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Financial Accounting

Financial Accounting
Balance sheet showing assets and liabilities
Financial Accounting
Discover What's Behind the Numbers in Financial Statements

Financial Accounting teaches key accounting concepts and principles to illuminate financial statements and unlock critical insights into business performance and potential. Explore how managers, Wall Street analysts, and entrepreneurs leverage accounting to drive strategic decision-making.

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What You'll Learn

Play an Introduction to Financial Accounting video
Play an Introduction to Financial Accounting video
Go to Course Syllabus
  • Discover how balance sheets, income statements, and cash flow statements are developed and how each interact
  • Evaluate the financial health of a business using financial statements
  • Understand GAAP and IFRS standards
  • Prepare and evaluate financial forecasts to make strategic decisions
  • Value a venture, project, or investment opportunity and perform a sensitivity analysis

About the Professor

Professor V.G. Narayanan - Financial Accounting

V.G. Narayanan is the Thomas D. Casserly, Jr. Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School and chair of the MBA program’s second-year elective curriculum. He has served as the course head for the first-year required accounting course for MBA students, Financial Reporting and Control, and chairs several executive education programs. His research in management accounting focuses on understanding how firms can use incentives and feedback to improve performance.

Who Will Benefit

Graduation Cap

College Students and
Recent Graduates

Learn the language of business through accounting as you gain the skills and knowledge to analyze financial statements.

School

Those Considering an MBA

Prepare for the MBA classroom with the program Harvard Business School offers to incoming students.

Briefcase

Mid-Career Professionals

Gain confidence in your ability to understand financial statements and communicate financial results.

Program Structure

Financial Accounting consists of approximately 60 hours of material delivered over an eight-week period. You can complete the coursework on your own time while meeting regular deadlines.

January 2021
  • Length: 8 Weeks
  • Program Dates: 1/13/21 – 3/10/21
  • Cost: $1,600
  • Application Deadline: January 4
  • Detailed Calendar
  • Course Platform
  • Certificate Program
Apply Now
March 2021
  • Length: 8 Weeks
  • Program Dates: 3/17/21 – 5/12/21
  • Cost: $1,600
  • Application Deadline: March 8
  • Detailed Calendar
  • Course Platform
  • Certificate Program
Apply Now

This course is also part of our three-course Credential of Readiness (CORe) program—consisting of Business Analytics, Economics for Managers, and Financial Accounting—available for $2,250.

Interested in mastering business essentials in CORe?

Learn More

Note: Participants that enroll in the Financial Accounting course are not eligible to enroll in the CORe program. And if enrolling in the CORe program, participants are not eligible to enroll separately in the Financial Accounting course.

Syllabus

Financial Accounting will teach you the fundamentals of financial accounting from the ground up. You will learn how to prepare a balance sheet, income statement, and cash flow statement, analyze financial statements, and calculate and interpret critical ratios. You will also learn the role of managerial judgment in choosing accounting estimates and methods. The course concludes with an introduction to forecasting and valuation.

Learning requirements: In order to earn a Certificate of Completion, participants must thoughtfully complete all 7 modules, including satisfactory completion of associated quizzes, by stated deadlines.

Download Syllabus

Modules Case Studies Takeaways Key Exercises
Module 1: The Accounting Equation
  • Cardullo's Gourmet Shoppe
  • Apple Inc.
  • Bikram Yoga Natick
  • Understand key accounting concepts, terms, and principles
  • Demonstrate how different transactions impact the accounting equation
  • Quiz
Module 2: Recording Transactions
  • Cardullo's Gourmet Shoppe
  • Bikram Yoga Natick
  • Understand where financial statement information originates
  • Record business transactions as journal entries
  • Construct a trial balance
  • Quiz
Module 3: Financial Statements
  • Hipzone
  • Green Mountain Coffee Roasters
  • Understand the content and purpose of the income statement and balance sheet
  • See how the trial balance is used to create the balance sheet and income statement
  • Construct the balance sheet and income statement
  • Quiz
Module 4: Adjusting Journal Entries
  • PepsiCo
  • Understand complex accounting transactions and how they relate to accounting principles
  • Recognize the impact of judgment and bias on financial statements and accounting practices
  • Record advanced business transactions as journal entries
  • Quiz
Module 5: The Statement of Cash Flows
  • Morgan Stanley
  • American Red Cross
  • Understand how to construct and interpret the cash flow statement
  • Recognize the differences between GAAP and IFRS standards for cash flow statement creation
  • Use the statement of cash flows to evaluate the financial health and life-cycle stage of a business
  • Quiz
Module 6: Analyzing Financial Statements
  • Morgan Stanley
  • Evaluate company performance using profitability, efficiency, leverage, and other ratios
  • Analyze ratios and use the DuPont Framework to evaluate the financial state and strategy of a business
  • Team discussion
  • Quiz
Module 7: Forecasting and Valuation
  • American Red Cross
  • Metropolis Healthcare
  • Use financial forecasting to predict future revenue, expenses, and cash flow
  • Understand key concepts and metrics in valuation, including time value of money, terminal value, and net present value
  • Prepare pro-forma financial statements
  • Calculate and forecast free cash flows
  • Learn how to value a venture, project, or investment opportunity and perform a sensitivity analysis of key assumptions
  • Quiz

The HBS Online Advantage

Play an Introduction to the HBS Online Platform video
Play an Introduction to the HBS Online Platform video
  • World-class faculty
  • Edge-of-your-seat online learning
  • Global peer collaboration and networking
  • Real-world, case-based learning

Harvard Business School Online offers a unique and highly engaging way to learn vital business concepts. Immerse yourself in real challenges faced by business leaders across a variety of industries. Financial Accounting puts you in the shoes of an equity research analyst, yoga studio owner, and leader of one of the largest nonprofits in the United States. You’ll wrestle with the same issues they faced, while problem-solving and interacting with fellow learners from around the world.

Play Participants share their experiences video
Play Participants share their experiences video

Stories from Our Learners

  • A few weeks into the course, accounting terminology came alive as I realized why accounting is the language of business. I can now talk confidently with clients and understand the business aspect of their problems.
    Gaurang Manjrekar,
    Technology Consultant
  • Daily, I use the accounting principles succinctly enumerated by Professor Narayanan. I especially use what I learned in the volunteer work that I do as a board member for two nonprofit organizations.
    Richard Pitts,
    Chief Medical Officer


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Frequently Asked Questions

Do I have to log in at a set time? How does the grading process work? At this point, you probably have a few questions, and we’ve got answers.

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Enrollment Eligibility

Our easy online application is free, and no special documentation is required. All applicants must be at least 18 years of age, proficient in English, and committed to learning and engaging with fellow participants throughout the course. We confirm enrollment eligibility within one week of your application.

Apply Now

Apply Now


Financial Accounting Certificate of Completion from HBS Online
Earn Your Certificate

Enroll today in Harvard Business School Online's Financial Accounting course.

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  • Mini-courses pave the way to a full MBA
  • New Dean of Harvard Business School Online Aims for Modular Courses, More Diversity
  • HBS Online Will Keep Changing The Game. Here’s How.

Courses

  • CORe
  • Alternative Investments
  • Business Analytics
  • Data Science Ready
  • Disruptive Strategy
  • Economics for Managers
  • Entrepreneurship Essentials
  • Financial Accounting
  • Global Business
  • Leadership Principles
  • Leading with Finance
  • Management Essentials
  • Negotiation Mastery
  • Sustainable Business Strategy

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  • Contact Us
  • Apply Now

Connect with us Online

Sign up for News & Announcements

News

  • How to Prepare Financially for an Economic Recession
  • Mini-courses pave the way to a full MBA
  • New Dean of Harvard Business School Online Aims for Modular Courses, More Diversity
  • HBS Online Will Keep Changing The Game. Here’s How.

Courses

  • CORe
  • Alternative Investments
  • Business Analytics
  • Data Science Ready
  • Disruptive Strategy
  • Economics for Managers
  • Entrepreneurship Essentials
  • Financial Accounting
  • Global Business
  • Leadership Principles
  • Leading with Finance
  • Management Essentials
  • Negotiation Mastery
  • Sustainable Business Strategy

Quick Links

  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Contact Us
  • Apply Now

Connect with us Online


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