MSA Curriculum

Program Requirements (15 Units)

Each course listed below is a 3.0 unit course

• ACCY 260 Financial Accounting Theory (Prerequisite: ACCY 112, ACCY 113, or ACCY 250)
• ACCY 261 Cost Analysis and Control
• ACCY 262 Current Topics in Auditing
• ACCY 265 Advanced Accounting Information Systems Analysis and Controls
• ACCY 269 Individual and Business Income Tax Accounting

 

 

Four Elective Courses (12 Units)

Each course listed below is a 3.0 unit course

• ACCY 240 Integrated Accounting Concepts
• ACCY 250 Financial Accounting
• ACCY 251 Foundation of International Accounting (Prerequisite: ACCY 250)
• ACCY 275 International Wealth & Asset Management
• ACCY 277 Comparative International Tax Systems
• ACCY 278 International and Multi-State Taxation
• ACCY 296 Experimental Offerings in Accountancy
• ACCY 299 Special Problems in Accountancy/Taxation

 

Culminating Experience (3 Units)

• ACCY 281 Issues in International Accounting Strategy

 

MS/Accountancy Courses Descriptions (Updated 11/12/2009)

ACCY 240. Integrated Accounting Concepts. Designed for students who enter the MS ACCY program without a BS in ACCY or students who need to refresh their basic skills and understanding in record keeping, financial statement preparation and analysis, ethics in the practice of accounting, and internal controls through the use of a comprehensive case study/practice set.  Delivery via independent project work rather than lecture.  Units: 3.0.

ACCY 250. Financial Accounting.   Intensive study of accounting principles and financial statements.  Designed for students who enter the MS ACCY program without the full sequence of Intermediate Financial Accounting in the last seven years.  Units: 3.0.

ACCY 251. Foundations of International Accounting. The role of culture in accounting; comparative international financial and managerial accounting fundamentals; international financial statement analysis; international accounting standards and U.S. GAAP convergence; international business combinations; foreign exchange; international auditing; international taxation; and international capital flows. Units: 3.0.

ACCY 260. Financial Accounting Theory. Financial accounting theory development, principles underlying corporate financial statements, alternative methods and principles, survey of current literature in financial accounting theory. Additional topics may include the relationship between financial statements and security prices, market efficiency, and casework in accounting aspects of financial statement analysis. Prerequisite: ACCY 112, ACCY 113 or ACCY 250. Units: 3.0.

ACCY 261. Cost Analysis and Control. Fundamentals of cost accounting concepts and practice relating to cost accumulation, control, and analysis for managerial planning and decision making. Specific topics generally include product costing, standards, cost allocation, estimation, budgeting, transfer pricing, and performance evaluation. Emphasis is on current issues. Units: 3.0.

ACCY 262. Current Topics in Auditing. Seminar in current issues facing the auditing profession. Topics may include role of auditing in society, professionalism and ethics, auditor judgment and decision making, auditing theory, computer auditing, statistical sampling, fraud auditing, internal and operational auditing, and auditing in a global economy. Units: 3.0.

ACCY 265. Advanced Accounting Information Systems Analysis and Controls. Emphasis on the role of computer and information technology in the development, analysis, and operation of accounting information systems; may include advanced coverage of accounting transaction cycles, accounting systems planning and analysis, accounting system design, accounting systems implementation and operation, the accounting system internal control structure, data modeling and database design in accounting, computer fraud and security, and auditing of computer-based information systems. Units: 3.0.

ACCY 269. Individual and Business Income Tax Accounting. Intensive analysis of the Internal Revenue Code as it affects the business enterprise; study of the tax law as it relates to the economical, political, and social environment within which it developed; discussion of tax cases to give the student an appreciation for the complexity of the tax law, and special tax problems relating to formation, current operation, and liquidation of corporations, partnerships, estates, and trusts. Tax planning and research methodology are emphasized. Units: 3.0.

ACCY 275. International Wealth and Asset Management. Importance of global asset protection and wealth management; domestic Statutory and case law authorities of selected European, American and Asian countries as they relate to wealth protection and asset management; bi-lateral international agreements relating to wealth management and asset protection; Multilateral agreement affecting wealth management and asset protection; tax and legal liability minimizing models. Units: 3.0.

ACCY 277. Comparative International Tax Systems. The similarities and differences between current global tax systems including jurisdiction and conflict of laws issues; the role of bilateral international tax treaties and other international tax related agreements in business operations; international tax planning for individuals and multinational enterprise including corporations, partnerships and estates and trusts. Units: 3.0.

ACCY 278. International and Multi-State Taxation. Focus on the taxation of cross-border transactions which encompasses discussion of the laws, rules, and regulations that affect transactions that cross both state and national borders. It covers various issues such as income sourcing and jurisdiction to tax.  The course generally discusses these issues from the perspective of a US person, but emphasizes and illustrates the general applicability of these rules for the tax regimes as established by other countries and states

ACCY 281. Issues in International Accounting Strategy. Overview of international financial reporting standards (IFRS) and comparison with U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP); International accounting issues in the technology sector; informational accounting issues in the manufacturing industries, international accounting issues in business combinations; and intangible asset valuation under U.S. GAAP and IFRS.  Successful completion will satisfy the culminating experience for the MS/Accountancy program. Students may select topics for their Master's projects that may be outside the discipline topic of the class subjecting to the approval of the instructor.  Prerequisite: Advancement to Candidacy. Units: 3.0.

ACCY 296. Experimental Offerings in Accountancy. When a sufficient number of qualified students apply, a faculty member may conduct a seminar on a designated advanced topic in accountancy. Units: 3.0.

ACCY 299. Special Problems in Accountancy. Individual projects or directed reading for students qualified to carry on independent work. Admission requires approval of faculty member under whom the individual work is to be conducted in addition to the approval from the Department Chair of Accountancy. Petitions to be obtained from the CBA Graduate Programs Office, Tahoe Hall 1037. Prerequisite: Classified graduate status. Graded: Graded (CR/NC Available). Units: 1.0-3.0.