Pamplin College of BusinessAccounting and Information Systems
Our Mission
The Department of Accounting and Information Systems in the Pamplin College of Business strives for excellence in fulfilling the three missions of a comprehensive land grant university by: The department seeks to fulfill this mission through programs which include:
The Department of Accounting and Information Systems prepares students to become professionals in their chosen area of accounting and information systems. Faculty members in the department have chosen to specialize in selected areas of accounting or information systems and they teach and conduct research in these areas. All faculty members at the professorial ranks have Ph.D.s in accounting or information systems appropriate to the courses they teach, and many have professional certification in their areas of specialization. This faculty is committed to the education of accounting and information systems professionals who will be active participants in this information age. The department's undergraduate program offers three options: Accounting (ACCT), Information Systems Audit (ISA), and Accounting Information Systems Development (AISD), the information systems option. These options are designed to allow students to specialize in their area of interest. Completion of the selected option prepares the student for entry level positions as professional accountants or information systems professionals who work in public accounting firms, professional service firms, industrial companies, governmental entitites, or to continue their education in graduate school. The job titles vary greatly and include auditor, information systems auditor, programmer analyst, management accountant, tax consultant, systems consultant, systems analyst, controller, and cost analyst. The demand for our graduates has been strong throughout the department's history, and that demand is continuing. Many graduates of our department desire to gain certification in their selected area of specialization. The Certified Public Accountant (CPA) is the best known of these certifications. Effective in 2006, students taking the CPA exam in Virginia will have to meet a 150-hour requirement in order to sit for the CPA exam. The requirements for other states vary; however, most now or soon will require students to meet the 150-hour educational requirement. Students should discuss with their advisor the several options Virginia Tech provides for meeting this requirement at both the undergraduate and graduate level. In addition to the CPA exam, graduates of our programs sit for the Certificate in Management Accounting (CMA) exam, the Certified Internal Auditor (CIA) exam, the Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA) exam, and others. Students planning to take one of these exams are advised to talk to their advisor during their junior year so that they may select the electives appropriate for the selected exam. The department encourages its students to gain "real world" experience prior to graduation through a summer internship or by participating in the Cooperative Education Program. More information about these programs is available either from the department's faculty or Career Services. The department also encourages interaction with accounting and information systems professionals by sponsoring three student organizations: Accounting Society; Information Systems Society (affiliated with the Association of Information Technology Professionals); and Beta Alpha Psi, the national honorary and professional fraternity dedicated to the advancement of the accounting profession. These organizations and other campus groups provide multiple opportunities for developing leadership skills. The department encourages students to gain a global perspective of business through modules on international issues in our courses and by our participation in the college's Global Business Concentration and study abroad programs. Our goal is to encourage our students to become well-rounded professionals who will become leaders in their chosen careers. Lastly, the department's over 6,000 alumni have generously contributed to a variety of scholarships for accounting and information systems majors. Each year the department awards over $100,000 in scholarships and awards to our students. Course RequirementsStudents graduating from the Department of Accounting and Information Systems must have a minimum quality credit average (GPA) of 2.00 in upper-division (3000 and 4000 level) accounting and information systems courses (the in-major GPA) as well as an overall GPA of 2.00 for all courses taken at Virginia Tech. During their sophomore year, students must select one of the three options in the department: the Accounting Option (ACCT), Information Systems Audit (ISA), and Accounting Information Systems Development (AISD). These options are more fully described below. Accounting Option (ACCT)The Accounting option provides basic education for careers in public accounting (CPA) firms as financial auditors or tax consultants, large and small corporations (controller's staff), governments (federal, state, and local) and their agencies, and nonprofit organizations. Graduates from this option are prepared to become CPAs, CMAs, and all of the other common professional accounting designations. Since requirements vary by state, you should check the requirements for your state to sit for the CPA Exam.
IS Audit Option (ISA)The IS Audit option is designed to prepare students for careers as information systems auditors and information systems professionals in the areas of enterprise risk assurance services, computer risk management services, and other systems assurance services. These positions are available in organizations from all sectors of business: industry, professional service firms, consulting firms, government, and nonprofit organizations. This track prepares graduates to sit for the CPA, CISA, or other professional designations. Students should check the requirements of your state to sit for the CPA Exam. The ACIS courses required in the IS Audit option are:
Note: the ACIS elective allows the student to select an additional accounting or information systems course to give greater focus to one area or the other. Also, CS 1054 Introduction to Programming in JAVA, is required and should be taken during the Sophomore year. Systems Development Option (AISD)This Information Systems option (AISD) is designed to prepare students for careers as systems analysts, programmer analyst, database administrators, systems developers, and other information systems professionals. These positions are available with organizations from all sectors of business: industry, professional service firms, consulting firms, government, and nonprofit organizations. This option does not prepare graduates to sit for the CPA, CMA, or other traditional accounting designations. The ACIS courses required in the Systems Development Option are:
Note: CS 1054 Introduction to Programming in JAVA is required and should be taken during the Sophomore year. Undergraduate Course Descriptions (ACIS)Courses (ACIS)1504: INTRODUCTION TO BUSINESS INFORMATION SYSTEMS An overview of business information systems. This survey course introduces computer hardware, software, procedures, systems, and human resources and explores their integration and application in business. Electronic spreadsheets, word processing, and the fundamentals of computer problem solving and programming with BASIC are discussed and applied. (3H,3C) 2004: SURVEY OF ACCOUNTING The fundamental concepts of financial and managerial accounting. Offered to students not enrolled in the College of Business. (3H,3C) 2115-2116: PRINCIPLES OF ACCOUNTING Comprehensive presentation of basic principles of financial and managerial accounting including origin, purpose, and effect with emphasis on application. Sophomore standing required. (3H,3C) 2504: PERSONAL COMPUTERS IN BUSINESS Focuses on the design and implementation of spreadsheet projects that support advanced decision-making and problem-solving techniques for professionals and individual business users. An introduction to programming logic is included to allow students to augment and automate spreadsheets. Students enrolling in this course are expected to be familiar with basic spreadsheet skills including spreadsheet navigation, managing multiple worksheets, formatting, formulas, and cell references. Pre: 1504. (3H,3C) 2954: BUSINESS STUDY ABROAD This course provides students with an international business experience. The course examines the accounting and information systems issues that impact the multinational business. It is only offered as part of a program outside of the United States. Students will learn from the structured educational experience developed by the faculty leader. Content will vary between semesters. Pre: Instructor's consent and the completion of 24 semester hours with a minimum GPA of 3.0 or departmental consent. Variable credit course. 3115-3116: INTERMEDIATE FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING In-depth analysis of basic concepts of external financial reporting. Includes transaction analysis and preparation of financial statements. Pre: 2115, 2504 for 3115; 3115 for 3116. (3H,3C) 3215-3216: COST ACCOUNTING Cover procedures and principles of cost accounting. 3215 places emphasis on accumulating and reporting cost accounting information for purposes of financial reporting. 3216 places emphasis on analyzing cost accounting information for purposes of managerial decision making. Pre: 2116, 2504 for 3215; 3215 for 3216. (3H,3C) 3504: ACCOUNTING SYSTEMS AND CONTROLS Examines system design concepts and methods including an understanding of basic control structures. Covers specific accounting cycles and computerized transaction processing systems. Analyzes controls for manual and computerized systems including database systems. Pre: 2504, 2116. (3H,3C) 3515-3516: INFORMATION SYSTEMS DEVELOPMENT Study of the strategies and techniques for dealing with the inherent complexity in the development of information systems. Includes coverage of business systems planning; fact-finding and requirements analysis techniques; information systems modeling; logical and physical design; input and output design; user interface design; software construction and testing; software configuration management; and software quality assurance. Upper division clearance required. Pre: 1504, CS 1054 for 3515; 3515 for 3516. (3H,3C) 3524: APPLICATIONS PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT Emphasis on structured methodology of program design, development, testing, implementation, and documentation of common business-oriented applications. Includes coverage of sequential, indexed sequential, and random access files, and processing techniques and development of programs and systems of programs for batch and interactive environments. Pre: CS 1054. (3H,3C) 3534: ACCOUNTING INFORMATION SYSTEMS DEVELOPMENT Development of menu-driven accounting application software using database software. Emphasis is placed on understanding and programming various accounting subsystems such as inventory and accounts receivable, as well as the interface of these subsystems with the general ledger process. Appropriate editing, validation, and security techniques are incorporated into the system design to ensure data integrity. Coverage is provided of various commercial software packages including general ledger. Pre: 2116, 2504, CS 1054. (3H,3C) 3544 (BIT 3544): MANAGEMENT OF INFORMATION SYSTEMS AND TECHNOLOGIES The course provides the necessary background to enable management information systems personnel to understand tradeoffs in information systems hardware, software, and architecture for effective use in the business environment. Topics covered include information technology planning and strategy, trends in computer hardware and systems software, telecommunications and network management, control and management of information resources, distributed and client-server technologies, and data representation and visualization. Partially duplicates CS 1104. Pre: 2504 or BIT 3444. (3H,3C) 3564: MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEMS An overview of management information systems. Topics include the organizational foundations of information systems; the technical foundations of information systems; the approaches to building information systems; and the management of contemporary information systems. Pre: 1504, 2115, 2116. (3H,3C) 3954: STUDY ABROAD Variable credit course. 4004: ACCOUNTING POLICY Cases involving financial, managerial and international aspects of accounting; audit and tax concepts; and accounting information systems. Pre: 4415, 4314. (3H,3C) 4024: INFORMATION SYSTEMS AUDIT AND CONTROL An introduction to the fundamentals of information systems auditing. Emphasis on information systems controls, types of information systems audits, and concepts and techniques used in information systems audits. Exposure to risk assessment and professional standards in the field of information systems auditing. Pre: 3504 or 3534. (3H,3C) 4114: ADVANCED FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING An analysis of business combinations, consolidated financial statements, translation and consolidation of foreign entities, partnership accounting, financially distressed entities and other current complex financial accounting topics. Pre: 3116. (3H,3C) 4124: GOVERNMENTAL AND NONPROFIT ACCOUNTING An analysis of the environment and characteristics of government and nonprofit organizations, and an in-depth study of basic concepts and standards of financial reporting for such entities. Pre: 3115. (3H,3C) 4194: ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL STATEMENTS Provide theoretical background and tools necessary to analyze financial statements from the perspective of making valuation and investment decisions. The focus of the course is on the use of accounting information in making these decisions. Co: 3116, FIN 4114. (3H,3C) 4314: INCOME TAX Survey of basic concepts of federal income taxation with emphasis on taxation of individuals and the impact of income taxes on corporations and partnerships. Pre: 2116. (3H,3C) 4324: ADVANCED INCOME TAX Federal and state income tax laws as applied to partnerships, corporations, estates trusts, and federal transfers taxes on wealth. Pre: 4314. (3H,3C) 4415-4416: AUDITING Study of external, governmental and internal auditing, professional ethics, other attestation standards and specific companies and industries. Includes financial, operational and compliance auditing and audit risk assessments and techniques. Pre: 3115, 3504 or 3515 for 4415; 4415 for 4416. (3H,3C) 4504: ACCOUNTING APPLICATION DEVELOPMENT Utilizes current software tools to design and develop segments of accounting systems using database management techniques. Provides an understanding of relational databases and query languages. Includes exposure to latest relevant technology and software. Provides hand-on use of commercial accounting software package. Pre: 3504, 3115, 3215. (3H,3C) 4515-4516: DATABASE MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS Introduction to database management systems and their use in business. Topics covered include data modeling, normalization, SQL, transaction management and concurrency control, security issues, physical data organization, query optimization, hierarchical queries, distributed database management systems, object-oriented databases, client/server databases, multi-dimensional databases, and database administration. Pre: 3515 for 4515; 4515 for 4516. (3H,3C) 4524: APPLIED SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT PROJECT Application of computer programming and system development concepts, principles, and practices to a comprehensive system development project. A team approach is used to analyze, design, and document realistic methods, project complexity. Use of project management methods, project scheduling and control techniques, formal presentations, walk throughs, and group dynamics in the solution of information systems problems. Pre: (3515, 3534) or (4564, 4515). (3H,3C) 4554 (BIT 4554): NETWORKS AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS IN BUSINESS This course provides an in-depth introduction to computer networks and data communications in business. Topics include mechanisms for reliable data transfer, local and wide area network topologies and technologies, and a comprehensive treatment of internetworking. The benefits, costs, and security issues related to using computer networks are discussed, along with network design issues, and methodologies for network applications. One semester of college-level programming experience required. Pre: 3515 or BIT 3444. (3H,3C) 4564 (BIT 4564): OBJECT-ORIENTED SYSTEMS DEVELOPMENT FOR BUSINESS The course first develops the foundations and principles of object-oriented programming, including encapsulation, inheritance, polymorphism, and abstraction. These concepts are acquired via comprehensive hands-on experience with a current OOP language (such as Java). The second portion of the course applies concepts learned to a business-oriented application, such as a web-based, e-commerce scenario. Pre: CS 1054, (ACIS 3515 or BIT 3444). (3H,3C) 4584 (BIT 4584): CLIENT/SERVER APPLICATIONS DEVELOPMENT FOR BUSINESS Study of software tools and techniques for designing and developing client/server applications for business. Topics include the architectures of contemporary client/server development tools, client/server development methodologies, and business applications using the client/server paradigm. Pre: 4554. (3H,3C) 4594 (BIT 4594): ELECTRONIC COMMERCE SYSTEMS Study of the design of implementation of computer systems on the Internet and world-wide-web used for electronic commerce. Emphasis of the course will be on understanding the numerous issues involved in using the Internet and web as tools for the production and distribution of goods and services. Topics will include basics of electronic commerce, security issues in financial and sensitive data transfer, unique aspects of business-oriented commerce such as supply-chain management in relation to consumer commerce, legal and international issues in electronic commerce, building and maintaining an electronic commerce website, and future trends in electronic commerce. Pre: BIT 3414. (3H,3C) I. 4684: INFORMATION SYSTEMS SECURITY AND ASSURANCE An examination of the concepts, technologies, and applications of security and assurance in information systems. Topics include the security threats against information systems; tools used by intruders; computing platforms and security; encryption; securing the transaction and the server; audit tools to detect intrusions; responses to attacks; legal, ethical and international issues; and the future of information systems security and assurance. Pre: 3504 or 3534, 4554. (3H,3C) 4974: INDEPENDENT STUDY Variable credit course. 4984: SPECIAL STUDY Variable credit course. 4994: UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH Variable credit course. Pamplin College of Business Programs of Study Accounting and Information Systems | Business Information Technology | Hospitality and Tourism Management Finance, Insurance, Business Law | Management | Marketing |
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