General provisions

The course is only available to students within contract education programmes at Master level.

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.

The course is only available to students within contract education programmes at Master level.

Learning outcomes

This course applies a holistic perspective on auditing. Three different types of auditing will be discussed: external auditing, internal auditing and value for money auditing. Similarities and differences between these types of auditing will be discussed and different theoretical perspectives will be applied.

Following the course, the student should :

• have acquired an understanding of the fundamental characteristics of auditing from a holistic perspective (e.g., auditing’s role in governing organisations and auditing as a profession).
• have acquired an understanding of the fundamental characteristics of external auditing, internal auditing and value-for-money auditing (e.g., auditing as a human activity and auditing outcome).

Content

The course will start with an introduction of some fundamental characteristics of auditing covering the following areas:

• Auditing’s role in governing organisations. The relationship between governance, control (control mix), and strategic choices regarding decision rights and responsibilities are focused as well as consequences of outsourcing and networking.
• Accountability, risk-taking, ethics and audits. Human behaviour will always raise issues of how individuals act based on professional rules and duties in the face of risk. The course will, for example, cover terms such as ’moral compass’ and ’career-enhancing opportunism’.
• Auditing as a profession. One important issue is what characterises a profession in general, and why and to what extent audit activities can be called a profession.

The introduction will be followed by three modules each presenting a specific type of auditing (external auditing, internal auditing and value-for-money auditing). For each of these modules, we will discuss theory and practice, their organisational settings and professional roles related to them.

Instruction

The course is based on a series of lectures and seminars in which students discuss and analyse relevant theories and practices.

The lectures will provide principal knowledge about central topics of auditing. Attendance is voluntary. Seminars require teamwork and attendance is compulsory. The course is taught in English.

Assessment

The examination consists of the following components:

1. Seminar Memos and Active Participation in Seminars: 3.5 credits (U, G)
2. Written Examination: 4 credits (U, G, VG)

and one grade for the whole course, 7.5 credits.

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 graded except under special circumstances. Any remaining supplemental work must be completed and handed in by the deadline specified in the study guide. To receive a grade G for the whole course, the student must have achieved at least a grade G in all examination components. In addition, to receive a grade VG for the whole course, the student must have achieved a grade VG in examination component 2.

If a student hasn't received a passing grade on examination component 1, then the examination has to be retaken. This is only possible through re-registration during subsequent course sections, pending availability of a place in the course. A student that hasn’t received a passing grade on component 2 can take a make-up exam during subsequent course sections.

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 regulations

The course partly overlaps with 2FE838 Internal Auditing, 2FE836 Public Sector Accounting and Auditing, 2FE863 Auditing Regulation taken together. The course fully overlaps with the three courses taken together. The course overlaps with 2FE878 Auditing.