Unit information: Advanced Financial Reporting in 2020/21

Unit name	Advanced Financial Reporting
Unit code	EFIMM0124
Credit points	15
Level of study	M/7
Teaching block(s)	Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24)
Unit director	Professor. Clatworthy
Open unit status	Not open
Pre-requisites	N/A
Co-requisites	N/A
School/department	School of Accounting and Finance - Business School
Faculty	Faculty of Social Sciences and Law

Description including Unit Aims

This unit is designed to develop the material covered in the International Financial Accounting and Reporting (IFAR) unit by examining more advanced financial reporting topics from both a technical and conceptual perspective. It will build on some of the topics covered in the IFAR unit and will also introduce new, more advanced ones. Topics covered include the IASB Conceptual Framework for Financial Reporting, financial instruments, employee benefits, accounting for income taxes, segmental reporting, accounting for share-based payments and earnings per share. Because the external financial reporting standard setting environment is dynamic, the unit will also introduce new topics if and when they emerge. The unit will introduce relevant academic literature to assess different accounting treatments from the perspectives of different users.

Intended Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, the student will be able to:

1. Explain IFRS requirements in important areas of measurement and disclosure.
2. Apply key International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) requirements in a variety of complex situations, including financial instruments, earnings per share, accounting for employee benefits and share-based payments.
3. Demonstrate their awareness of the accounting complexities introduced by financial market innovation.
4. Discriminate between different objectives for accounting in the context of the Conceptual Framework for Financial Reporting and in the context of capital markets decisions.
5. Recognise the importance of disclosure in supplementing accounting measurements with inherent uncertainty.
6. Summarize relevant empirical and theoretical evidence on the usefulness of financial reporting information to capital providers.

Teaching Information

Teaching will be delivered through a combination of synchronous and asynchronous sessions including lectures, tutorials, drop-in sessions, discussion boards and other online learning opportunities

Assessment Information

This unit will be assessed by a 7-day timed assessment (100%)

Reading and References

Picker, R., Clark, K., Dunn, J., Kolitz, D., Livne, G., Lofthus, J. and vander Tas, L. (2016) Applying International Financial Reporting Standards ISBN 9781119159223

Alexander, A., Britton A., Jorrissen A. Hoogendoorn M and Carien van Mourik (2017) International Financial Reporting and Analysis ISBN 978-1-4737-2545-4

Additional reading will be supplied from academic journals and reports by professional bodies.