Our subjectsAccounting & finance degrees

What is accounting and finance?

The purpose of accounting is to accumulate and report on financial information about the performance, financial position and cash flows of a business. Information that accountants provide is used to reach decisions about how to manage the business, invest or lend money.

Why study accounting and finance?

Accountants are vital to the running of all businesses. They analyse and provide trustworthy information about financial records. People who study accountancy have excellent graduate prospects and can go on to work in many areas and industries, including:

  • auditing
  • business recovery & insolvency
  • corporate finance
  • financial reporting
  • forensic accounting
  • taxation

View our accounting & finance courses

Why study accounting and finance at Strathclyde?

Studying accounting and finance at Strathclyde Business School, you'll be learning at a pioneering internationally-renowned academic organisation that shapes and develops the business minds of tomorrow. We're the only university to have won Times Higher Education University of the Year twice!

As part of Strathclyde’s triple-accredited Business School, the Department of Accounting & Finance is one of the UK’s major centres of research in accounting and finance. Current staff and students come from countries as far afield as Australia, Tanzania, India and Bolivia. Our seminar and academic visitors’ programmes attract guest academics from universities all over the world.

Accreditation

In the majority of course combinations, our undergraduate accounting degrees are fully accredited for entry to the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland. You may be offered possible exemptions to other professional bodies, for example, the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants and the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants.

Salaries

According to Prospects*:

  • starting salaries for accountants vary depending on the location, sector, size and type of firm. Graduates can expect to earn salaries of up to £40,000
  • during training, the average earning potential can be up to £65,000
  • the average annual salary for a chartered accountant in business is £134,000, with an average yearly bonus of over £17,000

*Information intended as a guide. Last accessed November 2023.