Accounting 303 – Winter 2018

Professor: Steph Grant Class Hours: M/W, 10:30 – 12:20, DEM 126
Office: PCAR 533 Office Hours: To be determined (complete
Phone: 206-543-2904 the survey under “quizzes”
Email: stgrant@uw.edu on Canvas before 9 a.m. on
1/8 to provide your
preferences)

COURSE OBJECTIVES
This course is the final course in a three-course sequence in financial accounting at the
intermediate level. The objective of the course is to learn (i) how and when to apply
accounting principles, (ii) why a particular accounting procedure is applied, and (iii)
what the economic implications are of particular accounting treatments. The course will
examine conceptual fundamentals of accounting and reporting as well as accounting
standards and practical applications. Topics covered include Accounting for Income
Taxes, Pensions, Stockholders’ Equity, Earnings Per Share, Accounting Changes and
Error Correction, and preparation of the Statement of Cash Flows. We focus on U.S.
GAAP, but will often discuss differences in accounting treatment under IFRS.

COURSE MATERIALS
Required: Spiceland, Sepe, Nelson, and Thomas. Intermediate Accounting, 9th Edition
(McGraw-Hill). The book we are using is the same one you used in prior classes.

Required: Course pack, which is available for purchase from Ram Copy at 4144
University Ave NE.1 This pack will be essential for understanding and keeping up with
the daily lectures. It includes PowerPoint slides for all lectures and in-class
comprehensive problems.2 To keep the whole class on the same page, I will most likely
not post these things on Canvas.

Required: Poll Everywhere. The Poll Everywhere App will be used in class. Please
download this to your preferred device. Instructions will be posted on Canvas and we
will walk through registration in class.

1http://ramscopy.com/index.html
2I have done my best to forecast the future timing and direction of the lectures. However, we will inevitably take
some detours and make some changes throughout the course. Please allow for some flexibility in note-taking in the
course pack as we move throughout the quarter.
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Optional: Connect online courseware from McGraw-Hill. You may use this software for
optional homework assignments. You potentially have access to Connect from prior
classes; if you do not, it is available for purchase. Connect includes two primary
features: LearnSmart and Pre-Built Problems. I have very little control over either of
these, so I cannot provide support for them. They are there in case you prefer this style
of online learning. The course registration page is here:

https://connect.mheducation.com/class/s-grant-winter-2018

COMMUNICATION
You should treat communication in class and with me via email as a practice for
communicating in a professional environment. In professional environments,
communication via email should always be polite and succinct. Please communicate
with me via the email system in Canvas to ensure FERPA compliance. I will generally
respond to emails quickly, if you have not heard back from me in 24 hours please
contact me again. Many, but not all, course documents will be made available on
Canvas. You are responsible for frequently checking for announcements and updated
course content on Canvas.

OFFICE HOURS
I will hold regular office hours in PACCAR 533. Office hours should be treated as a
practice for face- to-face communication in a professional environment. As such,
students are expected to be prepared (with specific questions), polite and succinct.

I will also hold “online office hours,” in which, on occasion, I create a video to answer
the 2-3 most commonly asked questions that students submit via Canvas. I view this
approach as a complement to regular office hours that will hopefully allow a) students
to see what other questions are being answered and b) allow students with restrictive
schedules to have their questions answered.

COURSE GRADE
The course grade will be calculated as follows:
Percentage
Midterm 1 20%
Midterm 2 20%
Final Exam 25%
Group case assignments 30%
Participation/Professionalism 5%
Total 100%

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Final grades will be determined based upon a student’s demonstrated competency of
the material and upon how well a student performs relative to peers. Final grades may
be adjusted to arrive at a target grade distribution. The median grade point is typically
in the 3.1 - 3.3 range. If you believe a grading error has been made, it is your
responsibility to notify me within one week after the exam is returned to you.

EXAMS
Exams will be given in class on the dates indicated in the course schedule below.
Exams will consist of multiple choice, true/false, problem solving, and essay questions.
The first midterm covers chapters 18 and 19; the second midterm covers chapters 16 and
20; and the final exam covers chapters 17 and 21. The final exam is scheduled for
Monday, March 12th from 8:30 – 10:20 a.m. in DEM 126.

If you are unable to take an exam at the scheduled time due to a valid reason (e.g.,
medical, funeral), a make-up exam must be taken within 5 days of the originally
scheduled exam. To qualify for a make-up exam, you must contact me at least 24 hours
before the scheduled exam. Exceptions will be given for unexpected emergencies.

IN-CLASS GROUP CASES

We will have three group cases during the quarter, which will be completed during
class. More details about the cases will be provided later.

Please note two things. First, you must choose a group of 2-4 students for the cases and
all students must attend the same section on this day. Second, because the case is
submitted online via Canvas, someone in the group must have a laptop in class.

One final note: There is no makeup for cases or exams. You need to arrange your
schedule to be in class on those days.

PARTICIPATION/PROFESSIONALISM
Conducting yourself in a professional manner in class means behaving the way you
would be expected to behave in a business meeting. My evaluation of your
professionalism considers your attendance (or timely notification of your inability to
attend), preparation, participation (via Poll Everywhere, in-class practice problems and
discussions), and respect for others in each class session.

SUGGESTED PROBLEMS
Each chapter has a problem set to help you focus in on the core concepts. These
problem sets will not be turned in, but are assigned as practice problems to help you
prepare for exams. Solutions to the problems sets will be available via Canvas. There
are additional optional problems available on Connect. This is the all-you-can-study
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buffet approach—you have all the material you could ever study. Your job is to take
the time to work through and understand the intuition of the problems. Simply
following the solutions will not adequately prepare you for exams.

VIDEOS
As part of our learning environment, I will post several videos per chapter to the
Canvas website. The videos can be accessed only on the Canvas course page. The
videos are not intended as a substitute for class time, but rather as a complementary
resource. The video topics will include chapter primers, discussions, and additional
problems. The chapter primers should be viewed before we begin a particular chapter.
The problems are meant to complement the in-class problems and assigned problems—
they should help you see how I would approach a particular problem.

ACADEMIC INTEGRITY
By being a student in this course, you acknowledge that you are a part of a learning
community at the Foster School of Business that is committed to the highest academic
standards. As a part of this community, you pledge to uphold the fundamental
standards of honesty, respect, and integrity, and accept the responsibility to encourage
others to adhere to these standards. The Student Conduct Code outlines the
expectation of academic conduct and the consequences of misconduct.3

I view cheating as an offense against your fellow students in the course, against the
professor, and against the university as a whole. Because it is a large part of my
responsibility to ensure that all students are treated fairly and to uphold and build the
reputation of the university, I take all forms of cheating very seriously and will impose
maximum penalties allowed under the policies of the university.

3See the following document for a definition of academic misconduct and the procedures for dealing with
misconduct: http://depts.washington.edu/grading/pdf/AcademicResponsibility.pdf
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COURSE SCHEDULE1
DATE ASSIGNED READING TOPIC SUGGESTED PROBLEMS DUE
Chapter 18 Welcome to class; Syllabus;
1 1/3/2018 E18-3,5,7,10
(pg. 1034 – 1049) Stockholders' Equity
Chapter 18
2 1/8/2018 Stockholders' Equity E18-8, 13,14; P18-6, 8,9, 10
(pg. 1050 – 1066)
Chapter 19
3 1/10/2018 Share-based Compensation E19-4, 7, 10; P19-1, 2
(pg. 1090 – 1105)

4 1/15/2018 No Class – Martin Luther King Jr. Day

Chapter 19 E19-13, 17, 22, 25;

5 1/17/2018 EPS
(pg. 1106 – 1128) P19-11, 16

6 1/22/2018 Case 1

7 1/24/2018 Midterm Exam (Ch. 18, 19)

Chapter 16 Accounting for Income

8 1/29/2018 E16-3, 7, P16-1
(pg. 906 – 918) Taxes
Chapter 16 Accounting for Income E16-14, 16, 18, 20, 23;
9 1/31/2018
(pg. 918 – 939) Taxes P16-8, 10
Chapter 20
10 2/5/2018 Accounting changes/errors E20-1, 3, 11, 16; P20-2, 8
(pg. 1158 – 1171)
Chapter 20
11 2/7/2018 Accounting changes/errors E20-21,23; P20-12
(pg. 1172 – 1182)

12 2/12/2018 Case 2

13 2/14/2018 Midterm Exam (Ch. 16, 20)

14 2/19/2018 No Class – Presidents Day

Chapter 17
15 2/21/2018 Pension Accounting E17-2, 5, 6
(pg. 966 – 981)
Chapter 17 Pension Accounting (Skip E17-10, 12, 16, 19; P17-3,
16 2/26/2018
(pg. 981 – 994) Part E) 6, 10, 14

17 2/28/2018 Chapter 21 Statement of Cash Flows E21 2-10 (use t-accounts)

18 3/5/2018 Statement of Cash Flows E21-14, 16; 17, 22, P21-4

19 3/7/2018 Case 3

20 3/12/2018 Final Exam (Ch. 17, 21)

1You should view this syllabus and course schedule as a “living document” that will be updated over the course of the quarter.
Students are responsible for keeping up on changes, which will be announced in class and/or on Canvas.
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