Course Overview
The Undergraduate Certificate in Accounting offers you the opportunity to experience University-level studies in fields such as accounting, financial services, and business management. You will learn key accounting and financial services approaches and develop foundational skills that prepare you to become valued accounting professionals. Undergraduate Certificate in Accounting allows you to learn how to build foundation accounting and business management skills and prepares you for the future world of work. The undergraduate certificate also offers an opportunity to acquire new skills or add to existing qualifications. An Undergraduate Certificate in Accounting is a pathway to further study of higher awards, such as a Diploma or Bachelor degree in Accounting.
Career Information
The Undergraduate Certificate in Accounting offers students the opportunity to experience University-level studies in fields such as accounting, financial services, and business management. Students learn key accounting and financial services approaches and develop foundational skills that prepare them to become valued accounting professionals.Graduates will have the skills and knowledge to choose from a broad spectrum of occupations including administration officer/manager, economics advisor, or consultant. You will have diverse employment opportunities and the ability to advance from an entry-level position involving business analysis and decision-making in business, government or non-profit organisations.
| Duration | 0.5 years full-time or 1 years part-time |
|---|---|
| Credit Points that Must be Earned | 24 |
| Number of Units Required | CQUniversity uses the concept of credits to express the amount of study required for a particular course and individual units. The number of units varies between courses. Units in undergraduate courses normally consist of 6 points of credit or multiples thereof (e.g. 12, 18, 24). |
| Expected Hours of Study | One point of credit is equivalent to an expectation of approximately two hours of student work per week in a term. |
| Course Type | Undergraduate Award |
| Qualification (post nominal) | UGCertAcct |
| AQF Level | Level 5: Diploma |
| Course Fees |
Indicative Year - 2026
Indicative Year - 2025
Indicative Year - 2024
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Admission Codes
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Domestic Students Tertiary Admission Centre Codes (TAC) Codes |
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International Students CRICOS Codes |
Not Applicable |
Units offered via MIX mode are delivered online and require compulsory attendance of site-specific learning activities such as on-campus residential schools, placements and/or work integrated learning. See Course Features tab for further information. Online units are delivered using online resources only.
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Domestic Availability
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Term 3 - 2027
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Term 2 - 2027
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Term 1 - 2027
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Term 3 - 2026
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Term 2 - 2026
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Term 1 - 2026
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Term 3 - 2025
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Term 2 - 2025
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Term 1 - 2025
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Term 3 - 2024
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Term 2 - 2024
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Term 1 - 2024
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Term 3 - 2023
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Term 2 - 2023Students must successfully complete the course by the end of Term 1 2025.
International Availability
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Term 3 - 2027
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Term 2 - 2027
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Term 1 - 2027
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Term 3 - 2026
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Term 2 - 2026
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Term 1 - 2026
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Term 3 - 2025
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Term 2 - 2025
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Term 1 - 2025
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Term 3 - 2024
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Term 2 - 2024
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Term 1 - 2024
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Term 3 - 2023
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Term 2 - 2023Students must successfully complete the course by the end of Term 1 2025.
| Rank Threshold | SR 50 | ATAR 50 |
English Language Proficiency Requirements
If you were not born in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, United Kingdom, Ireland, South Africa or United States of America, you are required to meet the English Language Proficiency requirements set by the University. Applicants are required to provide evidence of completion of:
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A secondary qualification (Year 11 and 12, or equivalent), or
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An Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF) diploma level qualification, or
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Bachelor level qualification study for a period of at least 2 years fulltime with a minimum overall GPA 4.0
Completed within Australia, Canada, New Zealand, United Kingdom, South Africa, Ireland, or United States of America, which will meet the English proficiency.
If you do not satisfy any of the above, you will need to undertake an English language proficiency test and achieve the following scores:
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An International English Language Testing System (IELTS Academic) overall band score of at least 6.0 with a minimum 5.5 in each subset; or
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Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) - Requires 550 or better overall and minimum TWE score of 4.5 (Paper Based Test), or 75 or better overall and no score less than 17 (Internet Based Test); or
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Pearson Test of English Academic (PTE Academic) - Requires an overall score of 54 with no sub-score less than 46; or
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An Occupational English Test with Grades A or B only in each of the four components.
English test results remain valid for no more than two years between final examination date and the date of commencement of study, and must appear on a single result certificate.
If you are an International student please visit International students English requirements for further information.
Each student will be assessed individually.
Recommended study - English (4, SA), Mathematical Methods
Awards and Accreditation
| Interim Awards | Not applicable |
|---|---|
| Exit Awards | Not applicable |
| Accreditation |
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Residential School Requirements
No Residential School for this course.
Practicum/Work Placement
| Not applicable |
Previous and Current Enrolments
| Year | Number of Students |
|---|---|
| 2024 | 1 |
Please note that in some instances there may be similarities between course, entry and inherent requirements.
If you experience difficulties meeting these requirements, reasonable adjustments may be made upon contacting accessibility@cqu.edu.au. Adjustment must not compromise the academic integrity of the degree or course chosen at CQUniversity or the legal requirements of field education.
Examples are:
- Complying with academic and non-academic misconduct policies and procedures such as CQUniversity’s Student Charter, Student Misconduct Policy and Student Behavioural Misconduct Procedures, and Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).
- Demonstrating honesty and integrity in academic and accounting practice.
- Critically reflecting on ethical dilemmas and issues and take responsibility for ethically correct decisions and/or ensuring awareness of applicable ethical thinking and behaviour.
Examples are:
- Being reflective with personal behaviours appropriate for professional performance and being positive and receptive to processing constructive supervisor/lecturer feedback or criticism.
- Successfully processing and coping with your own emotions and behaviour when dealing with individuals or peers in the professional environment.
Examples are:
- Functioning with an awareness and understanding that Accounting practice is mandated by specific legal and regulatory requirements and standards to enable the professional delivery of practice.
- Having knowledge of and compliance with Australian Law and professional regulatory requirements and standards, which informs and determines accounting practices.
- Applying appropriate legal principles and disclosure requirements in preparing financial reports.
- Complying with the policies and practices of organisations in which you may be placed for find employment.
- Complying with the requirements for registration with the Accounting Professional & Ethical Standards Board (APESB).
Examples are:
- Understanding and responding to verbal and communication accurately, appropriately and in a timely manner.
- Providing clear instructions in the context of the situation.
- Providing accurate, timely, clear feedback and reporting in the delivery of accounting practice.
- Delivering interactivity with your communication (timeliness, accuracy and effectiveness) to resolve complex problems and maintain trusting and effective relationships.
- Verbally communicating in the English language with accuracy, appropriateness and effectiveness.
- Actively participating in discussion activities related to the course.
- Using language that is appropriate to the context of the individual or group.
- Establishing rapport with clients in the delivery of accounting practice and respond appropriately to clients, supervisors and other professionals.
- Recognising, interpreting and responding appropriately to behavioural cues.
- Being self-aware of your own use of non-verbal cues during interactions.
- Having sensitivity and empathy to cultural, religious and individual differences.
- Being able to consistently display appropriate facial expressions, eye contact, body movements and gestures while being mindful of personal space and boundaries.
- Being able to demonstrate effective non-verbal communication that is respectful, clear, empathetic, honest and non-judgemental when communicating with students, families and professional colleagues.
- Effectively and appropriately communicating, in written English, in a wide variety of contexts to engage in activities related to the course and in professional settings.
- Acquiring, understanding, applying and conveying information in a written format.
- Competently and appropriately producing written assessment work in a logical, coherent manner, and with correct grammar and punctuation to the required academic standards.
- Expressing complex and detailed information and knowledge into a logical and legible report, in a timely manner that meets professional standards and clearly communicates the intended message.
- Accurately conveying and documenting information in a written form that meets legal and accounting practice requirements.
Examples are:
- Demonstrating the mental functioning and thinking capacities to deliver competent accounting practice.
- Having the cognitive capacity to acquire theoretical knowledge as well as develop the cognitive processing skills to successfully undertake the course, its learning activities and assessments.
- Having the capacity to acquire, process, integrate and implement a comprehensive body of knowledge and skills in both academic and professional practice settings.
- Competently and consistently demonstrating the ability to read, decode, interpret and comprehend multiple sources of information in accounting practice.
- Acquiring and interpreting evidence and accurately conveying appropriate information both in data and numerical formats.
- Having the ability to reason with numbers and other mathematical concepts, principles and operations and competently communicate and demonstrate these in a range of contexts to solve a variety of mathematical problems associated with accounting practice.
- Demonstrating the capacity to undertake complex financial analysis of accounting reports, including the use of Excel spreadsheet software.
Examples are:
- Communicate effectively with a variety of clients, using a range of communication skills and tools.
- Work effectively with your fellow students.
- Development of active listening skills to facilitate effective communication, avoid miscommunication and arrive at accurate conclusions.
- Patience and avoiding or diffusing interpersonal conflict.
- Trustworthiness and confidentiality.
- Approachability and warmth to facilitate communication and encourage innovation and mutual cooperation.
Examples include:
- Demonstrating an understanding of how theory as well as personal, social and cultural experiences relate to practice or personal or professional knowledge.
- Discovering and challenging own underlying assumptions.
- Making connections between personal and work experiences and what is being learnt.
Examples are:
- Managing lengthy complex meetings.
- Planning time and workload effectively including the ability to self-manage competing commitments and take responsibility for own wellbeing.
- Responding to assessment tasks under time pressure and/or invigilated or exam conditions as required by the accrediting authorities.
Examples include:
- Being able to work effectively and respectfully in a team situation.
- Being able to communicate effectively with your peers, using a variety of media, such as oral and written communications.
- Having emotional intelligence to understand the needs and feelings of others.
- Having the ability to work in a team.
Examples are:
- Competently and ethically using prescribed Artificial Intelligence systems.
- Having the ability to use ICT appropriately and effectively in a wide range of accounting contexts.
- Demonstrating sufficient computer knowledge and skills to engage in the on-line learning environment that may include completing relevant on-line assessments, participating in various on-line forums, responding to emails and using spreadsheet software such as Excel.
- Preparing accounting entries and/or reports using accounting specific ICT.
- Processing and presenting information relevant to accounting by using specific software programs and Excel spreadsheet software.
- 1. Identify and act on possible solutions to routine accounting and management problems in straightforward contexts using where appropriate social, ethical, economic, regulatory, sustainability, governance and/or global perspectives
- 2. Demonstrate the application of theoretical and technical accounting knowledge in a business context
- 3. Use initiative and judgment in a diverse team to collaboratively provide possible solutions to routine accounting problems in a straightforward context.
| Course Learning Outcomes | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Qualifications Framework Descriptors | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| 1. KNOWLEDGE Have technical and theoretical knowledge and concepts, with depth in some areas within a field of work and learning | |||
| 2. SKILLS Have cognitive and communication skills to identify, analyse, synthesise and act on information from a range of sources | |||
| 3. SKILLS Have cognitive, technical and communication skills to analyse, plan, design and evaluate approaches to unpredictable problems and/or management requirements | |||
| 4. SKILLS Have specialist technical and creative skills to express ideas and perspectives | |||
| 5. SKILLS Have communication skills to transfer knowledge and specialised skills to others and demonstrate understanding of knowledge | |||
| 6. APPLICATION OF KNOWLEDGE & SKILLS Demonstrate application with depth in some areas of specialisation, in known or changing contexts | |||
| 7. APPLICATION OF KNOWLEDGE & SKILLS Be able to transfer and apply theoretical concepts and/or technical and/or creative skills in a range of situations | |||
| 8. APPLICATION OF KNOWLEDGE & SKILLS Demonstrate personal responsibility and autonomy in performing complex technical operations with responsibility for own outputs in relation to broad parameters for quantity and quality | |||
| 9. APPLICATION OF KNOWLEDGE & SKILLS Demonstrate initiative and judgement to organise the work of self and others and plan, coordinate and evaluate the work of teams within broad but generally well- defined parameters | |||
| 10. FOUNDATIONAL KNOWLEDGE sufficient to undertake qualifications | |||
| 11. ACQUISITION AND APPLICATION of knowledge in new or existing disciplines or professional areas drawn from higher education units | |||
| 12. FOUNDATIONAL SKILLS sufficient to undertake qualifications | |||
| 13. ACQUISITION AND APPLICATION of skills in new or existing disciplines or professional areas drawn from higher education units | |||
| 14. Course content drawn from higher education units | |||
| KNOWLEDGE Develop an understanding and appreciation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and culture in contemporary and historical context using the respectful and appropriate protocols and terminology | |||
- Complete the core structure
| Number of units: 4 | Total credit points: 24 |
|---|
Not applicable
The core Undergraduate Certificate in Accounting units consists of four core units in the Bachelor of Accounting.
| Year 1 - Term 1 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Students must complete the following compulsory units: | ||
| ACCT11059 | Accounting, Learning and Online Communication | |
| ACCT11081 | Introductory Financial Accounting | |
| ECON11026 | Principles of Economics | |
| LAWS11030 | Foundations of Business Law | |
As outlined in the Australian Qualifications Framework, The Undergraduate Certificate is a higher education qualification, formally recognised under the Australian Qualifications Framework. Undergraduate certificates are accredited by the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA).
Students have until 30 June 2025 to successfully complete their Undergraduate Certificate in Business Studies/Undergraduate Certificate in Accounting.