MONTCLAIR STATE UNIVERSITY School of Business Administration

Department of Accounting, Law and Taxation
Fundamentals of Accounting – ACCT 204 Dr. Irene K. Douma
Syllabus/Assignment Schedule Spring 2013

Office telephone: 973.655.5166 Office Hours: T 11:20 AM to 12:50 PM
Dept. telephone: 973.655.4174 PA311 R 11:20 AM to 12:50 PM doumai@mail.montclair.edu and by appointment

Course Description:
This course provides a foundation for non-accounting business majors. Topics covered include both financial and managerial accounting from a user perspective. Students will be exposed to the four financial statements and ethical issues in accounting along with other accounting reporting issues in the financial accounting phase of the course. Managerial accounting focuses on generating accounting data for internal business decision-making in today's increasingly competitive and complex business world. Students need to become familiar with the use of accounting data for both investment and credit decisions as well as strategic decision making for firms' operations. Major topics covered include financial statement analysis, budgeting, accounting-based decision making, and performance evaluation.

Aims of the course:

1. To understand the decision-usefulness of accounting.
2. To make students aware of the basic concepts and techniques used in financial and managerial accounting.
3. To enable the students to identify appropriate concepts and techniques of analysis to be used for different financial and managerial accounting information requests.
4. To provide an understanding of financial statement analysis and reporting.
5. To enable students to utilize managerial accounting techniques for planning, controlling and supporting decision making processes.
Course learning goals:

CLG1. Be able to understand the different nature and purposes of managerial and financial accounting, and the ethical requirements for providing accurate accounting numbers.
CLG2. Become familiar with accounting terminology.
CLG3. Become familiar with the accounting principles that underlie basic financial statements and the nature and structure of the statements themselves.
CLG4. Be able to understand the role that financial accounting plays in making investment and credit-granting decisions through the use of ratio and other financial analysis tools.
CLG5. Be able to discuss and analyze recent developments in the financial and business press.
CLG6. Be able to apply both qualitative and quantitative information and models for planning, control and internal managerial decision-making.

Procedures, Techniques and Methods: Lectures, class discussions, homework assignments, research project/case study analysis

Texts: Survey of Accounting, 3rd ed., Edmonds, Olds, McNair,Tsay McGraw-Hill Irwin 2012 McGraw-Hill’s Connect Plus Accounting The Accounting Game: Basic Accounting Fresh from the Lemonade Stand, Mullis and Orloff, Source Books 2008 Calculator with limited basic functions of addition, subtraction, multiplication and division.

Grading policy: The final course grade will be based on points accumulated during the semester from the following requirements: Tests (3 in total 100 points Bonus points ?? points Total maximum points 100 points

Bonus points are awarded for timely completion of homework assignments and/or additional assignments that are given throughout the semester (as conditions warrant

Administrative policies:
Attendance for tests at scheduled times is mandatory. Make-up examinations will only be administered due to illness supported by a physician’s statement or death in the family. If a problem is anticipated, please discuss the nature of