joined Bournemouth University in September 2011. She is a Senior Lecturer in the area of Accounting and Finance and has 12 years of university teaching experience at both the undergraduate and postgraduate level. As an experienced academic she is passionate about using new technology and inventive teaching techniques like Panopto, Padlet, podcasts and use of innovative assessments to emphasise conceptual understanding of the subject matter.

She has extensive experience in curriculum planning with proficiency in programme development of a specialist undergraduate and a specialist integrated master’s degree in accounting and finance. Suranjita has been a programme director in varied academic roles including academic liaison tutor with FE colleges, programme leader of a specialist finance and accounting programmes. Her ongoing research interest is in corporate governance, corporate finance and Tax.

Brian qualified as an accountant through the articled clerk route - then worked for Fyffes Group Ltd as Internal Audit Manager & then McCarthy & Stone PLC, in various roles from Company Accountant to a Director of their operations in France. He opened his own Accountancy & Audit Practice in 1984 which continues trading at present .Brian has been teaching at BU on a variety of units at all undergraduate levels since 1996.

Dr Phyllis Alexander is an Associate Professor in Accounting and Taxation within BU's Business School. She joined the Accounting, Finance and Economics Department in 2007 following a successful twenty-year career as a US Certified Public Accountant.

Phyllis received her doctorate from Bournemouth University in 2013 and has since built a research profile that comprises tax and financial literacy, tax morale, environmental reporting and taxation, financial management and innovative pedagogy in accounting, tax and sustainability. Her doctoral students are researching in financial distress, corporate governance, audit, non-financial disclosure and financial performance.

Phyllis' teaching style is active, problem-based, and collaborative and her assessment strategies encourage the development of professional competencies and the application of technical knowledge, thus enhancing the student learning experience and facilitating early-career readiness. Phyllis actively engages students in extra-curricula opportunities, including annual transnational intensive study programmes.

Phyllis takes an active role in programme and curriculum development at BU while also leading on extra-curricula programmes including international intensive study programmes and employability initiatives. Her previous positions within AFE have included UG and PG Programme Leaders, Head of Education and Professional Practice and interim Head of Department. She currently holds the internal positions on the AACSB Steering Group, TeachBU, Quality Assurance and Engagement Group and the Business School's Industry Advisory Board.

Phyllis' external engagements/positions include Vice-President of the Association des Formations Europeenes a la comptabilite et a l’audit (AFECA), Finance Director for the Tax Research Network (TRN), member of the TRN Education Committee, member of the Funding Committee of the Chartered Institute of Taxation (CIOT). Further, Phyllis has been the external examiner for several programme validations, doctoral vivas and recently completed four years in post as EE for the accounting and finance modules offered at Middlesex University.

Roger is a Chartered Management Accountant and was elected a Fellow of the institute in 1993.

Beginning his career in Management Accounting, Roger “cut his teeth” in the Midlands heavy engineering industry gaining down to earth costing experience before moving to work as a Corporate Analyst in the City of London.

As a Corporate Analyst with the British American Tobacco Group he was involved in appraising new business developments within the UK. This was at an interesting time when borrowing rates were high and Discounted Cash Flow was a comparatively new technique.

Roger subsequently worked in the oil business ( Gulf Oil ) as a Financial Analyst, where he gained managerial experience in addition to project management and on site audits

In more recent years Roger pursued his career in Financial Services. This began with a position with Crown Life of Canada as Management Accountant and ended with American Life where he was Financial Controller of a company with £1bn of premium income.

For the last 25 years Roger had forsaken his corporate managerial role in favour of building his own accounting and training practice. There were 3 elements to his practice:

1. Contract university lecturing. He has been designing and developing courses, together with delivering weekly lectures to 250 plus business students, for the past 25 years

2. Commercial training. He has been involved with bespoke industrial training for the last 15 years.

3. Accountancy and Consultancy. Roger has a small practice providing complete accountancy solutions to small to medium sized businesses

In June 2017 Roger took on a permanent postion as a lecturer in the Business School at Bournemouth University.

Tahani started working in BU as a part-time lecturer in 2017, while she was doing her PhD in tax minimisation at BU and then she has been pointed as a full-time lecturer in 2019 in accounting finance and economics department.

Tahani has been qualified as an accountant practitioner for twenty years as she used to work in international companies and organisations such as Alcatel-lucent (ALU) and international organisation for Migration (IOM). Also, she worked as an accountant chartered in preparing financial statements for small and medium-sized companies. In addition, she worked in academia for five years before she pursued her PhD in accounting and taxation.

She achieved a First Class Honours in her master degree in accounting and finance and her dissertation titled: The relationship between financial structure and earnings and growth in industrial companies.

In 2020 she achieved her PhD in accounting and taxation and her thesis titled: Tax Minimisation and Firm Value: An Evaluation of Different Methods on UK’s FTSE 350.

Tahani is an active member of national as well as international professional bodies, for example, Bournemouth University Institute of Directors, British Accounting and Finance Association, British Academy of Management, the Tax research network and the Accounting Transparency Association in Libya.

Dr Spencer Barnett graduated from Bournemouth University in 2003 with a first-class honours degree in Accounting & Finance and has subsequently qualified as a chartered accountant.

Prior to starting at BU in 2000, Spencer was an equity analyst and arbitrageur at a major European investment bank.

His research interests lie within the field of equity arbitrage, particularly surrounding mergers and acquisitions.

Dr Fidelis Akanga is a unit leader and Lecturer in Management Accounting and Advanced Management Accounting. Prior to joining Bournemouth, he taught Management Accounting at two other institutions in the UK at both BSc, MSc and MBA levels. He has also taught Management Accounting abroad.

Fidelis also teaches Principles of Accounting (online programme).

Dr Akanga's research interests are: Microfinance Accountability, Accounting and Accountability practices in emerging economies, Management Accounting practices within organisations in emerging economies and Corporate governance practices within emerging economies.

Frazer is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Accounting, Finance & Economics, within the Bournemouth University Business School. Having graduated from BU with a BA (Hons) in Accounting, Frazer specialised in IT before becoming an academic member of staff. Having gained an MSc. in Finance & Risk Management, Frazer now specialises in Risk Management/Disaster Planning and is a Technical Specialist member of the Institute of Risk Management. Frazer is currently undertaking a PhD in Finance, focusing on Portfolio Management, with a special focus on Bloodstock.

Frazer's main research interests lie in the multi-disciplinary aspects of large scale renewable energy projects and has a number of co-created publications in this area.