Annotation

This is an introductory course in finance. Course objective is to provide students with the basic knowledge in finance and to form the background for the further related studies. Course presents students with an overview of financial concepts, terminology, and principles, introduces to the financial management methods applicable to the personal and business practices (including SMEs and companies). Course covers basic financial theories, and their relevance to the financial management and investments. Introduction to finance course combines theory with practical examples, using case discussions and simulations.

Aim of the course

The course objective is to introduce students to the main elements, methods and principles of finance. It will provide basic knowledge and skills applicable to personal and managerial finance. Course starts with the general overview of finance, introduces to financial concepts, instruments, and techniques used in financial decision making. The first part of the course focuses on basic financial data, financial statements, cash flow, also main financial concepts as time value of money, risk and return, interest rates. The second part of the course deals with financial management.

Learning outcomes

• Explain financial system elements and their activities and functions via systemic approach.
• Explain and analyse saving and investing, financial assets, interest rate concepts and their importance in financial market.
• Analyze financial markets and their environment.
• Analyze financial planning process elements in household finance: personal financial life cycle, financial statements and ratios.
• Apply concepts of time value of money to solve various problems.
• Analyze goals of the firm and role of the financial manager in financial decision making.
• Prepare and explain financial statements: Balance sheet, Income statement, Cash flow statement. Evaluate proforma financial statements and budgets.
• Understand and evaluate relationships among financial decisions. Understand difference between short and long financing decisions.
• Work in teams, present work results in writing and oral presentation.

Course description

This course presents the underlying framework and concepts of financial accounting in the context of how accounting fits into the overall business environment of contemporary society. Financial accounting is the basic means of recording and reporting financial information in a business. Students will learn how accounting functions as an information development and communication system that supports economic decision making and provides value to entities and society. Students will discover the uses and limitations of financial statements. The course covers accounting principles in accordance with international standards for accounting, standard accounting procedures, and accounting methods that are specific to certain features of business.

Course objectives  

The aim of this course is to provide knowledge and practical skills required to understand and analyze the financial information of a company. The course adopts a decision-maker perspective of accounting by emphasizing the relation between accounting data and the underlying economic events that generated them. The course focuses initially on how to record economic events in the accounting records and how to prepare and interpret the primary financial statements that summarize a firm’s economic transactions.

Learning outcomes

• To identify the essential accounting features, goals and be able to implement them. To be able to read, understand and examine the data in the annual report, to explain the key components in the financial statements.
• To understand accounting process and its organization procedures, to explain the difference between cash-based and accrual accounting.
• To be able to account income, expenses, long-term and short term assets, equity, and liabilities. To apply financial statements correction factors. To be able to distinguish after-balance events and to show them in the financial statements. To record business transactions using financial accounting practices.
• To be able to select accounting policy distinguishing all three aspects: organizational, technical and methodological. To prepare financial statements from the source data based on accounting transactions.
• To prepare financial statements and acquire knowledge and practical skills in keeping accounting in the companies.