EuraStudy
RevisionRevision / N11UK · A-Levels
Accounting
A-Level Accounting is the quantitative, procedural study of how the financial events of an organisation are recorded, summarised, reported and interpreted, and how accounting information is used to plan and to make decisions. It is delivered here through the AQA 7127 specification (regulated by Ofqual). The subject has two halves that map onto the two examination papers. Financial accounting builds from the accounting equation and the double-entry model, through the trial balance and its verification (control accounts, bank reconciliation, the suspense account and the correction of errors), the underlying concepts (accruals, prudence, going concern, consistency, business entity, materiality), and the preparation of financial statements - the income statement and the statement of financial position - for sole traders (with adjustments for accruals, prepayments, depreciation, irrecoverable debts and inventory), partnerships, limited companies and organisations with incomplete records. Management (cost) accounting then supplies the tools for decision making: budgeting and budgetary control, marginal costing and break-even, standard costing and variance analysis, absorption and activity based costing, and capital investment appraisal. Throughout, the accuracy of the figures and the logic of double entry are paramount, and every calculation is paired with the interpretation, analysis and evaluation - and the ethical judgement - that discriminate the top grades.
0/74 Texts18 Chapters~316 min total
AQA 7127 3.1AQA 7127 3.2AQA 7127 3.3AQA 7127 3.4AQA 7127 3.5AQA 7127 3.6+12 moreFoundationStandardAdvanced
Table of contents · 18 ChaptersT·18
- The role of the accountant in business
- Types of business organisation
- The double entry model
- Verification of accounting records
- Accounting concepts and principles
- Financial statements of sole traders (with adjustments)
- Accounting for incomplete records
- Partnership accounts
- Limited company accounts
- Limited companies (advanced)
- Ratio analysis and interpretation
- Budgeting and budgetary control
- Marginal costing
- Absorption and activity based costing
- Standard costing and variance analysis
- Capital investment appraisal
- Interpretation, analysis and communication
- The impact of ethical considerations
- Paper 1 - Financial Accounting (AQA 7127/1)
- 3 hours, 120 marks, 50% of the A-Level. Assesses the financial-accounting content: the role of the accountant, types of business organisation, the double entry model, verification of accounting records, accounting concepts, the financial statements of sole traders (with adjustments), partnership accounts, limited company accounts (including advanced issues such as share and rights issues, the statement of changes in equity and the statement of cash flows), incomplete records, and the interpretation, analysis and communication of financial information, together with the impact of ethical considerations. Item types run from multiple-choice and short structured tasks, through the preparation of ledger accounts and financial statements, to extended analytical and evaluative responses requiring reasoned judgements.
- Paper 2 - Accounting for Analysis and Decision-making (AQA 7127/2)
- 3 hours, 120 marks, 50% of the A-Level. Assesses the management (cost) accounting content used for planning and decision making: budgeting and budgetary control, marginal costing and break-even, standard costing and variance analysis, absorption and activity based costing, and capital investment appraisal (payback, the accounting rate of return and net present value), together with the interpretation, analysis and communication of accounting information and the impact of ethical considerations. Questions combine calculation with the interpretation of the result and an evaluated recommendation - a numerically correct answer that is not interpreted or evaluated cannot reach the top bands.
- Assessment objectives and their weighting
- Three assessment objectives are assessed across both papers. AO1 (knowledge and understanding of accounting principles, concepts and techniques) carries approximately 30% of the marks; AO2 (application - selecting and applying knowledge to prepare accounts and financial statements and to perform calculations in familiar and unfamiliar contexts) carries approximately 40%; and AO3 (analysis and evaluation of financial and non-financial information to make reasoned judgements, decisions and recommendations) carries approximately 30%. The dominance of AO2 and AO3 means that accurate figures are necessary but never sufficient - marks are earned by applying the technique correctly in context and by interpreting and evaluating what the figures mean.
- Structure and grading
- Both papers are sat at the end of the linear two-year course; there is no coursework. The qualification is graded A*-E (with U below E). A standalone AS qualification (AQA 7126) assesses a subset of the financial-accounting content over two shorter papers and is graded A-E. Calculators are permitted in both papers, and clear, well-labelled workings are expected: method marks are available even where a final figure is wrong, so candidates must always show how each figure was derived and present accounts and statements in the correct format.