The School of Business

Accounting Minor

ACCOUNTING MINOR

The Accounting Minor - complements any major, completed in as little as one additional term, covers all essentials, no admission requirements.

Accounting serves as the language of business, indispensable for all organizations. Accounting knowledge is often required to apply for a range of organizational roles; including financial analyst, data analyst, money manager, and financial advisor. When added to your current degree, the Accounting Minor provides an essential toolkit to compete in the job market and set yourself up for future success. 

An Accounting Minor can be completed in as little as one to two terms! All School of Business students must already take three of the required courses (BA 211, 213, and BA 325) as part of their existing degree.  Finance majors must also take ACTG 381.  BTA students can take ACTG 335 and 360 as degree electives.  As a result, many students only need three additional courses to add an Accounting Minor to their degree and transcript.

Through this minor, students acquire the skills to identify and record economic events, gain familiarity with taxation, and utilize software such as Microsoft Excel and Intuit QuickBooks. Join us to advance your professional development and acquire a critical skillset.

WHAT CAN I DO WITH A MINOR IN ACCOUNTING?

The Accounting Minor is designed to help elevate your career in any field or profession. Accounting components can be found in all business and disciplines, including arts and culture, science, health care, academia, and technology, to list a few. The Accounting Minor teaches technical skills that will help you expand your professional impact including:

  • Prepare for a career like financial analyst, data analyst, or financial advisor
  • Understand the language of business
  • Take control of your finances
  • Balance the books
  • Interpret, analyze, and present business data
  • Prepare and plan for taxes
  • Report on compliance to regulators

ACCOUNTING MINOR: DEVELOP ESSENTIAL SKILLS

PSU’s Accounting Minor a range of technical skills that compliment any business or non-business degree. Some of these technical skills include:

  • Financial Statement Analysis: Understanding how to analyze financial statements such as balance sheets, income statements, and cash flow statements to assess the financial health and performance of an organization.
  • Accounting Software Proficiency: Learning to use accounting software packages such as Excel, and QuickBooks, for tasks such as bookkeeping, financial reporting, and budgeting. 
  • Cost Accounting Techniques: Knowledge of cost accounting methods for analyzing and controlling costs within an organization, including job costing, activity-based costing, and variance analysis.
  • Taxation Knowledge: Understanding of tax laws and regulations, including income tax, sales tax, and payroll tax, and the ability to prepare tax returns for individuals and businesses.
  • Auditing Skills: Familiarity with auditing principles and practices, including techniques for examining financial records and ensuring compliance with regulatory standards.
  • Financial Modeling: Ability to create financial models and projections using spreadsheet software like Microsoft Excel, including forecasting future revenues, expenses, and cash flows.
  • Internal Controls: Understanding of internal control systems and procedures to safeguard assets, prevent fraud, and ensure the accuracy of financial reporting.

These technical skills are valuable not only for careers in accounting but also for roles in finance, and consulting, as well as for independent contractors, artists and professionals in the gig economy.

  • Make connections. Drawing on our deep connections to Portland, courses in the Accounting Minor are taught by industry professionals with professional licensures. Instructors offer constructive insight, context and applied experiences, and career guidance that goes far beyond what can be learned from a textbook. Students in the program also have access to resources within The School of Business, including advisors for career counseling, business student clubs for interest areas, internship opportunities, and networking events.
  • Take control. The Accounting Minor complements all business and non-business majors at PSU and can be completed in one year. All courses are offered every term, with daytime, evening, hybrid, and fully online sections available each year. 

Accounting Minor Highlights

  • Available to all majors, business and non-business
  • Focused on technical, practical, marketable skills
  • Depending on major, can be completed in as little as one term.
  • All courses are offered every term, with day time, evening, and fully online sections available each year
  • The five 300-level courses also count towards the Design Thinking/Innovation/Entrepreneurship University Studies Cluster, allowing students to optimize class time and credit hours while advancing to their career of choice

Curriculum

Download the Accounting Minor sequence sheet for additional details about our pre-requisites, requirements, credits and suggested sequences. 

Benefits

  • Tailored to your interests
  • Double-dip your business minor credits
  • Access to School of Business student organizations
  • Get customized career resources from the School of Business Career Center
  • Get access to loaner laptops

ACCREDITATION

Portland State University Accounting is fully accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB). The AACSB evaluates business schools' critical areas to ensure they provide high-quality education. AACSB accreditation has been associated with the highest standards in business education for over a century.