Best Free Business MOOCs In November

Understanding Financial Statements: Company Position

School: University of Illinois

Platform: Coursera

Registration Link: REGISTER HERE

Start Date: November 6, 2017 (4 Weeks Long)

Workload: 2-4 Hours Per Week

Instructor: Kevin Jackson

Credentials: Since 2004, Jackson has taught accounting courses at the University of Illinois to graduate and undergraduate students. Holding a Ph.D. in accounting psychology from the University of Texas, Jackson is renowned as a top teacher, with students ranking him “Excellent” on average from 2005-2014. Before entering academia, Jackson held senior and leadership positions at Ernst & Young, Baker Hughes, and KPMG Peat Marwick. His most recent work has been published by The Accounting Reviewand Contemporary Accounting Research.

Graded: Students can choose to explore course videos, discussions, and ungraded assignments for free, but they won’t be able to submit graded assignments, earn a certificate, or complete a specialization without paying a $79 fee.

Description: What does a company own and what does it owe? That’s the question answered by the balance sheet — a tool used to standardize financial reporting by measuring assets and liability. Think of it as a snapshot — a gauge of a firm’s health at a consistent interval in key areas like cash flow and debt-to-equity. To help students learn about financial statements, Professor Jackson takes a different tact, taking them inside a real company and sharing the perspectives of various decision-makers and stakeholders. In doing so, students will learn the components of a balance sheet, the meanings of various items that comprise it (and how they impact each other), and the questions that they should ask to understand what is being measured.

Review: “Great course! Mr Jackson put a lot of effort into the construction of the class and explained everything in detail so that you get a solid understanding of the Balance Sheet.” For additional reviews, click here.

Additional Background: This course is part of the University of Illinois’ “Fundamentals of Accounting” specialization, the school’s, a five course series that also covers financial statements for company performance and positioning and how accounting impacts strategy assessment and control. To learn more about this specialization and register for it, click here.