Accounting

Qualified accountants are in demand around the world, meeting financial needs in dynamic business environments.

In this major, you will gain a sound foundation in accounting, auditing, taxation and relevant areas of business law and financial management, and be able to apply this knowledge across a range of accounting contexts.

You’ll learn how to develop and communicate information relating to the financial performance of organisations, and use your accounting knowledge to support business decision-making.

You will graduate with a qualification that is recognised internationally.

Complement your major:

Due to accreditation requirements, this major comprises 12 core units, which is more than most other commerce majors. As such, you can only complete an Accounting major with either:

• one specialisation and two elective units, OR
• six electives, OR
• a second major from the prescribed list below:
  • Audit Analytics
  • Business Law
  • Finance
  • Taxation

This major sits within the Bachelor of Commerce degree. To apply for this major, you will apply for the Bachelor of Commerce.

Please refer to the handbook for additional course overview information.

Why study

• Attend employer presentations. In the past, organisations have included Google, Coca-Cola Amatil, EY and the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants.
• You’ll have the opportunity to attend several CPA events, including professional connection mentoring days, employability boot camps and career information sessions.

The Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Western Australia has partnered with Curtin to offer internships to students who have completed 200 credits or more of their commerce degree. These internships will give you credit towards your degree, increase your industry experience and put you in direct contact with leading professionals.

Student profile

View our student profile table to get an indication of the likely peer cohort for new students at Curtin University. This table provides data on students that commenced undergraduate study and passed the census date in the most relevant recent intake period for which data are available. It includes those admitted through all offer rounds and international students studying in Australia.

Professional recognition

• This major is recognised by the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants.

It is accredited by:

• Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand
• Chartered Institute of Management Accountants
• CPA Australia
• Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales
• Institute of Public Accountants

Graduates may be eligible for admission to the ACCA Accelerate program, the CA program of the Chartered Accountants of Australia and New Zealand, and the CPA Program of CPA Australia.

Career information

Careers

• Accountant
• Auditor
• Business analyst
• Chief Financial Officer
• Company secretary
• Insolvency consultant
• Internal auditor
• Tax agent
• Treasurer

Industries

• Accounting
• Finance and investment
• Government
• Law
• Resources and renewables

What you'll learn

• identify, analyse and communicate relevant economic information from a variety of sources to inform business functions
• gain an understanding of globalisation and rapid evolution of business models and processes
• develop intercultural awareness and emotional intelligence to function effectively in the workplace of the future
• apply an ethical approach to business decision-making
• apply principles of accounting, economics, information communication and technology (ICT) systems, statistic, law and behavioural science as they relate to reporting business activity
• critically analyse issues surrounding the development of accounting ICT systems, incorporating state-of-the-art tools in databases and other technologies, to support collection, aggregation, and presentation of relevant information