Bachelor of Commerce in Accounting

Purpose

The Bachelor of Commerce in Accounting provides learners with a well-rounded foundational education in preparation for a career in accountancy. Graduates are equipped with diverse professional skills that are founded on a thorough understanding of accounting theory and legislation with a focus on translating these into practical, real-world application and problem-solving. Learners are required to take initiative and responsibility for a range of project work, research, and preparation for written assessments such that they develop confidence in their ability to learn and are not afraid of change as is required in the context of a changing economy. The modern world of business needs people with a knowledge and understanding of accounting and its related disciplines to contribute to the local and international economy. Successful and responsible businesses are imperative in transforming and improving communities at a macro and micro level. The broad-based foundation enhances learners' employability and entrepreneurial ability in a wide range of vocations at mid-to-senior levels of business in accounting roles that include financial accountants, financial managers, analysts, tax advisors, auditors, strategists, leaders, managers, and academics. The qualification also positions learners to continue to postgraduate study in various specialisations, for example as a Chartered Accountant, a Professional Accountant, Chartered Global Management Accountant with Chartered Institute of Management Accountant (CIMA), a Certified Accountant, a Chartered Financial Analyst, and/or various postgraduate and Honours degrees in business.

Upon successful completion of the qualification, qualifying learners will be able to:

• Develop and adapt solutions and recommendations that are relevant to the business and the community.
• Apply extensive knowledge of the economic, legal, and technological context within which businesses operate.
• Examine knowledge of business risk management, corporate governance, analysis, and strategy development.
• Prepare, analyse, and critically discuss financial statements by generally accepted accounting practice (GAAP), primarily International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS).
• Analyse and apply the knowledge of management accounting and financial management to provide useful advice that assists in financial decision-making.
• Apply knowledge of Taxation to determine tax liabilities together with well-reasoned explanations.
• Evaluate and apply knowledge of external auditing including the legal, information technology and regulatory environment in which auditors operate.
• Examine appropriate ethical considerations and behaviour in the context of the performance of the duties of an accountant.

Rationale

The Bachelor of Commerce in Accounting is a vocationally oriented qualification designed to enhance learners' employability and entrepreneurial ability. The qualification is aligned with the competency framework and curriculum requirements of the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA) and addresses critical skills need for Chartered Accountants (CA) in South Africa. The qualification will equip learners to deal with the challenges facing business and produce professionals who are knowledgeable, confident, and adaptable to change. The qualification aims to equip learners with sound subject knowledge, sound theoretical underpinnings to practice, the capacity to integrate theory and practice, appropriate values, and skills to deal with diversity in business. The qualification is aligned with the future needs of the economy and SAICA's CA 2025 project. The design of the qualification will ensure coherence between content and cognitive demand. The qualification includes two streams, namely the Professional Accounting stream and the Chartered Accounting Stream, both of which prepare learners to enter the market as competent entry-level accountants with the capability of progressing to a variety of business and accounting roles in the economy and registering for various professional accounting designations. Each stream has a significant module overlap with the other and both meet the programme outcomes. Each stream has the same first-year modules to provide an equal initial opportunity to learners and, from this, they diverge in second and third years based on the first-year performance. The objective of the Professional Accounting stream is to provide additional foundational modules and a slower rate of progression to consolidate core principles. Where learners demonstrate in their first year of study that they can progress more quickly, they continue on the Chartered Accounting stream that provides a more direct progression to qualification and towards qualifying as a Chartered Accountant. Learners completing the Professional Accounting stream can either progress into the industry as professional accountants and/or continue toward attaining professional designations. Learners can complete a bridging year to get onto the Chartered Accounting pathway. The qualification gives due consideration to the needs of different learners and reduces the risk of learners dropping out of the qualification. All modules are designed to monitor learners continually to identify areas where additional support is required.