Program Curriculum
Required Courses
ACCT 5160 Corporate Financial Reporting I
Corporate financial reporting from the perspective of managers and financial statement users, including analysts. Topics include inventories, fixed assets, income taxes, liabilities, leases, off-balance-sheet debt, and dilutive securities.
ACCT 5170 Corporate Financial Reporting II
Corporate financial reporting from the perspective of managers and financial statement users, including analysts. Topics include intercorporate investments, business combinations, multinational operations, pensions, and earnings quality.
ACCT 5180 Advanced Corporate Financial Reporting
Reporting of business entities with inter-corporate investments in subsidiaries and/or associated companies and cross-border activities. Topics include business combinations, consolidated financial statements, equity accounting, and translations of foreign currency transactions.
ACCT 5210 Managerial Accounting Foundations
Use of accounting data in decision-making, financial planning, control, and performance evaluation within organizations.
ACCT 5510 Auditing
It covers the relevant principles, objectives and ethical requirements of audit and assurance services; identifies the audit process from client acceptance, design of audit procedures and express an appropriate audit conclusion based on the audit evidence obtained. Topics include: audit planning, audit evidence and documentation, internal control, completion of audit, audit opinion and reporting, professional ethics, rights and obligation of auditors.
FINA 5120 Corporate Finance
Valuation of cash flow streams (PV of cash flow streams, annuities, and perpetuities); valuation of bonds; valuation of stocks using dividend discount model; capital budgeting decisions (NPV, IRR, payback); capital structure; limits to the use of debt (trade-off models); estimation of cost of debt and equity; WACC; terminal value.
Elective Courses*
ACCT 5140 Financial Statement Analysis
Integrated analysis of industry strategy, accounting policy, financial ratios and cash flows for application in equity valuation, credit analysis and bond ratings. Essential for those planning careers in financial management, investment analysis, credit analysis, business valuation, and consulting.
ACCT 5220 International Treasury Management
Specialized knowledge in international treasury operation and management control, risk management, inflation and foreign currency changes as well as international transfer pricing.
ACCT 5320 Beyond the Headlines: Financial Reporting and Valuation Issues in M&A
Financial accounting is the fundamental language used to express the economic realities of complex financial scenarios including mergers & acquisitions (M&A) and corporate divestitures. Understanding this language is crucial for converting financial statement data into decision enhancing information, and expressing strategic business plans and investment ideas in a powerful and convincing way. The course is designed to develop sophisticated users of financial accounting information and will benefit any student who desires to increase his or her ability to understand and profitably exploit financial information. The class format involves a mixture of lecture and class discussion.
ACCT 5330 Financial Institutions: Fundamental Analysis and Risk Management
This course covers financial statement analysis and risk management practices for financial institutions, with an emphasis on global banks. It aims to provide students with a solid grounding in the critical evaluation of banks’ financial performance, accounting practices, and risk management.
ACCT 5410 Taxation
The course introduces the fundamentals of Hong Kong taxation based on case law and legislation. Topics include: property tax, salaries tax, profits tax, depreciation allowances, personal assessment, and stamp duty.
Remarks: Prescribed elective course for enrolling the HKICPA QP after completing MSAC program.
ACCT 5430 Tax and Business Strategy
This course provides students with the framework of strategic tax planning. Students learn how to integrate the role of tax in various corporate decision-making.
ACCT 5630 Business Law
This course is designed for the study of Business Law with practical examples of the application of law in the real business world. The course materials cover topics highly relevant to the business managers in the decision making process. The end goal is to elevate the student's level of understanding of the surrounding legal environment.
Remarks: Prescribed elective course for enrolling the HKICPA QP after completing MSAC program.
ACCT 5640 Company Law
Law relating to companies registered in Hong Kong; company formation and records; share and loan capital; management and administration; reconstructions; mergers and take-overs; liquidation and receivership.
Remarks: Prescribed elective course for enrolling the HKICPA QP after completing MSAC program.
ACCT 5650 Corporate Governance and Compliance
ACCT 5710 Data Analytics in Accounting
Data analytics is the process of collecting, organizing and analyzing big data in order to discover useful information for different uses. This course aims to provide students with knowledge of the nature and role of data analytics and how important it is to accountant as well as apply and understand big data issues and utilize data mining, data modeling, data analysis and data visualization techniques to solve accounting and business related issues.
Remarks: Required elective course for Accounting Analytics concentration.
ACCT 5720 Advanced Data Analytics in Accounting
With the foundation of ACCT 5710 Data Analytics in Accounting, this course aims to provide students with advanced and practical knowledge of application in data analytics designed by accounting professionals and enable students to apply and understand data analytics technologies to perform audit, enhance financial reporting, and minimize risks as accounting professionals.
Remarks: Required elective course for Accounting Analytics concentration.
ACCT 5730 Equity Investment with Machine Learning
This course introduces the application of quantitative and machine learning technology in equity investing. It covers classical equity valuation theories, cutting-edge capital market research and recent development in quantitative and machine learning technology. Students will be required to apply the knowledge to develop and test equity investment strategies.
ACCT 6900K International Taxation
This course provides students with an understanding of the basic principles of international taxation and implementation in local jurisdictions. The course focuses on frameworks set forth by international bodies in addressing taxation issues from a global perspective. Topics covered in this course include double taxation, transfer pricing, income tax treaties, sources of income, and tax avoidance issues. Some country-specific tax principles would also be covered. ACCT 6900K is a comprehensive taxation course that aims at giving student a high-level understanding of international landscape that enables them to make inquiry based on their foundational knowledge when making business decision as an accounting professional/finance executive.
FINA 5450 Hedge Funds
Alternative investments are the fastest growing sector of the financial industry, and probably the least understood, including by several market professionals. Although the range of sophistication in people associated with alternative investments varies substantially, it is more and more common to use them in investment strategies, either as direct investments or through funds of funds or structured products. The purpose of this course is to give participants a good understanding and workable knowledge of the techniques that should be part of the tool kit of anyone investing in, analyzing and/or advising private and institutional clients on the inclusion of alternative investments - and more specifically hedge funds - in their portfolios. Furthermore, this course will enable the participants to absorb the analytical arguments in the technical publications - the in-house research notes of financial institutions and in practitioner oriented journal - that deal with alternative investments and to apply them.
ISOM 5260 Fundamentals of Database Management
Introduction to database management systems with emphasis on business applications. Technical and administrative considerations in database implementation. Students implement a business system using a commercial-off-the-shelf software package.
Remarks: Required elective course for Accounting Analytics concentration.
ISOM 5270 Big Data Analytics
Data plays an increasingly important role in business decision making. This course introduces the key concepts and applications of business analytics in the world of Big Data. Example business problems to be solved analytically include customer relationship management, financial trading, social media marketing, search engine strategy, etc. Hands-on experience with popular data analytical tools will be included.
Remarks: Required elective course for Accounting Analytics concentration.
ISOM 5360 Information Systems Auditing
This course introduces the fundamental concepts of information systems (IS) auditing. Topics include IS control and assurance, COBIT, business continuity planning, protection of information assets, auditing the network infrastructure, physical access exposures and controls, and disaster recovery management.
MGMT 5480 Strategic Management in China
The primary topic of this course is strategic management in the Chinese context. This course has three major objectives: 1) to help students understand the conditions under which different kinds of strategy have the potential to create economic value and competitive advantage for Chinese context; 2) to help students who plan to work in Chinese companies understand their roles and responsibilities in helping the companies to achieve competitive advantage; and 3) to help those, who work in foreign companies that either already have or will have operations in China, obtain the knowledge necessary to compete or cooperate with companies in Chinese context more successfully.
*Offering schedule of individual course is subject to availability