Diploma in Professional Studies in Accounting (ACCA)

How this course is delivered

COVID-19 has changed everything. We’ve made some changes to the way our courses are taught to keep everyone safe and that will help you stay connected and involved in university life.

From the start of term in September, you’ll learn through a blend of on-campus and digitally enabled remote learning that will provide lots of opportunities to interact and engage. Together with carefully managed access to libraries, labs, workshops and studios this means your studies are as collaborative, practical and flexible as possible.

Course structure

You will be allocated a subject-specialist supervisor who will be available to support you, advise you and discuss your personal research needs during the year for your research project or dissertation.

In addition, students have the opportunity to attend workshops covering research methods and ethical issues and to share ideas and strategies.

ACCA syllabus mapping

We have designed the university awards to run alongside the ACCA qualifications. The Diploma in Professional Studies in Accounting follows the ACCA’s Applied Skills stage papers. Upon completion of this you will gain a diploma and become part-qualified. 

You can then progress onto the masters and the ACCA Strategic Professional stage syllabus. 

To become ACCA qualified you will also need to complete two papers a further ACCA paper Advanced Performance Management, Advanced Taxation or Advanced Audit and Assurance, this can be done alongside the MSc Accounting.

You will follow the ACCA’s Applied Skills syllabus for the Diploma in Professional Studies in Accounting qualification and, on completion of the course, will be able to apply to ACCA for exemptions from Applied Skills papers (formerly papers F4 to F9) inclusive).

Assessment involves both coursework and exams. We offer a high level of student support from a small and committed course team, and aim to keep class sizes below 30 students.

If you would like to just receive tuition from the university for any of the ACCA Fundamental Skills or Professional papers and sit exams directly with the ACCA, please email business@brighton.ac.uk for more information. More details about individual papers are available from www.accaglobal.com.

Modules

• Corporate and Business Law 
• Performance Management 
• Taxation 
• Financial Reporting 
• Audit and Assurance 
• Financial Management

Flexible study 

Our programme has multiple entry and exit points depending on how many ACCA papers you have passed, or hold exemptions from. 

You can choose to take this course either full-time (two days per week over one year) or part-time (one day per week over two years). If you are looking for a more flexible approach, contact the business school to discuss options.

Students who take the full masters also have the option to exit the course early, graduating after one year with a Diploma in Professional Studies in Accounting or with a Postgraduate Diploma in Accounting by completing a shorter professional project in place of a dissertation.

If you want a more flexible approach, you can also sign up for one paper at a time and build your qualification as you go. 

If you would like to just receive tuition from the university for any of the professional papers (core and option) and sit exams directly with the ACCA, please email business@brighton.ac.uk for further information. More details about individual papers are available from the ACCA website.

Learning support

Our supportive learning environment includes an induction programme and specialist diagnostic tools to assess your learning strengths and needs. You will also be assigned an academic supervisor to support you in your masters project work.

Staff profile

Dr Ali Elharidy, Course Leader

Dr Ali Elharidy is the course leader for the ACCA MSc and PG Diploma. He has been a Senior Lecturer at the University of Brighton since 2019. He teaches financial reporting, research methods, management accounting and advanced performance management.

Ali has a PhD in Accounting and Finance from the University of Manchester, an MSc in Accounting and Finance from the University of Birmingham and BSc(Hons) from Alexandria University, Egypt. Ali’s research interests include financial and risk disclosures, earnings management, financial distress and corporate governance. He served as a course leader at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels and has taught in the UK, New Zealand, Egypt and Lebanon.

International requirements and visas

We can help you meet our English language or academic entry requirements.

Visas and immigration advice

Course fees

Registration to the ACCA is not included in the university tuition fees.

ACCA exam or exemption fees are applicable and will need to be paid directly to the ACCA. Contact them for further details, on 0141 5822000.

If you wish to receive just tuition for these papers with the aim of sitting your exams direct with the ACCA, contact us for fees.

What's included

You may have to pay additional costs during your studies. The cost of optional activities is not included in your tuition fee and you will need to meet this cost in addition to your fees. A summary of the costs that you may be expected to pay, and what is included, while studying a course in Brighton Business School are listed here.

• Students who choose to take an optional placement will have travel and living expenses. The cost of this depends on where and how long your placement is.
• Some courses include optional field trips for which the school pays – you may incur minimal costs such as for food and drink and should budget up to £15.
• You will be required to buy textbooks and should budget up to £150.

You can chat with our enquiries team through the Stay in touch panel at the end of this page if you require further information. Or check our finance pages for advice about funding and scholarships, as well as more information about fees and advice on international and island fee-paying status.

Info

The fees listed here are for full-time courses beginning in the academic year 2020–21.

Further tuition fees are payable for each subsequent year of study and are subject to an annual increase of no more than 5% or RPI (whichever is the greater). The annual increase for UK/EU students, who are subject to regulated fees, will increase no more than the statutory maximum fee.

You can find out more about our fees in the university's student contract and tuition fee policy (pdf).

The tuition fee you have to pay depends on a number of factors including the kind of course you take, and whether you study full-time or part-time. If you are studying part-time you will normally be charged on a pro rata basis depending on the number of modules you take.

Local area

Campus where this course is taught

Accommodation

Maps