ACCOUNTING 325: INTERMED MANAG & TAX ACCT

(TTH: Section 2,1100-1215; Section 3,1400-1515, GMCS 314)

Spring 2016
San Diego State University
College of Business Administration
Charles W. Lamden School of Accountancy
COURSE INFORMATION
Instructors: James E. Williamson, until March 8
Instructor: Nathan Oestreich, beginning March
10

Office: SSE 2429; TTh, 1530 - 1700

Office: SSE 2413; TTh, `by appointment

Course Overview
In this course we will examine the theories, practices, and concepts necessary to understand the
decision making requirements of internal users of accounting information. We will also explore the tax
considerations which affect managerial decision making. A NEW TOPIC is the formal inclusion of
ENVIRONMENTAL and SOCIAL costs in our analysis.
Student Learning Outcomes
At the end of this course students should be able to:
1. Use the tax formula and the necessary components to calculate taxable income, and ultimately
the federal income tax, for individuals, corporations and estates and trusts. Compare and contrast
the different taxable entities.
2. Assess the effects of personal, investment, and business transactions individually and collectively
on the federal income tax, the gift and estate taxes, and other selected taxes. Define and illustrate
various cost terms and concepts and evaluate their relevancy for different decision-making
purposes. Discuss the impact of technology on the manufacturing environment and its implications
for product costing and the development of activity-based costing and management.
3. Explain the development and use of standard costs, prepare and interpret variance analysis
reports and relate them to responsibility accounting and control.
4. Explain the purposes of budgeting; prepare a master budget and its component schedules and
relate the budget to planning and control.
5. Explain why the formal inclusion of environmental and social costs in the decision making
process are necessary to be successful in the 21st Century.
Because this course is specifically directed toward students majoring in Finance, instead of accounting,
I quote from Warren Buffet:
You should have a knowledge of how business operates and the language of business (accounting),
some enthusiasm for the subject, and qualities of temperament which may be more important than
IQ points. These will enable you to think independently and to avoid various forms of mass hysteria
that infect the investments markets from time to time.
Understanding the fundamentals of accounting is a form of self-defense:
When managers want to get across the facts of the business to you, it can be done within the rules
of accounting. Unfortunately, when they want to play games, at least in some industries, it can also
be done within the rules of accounting. If you cant recognize the differences, you shouldnt be in
the equity-picking business. (Janet Lowe, Warren Buffett Speaks: Wit and Wisdom from the Worlds
Greatest Investor. John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York, 1997.)
PROGRAM LEARNING GOALS AND DEGREE LEARNING OUTCOMES FOR THE B.S. IN BUSINESS
ADMINISTRATION PROGRAM
PLG I: Written and Oral Communication - Communicate effectively with individuals, teams,
and large groups, both in writing and orally.

Learning Outcomes:
DLO 1.1: Write well-organized and grammatically correct papers including letters, memos, case analyses, and research
reports.
DLO 1.2: Make effective oral presentations that are informative as well as persuasive, as appropriate .

PLG II: Analytical and Critical Thinking Skills - Demonstrate effective analytical
and critical thinking skills to make an appropriate decision in a complex situation.
Learning Outcomes:
DLO 2.1: Apply relevant information and arrive at a well-reasoned conclusion.
PLG III: Ethical Reasoning - Distinguish and analyze ethical problems that occur in
business and society, and choose and defend ethical solutions .
Learning Outcomes:
DLO 3.1: Explain the various ethical dimensions of business decision making. DLO 3.2: Explain the role of
various affected parties in business decision making.
DLO 3.3: Assess the ethics of decision alternatives using different ethical decision rules.
DLO 3.4: Apply ethical decision-making rules to cases drawn from various business sub-disciplines .
PLG IV: Global Perspective Demonstrate a global perspective and an
understanding of the dynamics of the global economy in making decisions.
Learning Outcomes:
DLO 4.1: Identify and describe the impact of the global economy on business decisions.
DLO 4.2: Explain and apply a global perspective in making business decisions.
PLG V: Essential Business Knowledge - Demonstrate an understanding of the
major functional areas of Business.
Learning Outcomes:
DLO 5.1: Describe basic concepts in each major functional area of business. DLO 5.2: Apply techniques and
theories from various areas of Business to business situations.

Enrollment Information
This is a required course for Finance majors. Upper division status is required.
Course Materials
Required Materials (See Aztec Shops book list):
INDIVIDUAL TAXATION, Pratt & Kulsrud, 2016; and
Intermed Manag & Tax Acctg 325, Williamson.
Extra Credit Materials
REENGINEERING THE CORPORATION, Hammer, et al.
Course Structure and Conduct
Style of the Course: Traditional Lecture, Lecture-Discussion, In-class problem solving.

Students with Disabilities

If you are a student with a disability and believe you will need accommodations for this class, it is your
responsibility to contact Student Disability Services at (619) 594-6473. To avoid any delay in the
receipt of your accommodations, you should contact Student Disability Services as soon as possible.
Please note that accommodations are not retroactive, and that accommodations based upon disability
cannot be provided until you have presented your instructor with an accommodation letter from
Student Disability Services. Your cooperation is appreciated.
Academic Honesty
The University adheres to a strict policy regarding cheating and plagiarism. These activities will not be
tolerated in this class. Become familiar with the policy (http://www.sa.sdsu.edu/srr/conduct1.html). Any
cheating or plagiarism will result in a grade of F in the course.
Examples of Plagiarism include but are not limited to:

Using sources verbatim or paraphrasing without giving proper attribution (this can include
phrases, sentences, paragraphs and/or pages of work)

Copying and pasting work from an online or offline source directly and calling it your own

Using information you find from an online or offline source without giving the author credit

Replacing words or phrases from another source and inserting your own words or phrases

Submitting a piece of work you did for one class to another class
If you have questions on what is plagiarism, please consult the policy and this helpful guide from the
Library
Turnitin
Students agree that by taking this course all required papers may be subject to submission for textual
similarity review to Turnitin.com for the detection of plagiarism. All submitted papers will be included
as source documents in the Turnitin.com reference database solely for the purpose of detecting
plagiarism of such papers. You may submit your papers in such a way that no identifying information
about you is included. Another option is that you may request, in writing, that your papers not be
submitted to Turnitin.com. However, if you choose this option you will be required to provide
documentation to substantiate that the papers are your original work and do not include any
plagiarized material.
Assessments and Grading
Course grades will be assigned in accordance with San Diego State University policy (see General
Catalog, pp. 468-470). Undergraduate grades shall be: A (outstanding achievement, available only for
the highest accomplishment), B (praiseworthy performance, definitely above average), C (average,
awarded for satisfactory performance, the most common undergraduate grade), D (minimally passing,
less than the typical undergraduate achievement), F (failing).
Table1. Your course grade will be based on the following weighted components
Component

Weight/Points

Exam 1

50

Exam 2

150

Exam 3

150

Daily work

50

EXTRA CREDIT WORK. You may earn as many as fifteen extra credit points by reading the Hammer
et al book and writing a five page report on your observations after reading the book. This offer of
extra credit is good only for papers submitted on or before the March 1 deadline. Only hard

copies of paper will be accepted and must be handed to me in class or in my office no later than three
oclock on March 1. Late papers will not be read and will receive no points.

SDSU Writing Center

Tell your students (in class, on your syllabus, on your course Black Board site) about the SDSU Writing Center. It is
located in LLA 1103, open every weekday to all students on campus. Students can make an appointment or dropin. If you are asking your students to do any writing (as all upper-division and graduate courses should be), the
Writing Center is a terrific asset. Additional information can be found at http://www.writingcenter.sdsu.edu/.

Your FINAL GRADE in the class will be determined by the total number of points that you earn during
the semester:
GRADE
A
B+
BC
F

POINTS
360-400
350-354
310-319
260-299
000-199

GRADE
AB
C+
D

POINTS
355-359
320-349
300-309
200-259

Date

Topics

Activities

January 21

Introduction to Strategy, Cost Management, and Cost Systems

January 26
and 28

An Overview of Federal Taxation

Chapter 1 from Cost

Accounting
Exercises 6,17,18,19,21,33,46
Chapter 1 from Taxation
Exercises
17,18,19,20,23,26,28,
31,32,33,34

February 2
and 4

Taxable Entities, Tax Formula

Chapter 3 from Taxation

Exercises
31,32,33,34,35,37,38,39,42,
45,46,47,48,49,50,56

February 9

Activity-Based Costing and Customer Profitability Analysis

Chapter 5 from Cost

Accounting
Exercises
16,17,18,19,20,21,22,32,50

February
11 and 16

Short-Term Profit Planning: CVP

Chapter 9 from Cost

Accounting
Exercises
11,12,13,14,15,16,17,18,19,2
0, 33,36,43,50

February
18

Exam 1 (45 minute time limit)

February
23

Decision Making with a Strategic Emphasis

February
25

Cost Planning for the Product Life Cycle: Target Costing, Theory of
Constraints, and Strategic Pricing

The Management and Control of Quality

March 1

FINAL DAY TO TURN IN EXTRA CREDIT PAPER (Hard Copy

only accepted)

March 3

Strategic Performance Measurement: Investment Centers &

Transfer Pricing

March 8
EXAM 2 (one hour and fifteen minutes)
March 10
Capital Recovery: Depreciation

Comprehensive from
beginning of semester
Chapter 11 from Cost
Accounting
Exercises
11,12,13,14,15,17,23,26,28
Chapter 13 from Cost
Accounting
Exercises
20,21,22,23,24,25,26,
33,46,47,51
Chapter 17 from Cost
Accounting
Exercises
12,14,15,16,17,25,30,32,47,5
7
Chapter 19 from Cost
Accounting
Exercises
11,12,13,15,16,17,18,19,20,
31,40,55
Comprehensive from
beginning of the semester
Chapter 9 from Taxation

March 15

Property Transactions; Basis Determination and Recognition of

Gain or Loss

Chapter 14 from Taxation

Problems 10, 25, 27,
31,33,34, 38

March 17

Like-kind Exchanges

March 22
and 24

Jurisdictional Issues

Chapter 15 from Taxation

(Selected pages)
Reading TBA

March 28
through
April 1

SPRING RECESS AND CESAR CHAVEZ DAY ON MARCH 31

YOUR CHOICE

Date

Topics

Activities

April 5,7,
and 12

Property Transactions: Capital Gains and Losses

Chapter 16 from Taxation

Problems 1, 2, 8, 9, 10, 12,
22, 23, 30,56

April 14
and 19

Employee Compensation and Retirement Plans

Chapter 18 from Taxation

April 21,26,
and28

Taxation of Business Forms Their Owners

Chapter 19 from Taxation

May 3

EXAM 3

May 5

TBA

May 6 - 12

Final Exam Week

Exams and Exam Policies. Exams will be objective in nature (i.e., multiple choice and true false) and
are open-book.
Cases and class work to be announced. At least one essay will be submitted to Turnitin.
Grade of Incomplete. A grade of Incomplete (I) indicates that a portion of required coursework has
not been completed and evaluated in the prescribed time period due to unforeseen, but fully justified,
reasons and that there is still a possibility of earning credit. It is your responsibility to bring pertinent
information to the instructor and to reach agreement on the means by which the remaining course
requirements will be satisfied. The conditions for removal of the Incomplete shall be reduced to writing
by the instructor and given to you with a copy placed on file with the department chair until the
Incomplete is removed or the time limit for removal has passed. A final grade is assigned when the
work agreed upon has been completed and evaluated. An Incomplete shall not be assigned when the
only way you could make up the work would be to attend a major portion of the class when it is next
offered. Contract forms for Incomplete grades are available at the Office of the Registrar website
Tentative Course Schedule

Changes to the course schedule, if any, will be announced in class.