San Diego State University
Charles W. Lamden School of Accountancy
ACCTG 670: Seminar in Assurance Services
Fall 2012
Instructor: Dr. Martha Doran
Office: SSE 2418
Office Hours: Mondays 2:30-3:30, before and after class or by appointment or email
E-mail: Doran1@mail.sdsu.edu
Phone: (619) 594-6841
CLASS TIME AND LOCATION: Mondays, from 7-9:40 pm, in EBA 408
COURSE GOAL: To help graduate students make audit judgments in a relatively complex setting
that simulates the public accounting environment, with an emphasis on due professional care and
the profession’s role in serving the public interest.
MSA PROGRAM GOALS:
MSA students will graduate with:
 Communication Skills
 Group/Interpersonal Skills
 Ethics
 Research Skills
 Global/International Skills
Acctg. 670 contributes to these goals through its student learning outcomes . . .
COURSE LEARNING OUTCOMES: At the end of this course, you should be able to:
1. Apply the fundamental concepts of audit/assurance services. (General objective)
2. Explain the economic consequences of-, and the demand for-, audit and assurance services,
especially the effects of the Sarbanes–Oxley Act.
3. Describe the role and value of research studies in auditing.
4. Describe factors that affect audit performance and risk assessment.
5. Discuss and analyze problematic real-world situations so that you can better understand how to
respond when faced with them in the future.
6. Describe and explain key ethical issues and ethical decisions that audit practitioners presently
face.
7. Converse during class using clear, coherent impromptu speaking in describing audit issues.
8. Write well-organized, readable case analyses, essays and reports using appropriate assurance
and accounting terminology (developing your audit voice.)
COURSE MATERIALS (required text, websites, cases):
Lenoard J. Brooks and Dunn, Business and Professional Ethics, 6th edition, Cenage
Learning, 2012.
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I recommend that you have an auditing textbook as a reference, such as Principles of
Auditing and Assurance Services, 18th Ed., Whittington and Pany, McGraw-Hill, 2012.
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Students can make use of the text resources at the Online Learning Center (OLC):
http://www.mhhe.com/whittington18e which has PowerPoint slides, Multiple Choice Quizzes,
Cases, ACL cases, and links to various audit websites. The website is free to students.
Various Websites posted to Blackboard (Bb) such as PCAOB Standards, AICPA
Professional Standards, SOX, etc.
Various cases listed below and also on Blackboard (Bb).
Assessing Audit and Business Risks at Toy Central Corporation
Christine E. Earley and Fred Phillips
Issues in Accounting Education 2008 23:2, 299-307
Behind Closed Doors at WorldCom: 2001
Kay E. Zekany, Lucas W. Braun, and Zachary T. Warder
Issues in Accounting Education 2004 19:1, 101-117
Grey Paints: Using Earnings Quality Concepts to Clarify the Earnings Measurement Process
Jerry G. Kreuze and Jack M. Ruhl
Issues in Accounting Education 2002 17:4, 431-445
Identifying and Evaluating Audit Issues: The Case of VITALOGISTICS
Stephen Kwaku Asare and Arnold M. Wright
Issues in Accounting Education 2007 22:1, 79-88
Lehman on the Brink of Bankruptcy: A Case about Aggressive Application of Accounting Standards
Dennis H. Caplan,Saurav K. Dutta, David J. Marcinko
Issues in Accounting Education 2012 27:2, 441-459
The SEC’s Case against California Micro Devices: A Lesson in Using Professional Skepticism and
Obtaining Sufficient Appropriate Evidence
Jill M. D’Aquila and Kim Capriotti
Issues in Accounting Education 2011 26:1, 145-154
Vouch and Trace: A Revenue Recognition Audit Simulation
Charles R. (Tad) Miller and Arline Savage
Issues in Accounting Education 2009 24:1, 93-103
COURSE ACTIVITIES:
Because this course is a seminar, attendance and participation by all members in class is
expected and required. To accomplish the learning outcomes, I have designed a variety of
activities to help us accomplish the course goals as well as enjoy our time together. You are
preparing to be part of a great profession, and you are already part of an excellent learning
community. I look forward to our time together and anticipate some of you may return to be part of
our professional discussion in the not too distant future.
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Case Preparation: Out of class, read, ponder, research and write up responses to
each assigned case. Based on being an A or B group, turn in your case write-ups every
other week.
Discussion and Apply It: During class, lead the class in discussing cases you do not
write up. In addition, using the Wall Street Journal (class subscriptions available) or other
business press, write a paragraph summarizing an article in that week’s newspaper that
relates to our current case topics and readings on ethics, professionalism and audit issues.
Share with the class your insights on how the article applies to our topics and discussions
and turn in the write up for credit.
Midterm: The midterm will include short problems and cases.
Paper: Choose a topic on a related assurance issue and prepare a five page, double
spaced, written report. Check schedule for due dates of topic paragraph write up and paper.
Group Final Case: Prepare the Final Case. Submit audit work papers to me and present
findings to the class.
NOTE: Any case assignments, which are copied from or unusually similar to another person, could
result in charges of academic misconduct against all students involved. No credit will be given for
case assignments turned in later than their assigned date.
GRADING:
Grades will be determined based on your relative performance on the following assignments:
Activity
Case Preparation
Discussion/Apply It
Midterm
Research Paper
Group Case Write Up and
Presentation
%
15
15
30
25
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Grade ranges will be as follows: 90% and above is the A range (iA- and A); 80% and above is the
B range (B-, B and B+); 75% and above is the C range (iC and C+). Scores below 75% do not
evidence graduate level work and will be dealt with on a case-by-case basis.
FINAL EXAM
The date of the final exam is listed in the class schedule. The exam time will be used for each
student to briefly describe his or her research project.
CLASS PARTICIPATION IS IMPORTANT
As stated previously, participation in class is expected and required. Students’ participation grade
will be dependent upon thoughtful participation in class discussions, including Apply It findings.
Participation is not based merely on attendance. But students must be present in class to be able
to participate, so attendance is the starting point for earning participation. Please understand that
I respect the fact that you are adults and, by being in our graduate program, you are likely
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managing many responsibilities simultaneously, including jobs, family, and your classes. One
caution—you are expected to attend every class, even if you are not submitting or presenting an
assignment.
Professional Conduct: Our time spent together this semester will provide us with a “laboratory” to
learn and practice conduct becoming a professional. We will learn how to engage in civil
conversations, even if we disagree. We will learn how to present ourselves in a manner that says
we understand due professional care…in our choice of language, and in our treatment of others.
Some key ingredients will include the values of integrity, honesty, respect, patience and
commitment, to name a few.
ACADEMIC MISCONDUCT (a reminder): Academic misconduct is defined as dishonesty in
academic work. Examples of academic misconduct include plagiarism, and the giving or receiving
of unauthorized aid in assigned work. Penalties for the first offense of academic misconduct range
from an F on the work in question, or an F for the course, to dismissal from SDSU. BE HONEST
IN YOUR WORK!!
And for our work together, cheating in any form will not be accepted or allowed. This class will
follow the university policy in regard to cheating or plagiarism. If you have any doubts as to
what constitutes such behavior, I have reproduced the definitions below. Please see me with any
questions, BEFORE you submit an assignment.
Cheating or plagiarism in connection with an academic program at a campus.1
a) Examples of cheating include unauthorized sharing of answers during an exam, use of
unauthorized notes or study materials during an exam, altering an exam and resubmitting it
for regrading, having another student take an exam for you or submit assignments in your
name, participating in unauthorized collaboration on coursework to be graded, providing
false data for a research paper, or creating/citing false or fictitious references for a term
paper. (Submitting the same paper for multiple classes may also be considered cheating if
not authorized by the instructors involved).
b) Examples of plagiarism include any attempt to take credit for work that is not your own, such
as using direct quotes from an author without using quotation marks or indentation in a
paper, paraphrasing work that is not your own without giving credit to the original source of
the idea, or failing to properly cite all sources in the body of your work.
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Plagiarism: The following is taken directly from SDSU’s Code Section 41301:
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