General provisions

Master's Programme in Accounting and Financial Management - specialisation Financial Accounting, Management and Control, Financial Management.

Entry requirements

A Bachelor's degree, equivalent to a Swedish Kandidatexamen, from an internationally recognised university. Also required is 90 credits in business studies and 15 credits in statistics. Proficiency in English.

For incoming exchange students only 60 credits or equivalent in business studies are required, though 90 credits is strongly recommended. Proficiency in English.

Learning outcomes

The course covers the analysis of companies using financial statements. After completion of the course, a student should be able to:

• score the credibility of companies’ financial statements and disclosed accounting policies,
• select adjustments of accounting items and policies for purposes of evaluating companies,
• formulate regrouping of financial statements for analytical purposes,
• compose an accounting-based ratio structure and evaluate how it can be used in strategic financial evaluation of companies, and
• evaluate how to use financial statement analysis in the assessment of central financial aspects of companies.

Content

For performing the analysis of companies, the following parts are covered:

• appraisal of accounting items and procedures of companies, which includes necessary understanding of financial reporting standards,
• adjustments of accounting items and procedures,
• undertake adaption and regrouping of financial statements,
• development of useful accounting ratios and their interrelations in a coherent system, and
• the relationship between financial statements and accounting ratios for strategic analysis.

Instruction

The in-class teaching consists of lectures, seminars, and tutoring. Seminars are carried out in smaller groups and contain team work assignments with both written and oral elements. Tutoring is given for the team work assignments. The course is taught in English.

Assessment

The student will get one single grade, equivalent to 7.5 credits.

Course examination includes a written test and team work assignments. The grade for the entire course is based on an assessment of all parts of the examination.

Grading criteria are presented in the study guide provided at the beginning of the course. The following grades will be used: pass with distinction (VG), pass (G), and fail (U). Examinations handed in late will not be assessed except under special circumstances. Any remaining supplemental work must be completed and handed in by the deadline specified in the study guide. Otherwise the entire course (all examinations included) must be retaken during subsequent course sections, pending availability of a place in the course.

Uppsala University does not accept cheating or plagiarism. Suspected incidents of cheating or plagiarism are reported to the Disciplinary Committee of the University, which may issue a formal warning to the student or suspend the student from studies for a designated period.

NOTE: Only completed courses can count toward a degree.

Other directives

The course overlaps 2FE835 Advanced Accounting Analysis.