The requirements for undertaking the University of Cape Town (UCT) Financial Accounting: General Accounting.
If I want to be an accountant, why should I choose UCT?
The College of Accounting has top quality lecturers and programmes and gives you your best chance of success! In addition, UCT has consistently achieved outstanding results in the national qualifying SAICA exams. We have one of the best track records within South Africa.
What are the entrance criteria for a BCom in Accounting?
You need to have a Faculty Point Score of 430, 60% for Maths and 50% for English HL (or 60% for English FAL), and an NBT score of Upper-Intermediate for AL and QL.
Can I get in if I have done Mathematical Literacy at school?
Unfortunately, not. You need pure Mathematics.
Do I need to have done Accounting at school?
No! We will teach you all the Accounting you need to know.
What is the difference between a BCom and a BBusSc, and why should I choose one or the other?
A BCom degree is 3 years, and the BBusSc degree is 4 years. If you know that you want to become a CA (SA) or another form of an accredited accountant, and you want to do it in the minimum amount of time, then choose the BCom. If you want to have a 2nd major in finance, and do a number of other business courses, and you can take an extra year with your studies, then choose the BBusSc. The BBusSc Finance with Accounting degree is offered by the Department of Finance and Tax.
When must I decide between a BCom and a BBusSc degree?
When you apply to UCT you’ll apply for a Commerce degree. At Orientation, there will be more information to help you decide which degree is right for you. The only difference between the two degrees in 1st year is that BBusSc has an extra maths course in the 2nd semester. So, there is still a chance to choose later on during 1st year, or even at the start of your 2nd year.
What is the difference between the BCom Chartered Accountant and the BCom General Accounting degrees?
The degrees are identical until your 3rd year, so you don’t need to choose between them until that stage. During 3rd year, you do a different financial reporting course (Financial Reporting III vs Financial Reporting & Analysis), and on the CA programmes you do one additional course required by SAICA (Business Analysis & Governance).
What can I do with a BCom General Accounting degree?
You can carry on to postgraduate studies in an accounting field (like public sector accounting, tax, finance and more), or you can continue your journey to be an accredited accountant locally through SAIPA, or globally through ACCA or CIMA.
What can I do with the BCom Accounting with Law degree?
The Accounting with Law degree offers you an introductory degree in both Accounting and Law. After graduation, you can choose to continue with Law and apply to do a 2 year LLB with the Faculty of Law (instead of the normal 3 year LLB). Alternatively, you can choose to continue with Accounting (and you would need to do a few additional undergraduate courses, and then continue your Accounting qualification).
Bachelor of Commerce specialising in Financial Accounting: General Accounting [CB001ACC08]
This degree is designed to give students a broad understanding of accounting and provides a more practical business focus than the BCom Chartered Accountant stream and the BCom Accounting with Law stream. It serves as a basis for the opportunity to enter professional associations, such as ACCA, CIMA and SAIPA. It is designed to serve the needs of students who are not interested in doing the Postgraduate Diploma in Accounting (PGDA) and continuing to qualify as Chartered Accountants (SA), but nonetheless appreciate the value of an accounting degree.
With this qualification, you could aim to become a general manager, business advisor, accountant, tax official, accounting officer, company secretary, internal auditor and tax advisor.
For more information on the courses, please refer to the Commerce Undergraduate Handbook.
Your next move
UCT offers many programmes. If you do not meet up to the requirements of this programme you can consider another programme on the list. Go to >> University of Cape Town Faculties/Programmes.
However, if you meet the requirements and wish to apply to study this course. You can simply check the application processes.
