Accounting
The art and science of creating business insights.
What is accounting?
Accounting is more than just numbers, bookkeeping and budgeting. It uniquely blends numbers, visuals, and narratives to inform, shape, communicate and assure sustainable value for organisations’ and businesses future, and the betterment of society.
Why study accounting at UNSW Business School?
Studying accounting, you’ll become a business insights expert. Your skills, experience and expertise will be highly transferrable, setting you up for versatile and successful careers, now and into the future. You’ll be prepared to work in diverse organisations, in multidisciplinary teams, using your unique mix of technical, analytical, advisory, and leadership skills to enable sustainable value creation.
When you study accounting or choose an accounting major at UNSW Business School, you’ll learn to:
- measure, estimate, and report business value;
- tell stories by interpreting and communicating business outcomes, prospects, and challenges;
- advise on complex business, taxation, and regulatory matters;
- co-create strategies for future success;
- enhance the reliability of business information;
- leverage financial and analytical technology to improve business insights;
- work with a professional conscience and integrity.
UNSW’s accounting study options are career-focused, with the opportunity to gain work experience and establish industry networks throughout your studies. You’ll also have access to Career Accelerator - a program exclusive to UNSW Business School, offering internships and professional development opportunities unique to your career goals.
Gain professional recognition
We’re recognised as an approved tertiary institution for the purpose of membership qualifications with the following professional organisations:
- CPA Australia
- Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand (CAANZ)
- Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA)
- Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA)
- Institute of Public Accountants (IPA)
Read our helpful explainer on what a CPA is here.
Your career opportunities
There's an abundance of careers in accounting graduates can pursue. Studying accounting will open a world of opportunities in roles such as:
- Accountant
- Auditor
- Business analyst
- Corporate recovery specialist/financial analyst
- Financial controller
- Forensic accountant
- Management accountant
- Management consultant
- Tax specialist
- Tax accountant
Study with us
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You can study accounting in the following undergraduate degrees:
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Gain research experience and enhance your career prospects with an honours degree. These programs are designed to connect your undergraduate study with supervised independent research. An honours degree also provides a pathway into further study, such as a Masters by Research or PhD. You can take honours as a stand-alone degree or as part of an embedded honours program.
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You can study accounting in the following postgraduate coursework programs:
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You can study accounting in the following postgraduate research degrees:
What our graduates say
"Since teaching staff were passionate about the topics they were teaching, they encouraged us to stretch our perspectives and challenge our thoughts".
- Edwin Ho, Director, Audit