2011-2012 CATALOG

This is an archived copy of the 2011-2012 catalog. To access the most recent version of the catalog, please visit http://catalog.miracosta.edu

Accounting

Accounting offers theoretical and practical courses for students planning to transfer as accounting majors, career and technical courses that lead to certificates of proficiency and achievement, and professional development courses designed to improve workplace skills. Career options in accounting include positions in the private and public sectors, tax preparation, finance and banking, business ownership, and management.

Contact Information

Department Chair: Tom Severance

Dean: Al Taccone

www.miracosta.edu/ACCT

Department: Business

Office: Building 4800, 760.795.6841

Full-Time Faculty

Eric Carstensen
Michael Deschamps

Associate Degrees

Associate in Arts Degrees

Accounting; Bookkeeping

Students may earn one of the above-named associate degrees by completing a certificate of achievement and the general education courses required for MiraCosta College's Associate in Arts degree (see Associate Degrees). Students should meet with a MiraCosta counselor to identify required courses and to develop a written educational plan for the specific degree or certificate they wish to earn.

Certificates

Certificate of Achievement

Accounting

Students interested in accounting-related careers may choose the Accounting or Bookkeeping Certificate Program.

An accountant generally works without continuous supervision. He/she has full responsibility for entries to general journals, posting to general ledgers, year-end adjustments, and financial statements. An accountant often supervises one or more bookkeepers and is the primary accounting specialist in a small business. In addition to the training needed by a bookkeeper, an accountant needs extra accounting, business communication, law, income tax, and management training.

A strong demand by the community for accounting specialists provides opportunities within this field. The following courses may be taken in any sequence as long as all prerequisites are met.

Required courses:
ACCT 101	Practical Accounting	4
ACCT 145	Individual Income Tax	3-4
or ACCT 146	Taxation of Corporations, Partnerships, Estates, and Trusts
ACCT 148	Computer Accounting	3
ACCT 158	Business Mathematics	3
ACCT 201	Financial Accounting	4
ACCT 202	Managerial Accounting	4
BUS 120	Introduction to Business	3
or BUS 130	Small Business Management
BUS 136	Human Relations in Business	3
or BUS 140	Legal Environment of Business
BUS 290	Business Communication	3
CSIT 110	Computer Applications	3
CSIT 128	Microsoft Excel for Business	3
Total Units		36-37

Certificate of Achievement

Bookkeeping

A bookkeeper generally works under supervision. He/she makes entries in special journals, posts to subsidiary ledgers, and verifies and files source documents. Appropriate training includes accounting, business mathematics, and computer office skills.

A strong demand by the community for bookkeepers assures opportunities within this field. The following courses may be taken in any sequence as long as all prerequisites are met.

Required courses:
ACCT 101	Practical Accounting	4
ACCT 148	Computer Accounting	3
ACCT 158	Business Mathematics	3
ACCT 201	Financial Accounting	4
CSIT 110	Computer Applications	3
CSIT 128	Microsoft Excel for Business	3
Total Units		20

Certificate of Proficiency

Billing, Cost, and Accounting Assistant

This certificate introduces students to the basic components of billing, cost, and accounting functions. Most of the courses in this certificate can be applied to the Accounting and Bookkeeping Certificates of Achievement.

Required courses:
ACCT 101	Practical Accounting	4
ACCT 158	Business Mathematics	3
One of the following:		3
CSIT 110	Computer Applications
CSIT 128	Microsoft Excel for Business
CSIT 100 & CSIT 105	Computer Basics I and Computer Basics II
Total Units		10

Certificate of Proficiency

Income Tax Preparer

The Income Tax Preparer Certificate trains students to work in an entry-level assistant position with an experienced tax preparer or a commercial tax preparation service.

Required courses:
ACCT 101	Practical Accounting	4
or ACCT 201	Financial Accounting
ACCT 145	Individual Income Tax	4
ACCT 146	Taxation of Corporations, Partnerships, Estates, and Trusts	3
ACCT 148	Computer Accounting	3
or CSIT 110	Computer Applications
Total Units		14

How to Read Course Descriptions

Courses listed in this catalog apply to the fall 2011, spring 2012, and summer 2012 terms. Courses are numbered numerically within alphabetically arranged subject areas.

The bolded first line begins with a capitalized abbreviation that designates the subject area. This subject-area designator is followed by the official course number and a descriptive title. The next lines indicate the course's unit value, prerequisites, corequisites, advisories, repeatability rules, enrollment limitations, UC/CSU credit acceptance, and lecture and lab hours followed by a Taxonomy of Program number in parentheses.

Prerequisites: This is a requirement that must be met before a student can enroll in the course.
Corequisites: This is a course the student must take in the same semester.
Advisories: This is recommended preparation the student is advised but not required to have before or in conjunction with the course.
Repeatability Rules: When a course belongs to a group of related courses, students can complete one course or a combination of courses within the group for a maximum of four completions.
Enrollment Limitations: Some courses place limitations on enrollment. These limitations prevent students from duplicating course work or from enrolling in two sections of the same course in any given semester.
Acceptable for Credit: CSU means the course is accepted for transfer at any California State University (CSU) campus; UC means it is accepted for transfer at any University of California (UC) campus. Some courses can be used to satisfy general education or major requirements while others transfer as elective credit. UC Credit Limitation means credit for the course may have UC transfer restrictions; these restrictions are identified at the end of the course description.
Lecture and Lab Hours: These are the number of hours the course meets for lecture and/or lab per week.
Taxonomy of Program (TOP) Number: The TOP number is identified in parentheses after the lecture and lab hours. This number serves an administrative purpose and is not intended for student use.

The course description summarizes the purpose and key topical areas of the course, and it includes special requirements if any exist. Some course descriptions end with information about whether the course was "formerly" another course, how many times the course may be repeated, if the course is offered pass/no pass, or what the UC credit limitation is.

How to Read Course Descriptions

Courses

ACCT 101: Practical Accounting

Units: 4
Prerequisites: None
Acceptable for Credit: CSU
Lecture 4 hours. (0502.00)

This course introduces students to the field of accounting. Topics include recordkeeping for sole proprietorships in service and merchandising businesses, end-of-period adjustments and the worksheet, preparation of financial statements, and the closing process. The course also covers cash receipts, disbursements and control, and payroll while emphasizing practical problems. Students are required to complete a comprehensive manual accounting simulation.

ACCT 145: Individual Income Tax

Units: 4
Prerequisites: None
Acceptable for Credit: CSU
Lecture 4 hours. (0502.10)

This course covers federal and California individual income tax preparation and planning. Topics include filing status, exemptions, income and exclusions, business expenses, itemized deductions, credits, capital gains, depreciation, tax payments, California tax, IRS and FTB, and audits. This California Tax Education Council (CTEC) approved course fulfills the 60-hour qualifying education requirement for California tax preparers and prepares students to meet the federal guidelines for paid tax preparers.

ACCT 146: Taxation of Corporations, Partnerships, Estates, and Trusts

Units: 3
Prerequisites: None
Acceptable for Credit: CSU
Lecture 3 hours. (0502.10)

This course introduces the tax issues facing corporations, partnerships, estates, and trusts. It emphasizes the U.S. tax code and regulations that relate to these entities, and it examines the transactions that most commonly affect them. This course assists students in preparing to sit for the IRS Enrolled Agent exam.

ACCT 148: Computer Accounting

Units: 3
Prerequisites: None
Advisory: ACCT 101.
Acceptable for Credit: CSU
Lecture 3 hours. (0502.00)

This course teaches students how to apply fundamental accounting concepts and principles and analyze business events using commercial business accounting software. Students enter accounting transactions, make adjustments and corrections, create and analyze financial reports, produce and compare financial statements, create a company file, calculate payroll, use advanced software features for loan and asset tracking, and make end-of-year adjustments.

ACCT 158: Business Mathematics

Units: 3
Prerequisites: None
Lecture 3 hours. (0502.00)

This course meets the needs of business students who wish to gain proficiency in mathematical applications used in the business world. It prepares students for the study of accounting as well as for pre-employment mathematics tests common to office employment. Applications include trade and cash discounts, markups, depreciation, interest, and trend analysis.

ACCT 201: Financial Accounting

Units: 4
Prerequisites: None
Advisory: ACCT 101.
Acceptable for Credit: CSU, UC
Lecture 4 hours. (0502.00)

This course explores what financial accounting is, why it is important, and how it is used by investors and creditors to make decisions. It covers the accounting information system and the recording and reporting of business transactions with a focus on the accounting cycle, the application of generally accepted accounting principles, the classified financial statements, and statement analysis. Topics include issues relating to asset, liability, and equity valuation, revenue and expense recognition, cash flow, internal controls, and ethics.

ACCT 202: Managerial Accounting

Units: 4
Prerequisites: ACCT 201.
Acceptable for Credit: CSU, UC
Lecture 4 hours. (0502.00)

This course examines how managers use accounting information in decision-making, planning, directing operations, and controlling. It focuses on cost terms and concepts, cost behavior, cost structure, and cost-volume-profit analysis. Topics include profit planning, standard costs, operations and capital budgeting, cost control, and accounting for costs in manufacturing organizations.

ACCT 292: Internship Studies

Units: 0.5-3
Prerequisites: None
Corequisite: Complete 60 non-paid or 75 paid hours of work per unit.
Acceptable for Credit: CSU
(0502.00)

This course provides students the opportunity to apply the theories and techniques of their discipline in an internship position in a professional setting under the instruction of a faculty-mentor and site supervisor. It introduces students to aspects of the roles and responsibilities of professionals employed in the field of study. Topics include goal-setting, employability skills development, and examination of the world of work as it relates to the student's career plans. Students must develop new learning objectives and/or intern at a new site upon each repetition. Students may not earn more than 16 units in any combination of cooperative work experience (general or occupational) and/or internship studies during community college attendance.

ACCT 299: Occupational Cooperative Work Experience

Units: 1-4
Prerequisites: None
Corequisite: Employed in a position related to major; complete 60 non-paid or 75 paid hours of work per unit.
Acceptable for Credit: CSU
(0502.00)

Cooperative Work Experience is intended for students who are employed in a job directly related to their major. It allows such students the opportunity to apply the theories and skills of their discipline to their position and to undertake new responsibilities and learn new skills at work. Topics include goal-setting, employability skills development, and examination of the world of work as it relates to the student's career plans. Students may not earn more than 16 units in any combination of cooperative work experience (general or occupational) and/or internship studies during community college attendance.