Please note there are no vacancies on this course for September 2024
Page last updated 23 September 2024
Introduction
This applied and future-focused course balances knowledge and skills in accounting with applied understanding of finance, giving access to a wide range of financial careers. You will also gain some exemptions from professional accounting examinations.
Accreditations and partnerships:
Why study accounting and finance?
Sound financial decisions are at the core of every successful business, so demand for financially skilled and knowledgeable graduates is always high.
This BA(Hons) Accounting and Finance will provide you with the key knowledge and skills to access a wide range of career opportunities, as well as a variety of specialist options.
Why UWE Bristol?
Your learning will be driven by real-world practice and current market innovations, giving you an excellent foundation for your future career. You'll develop technical skills in key aspects of accounting and finance, and practice applying these in authentic contexts.You'll gain core professional skills in sessions led by employers drawn from our strong business partnerships.
Based in our Bristol Business School, you'll benefit from purpose-built facilities, including interactive learning rooms and spaces for individual and group study. The Academic Success Centre will support your academic skills development at every stage of your course.
In our Bloomberg Trading Suite, you will explore and apply real-time financial data, and can gain the industry-recognised Bloomberg Certificate.
You can develop your entrepreneurial skills though the University enterprise competitions and Grand Challenge projects. Join a Business Clinic team and gain experience of providing pro-bono advice to small businesses and voluntary organisations.
This course shares a first year with our BSc(Hons) Accounting and BA(Hons) Accounting and Management, with full transferability between courses at the end of the first year.
Where can it take me?
As a graduate with skills in accounting and broader areas of finance, you could pursue professional qualification or enter a wide range of careers in areas such as financial management, investment and business development.
You could choose to become an investment analyst, broker, portfolio manager, financial consultant or credit manager.
Or you may take the entrepreneurial route, and use your skills to develop financial innovations or digital technologies. The opportunities are many and varied.
Watch: 3 reasons to study BA(Hons) Accounting and Finance
Structure
Content
The optional modules listed are those that are most likely to be available, but they may be subject to change.
Year one
You'll study:
Business Law
Economic Principles in a Contemporary Context
Essential Information and Academic Skills
Foundations of Financial Accounting
Introduction to Management Accounting
Introduction to Managerial Finance
Management and Professional Development for Accounting and Finance
Statistics and Data Management.
Year two
You'll study:
Applied Research Skills in Accounting and Finance
Corporate Finance
Financial Accounting
Financial Accounting and Reporting
Management Accounting and Decision Making.
Plus, three optional modules from:
Credit Management: Theory and Practice
Entrepreneurial Finance
Entrepreneurship and Small Business
Governance and Accountability
Market Analysis for Private Investors
Personal Financial Planning
Principles of Taxation
Race, Inequality and Justice - An Interdisciplinarty Perspective.
Placement year(if applicable)
If you study on the four year (sandwich) course, you'll spend a year away from the University on either a work placement or a study year abroad after year two.
Depending on which you choose, you'll either complete a Placement Learning or Learning and Development on Study Year Abroad module.
See the Placements and Fees sections for more information.
Final year
You'll study:
Business Strategy and Technology
Financial Management
Strategic Project (Accounting and Finance).
Plus
Cross Cultural Learning and Development or Work Integrated Learning (Accounting and Finance).*
*If you complete the Sandwich Placement or Study Year Abroad, these modules won't be available to study.
Plus one optional modue from:**
Corporate Reporting Theory and Practice
Strategic Management Accounting.
**If you complete the Sandwich Placement or Study Year Abroad, you can study one or both of these modules.
Plus, two optional modules from:***
Accounting for Sustainability
Auditing
Credit Risk Analysis and Management
Financial Crime
Financial Technology
Further Tax Theory and Practice
International Financial Management
Investment Management
Islamic Banking and Finance.
***If you complete the Sandwich Placement or Study Year Abroad, you'll either study one or two of these modules, depending on credit requirement.
The University continually enhances our offer by responding to feedback from our students and other stakeholders, ensuring the curriculum is kept up to date and our graduates are equipped with the knowledge and skills they need for the real world. This may result in changes to the course. If changes to your course are approved we'll inform you.
"Having industry experts come and do talks as part of my course was helpful as it enabled me to understand more about the job market and prepare me for after graduating." Lewis, 2019 Accounting and Finance graduate.
Learning and Teaching
You will learn through a mixture of lectures, workshops and tutorials, with regular opportunities to hear from and engage with current industry experts, employers and alumni.
In the Bloomberg Trading Suite, you will explore and apply real-time financial data and you'll gain core professional skills in sessions led by global accounting firms and professional bodies.
The Academic Success Centre will support your academic skills development at every stage of your course, and in your first and second you will be supported by additional peer assisted learning.
Approximate percentage of time you'll spend in different learning activities*:
Year
Scheduled learning and teaching study
Independent study
Placement study
1
26%
74%
0%
2
24%
76%
0%
3
18%
74%
8%
*calculated from compulsory and option module choices (where applicable) each year.
Study time
You'll have at least 12 hours contact time a week. Additional independent study tasks include tutorial preparation, group work, coursework assignments and exam revision this will take around 24 hours per week.
We want you to graduate with the best possible employment opportunities, so you'll be expected to undertake either summer internships, part-time work experience, Business Clinic activities, or complete a 40-week industry placement as part of your course.
Assessment
Assessment will include business reports, essays, literature reviews, simulations, case study evaluations, presentations and portfolios. Modules leading to professional exemptions will always be assessed by examinations.
Students who get work experience tend to graduate with better degrees. Experience also hones your skills, industry knowledge and professional network, making you a sought after graduate.
We want you to graduate with the best possible employment opportunities. In the course of your studies, you'll be expected to undertake either summer internships, part-time work experience, Business Clinic activities, or a 40-week industry placement.
You can enhance your confidence and capabilities through the Business Clinic, Bloomberg training, enterprise competitions and volunteering.
We also encourage and facilitate international study exchanges with our partners in locations including Europe China, Vietnam and Malaysia.
Study facilities
The Business School offers technology-enabled classrooms and individual and group study learning spaces as well as bookable conference rooms.
It is home to the Bloomberg Trading Suite, providing access to real-time trading data and the industry-standard financial research database. The suite is used across a number of modules to develop real-world skills recognised in the investment industry.
In our specialist library, business librarians manage vast collections of hard copy and online resources to support your learning and research. You can attend workshops and study skills sessions to develop your information skills. The Faculty Academic Success Centre provides one-to-one and group study skills support.
Discover our campuses and the wealth of facilities provided for our students.
Careers
Careers / Further study
There is high demand for graduates who understand finance and the role of strategic financial decision making in business success. This gives you a competitive place in the jobs market and opens up many career options.
This course makes an ideal launch pad for careers in investment, accountancy, banking, personal and corporate finance, in both private and public sector organisations.
Our students go on to financial roles in a wide range of sectors, working in global investment houses and accounting firms, banks, stockbrokers, and major companies, as well as SMEs and business start-ups .
Through the range of option pathways, you can gain specialist knowledge in areas such as private wealth management, corporate governance and credit management, further broadening your career choices.
Recent graduates have secured roles with PWC, Ernst and Young, Hargreaves Lansdown, HSBC, Airbus, Lloyds Banking Group, Amazon and Intel.
Further study at UWE Bristol is also an option, with many graduates progressing to Masters level courses in accounting and finance related areas.
Get inspired
Our award-winning careers service will develop your employment potential through career coaching and find you graduate jobs, placements and global opportunities.
We can also help find local volunteering and community opportunities, provide support for entrepreneurial activity and get you access to employer events.
Visit our employability pages to learn more about careers, employers and what our students are doing six months after graduating.
Fees
Full-time; Sandwich
Fees
Amount (£)
Home Annual (Per Year) Fee
9250
Home Full Annual Fee Following Placement Year
9250
Home Module Fee (15 Credit)
1156
Home Placement Year Fee
1156
Home Reduced Annual Fee Following Placement Year
8094
International Annual (Per Year) Fee
15850
International Full Annual Fee Following Placement Year
15850
International Module Fee (15 Credit)
1981
International Placement Year Fee
1981
International Reduced Annual Fee Following Placement Year
13869
Offshore Annual (Per Year) Fee
9250
Offshore Full Annual Fee Following Placement Year
9250
Offshore Module Fee (15 Credit)
1156
Offshore Placement Year Fee
1156
Offshore Reduced Annual Fee Following Placement Year
8094
Indicative Additional Costs
Fees
Amount (£)
Additional Course Costs Indicative Maximum Cost Per year
400
Supplementary fee information
Your overall entitlement to funding is based on how long the course is that you're registered on.
Standard funding is allocated based on the standard number of years that your course lasts, plus one additional year.
You'll apply for funding each year that you study and Student Finance will take into account how long the course is in each year that you apply. So if you register for the four year course and then transfer to the three year course, the number of years you can apply for funding will change. Student Finance will reassess your funding based on how many years you have been in study, not just those years for which you received student finance.
Always seek advice before taking any action that may have implications for your funding.
GCSE: Grade C/4 in English and Mathematics, or equivalent.
English Language Requirement:
International and EU applicants are required to have a minimum overall IELTS (Academic) score of 6.0 with 5.5 in each component (or approved equivalent*).
*The university accepts a large number of UK and International Qualifications in place of IELTS. You can find details of acceptable tests and the required grades you will need in our English Language section. Please visit our English language requirements page.
A-level subjects: No specific subjects required.
EDEXCEL (BTEC) Diploma: No specific subjects required.
For country specific entry requirements please find your country on the country information pages. If you are an international student and do not meet the academic requirements to study this course, you can qualify by completing preparatory study at our International College.
If you are applying to study at UWE Bristol and require additional support to meet our English language requirements, you may be able to attend one of our pre-sessional English courses. Read more about our Pre-Sessional English Programme.