Accounting and Finance

This course is designed to prepare you for a career in accountancy or finance. 

You’ll study complex, contemporary accounting and finance subjects to an advanced level. You’ll develop a solid grasp of:

• Financial accounting
• Corporate finance
• Risk management
• Financial reporting
• Global financial markets 
• Investment strategies.

This leads to either an extended research project (known as a dissertation), or ‘live’ consultancy project (working alongside a real business or organisation).

As well as covering key accounting concepts, you’ll develop strategic knowledge and thinking skills and have the option to take your study further. 

Through case studies, simulations, and practical projects, you’ll hone analytical and decision-making skills. This will equip you to tackle complex financial challenges and succeed in a variety of roles within the industry. boosting your employability.

The MSc Accounting and Finance programme runs over one year full-time and two years part-time. It's divided into three trimesters.

Each trimester offers a balanced combination of teaching in class, practice-led assessment/projects, group/peer learning, simulation and real-world case studies, equipping students with the theoretical knowledge and practical skills needed for success in the field of accounting and finance. Through completing this course, you'll be prepared for high-level roles in industry or further academic research. 

In the first trimester, you'll be introduced to core concepts in accounting and finance. You'll engage in lectures, seminars, and workshops designed to develop both your analytical and critical thinking skills and your practical knowledge of financial reporting, corporate governance, and risk management. You'll be encouraged to develop a foundation of expertise in key financial and accounting tools while beginning to apply these in real-world contexts through case studies and practical projects. 

In the second trimester, you'll deepen your understanding of more advanced topics such as advanced corporate reporting and international financial markets. The programme’s focus shifts to more specialized areas and you'll explore global financial trends, regulatory issues, and complex accounting techniques.

You'll also begin preparing for your Dissertation or Consultancy Project, identifying a research topic or practical business challenge that aligns with your career interests. You'll be supported by academic staff and/or industry professionals to make sure your research and project work is both academically rigorous and professionally relevant. 

In the final trimester, you'll focus on completing your Dissertation or Consultancy Project. Through completing this project, you'll demonstrate your independent research skills and professional competencies. You'll receive ongoing support and guidance from your academic supervisors and peer feedback and there will be opportunities for collaboration.

The trimester will end with presentations or project showcases, giving you the opportunity to show your expertise and your professional readiness.

This course offers or includes the following modules. Please check the programme document for more information.

• Financial and Management Accounting 
• Governance and Risk Management 
• Financial Statement Analysis 
• Organisational Accounting Strategy 
• Advanced Corporate Reporting 
• Quantitative Methods for Accounting and Finance 
• Dissertation/Consultancy Project 
• Financial Intermediaries and Banking 
• Corporate Financial Management.

At BSU, our courses are designed to equip our graduates with the knowledge and skills they’ll need for the real world. To do this, we are continually improving our courses by responding to feedback from students and other stakeholders. This may mean changes may be made to the curriculum. You’ll always be given notice of any such changes.

For more information on how we approach such changes at the university, please read our policies on

• Suspensions and Discontinuations
• Programme modifications.

You’ll work independently and as part of a team, including for assessments.

While independent study is key at Master’s level, Bath Spa University is a leading, teaching-focussed University, so we support you throughout your degree. You’ll learn through lectures, seminars, practical workshops, assessments, guided study and individual and group tutorials with your lecturers.  

We make significant use of real-life case studies and examples, enlivening, enriching and contextualising your learning, and bring in external industry speakers wherever possible.

To find out more about how we teach and how you'll learn, please read our information on Your Learning and Teaching at BSU.

Throughout your course, we use simulated work-based scenarios that require you to operate as if in a real-world work environment, across a curriculum enriched by our connections with local, regional, national and international organisations.

These industry links work in collaboration with us to bring you tasks and assessments formed around live briefs that enable you to develop solutions to existing business problems and issues.

We give the choice to work on a Consultancy Project, rather than writing a traditional dissertation. This means you’ll work with an existing or nascent business to undertake research related to an issue posed by the business; providing ideas, information and management advice. This will naturally further practical, work engagement skills alongside traditional academic, research skills.

We work with local and international organisations to provide our students the maximum opportunity to gain industry experience during their postgraduate studies.  

You'll develop a good range of transferable and subject-specific skills, enhancing your employability for a wide variety of finance and accounting-related roles. The flexible range of module options enables you to tailor your study to support your specific career aspirations.

The embedded real world content and context-based assessment on this course ensure that you leave with relevant experience, executive level skills, and will have further developed your own professional networks.

The majority of module workshops, seminars and tutorials are held at our Newton Park campus.

You'll have access to excellent facilities at our Newton Park campus and city centre studios as well as online resources. These include:

• Commons building
• Newton Park library
• Academic Skills support (ASk)
• Specialist resources and subject librarian
• Our Virtual Learning Environment
• Free access to courses via LinkedIn Learning
• Support from the English Language Unit if English isn't your first language

Our library offers a wide range of business materials including electronic sources. This online material can be accessed on and off campus enabling you to work at times that suit you.