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Accounting

Entry requirements


A level

A,A,B

We consider all A level subjects, with the exception of General Studies, therefore General Studies would not be included in any offer. A strong proficiency in Mathematics is required. If Mathematics is not taken as an A level subject, a grade 6 (or grade B) in Mathematics at GCSE is required. We particularly welcome the introduction of the Core Mathematics Qualification and we will accept a Core Maths Qualification (grade B minimum) in lieu of our GCSE Mathematics requirement.

Access to HE Diploma

D:30,M:15

We require 60 credits with a minimum of 45 credits at level 3 (or equivalent). Applicants may be required to meet additional subject-specific requirements for particular courses at Durham. Please contact departments for further information. The following are a guideline and may be subject to change as further information becomes available. A strong proficiency in Mathematics is required. If Mathematics is not taken as an A Level subject, a Grade 6 (or Grade B) in Mathematics at GCSE is required. We particularly welcome the introduction of the Core Mathematics Qualification and we will accept a Core Maths Qualification (Grade B minimum) in lieu of our GCSE Mathematics requirement.

Cambridge International Pre-U Certificate - Principal

D3,D3,M2

A strong proficiency in Mathematics is required. If Mathematics is not taken beyond GCSE, a grade 6, (or B) in GCSE Mathematics or equivalent, or Core Mathematics grade B is essential.

International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme

37

To include 666 in higher-level subjects. If Mathematics is not taken at a higher level, then it is required at standard level 6.

Leaving Certificate - Higher Level (Ireland) (first awarded in 2017)

H2,H2,H2,H2,H3

A strong proficiency in Mathematics is required. If Mathematics is not taken beyond GCSE, a grade 6, (or B) in GCSE Mathematics or equivalent, or Core Mathematics grade B is essential.

OCR Cambridge Technical Extended Diploma

DDD

A strong proficiency in Mathematics is required. If Mathematics is not taken beyond GCSE, a grade 6, (or B) in GCSE Mathematics or equivalent, or Core Mathematics grade B is essential.

Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)

DDD

A strong proficiency in Mathematics is required. If Mathematics is not taken beyond GCSE, a grade 6, (or B) in GCSE Mathematics or equivalent, or Core Mathematics grade B is essential.

Scottish Advanced Higher

A,A,B

A strong proficiency in Mathematics is required. If Mathematics is not taken beyond GCSE, a grade 7, (or A) in GCSE Mathematics or equivalent, or Core Mathematics grade B is essential.

Scottish Higher

A,A,A,B,B

Departments will normally make offers based on Advanced Highers. In the absence of 3 Advanced Highers, where these are not offered by the applicant’s school, offers comprising of Advanced Highers and Highers or a number of Highers may be made on a case by case basis. A strong proficiency in Mathematics is required. If Mathematics is not taken beyond GCSE, a grade 6, (or B) in GCSE Mathematics or equivalent, or Core Mathematics grade B is essential.

At Durham we welcome applications from students of outstanding achievement and potential from all educational backgrounds.  We will consider applicants studying T level qualifications for entry to many of our courses. Where a course requires subject specific knowledge and this is not covered within the T level being studied, you may need to supplement your T level studies with a suitable qualification to meet this requirement, for example at A level.  Where this is needed this will be clearly stated in our entry requirements. Detailed entry requirements can be found on individual course entries on our courses database: https://www.durham.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/ A strong proficiency in Mathematics is required. If Mathematics is not taken beyond GCSE, a grade 6, (or B) in GCSE Mathematics or equivalent, or Core Mathematics grade B is essential.

UCAS Tariff

136-160

We've calculated how many Ucas points you'll need for this course.

About this course


Course option

3years

Full-time | 2024

Subject

Accounting

Course details
Developed with strong links to the accounting profession and industry, when you graduate from this professionally-accredited degree you’ll be perfectly placed to embark on a career in the world of accounting.

Year 1
Core modules:
Financial Accounting teaches techniques of double entry accounting and its application in recording transactions, adjusting financial records and preparing non-complex financial statements.
Skills for the Professional Accountants develops skills that employers are looking for in future employees. You will be given opportunities to acquire, develop and apply these skills using real-world accounting scenarios.
Fundamentals of Management Accounting teaches you to understand, apply and critically appraise fundamental knowledge and techniques that underpin the area of management accounting, from planning and control to costing and decision making.
Ethics in Accounting will introduce you to social and ethical contexts in which accountants operate, using real-world examples. You will learn about professional codes of ethics for accountants, learn to identify when an issue arises and develop the skills to propose alternative solutions.
Economics for Finance introduces basic principles of microeconomics and macroeconomics. Microeconomics explores areas including the role of consumers and businesses in the marketplace, markets in action, market structure, strategic rivalry and growth strategies. Macroeconomics includes exchange rates and balance of payments, globalisation, fiscal policy, inflation, unemployment and economic growth.
Business and Technology explores business and its environment. You will look at the influence of technology on organisational structure and how accounting function contributes to the efficient, effective management and development of an organisation, its people and their use of information systems.
Business Law for Accountants provides an overview of the principles of English law, the legal framework within which businesses operate, and requirements and restrictions imposed by relevant aspects of English law. Areas covered include employment, partnerships, company law, criminal, and insolvency and administration.
Principles of Taxation enables you to understand general objectives of tax and to complete basic calculations in relation to income tax, national insurance contributions, capital gains tax, corporation tax, and VAT. You will also learn to prepare basic tax computations and provide tax advice to individuals and companies.

Year 2
Core modules:
Financial Management explores areas of financing, managing financial risk and investment decisions. You will learn how businesses operate and how accounting and finance functions support businesses in achieving their objectives.
Performance Management covers major techniques in modern management accountancy including decision making, appraising risk and budget control.
Taxation looks at areas such as income tax, national insurance contributions, capital gains tax, corporation tax, inheritance tax, VAT and stamp taxes in more depth.
Financial Reporting explores international accounting and reporting concepts and ethics, single company financial statements and consolidated financial statements. You will also learn about International Financial Reporting Standards and how it applies to specified scenarios.
Assurance develops your understanding of the critical aspects of managing an assurance engagement (including audit engagements). It covers the process from acceptance, planning and managing through to concluding and reporting.
Business Strategy and Technology provides you with an understanding of how an organisation develops and implements strategy, including any ethical implications.

Year 3
Core modules:
Research Methods in Accounting The Dissertation

Examples of optional modules:
Corporate Reporting
Tax Planning for Business
Corporate Governance
Audit and Assurance.

Modules

Year 1
Core modules:
Financial Accounting
Skills for the Professional Accountants
Fundamentals of Management Accounting
Ethics in Accounting
Economics for Finance
Business and Technology
Business Law for Accountants
Principles of Taxation

Year 2
Core modules:
Financial Management
Performance Management
Taxation
Financial Reporting
Assurance
Business Strategy and Technology
You will also benefit from additional employment-focused activities in Year 2, including:
Year 3 option choices taster sessions

Year 3
Core modules:
Research Methods in Accounting .
The Dissertation

Examples of optional modules:
Corporate Reporting
Tax Planning for Business
Corporate Governance
Audit and Assurance.

Tuition fees

Select where you currently live to see what you'll pay:

Channel Islands
£9,250
per year
England
£9,250
per year
EU
£27,600
per year
International
£27,600
per year
Northern Ireland
£9,250
per year
Republic of Ireland
£9,250
per year
Scotland
£9,250
per year
Wales
£9,250
per year

The Uni


Course locations:

Durham City

College allocation pending

Department:

Durham University Business School

Read full university profile

What students say


We've crunched the numbers to see if overall student satisfaction here is high, medium or low compared to students studying this subject(s) at other universities.

92%
Accounting

How do students rate their degree experience?

The stats below relate to the general subject area/s at this university, not this specific course. We show this where there isn’t enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

Accounting

Teaching and learning

89%
Staff make the subject interesting
95%
Staff are good at explaining things
95%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
86%
Opportunities to apply what I've learned

Assessment and feedback

Feedback on work has been timely
Feedback on work has been helpful
Staff are contactable when needed
Good advice available when making study choices

Resources and organisation

86%
Library resources
94%
IT resources
94%
Course specific equipment and facilities
88%
Course is well organised and has run smoothly

Student voice

Staff value students' opinions
Feel part of a community on my course

Who studies this subject and how do they get on?

37%
UK students
63%
International students
49%
Male students
51%
Female students
88%
2:1 or above
4%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

A
A
A

After graduation


The stats in this section relate to the general subject area/s at this university – not this specific course. We show this where there isn't enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

Accounting

What are graduates doing after six months?

This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.

£29,800
high
Average annual salary
94%
med
Employed or in further education
89%
high
Employed in a role where degree was essential or beneficial

Top job areas of graduates

77%
Business, research and administrative professionals
7%
Business, finance and related associate professionals
3%
Functional managers and directors

You don't have to be an accountant if you take this degree, but over half of graduates take a look at the rewards on offer for accountancy trainees and go into the job. Many others go into other parts of the finance industry as advisors or book-keepers, and some go into management or marketing. London is very popular for accountancy graduates going into their first job, but it's also quite common to work in Scotland, with Glasgow a perennial hotbed of Scottish accountancy recruitment. If you want to find a job in finance as an accountancy graduates, recruitment agencies were particularly important last year, so try to get in touch with one as soon as you can to improve your chances.

What about your long term prospects?

Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.

Accounting

The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.

£31k

£31k

£42k

£42k

£45k

£45k

Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.

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This information comes from the National Student Survey, an annual student survey of final-year students. You can use this to see how satisfied students studying this subject area at this university, are (not the individual course).

This is the percentage of final-year students at this university who were "definitely" or "mostly" satisfied with their course. We've analysed this figure against other universities so you can see whether this is high, medium or low.

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This information is from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), for undergraduate students only.

You can use this to get an idea of who you might share a lecture with and how they progressed in this subject, here. It's also worth comparing typical A-level subjects and grades students achieved with the current course entry requirements; similarities or differences here could indicate how flexible (or not) a university might be.

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Post-six month graduation stats:

This is from the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education Survey, based on responses from graduates who studied the same subject area here.

It offers a snapshot of what grads went on to do six months later, what they were earning on average, and whether they felt their degree helped them obtain a 'graduate role'. We calculate a mean rating to indicate if this is high, medium or low compared to other universities.

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Graduate field commentary:

The Higher Education Careers Services Unit have provided some further context for all graduates in this subject area, including details that numbers alone might not show

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The Longitudinal Educational Outcomes dataset combines HRMC earnings data with student records from the Higher Education Statistics Agency.

While there are lots of factors at play when it comes to your future earnings, use this as a rough timeline of what graduates in this subject area were earning on average one, three and five years later. Can you see a steady increase in salary, or did grads need some experience under their belt before seeing a nice bump up in their pay packet?

Have a question about this info? Learn more here