MSC ACCOUNTANCY

MSc Acc: Academic Rigour, Flexibility and the Opportunities

It is a lot easier these days to gain valuable business perspectives, be sought after by the Big Four accounting firms, and yet be afforded flexible schedules with the MSc Accountancy programme offered by Nanyang Business School (NBS).

Pursuing an MBA programme in Accountancy provides its students with a solid foundation in business and financial skills needed across all industries. There is access to valuable internship opportunities while still in school and they stand to command better positions and higher salaries upon graduation.

What is great about NBS’s MSc Accountancy programme is that it is a big opportunity for non-Accountancy graduates to gain entry into the sector, while also providing career advancement for those already in the accounting and finance sector.

We approached three of our students, past and present, to offer us their thoughts on how the programme has contributed to their lives and careers.

Tengfu Li, Senior Lead Analyst at OCBC

Tengfu, like many others in the financial sector, got his undergraduate degree in electrical engineering, and initially found that he was able to grasp the fundamentals of finance without needing a degree in the field.

It was only when his responsibilities grew at work, did he realise that he lacked sufficient financial knowledge of companies around the world. This made him consider getting back into academia and getting a qualification in accounting and finance.

“NBS has a big reputation in Singapore, and I have a lot of peers who have taken up its accountancy programmes before. They have mostly told me that it has been very beneficial to them. Their alumni also hold very important positions in many big companies, which was another pull factor and helped make my decision on its MSc Accountancy programme a lot easier.”

He was quick to point out that it is very important for interested candidates to know what they want out of the programme first – which is half the battle won – before it helps them along their goals via its academic rigour and learning experiences with its professors.

The flexibility of the course, in that it is also offered on a part-time basis, has greatly benefitted Tengfu, who had to seek permission from his bosses to apply for this programme.

“They saw that it would be beneficial to my work in the bank. The programme also allowed me to switch roles in the bank, where I now deal with corporate financing. My skillset has expanded as a result and I am very thankful for it.”

Now in his current role in OCBC as a Senior Lead Analyst, Tengfu develops and maintains scorecards and capital models supporting the corporate portfolio of the bank. These scorecards are used for credit underwriting, while the models ensure the bank has enough capital to withstand credit shocks.

He has the faculty to thank for his newfound opportunities at work – his favourite professor in the programme is Associate Professor Valerie Low, simply because she made something as dry and boring as Business Law become very relatable and learnable.

Felisa Tirtawinata, Co-Director at Tee Inkers Pte Ltd

Felisa hails from a very interesting background, having pursued her undergraduate degree in Food Science and Technology at National University of Singapore (NUS).  According to her, she has always held science and math equally dearly throughout her academic life, but then came along a business opportunity in t-shirt printing in her first year of undergraduate life.

“There were many university events that required the printing of t-shirts, so we jumped on it. My partner and I initially started off as agents, and then we hand-printed our own to control the quality. The business started to grow, but we knew nothing about business management, finance, and accounting, which are very important in running a company. So after graduating from NUS, I decided that I should learn more about business, especially accounting, which is the foundation of any organisation.”

When quizzed on why she didn’t make a switch to accountancy earlier, she admitted that it would have been a hassle to switch; plus the venture was for fun initially. As the business began to grow, her need for business knowledge found her picking NBS’s MSc Accountancy programme for its worldwide recognition, its convenient part-time offering, and working experience not being a requirement for admission.

She has found the seminars in school most memorable so far, which always provide valuable business perspectives and intimate knowledge of the industry. It “also helps that the professors in NBS are brilliant; my classmates are fun, intelligent, hardworking, and kind.”

She feels that prospective students who are looking to jump into the accounting industry without any working experience, looking to run a business eventually, or just want to challenge themselves should find this programme an ideal choice.

Besides the quality networking that she has raved about, she admits that student life is no walk in the park, with plenty of projects, exams, and presentations to look forward to, and that the experience as a whole has exceeded the expectations she had in the beginning.

Shout outs are in order to Associate Professor Choo Teck Min, Associate Professor Valerie Low, and Associate Professor (Practice) Lee Kin Wai for being her favourites in the faculty.

Swad Wen Ong, Financial Controller at the Ministry of Defence

Unlike Tengfu and Felisa, Swad Wen is an industry veteran who spent a decade of her career at the Ministry of Finance, where she was exposed to the formulation of various financial and budget policies to drive prudent stewardship of government expenditure.

Her subsequent move to the Health Promotion Board saw her gain increased exposure to public sector finance in an operational environment, with her contributions assuming a wider scope.

When she was awarded a scholarship to pursue a post-graduate degree, she was looking at acquiring more knowledge and skills in the fields of accounting and auditing, so that she could continue making a difference in leadership positions.

“I chose to pursue the MSc Accountancy programme in NTU, which is well-known for its world class graduate education. They have experienced and well-qualified accounting faculty, who have trained executives on their way to leadership roles in the accounting and finance fields.”

In her current role as Financial Controller in the Financial Governance and Development Department of the Ministry of Defence, Swad Wen is responsible for driving strong financial governance and internal controls within MINDEF/SAF.

When asked if school has contributed to her job, she was quick to point at the Risk Management and Auditing courses in the MSc Accountancy programme, which offered her an in-depth understanding of key assurance and Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) concepts.

“It allowed me to develop the ability to obtain an understanding of an entity’s internal controls and evaluate their effectiveness.  It also allowed me to develop the skills to identify, evaluate and manage important risks.  I was also exposed to hands-on data analytics application in the areas of fraud risks and audit analytics.  The knowledge and skills I acquired were invaluable as they can be applied in my current role to review and formulate robust financial policies and governance frameworks to prevent the misuse of and loss of public funds, and to uphold the prudent use of resources.”

With all the knowledge and skills that she has amassed over her years in the industry, she’ll be looking at the following traits when looking out for her successor – take notes!

• Excellent strategic thinking, people management, and stakeholder engagement skills
• Meticulous in systems thinking, analytical and evaluation skills
• Excellent problem solving, decision-making, and project management skills

As for those prospecting the MSc Accountancy programme, she has forewarned on the amount of hard work and late nights that will be needed over a very intensive year. There will be plenty of ideas and opinions shared in class through collaborative learning where everyone draws from each other’s’ perspectives and experiences in their respective careers.  She feels that her one year in NBS has given her more than she had asked for, which will translate to fulfilling her job requirements more than adequately.

For preparing her well in the prime of her career, she would like to thank Associate Professor Choo Teck Min for making very complex accounting topics easy to digest. For making risk management and auditing lessons much easier on the eyes and ears through candid sharing of experiences, she has Associate Professor Tan Seet Koh and Mr Goh Kia Hong to thank.

Key takeaways from our interviewees

– Getting some work experience before embarking on an Masters programme is helpful because most of the learning happens via the sharing of experiences with your peers.

– NBS’s MSc Accountancy and its global relevance is one of its key attractions, with many of its faculty hailing from the upper echelons of world renowned accounting establishments.

– Leverage off Singapore’s sterling reputation as a financial and business hub in Asia, accompanied by its favourable geography, its pro-business and trusted government, and its sophisticated infrastructure when you make our MSc Accountancy programme your choice.

Learn more about the MSc Accountancy programme here.