Financial English

This course covers ten topics, each developing the student’s reading, listening, speaking, and writing skills: introduction to the ICFE exam, financial environment, accounting systems, company performance, auditing, ethics, fraud, banking, insurance, and bankruptcy.   

The introduction to the ICFE exam acquaints the student with all four parts of the exam: the Reading Test, the Listening Test, the Speaking Test, and the Writing Test.  This portion of the course offers an in-depth coverage of the ICFE exam and gives action plans on how to complete each section in an effective and timely manner.

The Financial Environment section covers the following topics: financial institutions, changes in International Accounting Standards, statements of financial accounting concepts, developments in accountancy, chartered accountancy, training to be a chartered accountant.

The Accounting Systems section is comprised of these areas: accounting qualifications, accounting interviews, and accounting software. 

The Company Performance unit of the course covers financial statements, company reporting, definition of accounting, accounts receivable, disclosure, big four accounting firms, investments, the balance sheet, and fund management.

The Auditing Section covers auditing reports, basic auditing principles, European and US auditing principles, harmonization of financial reporting, forensic accounting, auditing interviews, and the recruitment of auditors.

The topics of the unit of Ethics consist of accounting ethics, ethical reporting principles, ethical dilemmas, Sarbanes-Oxley Act, training in ethics for accountants, changes to ethics standards, and accounting abbreviations. 

The Fraud unit is comprised of six topics: fraudulent activities in accounting, famous fraudsters, changes in accounting law, corporate fraud, forensic accounting investigations, and tax avoidance. 

The unit on Banking covers financial reporting of central banks, role of banks, auditing of banks, central bank response to crisis, the credit crunch, banking supervision, as well as accounting standards and procedures. 

The Insurance unit covers eight topics: common insurance terms, insurance contracts, reinsurance, general principles of insurance accounting, international financial reporting standard for insurance contracts, captive insurance companies, financial stability of the insurance industry, and the regulatory framework of insurance. 

The Bankruptcy portion of this course is comprised of seven topics: language of bankruptcy, the WorldCom bankruptcy, the bankruptcy process, crisis in corporate government, role of insolvency practitioners, debt management, and alternatives to bankruptcy.