INTRODUCTION TO ACCOUNTING
Instructional goals
The course provides students with a solid introduction to financial reporting, presenting the main principles and techniques used to record, measure, and communicate business transactions. It also focuses on the preparation and interpretation of financial statements.
Intended learning outcomes
Knowledge and understanding: The student - by participating in the lectures and practical activities of the course - will acquire full knowledge of the main operating logics of companies, as well as the preparation of the financial statements. The acquisition of such knowledge will be ascertained through a final written test.
Applying knowledge and understanding: The student - acquiring the correct tools and method - will be able to interpret , also with respect to concrete cases, the main values of the financial statements. The presence of online content in the digital platform of the course and the carrying out of practical exercises will make it possible to verify in real time the skills acquired by the students.
Making judgements: The student, through the use of the methodologies acquired during the course, will be able to collect data and materials to understand the judgments on the main company performance and read a financial statement drawn up according to the international and national rules .
The student will also acquire the basics to independently evaluate such data by formulating his own critical judgment on the main accounting results.
Communication skills: At the end of the course the student will be able to master, with adequate terminological precision, the economic-business vocabulary of the subject.
Learning skills: The economic and business knowledge acquired during the course will allow the student to autonomously understand and interpret the national accounting standards and the forecasts relating to the preparation of the financial statements.
The student will develop a solid knowledge of the fundamental aspects of the subject that will allow him to continue to deepen the topics addressed.
Course Contents
Introduction to accounting
Reference Books
• G. Fiori - R. Tiscini, (2025), Fundamentals of accounting (EGEA)
• Slides, exercises, and materials shared during the course
Teaching Methods
Lectures, case studies and practical exercises, guest speakers, and discussion of papers.
Assessment Method
The exam is written. The assessment consists of multiple-choice questions, open-ended questions, and practical exercises.
• Non-attending students: final exam (100% of the final grade).
• Attending students: midterm exam (40% of the final grade); final exam (60% of the final grade). If the weighted average of the assessments is lower than the final exam grade, the final grade will be equal to the final exam grade
Thesis assignment criteria
None
Week 1
Financial information. Financial accounting and management accounting. The management cycle: financing, investment, trasformation, and sales.
Week 2
The business operations cycle: financing, investment, transformation, and sales. Economic and financial cycles in business management and their representation. Financial statements as a tool to represent business activities and support users’ decision-making.
Week 3
Accounting for financing transaction.
Practice session.
Week 4
Accounting for purchase transaction.
The acquisition of production factors and transformation. Practice session.
Week 5
Accounting for sales and purchases activities. Practice session.
Week 6
The logic of net results and the accrual principle.
Week 7
The Balance Sheet and the Income Statement. Adjustments. Estimation of net income.
Week 8
Adjustments (on going transactions). Estimation of net income. Practice session
Week 9
The Accrual Principle. Practice session.
Week 10
Particular business transactions. Practice session.
Week 11
Financial statements: Balance Sheet and Income Statement. Case study analysis, and reading and interpretation of financial statements based on real-world examples.
Week 12
Analysis and interpretation of financial statements. Case study analysis, and reading and interpretation of financial statements based on real-world cases