MSc Accounting and Financial Management

Financial decision making impacts every business decision within an organisation, which ultimately has an impact on local and global economies, so it is imperative that accountants ensure their actions benefit a business' bottom line, without negatively impacting society.

We provide a comprehensive grounding in corporate analysis and reporting, as well as building your confidence in financial decision-making. Your studies can be tailored to suit your preferred career direction in industry, commerce or professional services by choosing from optional modules.

You will cover topics including:

• theories of financial reporting
• management accounting and control
• theoretical and critical approaches to accounting and financial management
• analysis of financial statements

Essex Business School, where this course is based, is home to a number of cutting-edge financial research centres and institutes where the academics leading your course can share their latest research findings:

• The Essex Finance Centre (EFiC) works with leading financial services firms and public sector organisations, governments and policy institutions to produce work that makes real-world impact across the globe.
• Our Centre for Work, Organisation and Society organises regular events, which provide you with access to academic and industry expertise, as well as the opportunity to network with scholars from around the world.

Our students can use industry-leading Bloomberg data in Essex Business School's virtual trading floor. This state-of-the-art facility gives you access to the same tools used by traders and business analysts worldwide, offering a fantastic opportunity to hone your practical skills in finance and management.

Essex Business School is a member of the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) Institute University Affiliation Program.

Discover our trading floor:

Professional accreditation

Accredited by the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) for the purpose of exemptions from some professional examinations.

Our expert staff

Essex Business School has a number of established research strengths in accounting, including:

• accounting in emerging economies
• sustainable accounting
• governance
• global development
• public sector accounting
• regulation and reporting

Our researchers make a significant impact on the lives of people all around the world, with past and current research projects covering five continents.

The experience and findings of our experts will feature throughout your teaching. For example, you'll hear from Dr Pawan Adhikari, Reader in Accounting at Essex Business School. Dr Adhikari's expertise is public sector accounting, in particular highlighting the issues that emerging economies face while improving their accounting and accountability practices.

Pawan's work is widely used in policy making and his recent work in Nepal has benefitted the government, investors, development partners (for example the World Bank) and wider Nepalese society by ensuring decision-makers are truly held to account, are transparent and open to scrutiny by stakeholders. This standardisation of public sector accounting practices has been a key part of Nepal's reform agenda for the past ten years.

Two research centres support the research activities taking place in the accounting group. They organise seminars by external invited speakers, Essex Business School staff and research students; co-ordinate workshop programmes; and schedule bi-annual conferences of international renown. These offer a further excellent opportunity for you to engage with the very latest research and ideas in the field of accounting.

The Essex Accounting Centre conducts distinctive world-class research, with a particular focus on accounting research applied in developing countries, including topics such as social responsibility and corporate governance; management accounting change; and corruption and accountability.

Our new interdisciplinary centre, the Centre for Accountability and Global Development (CAGD), is a dynamic hub for social justice research, with a particular focus on accountability across all sectors in both developed and emerging economies. The Centre contributes to impactful global development through rigorous research and engagement with the policy community, which complements the existing research strengths and expertise established within the Essex Accounting Centre.

Specialist facilities

Our MSc Accounting and Financial Management is based at our Colchester Campus.

You'll be studying at Essex Business School, home to the first zero carbon business school in the UK– demonstrating our sustainable approach to business first-hand. Set around a lush winter garden, with shared spaces to encourage collaborative working, you'll find a wealth of inspiring teaching and study zones:

• a virtual trading floor with Bloomberg Financial Market Labs, where you'll gain hands-on experience and learn how to model financial data in a practical setting
• access to company reporting databases, Passport (GMID) and NEXIS advance UK
• learn in modern lecture theatres with ‘listen again' recording to aid your study
• utilise study booths in our winter garden and versatile break out areas for group working throughout the building
• study skills support provided by the Essex Business School Learning Team
• networking opportunities with visiting businesses and careers events
• Bonds café and adjacent foyer to enjoy on-site fresh food and drink

You'll also benefit from fantastic University facilities located close by, including our state-of-the-art Silberrad Student Centre, complete with an open-access 24-hour Learning Hub and a cutting-edge media centre.

Our building is located on the Knowledge Gateway, home to some of the region's most exciting enterprises in the science, technology and creative sectors. The Knowledge Gateway provides potential networking and career opportunities for students directly on campus.

Your future

We foster your creativity and ethical awareness so you're ready to meet the challenges of the international business world.

Our MSc Accounting and Financial Management provides you with the skills needed for roles in financial analysis, management, public administration and accountancy. Our course will be particularly useful if you want to pursue a career in industry, commerce or with professional services firms, with many of our graduates also beginning their own entrepreneurial ventures.

Our graduates have progressed to work for high-profile organisations and innovative SMEs such as:

• KPMG
• Grant Thornton LLP
• Ministry of Taxes of the Republic of Azerbaijan
• European Central Bank
• HP
• Credit Data Research, SME finance provider
• Footprint Digital, a fast-growing digital marketing agency

Our Student Support team work closely with the University's Employability and Careers service to help you with careers information and advice and CV support. They will help you find work experience, internships, placements and voluntary opportunities and provide access to employer talks on campus. We also work closely with the Essex Startups team to support our budding entrepreneurs get their business ideas off the ground.

“I work as a Junior Risk Specialist at the Central Bank of the Republic of Azerbaijan. In my experience, employers look for a Masters degree from a well-respected UK university, like the University of Essex. I’ve found that many organisations give priority to candidates who have studied in another country.”

Orkhan Mehdiyev, MSc Accounting and Financial Management

UK entry requirements

A 2:2 degree in any discipline.

A professional qualification such as ACCA, CIMA or any other Professional accounting qualification recognised by IFAC (International Federation of Accountants) may compensate for the absence of an academic degree equivalent. To see if your professional qualification is recognised, click here: IFAC website

Applicants with a degree below 2:2 or equivalent will be considered where they have at least a year's professional work experience in Banking, Finance or Accounting.

English language requirements

If English is not your first language, we require IELTS 6.5 overall with a minimum component score of 5.5

If you do not meet our IELTS requirements then you may be able to complete a pre-sessional English pathway that enables you to start your course without retaking IELTS.

Additional Notes

The University uses academic selection criteria to determine an applicant’s ability to successfully complete a course at the University of Essex. Where appropriate, we may ask for specific information relating to previous modules studied or work experience.

Course structure

We offer a flexible course structure with a mixture of core/compulsory modules, and optional modules chosen from lists. Please be aware that we are planning changes to our first year to make it more relevant to your chosen course.

Our research-led teaching is continually evolving to address the latest challenges and breakthroughs in the field. The following modules are based on the current course structure and may change in response to new curriculum developments and innovation.

We understand that deciding where and what to study is a very important decision for you. We'll make all reasonable efforts to provide you with the courses, services and facilities as described on our website and in line with your contract with us. However, if we need to make material changes, for example due to significant disruption, we'll let our applicants and students know as soon as possible.

Teaching

• Tailor the content of your course to more closely fit your interests and aspirations
• Courses focus on practical applications and links with industry
• We run an open seminar series

Assessment

• Regular assessment is by coursework, presentations, case studies, group work, tests and examinations

Dissertation

• You submit a 15,000 word dissertation.