MSA

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Core Courses

Financial Statement Analysis for Accountants and Auditors

2 credits | BUAC707

Provides students with the tools to conduct a financial statement analysis, which is part of an overall business analysis. This involves understanding and using the information that financial statements are communicating to users.

Advanced Managerial Accounting and Control Systems

2 credits | BUAC710

Focuses on topics that emphasize the role of managerial accounting in a firm's overall management planning and control structure. A key concern is to show how effective organizations ensure that the parts of the organization work together to create the whole, and how the sum of the parts, through synergy, can indeed be greater than the whole.

Business Ethics for Accountants and Auditors

2 credits | BUAC706

Considers all facets of business ethics issues within an accounting and auditing context. Ethical theory, corporate social responsibility, and individual decision-making are considered. Some of the applied topics that may be covered in this course include, but are not limited to, intellectual property issues, corporate downsizing, outsourcing, global ethics, crises management, and employment ethics.

Data-Driven Decision Making

2 credits | BUAC740

Explore the basic analytical principles that can assist a manager to extract information from raw data and model complex decision problems with quantitative methods.

Forensic Accounting/ Auditing

2 credits | BUAC714

Provides a theoretical background and practical application of fraud examinations and corporate investigations. Fraud prevention, detection, investigation, and related matters such as courtroom procedures will be included. Also considered are topics such as FCPA and securities fraud. A wide variety of teaching tools are used.

Business Communications for Accountants and Auditors

2 credits | BUAC712

Focuses on the art of communication and its effects on people, organizations, and other stakeholders. The course will focus on two aspects of business communications: persuasion and effective presentations. The objective for the persuasion sessions is to have students improve upon their day-to-day oral business communications skills. This will be accomplished as participants learn to tailor each communication to the person or people with whom they are speaking.

Public Accounting Track

Intermediate Accounting II

2 credits | BUAC732

Continuing the study of accounting information covering accounting principles found in US GAAP and IFRS as they apply to cash and receivables, inventory valuation, acquisition and disposition of plant, property and equipment, depreciation, impairments and depletion, intangible assets, current liabilities and contingencies, long-term liabilities, and stockholders equity.

External Auditing

2 credits | BUAC735

The study of the independent accountants attest function, generally accepted auditing standards, compliance and substantive tests, and auditor reports and opinions. The course explores audit planning and the role of internal controls and their effect on the auditability of financial statements. The course includes the study of various audit concepts, including how auditors develop an audit strategy, determine materiality in various contexts, set the acceptable level of audit risk, assess control and inherent risk and set detection risk, develop audit objectives, accumulate audit evidence and prepare workpapers, and audit firm quality control.

Intermediate Accounting III

2 credits | BUAC758F

Advanced Accounting

2 credits | BUAC758U

Business Law for Managers

2 credits | BUAC721

Survey of United States legal institutions and processes as well as substantive areas of the law that affect business. Examination of tort and contract law, the legal forms of business organization and legal liability and major regulatory laws that affect business.

Forecasting Analytics and the Introduction to Taxation Principles (Tax I: Taxation of Individuals & Forecasting Analytics)

2 credits | BUAC762

Federal taxation of individuals focusing on income, exclusions, deductions, depreciation, credits and capital transactions including home ownership. Property coverage includes the tax consequences of sales and dispositions of personal use assets, investment and business assets. Both tax planning and compliance issues are also covered. In addition the course covers waged based and equity-based compensation, taxable and nontaxable benefits as well as deferred compensation and various retirement plans. In addition, students will learn how to utilize regression analysis and scenario analysis to provide additional insights about these tax topics and to forecast future effective tax rates.

Systems for Data Analysis

2 credits | BUAC785

Taxation Track

Tax II: Taxation of Corporations & Other Entities

2 credits | BUAC764

Students have the opportunity to gain an understanding of the basic tax competencies required for determining the appropriate tax structure for businesses; issue identification; active listening; solving tax problems.

Valuation for Accounting

2 credits | BUAC758B

This course has been designed to provide an introduction to valuation for financial reporting (“fair value”), fair value reporting, and auditing fair value measurements. The number and complexity of financial reporting standards that require or allow assets and liabilities to be reported at fair value has increased substantially in recent years. The technical accounting standards that include fair value are complex in and of themselves, and the valuation measurements add substantially to the complexity. The shift in capital markets from public to private equity combined with the trend in financial reporting from cost based to fair value based makes it imperative that accountants and auditors increase their fair value measurement and reporting skills and knowledge. The course will cover current trends in fair value, the fair value reporting process and technical accounting standards, business combinations, impairment testing, alternative investments, and auditing fair value measurements. This course is intended to provide the foundation for developing these skills, and provide students a competitive advantage in the marketplace.

Tax V: Visual Analytics and International Taxation

2 credits | BUAC770

An introduction to the theory and practice of international taxation. The objective of the course is to provide students with the basic tools to approach international tax topics from a US perspective. The course addresses the fundamentals of U.S. international taxation, but also offers insight into tax planning considerations. Both the U.S. activities of foreign taxpayers, as well as the foreign activities of U.S. taxpayers are explored.

Tax IV: Real Estate Tax and Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)

2 credits | BUAC767

Provides an in-depth examination of the tax provisions and opportunities for planning transactions that involve real estate investments and transactions. The course covers the tax implications of purchasing, holding, and selling real property. These include the determination of tax basis and the treatment of mortgage interest, property taxes, like-kind exchanges, involuntary conversions, sales and dispositions, qualifying property, and capital gains and losses. The various forms used for property transactions will be reviewed in detail.

Data Security and Tax-Exempt Organizations

2 credits | BUAC766

An introduction to the theory and practice of taxation as applied in the nonprofit sector. The practice of taxation for nonprofits requires, inter alia, an understanding of the legal framework for these entities. Therefore, the course will devote significant time to understanding the legal environment and framework associated with nonprofits. The course goal is to enable students to become proficient in the major aspects of nonprofits that apply to the work of public accountants.

Accounting for Income Tax and Database Management

2 credits | BUAC758A

Database Management for State and Local Income Tax

2 credits | BUAC772

Covers the tax implications of doing business in the United States across state lines, resulting in multiple taxation under the Commerce Clause of the United States Constitution. The course focuses on nexus or jurisdictional due process (which gives states the right to tax business profits), allocation and apportionment formulas of multi state income, business versus non-business income, privilege tax and discrimination. Also explored are the current tax developments under the Import-Export clause of the United States Constitution, taxation based on class legislation and the Equal Protection Clause, the multistate tax compact, unitary concept, residence definitions, nonresident income sources, tax credits and short-period returns for individual income taxpayers, sales of tangible personal property, and retail and wholesale sales. The course examines valuation techniques for real and personal property. Students will learn the skills needed to understand and identify many aspects of the state income tax apportionment process. Focus will be placed on calculations and analyses required to present the state and local tax information in such a manner as to assist upper management in the business expansion decision-making process. The tax apportionment process requires a solid understanding of database management and we will utilize tools that are considered required knowledge in today's tax departments.

Analytics Track

Accounting Analytics

2 credits | BUAC758G

This course will discuss the application of data analytics techniques in accounting. Topics such as data cleaning and preparation, data visualization, audit data analytics and generating key performance indicators will be covered. Students will gain hands-on experience with the whole data analytics process. We will start from identifying questions that can be addressed with data, and then test the data, refine testing and finally, communicate those findings to stakeholders. By the end of this course, the students should have a basic understanding on how accounting analytics can help enhance the effectiveness of management control systems and improve the quality and relevance of financial reporting, as well as its implications in auditing and fraud detection.

Valuation for Accounting

2 credits | BUAC758B

This course has been designed to provide an introduction to valuation for financial reporting (“fair value”), fair value reporting, and auditing fair value measurements. The number and complexity of financial reporting standards that require or allow assets and liabilities to be reported at fair value has increased substantially in recent years. The technical accounting standards that include fair value are complex in and of themselves, and the valuation measurements add substantially to the complexity. The shift in capital markets from public to private equity combined with the trend in financial reporting from cost based to fair value based makes it imperative that accountants and auditors increase their fair value measurement and reporting skills and knowledge. The course will cover current trends in fair value, the fair value reporting process and technical accounting standards, business combinations, impairment testing, alternative investments, and auditing fair value measurements. This course is intended to provide the foundation for developing these skills, and provide students a competitive advantage in the marketplace.

Internal Auditing I: Assurance and Consulting Services

2 credits | BUAC752

Provides students with an overview and basic understanding of internal auditing. Internal audit's role in internal control, risk management, business processes and risks, and Sarbanes-Oxley, Section 404 compliance efforts compliance efforts are considered. Internal auditing is presented as an integral part of effective corporate governance. Examples of assurance and consulting activities undertaken by the internal audit function, as well as the sourcing strategy (i.e., full insourcing, co-sourcing or full outsourcing models) are discussed. Students are introduced to internal control theory, test design concepts and internal auditing best practices.

Applied Research for Accounting and Auditing

2 credits | BUAC758H

Provides students with an overview and basic understanding of internal auditing. Internal audit's role in internal control, risk management, business processes and risks, and Sarbanes-Oxley, Section 404 compliance efforts are considered. Internal auditing is presented as an integral part of effective corporate governance. Examples of assurance and consulting activities undertaken by the internal audit function, as well as the sourcing strategy (i.e., full insourcing, co-sourcing or full outsourcing models), are discussed. Students are introduced to internal control theory, test design concepts and internal auditing best practices.

Auditing Automation and Analytics

2 credits | BUAC 716

Auditing theory and the functions of the independent auditor in the financial market. As part of the class, the students will cover issues related to auditing large databases and audit analytics of large databases. Moreover, the students will study audit automation and the use of artificial intelligence (AI) and Robotic process in the auditing market.

Information Security, Audit and Control

2 credits | BUAC756

Builds on basic information technology (IT) courses, focusing on key issues including IT security, IT controls, and IT auditing. Addressing issues such as auditing a computer information system; assessing risks; identifying control objectives; identifying appropriate audit procedures; learning the concepts and basic features or audit software thereby providing the tools for choosing audit software; conducting an operational audit basic controls over computer information systems; and developing world-class IT control frameworks.