Advanced Accounting with Placement

Program Overview

---

The MAcc Advanced Accounting with Placement program at Queen's University Belfast is a four-year integrated undergraduate and Masters-level program that offers significant benefits to students, including Master's-level qualification with undergraduate fees, exemptions from professional accountancy exams, a paid work-based placement, and a work-related research project. The program is designed to prepare students for a successful career in the accountancy profession and offers a blend of theoretical knowledge and practical experience.

Program Outline

---

Advanced Accounting with Placement (MAcc)

---

Degree Overview

The MAcc Advanced Accounting with Placement is a four-year, integrated undergraduate and Masters-level program that offers significant benefits to students:

• Master's-level qualification with undergraduate fees for all four years
• Exemptions from Chartered Accountants Ireland (CAI) CAP1 & CAP2 exams (in full) and maximum permitted exemptions from other professional bodies.

• A paid work-based placement during Semester Two of Year Four, together with a work-related research project.

• Alternative exit point after three years with students awarded BSc Accounting.

The program is designed to prepare students for a successful career in the accountancy profession. It offers a blend of theoretical knowledge and practical experience, with content that includes Financial Accounting, Management Accounting, Auditing, Taxation and Finance, and increasing specialization in Accounting Technologies, Ethics and Sustainability Reporting – matching current trends and developments in the accountancy profession.

---

Key Highlights:

• Professional Exemptions: The program offers a wide range of exemptions from professional accountancy exams, including full exemptions from the CAI’s CAP1 and CAP2 exams.
Students who exit after Year Three gain full CAP1 exemptions.
• Industry Links: The MAcc has been developed in collaboration with employers to equip graduates as future-ready accounting professionals.
It includes a paid, integrated, work-based placement during Semester Two of Year Four, with opportunities at local and global companies. Throughout the program, students participate in employer-led classes, advanced technology training, business simulation games and skills development workshops.
• Internationally Renowned Experts: Students are taught by leading academics with strong industry connections and experience, ensuring a blend of cutting-edge theory with real-world practice.
• Student Experience: Students gain valuable practical experience through the paid, integrated work-based placement during Semester Two of Year Four, and complete a work-related research project.
These opportunities allow them to develop key employability skills.
• Further Study Opportunities: As a Master's-level qualification, the MAcc provides a solid foundation for further postgraduate study, including PhD programs.
Students exiting the program after three years with a BSc Accounting can choose from a wide range of Master's programs, as indicated on the Queen’s Business School website. The Accounting program also provides a strong foundation for taking the final examinations of the main professional accountancy bodies.

---

Additional Notes:

• Queen's University Belfast is ranked third in the UK for Graduate Prospects in Accounting and Finance (Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2024)
• Students can benefit from prizes sponsored by employers and professional bodies for most Accounting modules.

---

Outline

---

Course Structure:

The MAcc Advanced Accounting with Placement program consists of compulsory modules and optional modules offered by the Queen’s Business School.

---

Year 1:

---

Semester 1:

• Introductory Financial Accounting
• Introduction to Legal Study and Basic Contract Law
• Foundations of Economics 1

---

Semester 2:

• Introductory Management Accounting
• Accounting Information Systems
• Quantitative Methods

---

Year 2:

---

Semester 1:

• Financial Accounting
• Financial Decision-making

---

Optional Modules

• Accounting Practice
• Financial Modelling

---

Semester 2:

• Management Accounting
• Financial Market Theory
• Managerial Behaviour

---

Year 3:

---

Semester 1:

• Advanced Financial Accounting
• Law of Business Organisations

---

Optional Modules:

• Contemporary Issues in Accounting
• Contemporary Technologies in Accounting

---

Semester 2:

• Advanced Management Accounting
• Auditing and Accountability
• Taxation

---

Year 4:

---

Semester 1:

• Financial Reporting and Auditing
• Advanced Taxation
• Financial Management
• Research Methods and Placement Preparation

---

Semester 2:

• Placement
• Work-related Research Project

---

Teaching:

• Queen's Business School: One of the leading Business Schools in the UK and Ireland.
• Significant Investment: New academic appointments and state-of-the-art facilities.
• McClay Library: Extensive business and related texts.
• Queen’s Canvas: Easy to use Virtual Learning Environment (VLE).
• Focus on Technology – Digital Readiness: Covers a range of areas relating to the impact of technology on accountants.
• Induction: Formal induction for all undergraduate students.
• Lectures: Introduce foundation information.
• Peer Mentoring Scheme: Students in later years of the programme mentor Year one students.
• Research Project: Students complete a work-related research project with the support of an academic mentor.
• Work placements: MAcc includes an integrated, paid, work-based placement during Semester Two of Year Four.

---

Careers:

The MAcc prepares graduates for a successful career in the accountancy profession. The vast majority of graduates are in employment and/or further study within six months of graduating.

---

Typical career destinations include:

• Financial accountant
• Management accountant
• Manager
• Analyst
• Auditor
• Advisor/Consultant
• Forensic accountant
• Researcher
• Financial controller
• Partner
• Banker

---

Graduate Employers Include:

• Baker Tilly Mooney Moore
• Bank of Ireland
• BDO
• Deloitte
• EY
• Grant Thornton
• KPMG
• PWC
• The Northern Ireland Audit Office
• Ulster Bank

---

Other:

• Assessment: Details on assessment are provided in the Module Outlines given to all students at induction and at the beginning of the modules.
Accounting modules are typically assessed through a combination of continuous assessment and a final written unseen examination.
• Student Support Systems: Active and coordinated student support system to assist students in transitioning from school to university.
• FinTrU Trading Room: Provides students the skills, experience, and knowledge to prepare them for a career in the financial services sector.
• Placement Opportunities: Students are supported in securing placements through workshops, professional skills sessions with the QBS Careers and Work Placement Office, and potential employers, plus 1:1 support as needed.
• Optional Placement: The School encourages students to pursue longer-term placements, such as a year-long placement, usually between the second and third year of the programme.
• Study Abroad: The School encourages students to seek educational experiences abroad through partner Universities.

---

Tuition Fees and Payment Information:

Northern Ireland (NI) 1 £4,750 Republic of Ireland (ROI) 2 £4,750 England, Scotland or Wales (GB) 1 £9,250 EU Other 3 £20,800 International £20,800