My Life at Cass: Akansh Ganeriwala

From a first year to a final year Investment and Financial Risk Management (with Placement) student, my life at Cass has been a memorable journey of self-development, focused teaching and learning, and unbelievable practical exposure. From my perspective, this is why Cass is special and the reason why I would love to come back to Cass for postgraduate studies. It is simply the extra mile Cass has helped me go that distinguishes its quality from other reputed institutions for me.

Life at university was never only about lectures, exams and graduation; it was a step-wise learning process that provided me with exposure to business and entrepreneurship challenges, sporting societies and cultural clubs. Having been a student ambassador, Aim Higher associate, Squash captain, Cricket opening batsman, team-leader in the Social Enterprise Challenge and CIMA Global business challenge, and a team member in City Spark; I feel it’s appropriate for me to say that Cass has given me a lot more than just the knowledge about my degree. At the same time, the Investment and Financial Risk Management degree has given me tremendous insight to the three most important aspects of Finance: Corporate Finance and Investment Valuation, Portfolio Management and risk-return analysis, and Risk Management. The collation of these three areas via various ‘core’ and ‘elective’ modules has surely given me the theoretical knowledge of Finance. Furthermore, the examination structure where practical application of theoretical knowledge is tested with course-work ensured that I not only learned the subjects but understood them as well.

Besides the amazing experiences I was able to gain exposure to, Cass’ placement option allowed me to be amongst the handful students who got the opportunity to attain a placement at HSBC. This one year experience between the penultimate and final year of university surely added tremendous value to my character and professional development. 

Overall, I can only say that university life is one of the best experiences and Cass itself makes this experience even more worthwhile. For all prospective students, I would like to highlight that no one day at Cass will be the same ensuring your time at Cass is not at all monotonous. A typical day is tough to define but from my experience it involves lectures, group coursework, sports and extra-curricular team meetings for the business challenges I took part in. In any spare time, I have acted as a student ambassador and Aim Higher associate helping budding students understand their university decision-making correctly and accurately.

Finally, I would like to conclude with a heartfelt thank you to all the people at Cass who helped make my experience a lifetime memory.

Spotlight on a course – BSc Accounting and Finance

Dr Bala Balachandran, Course Director for the BSc Accounting and Finance programme at Cass shares a conversation about the course, Cass and London life.

•  What is Accounting and Finance, and why is it such a key degree? 

Accounting is concerned with the ways in which organisations communicate information about their performance to the outside world while Finance deals with how the business is funded

It is a key degree as it is a relevant degree to the accountancy profession and offers exemptions from the professional accountancy examinations. For instance the BSc A& F offers EIGHT credits for prior learning. 

•  What makes the degree at Cass so special and unique from others? 

Manchester, Warwick and Cardiff are part of the Undergraduate Partnership programme with the ICAEW. Cass is not. This means we can be different. We are different from the other three in that in the third year we prepare students for the external examinations of the ICAE. Also the great advantage is that Cass is in the heart of London, and the City – the world’s financial centre, so all the najor accountancy, financial and business firms are here, and Cass has excellent links with them. 

• Which areas of accounting and finance do the course cover, and what are we expected to study as students? 

The course covers a broad range of accounting and business subjects which will equip you with the fundamental knowledge required for your future career. Year one will see you cover the basic principles of accounting and finance, as well as developing your quantitative skills.  On to year two, you will be introduced to more complex topics such as financial accounting, and are allowed to choose a range of elective modules that deepen and further your knowledge and skills and can be reflective of your career aims.

The final year builds on all your knowledge gained whilst focusing on highly specialised areas including audit, assurance and corporate finance. 

• Are there any unique key aspects of the degree? 

Yes We prepare students for the external examinations for the ACA qualification. 

•  What do you look for in student’s qualities? 

Motivation., Time management, group or team working skills , above all lots of hard work. 

• Some students may feel that Accounting and Finance is quite a specialised degree, is this true?  

Yes. It is specialised as opposed to a general degree, however that doesn’t limit you in terms of looking for a job after graduation, you have a deeper understanding of the area you want to focus your career in, however during your three years you cover a wide range of broader areas as well, so the choice is really yours want you want to go into. Many employers, don’t just look for specific academic training, what they want are skills, to be flexible, able to work to timescales, and sell yourself.

• What I can expect after graduation, what career opportunities are available to me? 

The world is your oyster: you can work in banks, accounting practice such as auditing and taxation, charities and football clubs.

To find out more on BSc Accounting and Finance and our suite of undergraduate programmes, why not register for the next Open Day on Saturday October 22^nd 2011.

You will have the opportunity to meet current students, lecturers, and gain valuable tips and advice of gaining a top job in the City. 

Or by ordering a Cass Undergraduate Prospectus