Durham University
Programme and Module Handbook
This is an archived handbook for a previous year. The current undergraduate and postgraduate handbooks can be viewed using the links above.

Postgraduate Handbook 2012-2013 (archived)

Module BUSI45Q15: MANAGING FINANCE (Block Taught)

Department: Business School (Business)

BUSI45Q15: MANAGING FINANCE (Block Taught)

TypeLevelCreditsAvailabilityModule CapLocation
Tied 4 15 Available in 2012/2013 None. Durham

Tied To

Pre-requisites

  • None.

Corequisites

  • None.

Excluded Combinations

  • None.

Aims

  • To provide students with a critical appreciation of the financial tools of business management, in particular, the techniques of financial statement analysis and investment appraisal.
  • To provide a critical evaluation of the factors affecting the financing mix of a firm and of the financial markets in which firms operate.
  • To give insight into topical issues in the area.

Content

  • Fundamental Concepts of Accounting.
  • Evaluating Financial Performance.
  • Working Capital Evaluation.
  • Management Control Systems.
  • Long Term Investment Decisions.
  • Financial Markets and Financial Decisions.

Learning Outcomes

Subject-specific Knowledge
  • Upon successful completion of the module, students will have an advanced knowledge and critical appreciation of:
  • the key financial statements;
  • issues relating to working capital management;
  • the concepts of budgeting and short term decision analysis;
  • the factors affecting the financing mix of a firm;
  • the fundamentals of financial markets in which firms operate.
Subject-specific Skills
  • Upon successful completion of the module, students will:
  • Be able to use key techniques of investment appraisal and have a critical appreciation of those techniques;
  • Be able to use key techniques for interpreting financial statements.
Key Skills
  • Written communication; planning, organising and time management; problem solving and analysis; using initiative; computer literacy.

Modes of Teaching, Learning and Assessment and how these contribute to the learning outcomes of the module

  • Learning outcomes will be met through a combination of lectures, groupwork, case studies and discussion, supported by guided reading.
  • The written examination will test students’ acquisition and articulation of knowledge. The written assignment will test students’ understanding of relevant concepts and their ability to apply and interpret what they have learned to the analysis of a particular issue in depth.

Teaching Methods and Learning Hours

ActivityNumberFrequencyDurationTotal HoursAttendance Monitored
Workshops (a combination of lectures, groupwork, case studies and discussion) 35 hours in total Yes
Preparation and reading 115
Total 150

Summative Assessment

ComponentComponent WeightingElementLength/DurationElement WeightingResit Opportunity
Written assignment based on financial analysis 50% Written assignment based on financial analysis 2,500 words maximum 100%
Written Examination 50% Written Examination 2 hours 100%

Formative Assessment

Classroom-based exercises involving individual and group analyses and presentations on specific business situations/problems relevant to the learning outcomes of the module. Oral and written feedback will be given on a group and individual basis as appropriate.


Students who do not attend monitored activities shown under Teaching Methods and Learning Hours, or who fail to complete the summative or formative assessment(s) specified above, may be subject to the Academic Progress procedures defined in the University's General Regulation V, and may be required to leave the University.