Texas A&M University Graduate Catalog

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Course Descriptions

Department of Accounting

A. S. Ahmed, J. J. Benjamin (Head), L. L. Bravenec, R. A. Daily**, S. B. Fiechtner, J. C. Flagg, G. A. Giroux, S. D. Grossman, M. R. Kinney*, S. H. Kratchman, D. R. Lassila, M. L. Loudder, M. L. McAnally, A. S. McGowan, J. N. Myers, III, L. A. Myers, C. J. Nixon, T. C. Omer, L. L. Rees, M. K. Shaub, W. T. Shearon, Jr., M. K. Shelley, L. M. Smith, C. D. Stolle, J. R. Strawser, R. H. Strawser, E. P. Swanson, S. Tse, C. D. Weaver, M. S. Wilkins, C. J. Wolfe

* Doctoral Student Advisor

** Master’s Student Advisor and Professional Program Advisor

The Department of Accounting offers graduate studies leading to the MS and PhD degrees, and course work supporting the Mays Business School’s MBA degree. The MS degree provides the necessary course work for students who wish to enter public accounting, private industry or government service. The department also offers an integrated Professional Program that students enter in the junior year of the BBA program. Graduates receive a Bachelor of Business Administration degree and an MS degree. The PhD program is designed to prepare students for careers in teaching and research. Additional information, including specific departmental requirements, may be obtained by contacting the master’s student advisor or the doctoral student advisor in the Department of Accounting.

Accounting
(ACCT)

607. Seminar in Auditing. (3-0). Credit 3.

Current issues and research in auditing, attestation and financial disclosures. Classification 6 students may not enroll in this course. Prerequisite: ACCT 407 or equivalent.

610. Financial Accounting. Credit 1 to 3.

Develops a conceptual framework for understanding and using corporate financial statements. Oriented towards the user of financial accounting data (rather than the preparer) and emphasizes the reconstruction of economic events from published financial data. May be repeated for up to 3 hours credit. Classification 6 students may not enroll in this course. Prerequisite: Enrollment is limited to BUAD classification 7 graduate students.

611. Management of Taxation. (3-0). Credit 3.

Various income taxes on taxable entities. For business and other majors. Classification 6 students may not enroll in this course.

612. Partnership and Real Estate Taxation. (3-0). Credit 3.

Concepts and principles of partnerships and real estate taxation; use of partnerships and real estate for tax planning. Classification 6 students may not enroll in this course. Prerequisite: ACCT 405.

613. Estate Planning. (3-0). Credit 3.

Taxation of decedent’s estates and lifetime gifts; valuation of property subject to estate and gift taxes; concepts and principles of estate and trust taxation; estate planning. Classification 6 students may not enroll in this course. Prerequisite: ACCT 405.

620. Management Accounting and Control. Credit 1 to 3.

Applications of concepts useful to management, in the analysis of accounting data for the purposes of costing and income determination, decision making and control of various organizational activities. May be repeated for up to 3 hours credit. Classification 6 students may not enroll in this course. Prerequisite: ACCT 610 or equivalent. Enrollment is limited to BUAD classification 7 graduate students.

621. Corporate Taxation I. (3-0). Credit 3.

Formation and capital structures, partial liquidations, S corporations, accumulated earnings tax, personal holding companies and other topics. Classification 6 students may not enroll in this course. Prerequisite: ACCT 405 or equivalent.

628. Business Application Modeling. (3-0). Credit 3.

This course will focus on modeling application software that is commonly used in accounting and business; the primary emphasis will be Visual Basic for Applications in Microsoft Excel and Access; application exercises will deal with financial problem solving. Classification 6 students may not enroll in this course. Prerequisite: ACCT 427 or equivalent.

631. Corporate Taxation II. (3-0). Credit 3.

Taxation of corporations in business combinations and consolidations, divisions, recapitalizations and other special areas. Classification 6 students may not enroll in this course. Prerequisite: ACCT 621.

635. Certified Public Accountant—Problems. (3-0). Credit 3.

Current and emerging professional accounting issues facing audit, tax and system professionals in public accounting; emphasis on recent pronouncements of the FASB. Classification 6 students may not enroll in this course. Prerequisite: ACCT 642 or approval of instructor.

640. Accounting Concepts and Procedures I. (3-0). Credit 3.

Accounting concepts and relationships essential to administrative decisions; use of accounting statements and reports as policymaking and policy execution tools. Classification 6 students and non-business graduate students may enroll in this course. Prerequisite: Graduate classification.

641. Accounting Concepts and Procedures II. (3-0). Credit 3.

Financial accounting; conceptual aspects obtained through the problem approach. Classification 6 students may not enroll in this course. Prerequisites: Graduate classification; ACCT 610 or 640.

642. Accounting Concepts and Procedures III. (3-0). Credit 3.

Advanced financial accounting topics. Theoretical and problematical treatment of accounting in the corporate structure, debt and equity funding, and preparation and analysis of financial statements under conditions of changing economic environment. Classification 6 students may not enroll in this course. Prerequisites: Graduate classification; ACCT 641 or equivalent.

644. Control and Audit of Information Systems. (3-0). Credit 3.

This course focuses on the control, audit, and security of information systems; it is aimed at enhancing the ability of accounting professionals to deal with complex computer-based accounting systems as auditors of these systems; it covers topics such as general and application controls, audit software, and e-commerce security. Prerequisite: ACCT 427; graduate classification.

646. International Accounting. (3-0). Credit 3.

Introduction and examination of accounting issues unique to multinational enterprises and international business activity. Classification 6 students may not enroll in this course. Prerequisites: ACCT 328; FINC 341. Cross-listed with IBUS 646.

647. Financial Statement Analysis. (3-0). Credit 3.

Analytical approach to financial statements; application of finance and accounting principles relevant to the analysis of financial statements. Classification 6 students may not enroll in this course. Prerequisites: ACCT 610 or 640; FINC 612 or 635. Cross-listed with FINC 647.

648. Accounting Information Systems. (3-0). Credit 3.

Design, implementation, operation, control and audit techniques of accounting information systems. Classification 6 students may not enroll in this course. Prerequisite: ACCT 427 or equivalent.

650. Accounting Ethics. (3-0). Credit 3.

Integration of ethical reasoning, objectivity, independence and other core values into the development of a professional accountant; critical analysis of the ethical lapses which have occurred in business and the accounting profession; explores ways to integrate ethical behavior into professional life. Prerequisite: Graduate classification.

651. Development of Accounting Thought. (3-0). Credit 3.

Examination of contemporary financial reporting issues in terms of institutional, ethical, and regulatory environment; framework for exercising judgment when literature provides no direct prescription about correct reporting. Tools used include unstructured cases and open-ended research assignments. Course not open to classification 6 students. Prerequisite: ACCT 642 or approval of instructor.

660. Accounting Information and Financial Markets. (3-0). Credit 3.

Financial accounting research with emphasis on financial markets; investigates major areas of financial accounting research, related statistical techniques and the progress of research in a historical perspective. Classification 6 students may not enroll in this course. Prerequisite: ACCT 665 or approval of instructor.

661. Interdisciplinary Interface of Accounting Thought. (3-0). Credit 3.

Implications for accountants of new developments in other disciplines and of changes in the technology and financing of particular industries. Classification 6 students may not enroll in this course. Prerequisite: ACCT 665.

665. Research Methodology I. (3-0). Credit 3.

Nature and evaluation of accounting research; includes preparation and evaluation of original research papers. Classification 6 students may not enroll in this course. Prerequisite: Doctoral classification.

671. Contemporary Accounting Topics. (3-0). Credit 3.

Current issues and research in topical areas: financial data audit and control; international accounting; accounting for natural resources; tax planning, theory and structure of taxation. Classification 6 students may not enroll in this course. Prerequisite: Approval of instructor.

672. Accounting Field Project. (3-0). Credit 3.

This course focuses on strategic decision making and cost analysis in business firm operations. Prerequisite: Graduate classification.

675. Empirical and Computational Methods in Accounting Research. (3-0). Credit 3.

Practical aspects and performance of empirical research in accounting using recent programming environment; provide foundation for performing research related to PhD seminar project, academic research and scholarly papers. Not open to classification 6 students. May be repeated for credit. Prerequisite: Doctoral classification.

679. Managerial Accounting Analysis. (3-0). Credit 3.

Primary aspects of managerial accounting needs; planning, internal control, cash and inventory management, data systems and analysis, and mergers and acquisitions. Classification 6 students may not enroll in this course. Prerequisite: ACCT 620 or equivalent.

680. Tax Research and Policy. (3-0). Credit 3.

Methodology and sources of tax research; tax analysis research, policy implications, behavioral aspects and use of quantitative analysis. Classification 6 students may not enroll in this course. Prerequisite: ACCT 405 or 611.

684. Professional Internship. Credit 1 to 6 each semester.

A directed internship in an organization to provide students with on-the-job training with professionals in organizational settings appropriate to the student’s professional objectives. Classification 6 students may not enroll in this course. Prerequisites: Approval of committee chair and department head.

685. Directed Studies. Credit 1 to 4 each semester.

Directed individual study of selected problems using recent developments in business research methods. Classification 6 students may not enroll in this course. Prerequisites: Graduate classification and approval of instructor.

688. Doctoral Seminar. (3-0). Credit 3.

Historical development of the conceptual framework of accounting theory and practices; analysis of current research and controversial issues in the field. For doctoral students only. May be repeated for credit. Classification 6 students may not enroll in this course. Prerequisite or corequisite: ACCT 665.

689. Special Topics in... Credit 1 to 4.

Selected topics in an identified area of accounting. May be repeated for credit. Classification 6 students may not enroll in this course.

690. Theory of Research in Accounting. (3-0). Credit 3.

The design of research in the various subfields of accounting and the evaluation of research results using examples from the current research literature. May be repeated for credit. Classification 6 students may not enroll in this course. Prerequisite: ACCT 665.

691. Research. Credit 1 or more each semester.

Research for thesis or dissertation. Classification 6 students may not enroll in this course.