General provisions

The course is offered at half speed and designed as a distance course. Together with the distance course Marketing and Organisation 2FE014, 15 credits it corresponds to the A-level in Business Studies.

The course syllabus was approved by the board of the Department of Business Studies on delegation from the Faculty of Social Sciences.

Entry requirements

General entry requirements

Learning outcomes

The course, which consists of two separate parts – the enterprise’s finances and accounting and analysis, has the objective of instilling an understanding into the core problems and issues concerning companies and enterprises, as well preparing the students for advanced studies in business administration. The students learn to work independently, and critically formulate and analyse company financial problems, both verbally and in writing. The expected study results for each part are presented below:

The Enterprise’s finances:

Upon completion of the course, the student will:

• be able to explain why companies use profit measures in order to evaluate and plan financial activities
• have a comprehensive knowledge of how profit and loss statements and balance sheets describe the company’s financial situation
• have a comprehensive knowledge of how expenses and income can be used for decisions about customers, products/services and organisational units
• have a comprehensive knowledge of the fundamental financial tools for the calculation of investments
• be able to recognise the different models for financial liability which are used in companies

Accounting and analysis:

Upon completion of the course, the student will:

• have a comprehensive knowledge of the fundamentals of double-entry bookkeeping
• be able to describe the fundamental rules of accounting
• have knowledge about legislation, legal rules and accounting principles governing Annual Reports of limited companies
• will understand of a number fundamental valuation rules
• have a comprehensive knowledge of the fundamentals of the legislation concerning the accounting of the limited companies shareholder equity, and rules for the issuance of bonds and the issuance of new shares
• be fully able to read a consolidated financial statement
• have a comprehensive knowledge of some fundamental models used to analyse a company’s profitability

Evaluation of capability and understanding:

Upon completion of the course, the student will be able to:

• show an ability to independently and critically formulate and analyse simple business administration issues
• show the ability to work with and learn from the material
• evaluate the reliability of different sources of information
• write reports which meet fundamental scientific requirements.

Content

This is a basic course in business studies which aims to give the students a broad introduction to the subject and its curriculum. The course is divided up into two separate parts: The enterprise’s finances and accounting and analysis.

The course segment the Enterprise’s financial finances begins with a discussion of “Profits and losses, capital and financial flows.” Why do companies use profit measures instead of financial flows in order to evaluate and plan financial activities? The focus lies on how the profit and loss statements, and balance sheets, describe the company’s financial situation. The section concerning with “Product cost estimation” covers how expenses and income can be used as support for decisions about customers, products, services, organisational units and the like. The section “Time value of money” covers the fundamental financial tools for calculation of investments. The course will be concluded with a study of “Internal financial controls,” the various models for financial liability which are often used by companies.

The course segment accounting and analysis begins with the introduction of double-entry bookkeeping. This is accomplished with basic accounting exercises, and institutional knowledge is presented in the form of bookkeeping exercises. The next section deals with “Annual Reports in limited companies.” Here, an orientation is provided concerning legislation and legal rules, and some of the fundamental accounting principles. The focus is on the laws for stock exchange listed companies. A number of valuation rules are presented and discussed, followed by the rules for accounting relating to shareholder equity in limited companies, along with the rules for the issuance of bonds and new shares. In the section about “Consolidated Accounting,” a fundamental knowledge of how consolidated financial statements are read will be developed . The elements of the course are completed with a section concerning “Analysis.” There, how profitability can be analysed with the assistance of various models is covered

Instruction

The language of instruction is Swedish. The teaching is entirely web-based and is based on independent study. Information about different activities, such as the work required and the date for the submission of papers and other assignments, is available on the course’s website. The course does not require any physical attendance. The communication between the participants and teachers occurs primarily via the website. This requires that the participants have access to a computer with Internet access and the appropriate equipment according to instructions at the course website.

Assessment

The final grade for the course may be Failed (U), Passed (G) or Passed with distinction (VG). Grades will be given in accordance with the Swedish grading system.

The course consists of obligatory parts. The course examination consists of various parts such as written tests, assignments, the group work and computer-based tests. The final grade is determined based on an assessment of all the parts of the examination. More detailed information about how the assessment is made is provided in the course instruction. For those who have not achieved enough assessment units to pass the course or those who are seeking a grade of Passed with distinction (VG), a final written exam will be arranged. The grade Passed with distinction can only be obtained the same semester in which the student is registered for the first time. In addition, any remaining assignments and supplemental work must be completed and handed in by the deadline specified in the study guide. Otherwise the test in question will receive a grade of U. The entire course (including all assignments) will then have to be redone the following semester, provided there is space in the course.

Uppsala University takes cheating and plagiarism seriously, and disciplinary action will be taken against any student suspected of being involved in any sort of cheating and/or plagiarism. The disciplinary actions take the form of warnings and limited suspensions.

NOTE: Only completed courses can count toward a degree.

Transitional provisions

The course replaces/overlaps among others the following basic courses in Business Administration: Economy, Accounting and Analysis 2FE024, Accounting 2FE154, Accounting A 2FE153, Accounting 2FE279, Financial Accounting 2FE151, Business and Enterprise 2FE000, 2FE007, Business and Markets I 2FE778, Business and Markets II 2FE779, 2FE008, Business and Enterprise I 2FE015, Business and Enterprise II 2FE016.