Advanced Diploma in Accounting
Business, Commerce and Management Studies - Finance Economics and Accounting
Purpose and Rationale
Purpose:
The Advanced Diploma in Accounting aims to provide employed qualifying learners with more comprehensive knowledge in the field of Accounting. As the business and accounting environments evolve, there is a growing need for individuals with not only technical skills but also other vocational skills. Therefore, offering a basic Diploma in Accounting is not sufficient to meet these industry demands as it primarily focuses on producing accounting technicians.
The Advanced Diploma in Accounting is strategically designed to address the heightened industrial requirements by equipping learners with advanced knowledge and skills in accounting, law, and taxation essential for performing complex accounting roles. The program emphasizes theoretical knowledge and research principles in accounting to elevate learners beyond the level of mere technicians. This qualification aims to enhance learners' abilities to analyze financial data, manage budgets, prepare financial reports and tax returns, and evaluate financial risks for companies.
The structure of the Advanced Diploma incorporates both theoretical and practical components to foster the formative development of foundational, practical, and reflexive competencies among learners. By imparting theoretical knowledge alongside practical skills, the qualification intends to prepare learners for careers in finance and accountancy, enabling them to apply their competencies at a professional level.
Rationale:
The development of the Advanced Diploma in Accounting is justified by the evolving demands in the business and accounting landscape, necessitating a higher level of expertise beyond technical skills. Global competition, technological advancements, and increased access to information have posed new challenges that impact both the accounting industry and accounting education.
Through collaboration with prominent professional bodies such as the Institute of Accounting and Commerce (IAC), South African Institute of Professional Accountants (SAIPA), South African Institute of Tax (SAIT), and Association of Accounting Technicians of South Africa (AAT (SA)), the qualification targets learners with existing National Diploma, Diploma, or Bachelor's Degree in relevant fields. This initiative aligns with government policies to establish clear professional career pathways in the accounting profession and supports the institution's strategic objective of preparing a diverse pool of learners for successful careers and responsible citizenship.
Qualified learners from this program can pursue various roles in the economy, including accounting professionals and tax consultants, with potential growth opportunities to positions like financial controller and accounts manager. The Advanced Diploma aims to address the national shortage of accounting professionals, as identified by research from the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA), which estimates a need for over 22,000 qualified accountants in the country.
By equipping accounting and finance learners with a robust body of knowledge, the qualification not only enhances their employability but also prepares them for careers as professional accountants, such as financial accountants, management accountants, and taxation accountants. Upon completion, learners seeking further advancement can pursue the Postgraduate Diploma in Accounting to enhance their skills and expertise in the field.
Outcomes
- Identify, select, analyse and implement International Financial Reporting Standards [IFRS] to prepare individual or group financial statements.
- Identify, analyse and interpret financial statements using different techniques to reflect and address complex problems critically.
- Evaluate, identify, analyse and monitor accounting systems and information to make ethical, professional, justifiable suggestions for improving performance in financial reporting.
- Prepare budgets and income and expenditure forecast and performance reports for management.
- Identify, interpret, discuss, apply and communicate the tax law and its implications for incorporated/unincorporated businesses.
- Implement and apply theories, research methodologies, methods and techniques to solve problems in the field of accounting and taxation.
Assessment Criteria
Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 1:
- Analyse individual and group financial statements for compliance with IFRS.
- Select and analyse individual and group financial statements for decision-making.
- Analyse and implement principles of financial reporting in an accounting field.
Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 2:
- Identify different techniques for analysing the financial statement.
- Calculate ratios for analysing financial statements.
- Analyse and interpret the financial statement for indicators of liquidity, solvency, profitability, and financial structure to make informed decisions.
- Identify risks in the financial statements for decision making and suggestions.
Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 3:
- Explain and apply threads to compliance with fundamental principles in practical situations.
- Identify fundamental principles regarding professional standards and code of conduct.
- Displace and monitor accountability teamwork and commitment relevant to the workplace.
- Analyse and interpret ethical policies relevant to the workplace.
- Identify and explain professional bodies for accountants globally and locally, as well as their purposes.
Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 4:
- Prepare and present budgets and management reports.
- Calculate, record, and report on information necessary for effective cost management.
Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 5:
- Develop and use financial reports and the financial records independently.
- Identify and apply Sections of the Income Tax Act to complete tax income and VAT returns.
- Demonstrate the Income Tax Act and other statutes that are relevant to the application and interpretation of the business environment of the individual and corporate taxpayer.
- Discuss and apply South African Tax cases and Interpretation Notes.
- Develop and use appropriate processes of information gathering for given taxation and validate the financial records independently and evaluate and manage the information.
Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 6:
- Identify, analyse, and address the complex and abstract problems drawing from a systematical range of specialized skills in the accounting and taxation environment.
- Formulate and apply the research methodologies for concrete and abstract problems encountered by accounting and tax practitioners in the field of accounting.
- Gather, synthesize, evaluate, manage, and process creative responses to problems and issues in specialized financial accounting and taxation areas.
- Identify, present, and communicate creative insights, rigorous interpretations, and solutions to problems and issues to the appropriate accounting and taxation audience.
Integrated Assessment:
- The assessment strategy will include formative assessment such as tests, case studies, problem-solving assignments, projects, and practical exercises.
- Learners will be required to compile a portfolio of learning materials.
- Summative assessment will consist of written examinations.
- Integrated assessment will measure applied competence, assessing learners' ability to recognize, identify, and assess internal and external factors influencing the accounting environment (practical competence), understand the theoretical and fundamental basis of accounting principles (foundational competence), and apply accounting principles to make economic decisions (reflective competence).
Qualification Details
- Type
- Advanced Diploma
- NQF Level
- 07
- Min. Credits
- 120
- SAQA Source
- More Information
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