EXC 3442 Managerial Accounting

EXC 3442 Managerial Accounting

Course code: 
EXC 3442
Department: 
Department of Accounting and Operations Management
Credits: 
7.5
Course coordinator: 
Pål Berthling-Hansen
Course name in Norwegian: 
Managerial Accounting
Product category: 
Bachelor
Portfolio: 
Bachelor - Core Courses
Semester: 
2018 Autumn
Active status: 
Active
Level of study: 
Bachelor
Teaching language: 
English
Course type: 
One semester
Introduction

Managerial accounting is a fundamental course within the managerial accounting discipline. Focus is on generating and analysing information for decision making, planning and control for internal management within a company.

Learning outcomes - Knowledge
  • Students must be able to understand basic concepts within the management accounting discipline.
  • Students must understand and be familiar with the main budgeting reports:profit and loss, balance sheet and liquidity.
  • Be familiar with the purpose and role of management accounting.
  • Be familiar with important aspects of the cost concept, including different ways to group costs, and how cost analyses must be adapted to particular corporate decision problems.
  • Understand the opportunity cost concept and the importance of evaluating the total cost function.
  • Understand the principles of cost-volume-profit analysis.
  • Be able to allocate costs from budgets and financial reports to activities (departments) and between activities (departments).
  • Understand the use of standard costing and variance analysis.
  • Be familiar with the basic assumptions and weaknesses of traditional costing.
  • Be able to identify decision-relevant revenues and costs.
  • Understand the problems of transfer pricing, including how transfer prices can affect decision behaviour.
  • Understand how pricing decisions affect profitability
Learning outcomes - Skills
  • Students must be able to evaluate specific decision situations and demonstrate correct use of relevant management accounting tools
  • Students must be able to solve a budgeting exercise and obtain congruence between the profit and loss, the balance sheet and the liquidity budget.
  • Students must be able to analyse the decision context in terms of for instance the relevant cost object, a short/long term decision horizon, capacity issues and cost stickiness.
  • Students must also be capable of calculating and utilizing the opportunity cost in various decision situations.
  • Be able to apply the correct type of calculation tool
  • Understand the structures of absorption and variable costing, and be able to apply these models in various costing problems.
  • Be able to discuss the effect on product costs of a traditional costing model, applying unit-based cost drivers only.
  • Be able to compute various break-even points and evaluate sensitivity.
  • Be able to compute and evaluate various transfer prices.
  • Conduct analyses of pricing decisions
Learning Outcome - Reflection

Students must be capable of demonstrating an ability to critically reflect upon their own work, and on any specific assumptions underlying management accounting concepts utilized.

Course content
  • Purposes and role of management accounting
  • Budgeting
  • Cost concepts and categories
  • Cost behaviour and cost-volume-profit analysis
  • Opportunity cost
  • Job-order and process costing
  • Absorption costing and variable costing
  • Standard costing and variance analysis
  • Relevant costs for decision making
  • Pricing decisions and income analysis
Learning process and requirements to students

The course will include/entail a combination of lectures, plenary tutorials where solutions to exercises will be explained and one hand-in exercise. 

Required work (mandatory mini-exercises)
There are 8 mandatory exercises during the semester of which students must get approved 5. The mini-exercises are short, limited exercises that the students should be able to answer in about 1,5 hours if they have followed the recommended work schedule. If the students are not prepared, more time must be allowed. The mini-exercises are to be submitted through It's learning.

A minimum level of performance  will be demanded for the exercises to be approved (e.g. a minimum number of answers must be correctly answered). Further information will be given in the lectures and through It's learning. The students will be allowed three attempts before the deadline for the test. Information about the time period for the tests to be taken, will be given in the lectures and through It's learning.

Students that have not got approved five of the mandatory eight mini-exercises must retake the exercises at the next scheduled course and must pass five of the eight submitted mini-exercises.

Feedback to the students during the semester will be given in the following ways:

  1. During the lectures the students will be told which assignments are to be completed for the next lecture. The lecturer will review some of these assignments in class. The feedback will consist of the students comparing their solutions with the one that is explained by the lecturer.
  2. Feedback on achieved score on the mini-exercises will be given automatically through It's learning. In addition a recommended solution will be made available.

A basic understanding of and ability to use Excel spreadsheets is helpful but not required.

Software tools
No specified computer-based tools are required.
Additional information

Re-sit examination
Students that have not gotten approved the coursework requirements, must re-take the exercises during the next scheduled course.

Students that have not passed the written examination or who wish to improve their grade may re-take the examination in connection with the next scheduled examination.

Qualifications

Higher Education Entrance Qualification.

Required prerequisite knowledge

No particular prerequisites.

Mandatory courseworkCourseworks givenCourseworks requiredComment coursework
Mandatory53The students must get approved three of the five mini-exercises in order to take the examination.
Mandatory coursework:
Mandatory coursework:Mandatory
Courseworks given:5
Courseworks required:3
Comment coursework:The students must get approved three of the five mini-exercises in order to take the examination.
Exam categoryWeightInvigilationDurationSupport materialsGroupingComment exam
Exam category:
Submission
Form of assessment:
Written submission
Exam code:
EXC34421
Grading scale:
ECTS
Grading rules:
Internal and external examiner
Resit:
Examination every semester
100Yes4 Hour(s)
  • All printed and handwritten support materials
  • BI-approved exam calculator
  • Simple calculator
  • Bilingual dictionary
Individual Students that have not got approved five of the mandatory eight mini-exercises must retake the exercises at the next scheduled course and must pass five of the eight submitted mini-exercises. Students that have not passed the written examination or who wish to improve their grade must retake the exam in connection with the next scheduled examination.
Exams:
Exam category:Submission
Form of assessment:Written submission
Weight:100
Invigilation:Yes
Grouping (size):Individual
Support materials:
  • All printed and handwritten support materials
  • BI-approved exam calculator
  • Simple calculator
  • Bilingual dictionary
Duration:4 Hour(s)
Comment:Students that have not got approved five of the mandatory eight mini-exercises must retake the exercises at the next scheduled course and must pass five of the eight submitted mini-exercises. Students that have not passed the written examination or who wish to improve their grade must retake the exam in connection with the next scheduled examination.
Exam code:EXC34421
Grading scale:ECTS
Resit:Examination every semester
Exam organisation: 
Ordinary examination
Total weight: 
100
Student workload
ActivityDurationComment
Teaching
48 Hour(s)
Other in classroom
9 Hour(s)
Plenary tutorials where exercises will be explained
Prepare for teaching
83 Hour(s)
Preparation for lectures and plenary tutorials (approximately 1,5 hours per lecture hour)
Submission(s)
10 Hour(s)
Preparation for one mid-term assignment
Examination
50 Hour(s)
Exam incl. preparations
Sum workload: 
200

A course of 1 ECTS credit corresponds to a workload of 26-30 hours. Therefore a course of 7,5 ECTS credit corresponds to a workload of at least 200 hours.