I. General Information

1. Course Title:
Accounting Principles I (Financial)

2. Course Prefix & Number:
ACCT 2011

3. Course Credits and Contact Hours:

Credits: 4

Lecture Hours: 3

Lab Hours: 2

4. Course Description:

This course serves as an introduction to the generally accepted accounting principles used to identify, measure, and communicate useful economic information to users. Specific topics include accrual accounting, financial statements, accounting systems, merchandise accounting, internal control, and accounting for assets, liabilities, and owners' capital. International issues and ethics are incorporated into appropriate topics.

5. Placement Tests Required:

Accuplacer (specify test):

Reading College Level CLC or Reading College Level

Score:

6. Prerequisite Courses:

There are no prerequisites for this course.

9. Co-requisite Courses:

There are no corequisites for this course.

II. Transfer and Articulation

1. Course Equivalency - similar course from other regional institutions:

• State Cloud State University, ACCT 291 – Accounting I, 3 credits
• Bemidji State University, ACCT 1101 – Principles of Accounting I, 3 credits
• North Dakota State University, ACCT 200 – Elements of Accounting I, 3 credits
• Century College, ACCT 2020 – Financial Accounting, 3 credits
• Minnesota State University Moorhead, ACCT 230 – Principles of Accounting I, 3 credits
• Normandale Community College, ACCT 2251 – Principles of Accounting I, 4 credits
• Southwest Minnesota State University, ACCT 211 – Principles of Accounting I, 3 credits
• Winona State University, ACCT 211 – Financial Accounting Principles, 3 credits

2. Transfer - regional institutions with which this course has a written articulation agreement:

College of St. Scholastica, Accounting

Bemidji State University, Accounting

University of Minnesota Crookston, Accounting

Concordia University St. Paul, Accounting

3. Prior Learning - the following prior learning methods are acceptable for this course:
CLEP

III. Course Purpose

1. Program-Applicable Courses – This course is required for the following program(s):

Accounting, Diploma
Accountant, AAS Degree
Bookkeeping, Certificate

Business Transfer Pathway AS

IV. Learning Outcomes

1. College-Wide Outcomes

College-Wide Outcomes/Competencies	Students will be able to:
Analyze and follow a sequence of operations	Identify and apply generally accepted accounting principles and concepts to analyze financial transactions and complete the accounting cycle to produce a set of classified financial statements in proper form.
Apply abstract ideas to concrete situations	Apply generally accepted accounting principles to business transactions.
Utilize appropriate technology	Use spreadsheet software to generate financial statements and analyze financial transactions.

2. Course Specific Outcomes - Students will be able to achieve the following measurable goals upon completion of the course:

• Understand the nature and purpose of generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), the objective of financial reporting and related accounting assumptions and principles;
• Understand the components of the accounting conceptual framework including accounting and business terminology;
• Apply the accounting equation to analyze business transactions and understand the impact on financial statements;
• Understand how internal controls are used to manage and control a firm’s resources, minimize risk and ensure accurate reporting;
• Understand and apply the information conveyed in each of the four basic financial statements and how this information may be used by management, investors, creditors and regulators;
• Apply accounting practices to measure, classify and report current assets accounts receivable and bad debts, short-term investments, inventory and cost of goods sold, and prepaid expenses;
• Apply accounting practices to measure, classify and report long-term assets including the acquisition, use, depreciation and disposal of long-lived assets;
• Apply accounting practices to measure, classify and report current and long-term liabilities;
• Apply issues relating to stockholders’ equity including the issuance of stock, repurchase of stock and dividends;
• Analyze how accounting transactions, the use of different valuation methods and management estimates can affect assets, liabilities and equity, earnings and other financial measures;
• Apply understanding of how operating, investing and financing activities are reported in the statement of cash flows and analyze the impact these activities have on a firm’s performance and solvency; and
• Understand and apply financial performance measures and ratio analysis to compare financial results against expectations, industry standards and competitors.

V. Topical Outline

Listed below are major areas of content typically covered in this course.

1. Lecture Sessions

1. Accounting and the Business Environment
   • Importance of accounting to investors, creditors, and other users
   • Role of ethics in accounting and business
   • Generally accepted accounting principles and international standards
   • Conceptual framework and convergence
   • Transaction analysis and the accounting equation
   • Financial statements and financial analysis
2. Analyzing and Recording Transactions
   • Using accounts to record transactions
   • Analyzing and processing transactions
   • Trial balance
   • Effect of errors on the trial balance
3. Adjusting Accounts and Preparing Financial Statements
   • The accounting period
   • Accrual basis versus cash basis accounting
   • Nature of the adjusting process
   • Adjusting entries
4. Completing the Accounting Cycle
   • Flow of accounting information
   • Financial statements
   • Closing entries
   • Illustration of the accounting cycle
   • Comprehensive problem
5. Accounting Information Systems
   • Basic accounting systems and their principles
   • Manual accounting systems
   • Computerized accounting systems
6. Merchandising Operations
   • Merchandising activities
   • Accounting for merchandising sales and purchases
   • Financial statements for a merchandiser
   • Adjusting and closing processes
   • Financial statement analysis and interpretation for merchandising operations
   • Accounting for a periodic inventory system (optional)
7. Inventories and Cost of Goods Sold
   • Control of inventory
   • Inventory cost flow assumptions under a perpetual inventory system
   • Inventory cost flow under a periodic inventory system (optional)
   • Comparing inventory costing methods
   • Valuation of inventory: lower of cost or market and net realizable value
8. Cash and Internal Controls
   • Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
   • Internal Control
   • Cash controls over receipts and payments
   • Bank accounts and reconciliation
   • Special-purpose cash funds
   • Financial statement reporting of and financial ratios relating to cash
9. Receivables
   • Classifications and characteristics of receivables
   • Recognizing accounts receivables
   • Valuing accounts receivables: direct write-off and allowance methods
   • Estimating bad debts: percent of sales and percent of receivables (aging) methods
   • Accounting for notes receivable
10. Plant Assets, Natural Resources, and Intangibles
    • Cost determination and the nature of plant assets, natural resources, and intangibles
    • Capital versus revenue expenditures
    • Accounting for depreciation, amortization, and depletion
    • Disposal of plant assets
11. Current Liabilities and Payroll
    • Characteristics and types of current liabilities
    • Payroll and payroll taxes and the accounting systems that support them
    • Employee fringe benefits
    • Contingent liabilities
12. Long-Term Liabilities
    • Nature of bonds payable
    • Present value concepts and the pricing of bonds payable
    • Accounting for bonds payable and installment notes payable
    • Reporting long-term liabilities
13. Corporations: Organization, Stock Transactions, and Dividends
    • Nature of the corporate form
    • Accounting for capital stock
    • Accounting for dividends
    • Treasury stock transactions
    • Reporting stockholders’ equity
    • Stock splits
    • Earnings per share
14. Investments and International Operations (optional)
    • Basics of Investments
    • Accounting for debt investments
    • Accounting for equity investments
    • Valuing and reporting investments
    • Fair value accounting
    • Comprehensive income

2. Laboratory/Studio Sessions

• Transaction Analysis
  • Cell formulas
  • Cell formatting
  • Auto Sum function
• Journalizing and Posting Entries
  • Create a General Journal template
  • Create a “T – account” template
  • Cell formulas in T – accounts
  • Mathematical order of operations for cell formulas
  • Number formats
  • Text Alignment
  • Increase Indent
• Creating Financial Statements
  • Income Statement
  • Statement of Owner’s Equity
  • Balance Sheet
  • Cell references
  • Cell linking
  • Judicious use of color, fonts, and cell formats
• Communicating Financial Information to Non-Financial Decision Makers
  • Column charts
  • Pie charts
  • Horizontal analysis
  • Vertical analysis
• Spreadsheets as Templates
  • Data input section
  • Formulas
  • Cell references
  • Layout planning
• Depreciation Tables
  • Layout and organization of data
  • SLN function
  • DDB function
• Bond Amortization Schedules
  • Effective-interest method
  • Straight line method
  • Absolute cell references
  • Relative cell references
  • PV function
• Accounting Reports
  • Professional appearance
  • Sensible formats
  • Usability
  • Recurring use of report