| Program start date | Application deadline |
| 2025-09-01 | - |
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
