Course Syllabus Fall 2011 Class: ACG3341 Cost Accounting (Online BBA Program) Class location: Online via Blackboard Instructor: Mary C. Walsh, JD, LL.M, CPA E-mail: mwalsh8@fau.edu Office phone: (561) 297-3248. Instructor Contact/Availability: The best way to reach me is via email at mwalsh8@fau.edu. Send your email through the course Blackboard site (so that I automatically get a header in my inbox identifying you as an ACG 3341 student). I will have virtual office hours in Elluminate from 5:00 pm 7:00 pm on Thursdays (beginning 8/25). Instructions for access will be provided. Course Description: Designed to establish a working knowledge of two areas: 1) cost accounting techniques, including job costing, process costing, cost analysis, cost volume profit analysis, cost allocation, activity-based costing, budgeting, variance analysis, and transfer pricing, and 2) application of costing techniques to management decision making. Course Prerequisites: ACG 2071 and satisfactory performance on Principles of Accounting Competency Exam, www.soa.fau.edu/exam. Required Materials: 1) Text: Cost Accounting a Managerial Emphasis 14th edition, by Horngren, Datar, and Foster 2) E-MAIL: SOA policies require each student to have an e-mail account through the university to be used with all correspondences in this course. I will be sending emails through Blackboard. Make sure your email address is correct and that you check it often. I will not accept I didn t get the email as a reason for missing anything. 3) Reliable Computer Access: This is an online course. If you don t have reliable computer access to the course materials, this course isn t going to work for you. Optional Materials - MyAccountingLab software: The software package MyAccountingLab provides wonderful practice tools to enhance the student learning experience. These tools come in many forms, i.e., practice multiple choice, true/false, fill-in-the-blank, essay questions, etc. that you can use as a vital part of your learning process. You can go online at http://www.mypearsonstore.com/bookstore/product.asp?isbn=0132109174 to purchase access to this software independently from the book if you like. Although recommended, please understand that this software is OPTIONAL and is NOT required for this course. TECHNOLOGY: A note about technology THIS IS AN ONLINE COURSE. You must take your quizzes and exams online. If you are not comfortable using technology, have issues with your technology, or do not have access to a reliable internet connection, do not take this course. If you have consistent issues with technology, you may be administratively withdrawn from this course.
COURSE DATABASE: Is located in Blackboard. To access Blackboard, go to https://bb.fau.edu. In FAUNet ID, put your id (the beginning of your email address for example, mine is mwalsh8). Your Password is whatever your FAUNet password is. If you don t know your FAUNet ID or Password, please contact the Help Desk (information under Blackboard Support. ACCESS TO RECORDED LECTURES IN ELLUMINATE: Recorded lectures will be available through the Elluminate educational software platform located within the course Blackboard site. Directions for access and orientation materials are located in our Blackboard site. COURSE OBJECTIVES: At the end of this course, the student will be able to: Understand how financial, management and cost accounting relate to each other in the business environment. Understand the primary factors in determining an organization s strategies, why the firm s strategies should change and how accounting relates to organizational strategies. Define cost concepts and describe cost flows. Explain cost behavior and estimate costs. Describe the uses and methods of job order costing Describe the uses and methods of process costing. Understand the use of activity-based cost systems. Explain the problems and solutions faced in joint product and by-product costing Understand the importance of strategic planning and budgeting, including behavioral issues Explain target costing and standard costing. Calculate and analyze variances. Explain and use Cost-Volume-Profit analysis. COURSE LEARNING OUTCOMES: By completing homework assignments, each student will improve their problem-solving skills. By successfully completing quizzes and exams, each student will learn to study the appropriate materials and demonstrate knowledge and application of techniques used in cost and management accounting. CLASS METHODOLOGY: Course materials for each week are posted in Blackboard (including recorded lectures). Students should: 1. Read the assigned chapter(s) and attempt any homework assigned, 2. View the recorded lecture for the week, 3. Review the materials against lecture notes (especially revisit homework problems), and 4. Take the weekly quiz. In the lecture, I will go over some Chapter material and work through homework assignments and other examples. Expected Student Effort: Students should expect to spend 3 hours per week attending and participating in the classroom; and 4-5 hours per week reading and working on problems before and after class. For those who are counting, this is sustained weekly effort of 7 8 hours. Page 2 of 7
GRADING: Basis for Grades: Assignment Weight Points 8 Chapter Quizzes 30% 300 Exam 1 30% 300 Exam 2 20% 200 Exam 3 20% 200 100% 1,000 In addition, a Competency Exam must be completed for your grade to be released to the Registrar. See the information regarding Extra Credit, below. Grading Scale: A 93 % to 100 % B+ 86 % to 89% C+ 76 % to 79% D+ 66% to 69% A- 90 % to 92 % B 83 % to 85% C 73 % to 75% D 63% to 65% B- 80 % to 82% C- 70 % to 72% D- 60% to 62% F Below 60 % The grade "C" reflects an average command or grasp of the material covered in ACG 3341. The grade "B" reflects above average mastery of the material, and the grade "A" indicates excellent mastery of the material. The final semester grade will be determined with reference to the percentage of points earned by the individual student in relationship to the total possible points for the semester. Quizzes: There are TEN Quizzes. EIGHT Quizzes will count toward your grade. This means that you can skip up to TWO quizzes with no impact to your grade. If you complete all ten quizzes, your lowest 2 grades will be dropped. If you complete fewer than eight quizzes, your grade on the missed quizzes will be zero (0). Do not ask me for quiz extensions. You can skip 2 this is enough flexibility. You must complete the Quiz for the week by Sunday @ 11:59 pm at the end of a week. For example, the quizzes start in Week 2. Week 2 begins on Monday, 8/29. The Week 2 Quiz is due by 11:59 pm on Sunday, 9/4. Exams: Because this class is conducted online, Exams will be objective (multiple choice, etc) and will be given online through Blackboard. Normally, I would not give open book exams in an undergraduate course; however, the online nature of the course makes this a practical impossibility. As a result, the exams are going to be tightly timed. That is, if you are not prepared to take a closed book exam and intend to look everything up, you will fail the exam as you will run out of time. You must study and be ready in order to answer the questions in the time allotted. See the Course Schedule, below for the timing of the exams. Page 3 of 7
EXTRA CREDIT (Up to 30 points / 3% points): Extra Credit Exercises (15 points; 1.5%): There are several exercises and problems listed at the end of each chapter. The extra credit assignments are (1) Exercise 4-28 on page 131, (2) Exercise 7-19 on page 251, and (3) Exercise 11-28 on page 424. Requirements are as follows: 1. Copy the given information into an Excel spreadsheet (or similar package). 2. Complete the calculations or report assigned (in another area of the spreadsheet). Enter all data into the calculations or report by using cell references. Do not enter the data directly (i.e., type) into the cells. The cells must contain only formulas and the results of formulas. Label cells are permitted to identify column headings and row titles. The calculations or reports should automatically change with changes in the data set. 3. Upload one file (i.e., put each assignment on a separate sheet (tab) in ONE Excel Workbook) in the Blackboard Dropbox. Do not use email. Use the Dropbox. 4. Extra credit assignments are due no later than 11:59 p.m. on December 1, 2011. 5. No partial work will be accepted. Thus, to receive any credit for this opportunity, all three assignments must be SUBSTANTIVELY completed in the manner noted above. 6. The point of this exercise is for you to work with a spreadsheet package. This is one of the top issues that potential employers bring to our (FAU faculty) attention that students do not know how to use Excel (or other spreadsheet packages). Thus, handwritten projects or projects submitted in some format other than a spreadsheet will not be accepted (if you aren t going to use a spreadsheet, don t bother with the extra credit). Full points will be given to those only to those who make use of Excel for calculations and cell references. If you use Excel like a Word package (simply inputting information), you may get some points, but not all. 7. Each assignment will be worth 5 points each for a total possibility of 15 points (1.5%). 8. I will not be reminding you about extra credit. Either you submit the workbook in on time and completed as directed here, or you do not. There will be no extensions. Extra Credit Competency Exam (15 points / 1.5%): A multiple choice exam named Competency Test will be made available through Blackboard toward the end of term (at a time TBA). The Competency Test is given for accreditation purposes. With respect to the configuration of your course grade, the Competency Test will provide you an opportunity for 15 points worth of extra credit. Per above, you will be given a three day window to take the test; but once you start the test, you will have 2.5 hours to complete it. Although your results on this exam will not affect your grade (other than adding extra credit), you must take this exam because your final grade will not be submitted to the Registrar until you have completed the Competency Test. Except for the Extra Credit available to everyone described above, Extra Credit is NEVER made available on an individual basis. There are NEVER any exceptions to this rule. Page 4 of 7
POLICIES: Attendance & Participation: Because this is an online class, attendance and participation is not specifically graded. It is expected that you view the lectures, but this is not being tracked. Late Assignment Policy: Late assignments will NOT be accepted and there will be no late exams. Zero points will be awarded for anything late. Look at the Course Schedule and make whatever arrangements you must to ensure you will be able to complete your work on time. You have MORE than enough time here to make the arrangements. Exceptions may be made here, of course, for emergencies (see below), religious observances and participation in university-approved activities. Emergencies: I understand that life (and death) happens and that there may be times when it would be inappropriate to enforce the policies outlined in this syllabus to the letter. If you or an IMMEDIATE family member (spouse, partner, child, or parent) is having an emergency, please let me know as soon as it is convenient to do so (by email). Documentation will be required (doctor note, hospital bill, obituary notice, etc.). Emergencies DO NOT INCLUDE work issues, or vacations not even your own wedding (if you ve scheduled a vacation or honeymoon, what are you doing enrolling in this or any other course this term?). Policy on Incompletes: Incompletes will be considered ONLY in cases of DOCUMENTED health or family EMERGENCIES (defined above - notice that work emergencies are not included here) that occur toward the end of the course. These limitations are mandated by FAU and the School of Accounting. Specific to this course, incompletes will be considered only if Exam1, Exam 2 and 8 of the 10 Quizzes have been completed on time with a C or better average. If you do not meet these criteria, do not request an Incomplete. Instead, consult your advisor about your options. Work and Other Obligations: A grade is not a judgment of you as a person. It is simply a reflection of my perception of your mastery of the course material. Most (if not all) of you are working. I understand this and have been where you are (having worked while earning 2 graduate degrees). It is not my goal to make unreasonable demands of you or to make you miserable. But, please remember that neither FAU nor I am forcing you to take this class. Don t get me wrong I m thrilled that you re here. You are here to earn an Accounting Degree. Accounting is a profession that demands its members have mastery over certain subjects, such as Cost Accounting. As such, you must show mastery of the topics covered here through coursework completed on time and in full. If you are unable to keep up with the coursework (7 8 hours per week as outlined above), you are wasting your own time and Page 5 of 7
money. You might be the most brilliant student ever, but if you can t devote the necessary time to exhibit your brilliance through the required work, your grade will reflect this. If you don t have time to do the work, do not whine, beg, plead, cajole, or bargain with me about grades. Either accept a grade that is fair (based on the work submitted) or withdraw from this course as soon as it is apparent that you are in over your head. Cheating Policy: You may not work with another human being (except for the instructor) in completing any of the class assignments (unless otherwise allowed by the Instructor). Any student caught doing so on any graded item will receive an F for the class. Also, you are on notice that this syllabus incorporates all University Policies, including the Honor Code, link provided below. Students with Disabilities: In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), students who require special accommodations due to a disability to properly execute coursework must register with the Office for Students with Disabilities (OSD) located in Boca Raton -SU 133 (561-297- 3880), in Davie -MOD 1 (954-236-1222), in Jupiter -SR 117 (561-799-8585), or at the Treasure Coast - CO 128 (772-873-3305), and follow all OSD procedures. School of Accounting Policies: The School of Accounting has adopted a set of uniform policies for all courses offered by the School. These policies are considered part of this syllabus and can be found at: http://business.fau.edu/index.php?src=gendocs&ref=uniformpolicies&category=accounting&subme nu=departments_accounting Honor Code: Students at Florida Atlantic University are expected to maintain the highest ethical standards. Academic dishonesty, including cheating and plagiarism, is considered a serious breach of these ethical standards, because it interferes with the University mission to provide a high quality education in which no student enjoys an unfair advantage over any other. Academic dishonesty is also destructive of the University community, which is grounded in a system of mutual trust and places high value on Personal integrity and individual responsibility. Harsh Penalties are associated with academic dishonesty. For more information, see the Code of Academic Integrity of the University Regulations, Chapter 4, Regulation 4.001 at www.fau.edu/regulations. Syllabus controls: This syllabus controls all matters related to the class. In no event will student requests for exceptions absent an emergency be granted. This syllabus may be revised during the semester to correct errors, provide clarification or to articulate university and/or college policies. In addition, the instructor reserves the right to make changes as she deems necessary for the administration of the course. Emergencies, including extreme weather conditions, security issues and other matters may also result in changes to the course format, this syllabus and scheduled classes, lectures, etc. Course Schedule, next page Page 6 of 7
Course Schedule: Homework assignments for each week are designated in Blackboard Week # Week beginning Reading Assignments on Monday 1 8/22 Course Intro & Chapter 2 Quizzes / Exams No Quiz On your own Chapter 1 2 8/29 Chapter 4 Quiz 1 (Chapter 4) due by 11:59 pm on 9/4 3 9/6 (Tues - 9/5 is Labor Day) Chapter 5 Quiz 2 (Chapter 5) due by 11:59 pm on 9/11 4 9/12 Chapter 15 & 16 Quiz 3 (Chapters 15 & 16) due by 11:59 pm on 9/17 5 9/19 Chapter 17 Quiz 4 (Chapter 17) due by 11:59 pm on 9/26 6 9/27 Chapter 9 Quiz 5 (Chapter 9) due by 11:59 pm on 10/2 7 10/3 Exam 1 Released (Chapters 1, 2, 4, 5, 9, 15, 16, 17) Exam 1 due by 11:59 pm on 10/9 8 10/10 Chapter 6 Quiz 6 (Chapter 6) due by 11:59 pm on 10/16 9 10/17 Chapter 7 Quiz 7 (Chapter 7) due by 11:59 pm on 10/23 10 10/24 Chapter 8 Quiz 8 (Chapter 8) due by 11:59 pm on 10/30 11 10/31 Exam 2 Released (Chapters 6, 7, 8) Exam 2 due by 11:59 pm on 11/6 12 11/7 Chapter 10 No Quiz 13 11/14 Chapter 3 Quiz 9 (Chapter 3) due by 11:59 pm on 11/13 14 11/21 Chapter 11 Quiz 10 (Chapter 11) due by 11:59 pm on 11/27 15 11/28 Exam 3 Released (Chapters 3, 10, 11) Final Exam due by 11:59 pm on 12/4 Page 7 of 7