Syllabus - Winter 2006

ACCOUNTING 501 PRINCIPLES OF ACCOUNTING Winter 2006 Instructor: Jeff Williams Office: D3223 Wm. Davidson Hall Phone: 734-763-5933 Fax: 734-936-0279 E-mail: HYPERLINK "mailto:williamj@umich.edu" williamj@umich.edu Office Hours: Before and after class and by e-mail Course Materials: SYMBOL 183 \f "Symbol" \s 10 \h Required Textbook Easton, P.D., J.J. Wild, and R.F. Halsey, C.T., Financial Accounting for MBAs, Second Edition (2006), (Cambridge Business Publishers), ISBN #0-9759701-1-9. There is no coursepack for this course. During the term, I will post at CTools the following: Solutions manual (assigned chapters only) Practice quizzes and examination SYMBOL 183 \f "Symbol" \s 10 \h Supplemental readings Course Content and Objectives: ACC 501 is the first in a series of financial accounting courses offered at the MBA level at the Ross School of Business. This MBA core course focuses on the nature of the financial reporting process and the basic accounting principles, conventions, and concepts underlying the extant reporting environment of GAAP-basis financial statements. ACC 564 is an intermediate financial accounting courses focusing on some of the more complex common contemporary financial reporting issues. ACC 712 is the capstone course to the sequence, concentrating on financial statement analysis and the role of financial statement information within the capital markets. Students interested in careers in finance, including investment banking, will want to complete the entire financial accounting series. Your objectives in taking ACC 501 should include: SYMBOL 183 \f "Symbol" \s 10 \h Satisfying the core course requirement! SYMBOL 183 \f "Symbol" \s 10 \h Enhancing your ability to read and evaluate the published financial statements of public and closely-held business enterprises as a basis for business decisions. The primary emphasis will be directed toward obtaining an understanding of the accounting for certain transactions and economic events with respect to the measurement of the associated assets, liabilities, and related income and cash flow consequences. This level of understanding should include insights into the fundamental strengths and limitations of the financial reporting process. The course utilizes a user-oriented (as opposed to a preparer-oriented) approach. Conduct of the Course: The course assumes no prior knowledge of accounting, and begins with an introduction to accounting terminology and the three fundamental financial statements required of most business entities. The ?crisis approach? to study is not appropriate for this course. There is a ?building block? effect for materials covered throughout the course, and failure to keep up with the assignments will adversely affect your exam performance and the knowledge you will take from this course to the remainder of your MBA program. Many of the Corporate Strategy, Finance, and Marketing courses rely upon your ability to read, interpret, and evaluate financial statements in the manner taught in the A501 - A712 sequence. A (tentative) class-by-class outline of the course is available at the CTools site. Many of the problems listed on the course outline will be discussed in class and should be worked prior to the assigned day. All assignments (problems and readings) are expected to be completed prior to class. Since we will likely not cover all of the assigned textbook problems in class, it is your responsibility to do these assignments in a timely fashion and to consult the published solutions or myself in case of difficulties. Solutions to the assigned problems will be provided on the web following the related class meeting. Warning: Difficulties encountered by students can usually be traced to a failure to grasp the fundamental concepts early in the course. I cannot overemphasize the difficulties you will encounter should you fall behind, fail to read the chapters and work problems in advance, or miss classes. Course Prerequisites: No working knowledge of the material covered in the core course is allowed. If you have some doubts in this area, please talk to me or take the placement exam. It is a waste of your tuition dollars, your time, and the goodwill of your fellow students to remain in a core course in which you do not belong. Certified Public Accountants and their equivalent are automatically waived from the course and are prohibited by school policy from taking A501 for credit. Grading: Since this is a core course, it is graded on a fairly strict ?curve? --- 25% EX; 35% GD; 35% PS; 5% LP. Course requirements are weighted as follows: Date Weight Quiz #1 February 7 25% Quiz #2 March 21 25% Final Exam April 18 40% Participation 10% 100% Participation: In order to participate, you will have to be prepared. It is virtually impossible to do well in this class without devoting a considerable amount of time to solving textbook problems. I will be calling on students in class to answer questions based on these assignments. While attendance is necessary in order to receive credit for class participation, it is not sufficient. The discussion portion of the participation grade requires that you ask meaningful questions and provide substantive solutions and comments. I do not plan to collect homework assignments; however, if I feel that participation is lagging in general, I might require you to submit written solutions to the assigned problems. Exams: Exams will not be reviewed in class, but solution sets will be made available. All questions regarding grading must be written up to clearly indicate the point of concern and turned in no later than one week after the exam is returned to you. I will review these complaints and return them to you with their resolution. Code of Honor: Students will not give or receive aid on exams. This includes, but is not limited to, viewing the exams of others, sharing answers with others, and using prohibited notes and books while taking the exam. Accounting 501 Syllabus Winter 2006 Professor Williams