Accounting and Business Finance with Data Analytics

Select your course options:

Summary:

Where Are You Applying From?

How Would You Like To Study?

When Do You Want To Start Your Studies?

Which Campus Would You Like To Study At?

Which Options Would You Like With Your Course?

About the course

This two-year Master’s provides you with a comprehensive knowledge of the key areas of accounting and finance and prepares you for a career in management where an accounting finance and data analytics focus is required.

The course blends accounting and business finance theory to solve operational problems faced by managers. Your studies bring the underpinning theory and practice together applying both to complex real-world situations where vital financial decisions are made.

Areas of study may include financial markets; portfolio management; financial reporting and analysis; management accounting and financial planning; strategic management; and performance achievement planning. The Data Analytics units develop your awareness of emerging technologies and developments and areas of study may include big data; programming; and the importance of analytics in decision making. The knowledge you gain will enable you to synthesis complex information and data to produce meaningful solutions for your organisation.

Every taught unit on this course is delivered in a six-week block with six entry points through the year allowing you to start at a time that suits you.

Why choose this course?

Access a range of financial databases (such as FAME Refinitiv Datastream and Eikon) and statistical software (EViews STATA and SPSS) gaining technical knowledge and skills in trading and data analysis
Study in formal lectures seminars and tutorials but also in small groups that involve the in-depth discussion of case studies; simulation exercises; preparation for assessments; and work on presentations
Be able to synthesis information from different sources and use different approaches and perspectives to solve complex problems and implement solutions
Benefit from teaching that offers an international financial context focusing on the relevance of accounting regulations across a complex globalised economy

Find out more about financial support available

Course Leader - Dr Mohamed Saeudy

I am the PG Portfolio Leader for Accounting, Finance, Economics and HRM, Faculty PRME Lead, and Research Leader of the Centre for Contemporary Accounting, Finance and Economics Research (Res CAFE) at the University of Bedfordshire. I am interested in contemporary research in Corporate Governance and Sustainability Accounting. My research interest centres on how accounting practices may help business institutions to be more sustainable. My work has focused on developing organisational lenses to understand accounting for sustainable development practices in different organisational settings e.g. small and medium size businesses and higher education institutions.

Find out more about Dr Mohamed Saeudy

What will you study?

Financial Markets And Portfolio Management

The main aim of the unit is to address the skills necessary to gain a critical understanding of the international equity, bond, futures and money market facilitating optimal portfolio selection.

The central question that the syllabus is intended to address in this Unit is how Finance Managers access global financial markets in order to select and manage optimal portfolios and the various challenges they face in doing so. In addition, the unit provides you with knowledge of global financial markets, the importance of liquidity, the distinction between exchange versus OTC markets, primary and secondary markets and the role of intermediaries in their various forms.

Financial Reporting And Analysis

The main aim of this Unit is to provide a deep and systematic understanding of published financial statements and the ability to read and interpret them. The unit examines the concepts, principles and assumptions upon which financial statements are based and uses an evaluative approach in applying and explaining the impact of alternative treatments and regulations on published financial statements. You will engage in “Financial Information Analysis” which is described as the process and techniques used to identify and extract critical information contained within the annual corporate report.

The central question that the unit intends to address is: What is the role and impact of regulation on the decision usefulness of financial information?

Management Accounting And Financial Planning

The main aim of this unit is to provide you with a critical understanding of the key tools and techniques used by management to make decisions, maximise revenue and minimise cost.

By combining management accounting and financial planning, this unit critically explores the application of both traditional and current models necessary to make effective management decisions in order to drive successful businesses.

Strategic Management

This unit covers the field of strategy-making and strategic management. You will consider current issues and challenges facing directors, senior managers and entrepreneurs in guiding the long-term development of organisations. The objectives of organisations and the means of achieving these objectives through the mobilisation and deployment of assets and resources and the integration of the various functions of the organisation will be the focus of the unit.

Performance Achievement Planning

This short course is a professional development course that is designed to support all PG students in the University of Bedfordshire Business School to enhance their employability and develop a professional profile through their journey in the Masters. The specific aims are to:

Enhance students’ professional, personal development and communication skills.
To support students to evidence how their experience at masters level has contributed to the development of their professional profile as required after graduation.
To support students to develop the necessary academic skill required for successful completion of postgraduate research

Computer Networks And Security

This unit introduces core computer networking and information security concepts to those who need a foundation in the subjects. It is relevant for a wide range of career pathways - from business and risk management, software development, to cyber and data security and sciences.

Learners will be shown the fundamentals of how computer networks operate and the essential principles of cybersecurity.

Personal Professional Development

This unit aims to help you to gain the full benefit of your extended Master’s programme by supporting you in preparing for employment and career progression. You should develop realistic awareness of the challenges and opportunities that exist within the employment market place and how to successfully present yourself and navigate your future career.

Scheduled coaching and reflection will support you in realising your ambitions. Participants have an equal partnership and control. You set and own the goals and shape your development.

It provides you with key tools of research and learning at the overarching / meta level in terms of skills and behaviours including those of self-knowledge, reflective practice, working collaboratively, enhanced problem solving and building a personal brand.

Through Executive Coaching and Action Learning Sets, Your Professional Future allows you to tailor your own development through whatever routes are appropriate and anchors these achievements in reflective practice.

The unit aims and objectives are captured specifically in the reflective professional development plan the students develop by the end of this unit.

Developing Independent Research

In this unit you will learn what goes into a research proposal and application, the rudiments of good research design at masters level and beyond.

The unit examines the processes of authentication, verification, dissemination of knowledge through scholarly publishing. You will learn about contemporary debates over access and peer review, impact evaluation (citations, H-index, etc), revenue models and research funding.

Completion of this unit will support your ability to critically evaluate research data and to present your conclusions to a professional standard.

Business Dissertation

Aims:

To bring theory and practice together to formulate a topic of your interest whether it is a research-oriented topic or a more clinical topic that is relevant to the context of business and conduct research on your choice of topic relevant to your field of study
To stimulate you to reflect on issues critically and to identify aspects that need further research
To provide you with the opportunity to explore a topic and appreciate the importance of literature review in the learning process
To critically evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of other people’s research to formulate your own study
To enhance skills in time-management, research management, project organisation and decision-making
To apply and reflect on the practicalities of research including access to sources and ethical considerations

Relevance

An important aim of a Master’s degree is to master and apply your knowledge and skills independently so that you can successfully carry out research. This dissertation provides you with the opportunity for sustained independent study that builds on your research proposal and represents the culmination of your Master’s level studies.

Data Modelling, Management And Governance

Managing data is an area of crucial importance in any field. Its application facilitates the rational decision making process that is the basis for successful operations within any environment. To this extent, the purpose of this unit is to discuss how data should be managed during its lifecycle through a mixture of relevant topics. This includes development tools and basic techniques for data capture, modelling, storing and retrieval to serve as the mechanisms for making effective and efficient use of available data. The approach will be based on exploring basic applied principles and practices to enable students to develop an information system as a solution to a problem for a particular field of application. These are fully informed from practices employed in small to middle and, middle to large sized companies.

The primary aim of the unit is:

To advance students by applying a range of both theoretical and practical issues involved in data modelling and management techniques in order to develop appropriate relational database systems for managing data within a chosen field of interest.

Therefore, the objectives involved are as follows:

To review the underlying theory of databases including data modelling and management techniques
To critically appreciate and exploit available methods and techniques used for data modelling and management purposes
To develop the student’s awareness of and ability to select and apply appropriate tools and techniques for building relevant database systems
To effectively demonstrate good practice in database development by using industry standard software
Develop problem solving skills in being able to select the best possible e-Governance solution for a given "real-world" context
To critically review the role of XML (Extensible Markup Language) schemas and ontologies in facilitating data governance
To enable students to gain an up-to-date knowledge by applying data modelling and management tools in their chosen field of application

How will you be assessed?

The assessment strategy for this course is designed in a way that will contribute to student development and will help them achieve their goals and enhance their employability. An essential element of this process is that feedback will be provided in due time so it is integrated in the learning process. When group work is required the marks given will be individual following the University of Bedfordshire's regulatory scheme. The different kinds of assessment are listed below and in some cases they will be used in combination making sure however that there are no hidden tasks. In addition to the assessment strategies followed in each Unit student knowledge and skills will be also formatively assessed through problem solving sessions or case study discussions in order to ensure that development of their comprehension of the underlying concepts is appropriate to the level of studies and continuously supports the overall student achievement.

The intensive character of this Course's delivery as it is outlined in its Teaching and Learning philosophy is consistent with the needs of today's world for graduates who accumulate knowledge fast and are able to express the outcome of this process in a way that is meaningful and comprehensive. After induction a week of intensive direct contact time followed by students own contribution through individual learning will take them to the first assessment point. The process will repeat and at the end of the six-week block the final assessment will be due. This will be a demanding but very rewarding experience. As mentioned above the MSc Accounting and Business Finance is designed to develop a number of transferable skills which along with the knowledge and understanding of the relevant theories and concepts will provide our graduates with all those abilities required for a successful career. The different methods used to assess student performance are designed to evaluate the following: Research and literature review skills data handling application numeracy computer literacy ability to contextualize and evaluate presentation skills and professionalism and collaboration. The Course's Assessment Strategy includes: Written Examination or Class Test: Questions in these exams always promote critical thinking and help gradually develop student ability to apply analyse synthesize and evaluate. Individual Written Report Essays or portfolios: The ability to perform literature informed research to review and evaluate the relevant sources and to use an appropriate methodology in order to analyze and evaluate the relevant concepts is being assessed. At the same time student academic integrity is developed. Students will produce personal skills audits Case Study Examination: Students will apply their knowledge in the context of specific cases. Oral Presentation: A number of transferable skills will be developed Reflective Report: Own work and that of peers will be evaluated Artifacts: in computing the production of applied computing and information technology practical outcomes Dissertation / Professional Placement / Internship / Live Project: Regardless of which masters capstone experience students opt for they will have to produce an individual independent piece of work. They will be asked to identify the research question or problem under investigation review the relevant literature develop a sound methodology in order to explore the problem proceed with the analysis discuss their findings and make recommendations. It is the capstone of this course and builds on the knowledge and skills acquired in all Units. It will be one of the most challenging but yet enjoyable and rewarding experiences they will encounter.

Careers

As a graduate of this course you will have the skills to take up career opportunities across a variety of business areas including assurance and audit; financial accounting; taxation; corporate finance; corporate insolvency and recovery. You will be able to work as a financial analyst; finance manager; corporate treasurer; credit controller to mention just a few of the potential roles.

This course also provides an excellent pathway for further academic study at either MPhil and PhD level.

Entry Requirements

2.2 honours degree or equivalent in related area

Entry Requirements

2.2 honours degree or equivalent in related area2.2 honours degree or equivalent in related area

Entry Requirements

2.2 honours degree or equivalent in related area2.2 honours degree or equivalent in related area2.2 honours degree or equivalent in related area

Entry Requirements

2.2 honours degree or equivalent in related area2.2 honours degree or equivalent in related area2.2 honours degree or equivalent in related area2.2 honours degree or equivalent in related area

Entry Requirements

2.2 honours degree or equivalent in related area2.2 honours degree or equivalent in related area2.2 honours degree or equivalent in related area2.2 honours degree or equivalent in related area2.2 honours degree or equivalent in related area