Accountancy

The Business Economics programme is aimed at students interested in the business scene. It prepares them for the active and flexible fulfilment of a wide range of tasks in the financial, industrial, trade and service sectors in which companies and social profit organisations operate. Students become acquainted with almost every functional aspect of the business world: how and why a company is established, how it is financed, how it organises itself administratively, how it produces goods and services, how it markets and sells those goods and services, how it deals with personnel and how the company’s management coordinates and steers all those activities. Emphasis is placed on the inside of the business.

Accountancy studies the financial reporting process in organisations. On the one hand, financial reporting aims to inform investors, shareholders, employees, customers, suppliers and the government about the organisation’s performance. Important aspects are the liquidity, solvability and profitability of the organisation. That communication occurs, to a considerable extent, via the annual report. On the other hand, the financial reporting system provides management with indispensable information that allows them to make accurate policy decisions. This discipline studies that last aspect within the Management Control course, while other courses investigate financial reporting based on international reporting standards (IAS/IFRS) and check the reliability of financial reporting. Specific attention is paid to scientific research methods within the field of accountancy. Finally, supervised work sessions aim to integrate scientific research and questions that are relevant to the job. Several courses use a problem-driven methodology in which students analyse and work out specific case studies in small groups.

General Courses

• Strategic Management

Courses Related to the Main Subject

• Audit
• Management Control
• International Financial Reporting Standards
• Research Methods in Accounting
• Consolidation
• International Standards on Auditing
• Accounting in Practice

Elective Courses

• Work Placement [nl]
• Research Methods in Corporate Finance
• Valuation and Financial Risk Management
• Advanced Corporate Finance
• Advanced Financial Statement Analysis
• Consumer Behaviour
• Market Research Methods
• Business and International Marketing
• Marketing Communication
• Business Development and Strategic Selling
• Digital Marketing

Requirements

• The course is open to students with at least a bachelor's degree
• Reference letters
• A TOEFL-TEST with a minimum score of 90 (internet-based). Test participants should specify the "institution code" 2643 for UGent and 0749 for KULeuven, so that the score can be sent directly to the university.
• An original 'academic test report form' (TRF) from IELTS with a minimum overall band score of 7.0.
• A certificate awarded by the Ghent University Language Centre confirming proficiency in English, CEF-level B2
• Certificate Practical English 5, Upper-Intermediate Academic English or Preparing for an English test, issued by the Ghent University Language Centre.
• Cambridge-ESOL: First certificate in English (FCE)
• Enrollment fee of Ghent University for academic year 2016-2017 is 890 € for EER-students and students from OESO-DAC-list (developing countries), all other students pay an enrollment fee of 5330 €

Scholarships

• Ghent University Master grants