EPL's Guide to Accounting 3/4
(Tips from an Accounting student who scored a study score of 50 modified by RB)
Having done Accounting 3/4 in 2010, I thought I'd share some tips and hints which I found
useful throughout the course of the year. Follow these tips and principles will lead you on the
right track for a good score in Accounting!
Basic Tips:
1. Go over the course material beforehand
Over the summer holiday break, the best thing to do if you want to succeed in Accounting is
to read your textbook, to get an understanding of the concepts in Units 3. Highlight key
concepts and points in the textbook if need be or make summary notes of each sub-topic - as
I did. This way, by the time school starts again, you’ll be way ahead of your class! This will
allow you to focus on doing practice exams through the term/semester, while other students
do the exercises in the textbook. Also, during the holiday break (Term 3) - you should also
try the same thing with Unit 4 - making notes and going through the course material in Unit
4.
2. Do the exercises in the workbook
The key to success in Accounting is practice. Though doing the same exercises over and over
again may be boring, it ultimately helps you in the end. The repetition of concepts in the
exercises isn’t there for any reason; it’s to hammer the concept into students. The more
practice the do, the better results you’ll get!
3. Exam Practice!
When it comes to the exam time, the best way to prepare is to do exams. Don’t just do
previous exams from VCAA; try different companies such as TSSM, Insight, CSE, NEAP,
COMPAK and more. This way, when it comes to the exam, you won’t be surprised by any
questions - since you’ll have already come past it. Having said that, VCAA do throw in the
odd question in the exam - which isn't in any other practice exam - just try to answer it to
the best of your ability!
As the exams approach - make sure you start revision early. When doing practice exams try
and do it as if it’s the real thing; time yourself as well as giving yourself reading time. This
way, you’ll know your ability when under pressure, as opposed to doing exams where you
have no time restrictions. Also, record your mistakes down in a separate book, and go
over them, making sure you understand why and how you got it wrong and how to
get it right the next time. This should be done after each exam you do. Eventually as the
exam date approaches, hopefully you will be ready!
Make sure you fully read the question carefully, as you may miss key information if you read
it too quickly. Many students will miss-read the question without reading the "Additional
Information" below it - this is a must and will prevent you from losing cheap marks. This a
trap that many students fall into under exam pressure, myself included. Bring a highlighter
into the exam, and during the exam highlight information which you think is important, this
way you'll reduce your mistakes.
There is nothing hard about Accounting; it’s all about minimising your errors and practice.
Practice is essential if any student wants to do well in this subject. I know what I’m saying
now is hard to follow, even I didn’t follow my own advice, with other subjects to do and all though try the your best to follow the principles and advice that I’ve given and it will
hopefully keep you in the right direction.
Accounting Holiday Work Plan
OK, as promised, here is an example of how you can finish the accounting course over the
holidays.
Some General Info:
- Read the textbook once through up to chapter 12. You can basically skim through, but try
to understand some of the concepts while you read. Annotate sections that were bewildering.
- Write your own notes if you feel that it will help you understand and remember the content.
It is not necessary, as hopefully the hours you spend practicing will embed the content in
your brain.
- If you didn't do accounting Units 1 and 2, it becomes even more important that you work
hard. Everyone else has a one year headstart on you. Level the playing field.
- Please, please do not look at the answers until you finish EVERYTHING. Seeing your
mistakes after you have a sound grasp of the content will help you identify what you did
wrong.
- The suggested structure is only a guide for people who have a lot of time on their hands.
Feel free to spread the workload out, but do make the effort to finish the Unit 3 course before
school starts. It will be worth it. I promise.
Holiday Timeline
Exercises
Week 1:
Day 1:
Complete Chapter 1 - This is one of the most important chapters in the book. Theory
questions will be on the exams.
Chapter 1 has 12 exercises which are all under a page long (if you have the workbook).
Attempt all the questions without looking at the answers. Leave the questions you are unsure
about, and come back to them after you have finished Unit 3. They will be your "challenge"
questions (this is the same for all the questions you do from the book). ROTE learn all
definitions (Principles, Qualitative Characteristics and Accounting Elements)
Skim through Chapter 2 - A fairly straight-forward chapter that should be easy for anyone
who did Units 1 and 2. It involves basic classifications and an introduction to the structure of
the Balance Sheet. For anyone who did NOT do Year 11 accounting, this chapter is a MUST. It
will bring you up to speed on accounting terms and related rules (debit and credit etc.).
This chapter only has 7 exercises, and if you feel confident, you do not need to complete
every exercise (This is extremely important. There are so many tough questions and prac
exams in accounting that you will have to manage your time efficiently). Have a go at a few,
and if you make mistakes, do an extra one. I recommend doing 2.3, 2.6 and 2.7 as a
minimum.
Day 2 (and 3 if you want to do it over two days):
Complete Chapter 3 - DR. vs CR./Ledgers/Footing/Balancing - This will be all you will have
to do today. This chapter is the first real foray into Year 12 accounting. You should begin your
first accounting steps with a sound understanding of the foundations. The entire accounting
course will be built on the content in this chapter.
This chapter will probably cause a few difficulties for some people. Make sure that you get
help from the Moodle Forum if you have problems with this. If your foundations are weak, it
will become difficult to understand the rest of the course.
There are 8 exercises in this chapter. Try to do every single one.
Day 4 (have a rest day):
Complete Chapter 4 - Introduction to GST/Source Documents - Very similar to the previous
chapter with a smallish introduction to the different source documents that are prevalent in
VCE accounting.
If you've got the hang of debits and credits, you can make do with doing every second
exercise (4.1, 4.3, 4.5, 4.6).
If you made quite a few mistakes in the previous chapter, try to complete all exercises. This
is still part of the foundation of accounting, and as mentioned previously, a large determinant
to your future success in this subject.
Day 5 (no rest. You had it easy yesterday
):
Completing Chapter 5 - Special Journals - An extension to what should have been covered in
Year 11. Students who did Units 1 and 2 will find this topic relatively easy, with few areas
they do not understand or haven't seen before. The only new bits in Chapter 5 are the
subsidiary ledgers and the posting from the credit journals.
Try to get through exercises 5.2, 5.3, 5.5, 5.6, 5.8 and 5.9. Split it up into two days if you
need to. You will find these exercises very repetitive. Unfortunately, accounting is a subject
that requires practicing the same content over and over.
Day 6:
Completing Chapter 6 - Special Journals - Posting/Discounts/GST - Cash journals will be a
little more tricky than their credit counterparts. This chapter includes Discounts. There is
more content to cover in this Chapter, but you'll find parts that overlap with the previous
chapter (Posting etc.).
This chapter may take a while to complete. It is a little tedious.
Have a go at exercises 6.1, 6.2, 6.3, 6.4, 6.6, 6.7, 6.8, 6.9, 6.10 and 6.12.
I know that seems like all the exercises, but I only avoided exercises that repeated questions
(even then it will seem tedious and repetitive to most people).
Day 9:
Completing Chapter 7 - The General Journal - A new journal, one that will appear frequently
on both the exam. Still, its uses and related theory is straight-forward. Once you understand
it or do it a few times, you should be able to remember it forever. Keep in mind that while
repetitive, it essentially offers "free marks" in the exam for students that have taken the time
to properly understand its concepts.
Try: 7.2, 7.3, 7.5, 7.6, 7.8, 7.10, 7.11, 7.12
Another advantage of leaving out some of the exercises is that you can come back and do
them for extra revision. Only complete all the exercises if you desperately feel the need for
additional practice.
Tip: Get used to doing 'Narrations'. Work out a generic method for every possible narration,
and use these generic structures to write the narration for specific questions. Less thinking
required = more time to work on other questions.
Day 10:
Complete Chapter 8 - Stock cards - This chapter is the easiest part of Unit 3. The past few
VCAA exams have backed this up, with the average mark for Stock Card questions generally
being extremely high (VCAA 2010 Unit 3 Exam Stock Card: Average Mark was 2.6/3; VCAA
2009 Unit 3 Exam Stock Card: Average Mark was 4.5/5). The only new information involves
using the General Journal which was introduced in the previous chapter. Stock losses and
stock gains should be familiar to Unit 1 and 2 students.
Have a go at: 8.1, 8.2, 8.4, 8.7, 8.8, 8.10, 8.11 and 8.12.
Day 11:
Complete Chapter 9 - Income Statements (the bread of most businesses [butter being Cash
Flow Statements]) - While setting up the Income Statement and actually calculating profit is
relatively straight-forward, using the General Journal to close accounts can be a little tricky.
Simply understand this: as expenses are debited when they are incurred, to "close" the
accounts (i.e. delete them by bringing the account value to zero), you need to credit them
(the opposite of what you did to increase their value - multiply and divide).
The Income Statement remains virtually the same from Units 1 and 2, with the addition of
"Add Other Revenue" which allows you to include revenue earned from other sources other
than sale of goods.
Try: 9.3, 9.6 and 9.8
Again, as usual, if you make any mistakes in 9.3 (which you will find out once you finish),
then have a go at 9.1 and 9.2. Same thing with the exercises on Income Statements.
Day 12:
Complete Chapter 10 - BDAs: Prepaid/Accrued Expenses - The last three chapters were/are
considered the hardest part of Unit 3. While they overlap a little with Year 11, recording them
now involves use of the General Journal and the Ledger. The theory questions related to this
topic are pretty easy (perhaps in compensation for the more difficult practical work). Answers
will involve stating the definition of expense or Reporting Period (IMPORTANT) etc.
Have a go at:
Prepaid: 10.1, 10.3, 10.5
Accrued: 10.7, 10.9, 10.10
Reporting: 10.12 and 10.13
Day 13:
Complete Chapter 11 - Depreciation of Non-Current Assets - This is one of the few sections
in Accounting that requires 'tough' calculations. You'll need to get used to using the correct
number of months or days in order to accurately calculate depreciation. Year 11 students will
recognise this topic from the previous year.
Along with tricky mathematical calculations, this section can also include some challenging
theory questions relating to the purpose of depreciation. This section is again expanded on
further in Unit 4.
Have a go at:
11.1, 11.3, 11.4, 11.7, 11.9, 11.11, 11.13
Day 14: LAST DAY!! OMG!
Complete Chapter 12 - Cash Flow Statement - THE LAST CHAPTER OF UNIT 3! And
thankfully, it is extremely straight forward.
To summarise it in a few sentences:
The CSF is made up of three sections:
Operating Activities - which refer to the day-to-day trading activities of the business (stock
purchases, expenses, cash sales, GST received and paid etc.)
Investing Activities - which relate to the sale and purchase of non-current assets (purchase of
premises, equipment etc.)
Financing Activities - which relate to changes in the financial structure of the firm (loan,
drawings, capital contribution etc.)
Just familiarise yourself with the layout of the statement and you'll score some free marks on
the exam Smiley
Try: 12.2, 12.3 - the actual CSF
12.4 - 12.9 are about getting used to the different categories; do every second one if you
find it tedious
12.11, 12.12, 12.13 - A question of this sort is GUARANTEED on the exam. Must understand
and practice these questions.