Course overview

As one of the fastest growing areas of accounting, there is an increasing global demand for specialists with forensic accounting knowledge and skills. This course therefore aims to provide a progressive, challenging and stimulating framework of study that will equip you to work in this field.

Through the application of professional forensic accounting tools, models, techniques and knowledge, you will gain a comprehensive range of skills covering the three core areas of forensic accounting:

• litigation support
• expert witnessing
• fraud examination

The course will allow you to develop your accounting skills for use in litigation - civil, criminal and corporate (including business valuation, assessment of economic damages, proceeds of crime, fraud and money laundering). Alongside processes and procedures, you will learn how to investigate a case, gather evidence, prepare expert reports and provide evidence. In this context you will also consider areas such as corporate integrity and management control, fraud and forensic analysis, cyber crime and interviewing and testimony.

Those taking the part-time route can also incorporate their own work as part of the learning process.

Benefits to employers, financial and legal professionals and organisations also include:

• the development of accounting skills for use in litigation
• knowledge of evidence gathering and investigative techniques, litigation processes and procedures, preparation of expert reports and evidence
• the flexibility to specialise in an area of choice from fraud examination through litigation consulting to expert witnessing

Find out more

For further information, please contact our Admissions Team (details above). We also hold regular postgraduate and part-time open evenings at which you can see our facilities, enjoy a guest lecture and meet the academics and current students over drinks and canapés. Applicants will be interested to know that each year Portsmouth Business School offers a number of scholarships for self-funding students

Course content

Comprising four taught units, followed by the research dissertation.

Applicants on the part-time programme with a strong current experiential background in the forensic accounting field will also, as an alternative to completing certain taught units, be able to carry out tutor-guided professional development learning units.

Financial Analysis and Modelling will enable you to gain a critical awareness of the financial environment from both an accounting and finance perspective. You will learn to understand, analyse and interpret company reports, examine the role of the regulatory framework for corporate reporting and the stock market and explore the pricing of securities. In addition the key areas of decision and risk analysis are covered , alongside the process of decision making, key statistical concepts, and selecting and using appropriate analytical software tools as aids to decision making.

Expert Witnessing and Dispute Resolution enables you to examine the full range of formal and informal methods for dispute resolution within common law, and civil and criminal legal systems, whilst also developing an understanding of the legal and practical protocols alongside the procedural knowledge and etiquette governing the appointment and testimony of expert witnesses. You will also develop a clear understanding of the legal basis and critical elements required to construct an expert report for submission in civil and criminal proceedings.

Financial Forensics and Investigation develops an understanding of the need for an holistic approach in the investigatory models applied so that you can develop a critical, questioning and evaluative approach in assessing financial data. The primary evidential elements will be considered with a particular emphasis on gathering information from interviews and examining key issues and innovative approaches.

Financial Crime and the Lawfocuses on an appreciation and understanding of the wide variety of financial crime and how the current regulatory framework and crime control statutes have developed to deal with them. Features of corporate integrity and management control systems will additionally instil an understanding of the development and needs of corporate governance in the context of the control theories of the firm.

The Dissertation

Your dissertation is the final part of the course. You will undertake a 15,000-word research project (dissertation) that combines a review of previous research undertaken in your chosen topic with your own data collection and analysis. This provides a unique opportunity for you to demonstrate the subject knowledge you have acquired, as well as your analytical abilities and problem-solving skills which are highly regarded by potential employers. During this phase, your research will be supervised by an experienced academic with expertise in your chosen topic area.

Teaching and assessment

You can study this course full time over 12 months or part time over 30 months.

A variety of teaching and learning approaches are used. Formal classes, such as lectures and seminars, will provide the basis for the development of relevant knowledge, which will be furthered through activity-based case studies. Classes are challenging but informal and friendly, and you are encouraged to participate in discussion and debate.

Support is readily available. Course tutors are available to support your studies through face-to-face tutorials, email and telephone conferencing. You will also be assigned a personal tutor and will have access to our Academic Skills Unit (ASK), which offers assistance on a wide range of issues from essay writing to time management and referencing conventions.

In addition, if English is not your first language, there are free courses available to help familiarise you with the use of English for academic purposes.

Career prospects

The MSc Forensic Accounting is an ideal route into a wide range of professional roles in litigation support, expert witnessing and fraud examination. The qualification will be suitable for a number of roles in financial regulatory authorities, law firms, accountancy practices and law enforcement agencies. Our Purple Door Careers and Recruitment team will support you in developing the skills needed to pursue employment opportunities in your chosen career area.

Facilities and features

Our purpose-built Business School in the centre of Portsmouth offers a state-of-the-art learning environment with a dedicated postgraduate area. This includes a computer drop-in and resource centre containing a wireless network access area, as well as printing and photocopying facilities.

The University Library is at the centre of academic life and is only a short walk away. Open from 8am until midnight every day during term-time, it provides a variety of information to help with study and research. It has also invested heavily in the purchase of electronic resources. There are over 10,000 electronic journals available, together with thousands of ebooks, which can be accessed across campus, from home or wherever there is an internet connection. A recent multi-million pound extension also provides new IT areas and group study rooms.

For international students we have a dedicated team of advisors within our International Office to support you as you settle into life in Portsmouth and at the University. One of the team almost certainly has direct experience of your culture and may even speak your language.

Entry requirements

The entry requirements for MSc Forensic Accounting are shown above, for more detailed information please contact:

Department: Portsmouth Business School
Tel: +44 (0)23 9284 8200
Email: pbs.postgradadmissions@port.ac.uk