Managerial Accounting Fundamentals, Acc202
Spring 2016
San Diego State University
College of Business Administration
Lamden School of Accountancy
COURSE INFORMATION
Professor: Dr. John Anderson
Office: SSE2424
e-mail: janders@mail.sdsu.edu
Class Days: MWF
Class Times: 10:00 – 10:50am
Class Location: GMCS 333
Office Hours Times (and by appointment): Mon & Wed
11:00 – 11:30
Office Hours Location: SSE2424
Units: 3
Course Overview
This course is intended to introduce you to accounting techniques used by managers when they make planning and
controlling decisions. We will focus on presentation and analysis of data for internal decision makers (i.e.
managers).
Accordingly, the objective of this course is to familiarize you with requisite technical skills for problem solving. As
managers, you will need to be able to identify the relevant information, the appropriate method for analyzing that
information, and the manner in which to communicate your observations and recommendations to the others in the
organization.
Student Learning Outcomes:
BSBA students will graduate being:
 Effective communicators
 Critical thinkers
 Able to analyze ethical problems
 Global in their perspective
 Knowledgeable about the essentials of business
Acc 202 contributes to these goals through the following student learning outcomes:
Learning Outcomes:
At the end of this course students should be able to:
1. Identify and illustrate the primary activities and informational needs of managers, explain
the role of the managerial accountant as a member of the management team, compare and
contrast financial and managerial accounting.
2. Define and illustrate various cost terms and concepts and evaluate their relevancy for
different decision-making purposes.
3. Distinguish between product and period cost; prepare a schedule of Cost of Goods
Manufactured, schedule of Cost of Goods Sold, and Income Statement.
4. Prepare traditional and contribution-margin income statements, define related terms,
conduct cost-volume-profit analysis.
5. Describe the traditional types of product costing systems (including job-order and
process).
6. Discuss the impact of technology on the manufacturing environment and its implications
for product costs and development of activity based costing and management.
7. Explain the purposes of budgeting and the master budget, prepare component schedules,
and relate the budget to planning and control.
8. Explain the development and use of standard costs, prepare and interpret variance
analysis reports and relate them to responsibility accounting and control.
9. Explain the nature of and need for segment reporting and the relationship with cost,
revenue, profit, and investment centers; prepare and analyze related segment reports.
10. Compare and contrast absorption costing and variable costing, prepare income statements
using both methods.
11. Define relevant cost and benefits, giving proper treatment to sunk cost, opportunity costs,
and unit costs; prepare analysis of special decisions.
12. Explain the nature of capital expenditure decisions and apply and evaluate various
methods used in making these decisions.
Enrollment Information


Prerequisite: Minimum grade of C in Accountancy 201. Proof of completion of prerequisite required: Copy of
transcript.
Adding/Dropping Procedures: Students are responsible for following the university procedures for adding and
dropping (see the university calendar for specific deadline dates).
Course Materials
Required Text: R.Hilton, Managerial Accounting 10th Edition,Textbook (make sure to get correct edition). This text
is available at the SDSU Bookstore (it matches lower prices from Amazon and others in most cases).
The Bookstore is a not-for-profit campus partner and its proceeds support SDSU initiatives. After the summary
section, you will find a useful review problem at the end of each chapter, along with the solution.
To get more practice with multiple choice questions, you can go to the author’s website by following the link below and then
following these instructions:
You should ignore the message in red about premium content. You do not need a Connect access code to get
the multiple choice questions. You should select home, then select the chapter you want, then select multiple
choice quiz. If you are still having difficulty accessing this website you can call McGraw Hill at 800-331-5094,
7 days per week.
Here is the link:
http://highered.mheducation.com/sites/0078025664/student_view0/index.html
Course Structure and Conduct
You are expected to be present for all classes. Classes will include lectures and demonstrations of the material. Homework
should be prepared and brought to class as indicated on the syllabus. It is important to be thorough in the
preparation of this homework. Solutions to assigned homework will also be discussed in class. In addition to the homework
problems, you are responsible for any additional problems demonstrated in class.
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).
It is expected that all exams are done individually. Copying someone else’s work is an instance of plagiarism. San
Diego State University condemns plagiarism, and the penalties can include severance from the University and in
some cases revocation of an advanced degree (see the San Diego State University General Catalog and the San
Diego State University Bulletin of the Graduate Division). For any violations, the student may receive an “F” for
the assignment, examination, or the entire 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
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).
Your course grade will be based on the following weighted components
Grading:
% Score
X Points = Points Earned
Exam 1
Exam 2
Exam 3
Exam 4
Exam 5
Exam 6
16 points
16 points
16 points
18 points
17 points
17 points
-----------100 points
Total
At anytime, you can compute how you are doing in the class by computing the points earned as indicated above, and
dividing that by the total possible points to date. Anticipate no curve, with the final grades being assigned as
follows (there is no rounding in calculation of points earned):
A
AB+
B
BC+
94.0 - 100 points
90.0 - 93
87.0 - 89
84.0 – 86
80.0 – 83
77.0 – 79
C 70.0 - 76
D+ 67.0- 69
D 64.0 - 66
D- 60.0 - 63
F 0 - 59
There is no “extra credit” available, the final grade is based totally on the above assignments.
Exams:
Bring your picture I.D. to the exam; you will be required to show it. Purchase the smaller pink Parscore exam form
from the bookstore for the exams.
Exam dates and coverage are indicated on the class schedule below. You must take the exam at the scheduled time,
only a valid medical reason (which you may be required to document) will allow you to take a make-up exam. You
must notify me the day of the exam if there is a valid medical reason, leaving me an email message with your phone
number, including the hours when I can reach you. No calculators with sophisticated programmable memory can be
used during examinations. Any questions regarding the acceptability of your calculator should be resolved well
before an examination. Standard financial calculators are acceptable.
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
The course schedule, including topics and class activities listed by week, is presented below:
Class Schedule:
The exercises and problems listed below are the assigned homework, due in class on the dates
indicated. This list may be added to by way of announcement in class. You are also
responsible for the text chapters. You are also responsible for any additional exercises and
problems that are demonstrated in class.
Note: Be sure to bring the textbook to all classes and lectures.
Remember to have all homework ready at the beginning of class.
Some advice in the preparation of your homework:
Your attendance at the lectures is essential to inform you and guide you. This should be
followed by a thorough study of relevant sections of the text before attempting the homework.
This should help in making your homework preparation both effective and efficient.
1/20 W Ch 2 Lecture: Basis cost term and Concepts
Illustration of Job Order Costing System
1/22 F E2-24,25,31
1/25 M E2-26,P2-42
1/27 W Ch 3 Lecture: Product costing and Job order Costing Systems
1/29 F Ch 3 E3-23,E3-27,E3-30(part 1 and 2 only), E3-35
2/1 M Ch 3 E3-32, E3-34 (part 1 and 2 only), E3-24
2/3 W Ch 4 Lecture: Process Costing
2/5 F Ch 4 E4-18,20
2/8 M Ch 4 E4-22 (part 1 and 2 only), Case4-39 (Part 1 through 4 only)
2/10 W Ch 5 Lecture: Activity Based Costing and Cost Management
2/12 F Ch 5 Write brief answers for review questions 5-1 through 5-3, 5-5 through 5-8, 5-13;
Ex 5-29, Pb 5-53 (part 1 only)
2/15 M Exam 1: Ch 1,2,3.Please remember to bring your picture i.d.
and the smaller, pink Parscore test form from the bookstore
2/17 W Exam 2: Ch 4,5
2/19 F Ch 6 Lecture: Activity Analysis, Cost behavior, and cost
estimation
2/22 M Ch 6 E6-24,26,29,30
2/24 W Ch 7 Lecture: Cost-Volume-Profit analysis
2/26 F Ch 7 E7-23,27,28
2/29 M Ch 9 Lecture Profit planning
3/2 W Ch 9 Exercises E9-24,25,29
3/4 F Ch 10 Lecture Standard costing, Operational performance
measures, balance scorecard
3/7 M Ch 10 E10-24, Pb10-38(a,b,d,e)
3/9 W Ch 12 Lecture: Responsibility accounting, quality control
3/11 F Ch 12 E12-30, 33(part 1), 34
3/14 M Ch 12 E12-35, Pb12-49, (part 1 and 2 only)
3/16 W Exam 3: Ch 6 7 9
3/18 F Exam 4: Ch 9 10 12
3/21 M Ch 11 Lecture: Flexible budgeting
3/23 W Ch 11 Exercises 11-22 (part 1a and 1b only), E11-32, Pb11-38
3/25 F Ch 13 Lecture: Investment centers
3/28 to 4/1 Spring Break week, no class
4/4 M Ch 13 E13-24, 25, 26
4/6 W Ch 14 Lecture: Decision making: relevant cost and Benefits
4/8 F Ch 14 E14-36, 38
4/11 M Ch 14 E14-41, Pb14-46 (part 1 & 2 only)
4/13 W Ch 15 Lecture: Cost analysis and pricing decisions
4/15 F Ch 15 Review Questions 11, 12, 13, 14; E15-35,34
4/18 M Ch 16 Lecture: Capital expenditure decisions
4/20 W Ch 16 E16-24, 25, 31
4/22 F Ch 16 E16-34, Pb16-44 (part 1 only), Pb16-45
4/25 M Ch 8 Lecture: Absorption variable and throughput costing
4/27 W Ch 8 E8-24,20
4/29 F Ch 8 Review Questions 8-1, 2, 4, 5
5/2 M Exam 5 Ch 11 13 14
5/4 W Exam 6 Ch 15 16 8
Changes to the course schedule, if any, will be announced in class.