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This four-week program (also available on VHS or DVD) is the consolidation of Universal’s four one-week courses (modules). During this course, you will learn the entire process of accounting and bookkeeping for virtually any business or institution. Click here to get started

Program Curriculum
Accounting Made Easy (Module 1)
Practical Small Business Applications (Module II)
Advancing Your Account-Ability (Module III)
Building a Successful Accounting Service (Module IV)

Total Program Clock Hours — In Class 48 Hours
Estimated Time of Completion — 60 Hours
Tuition, books and materials $1,485

Course Attendance Schedule
In-class: Three hours per class period for four days each week (typically Monday through Thursday) for four weeks. Morning classes (when available) meet at 9 a.m. to noon; evening classes meet from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Upon registration, you will be notified as to the exact meeting times for your course.

Distance learning: You will receive 16 two-hour VHS or DVD media encased in four attractive albums for easy storage along with four companion workbooks.

Potential Occupations
The course prepares you for possible employment in the following occupations:

Accountant Accounts Payable Clerk

Here's What You Will Learn in Universal's Four Week Accounting Training Program:

Day 1 - Develop First-Rate Accounting Skills
Accounting -- An international career of choice
The tried and proven accounting system that ensures efficiency, accuracy and integrity
The fundamental building block of the accounting process
The one accounting rule you should never break
How to portray accounts -- where they go and why they go there
One source of easy money that many retailers never consider, and most accountants don't know about
The single best indicator of a company's financial strength

Day 2 - Consult on Key Business Issues
The must-know principles of marking down assets
The what's, when's, where's, and how's of depreciation
Three methods of depreciating fixed assets - when and why to use them
Two methods of calculating the allowance for bad debts
Present the business legal structure with confidence
The 'Three Pigs' approach to starting a business
INDIVIDUAL EXERCISE: Practice categorizing over 90 accounts into their appropriate general ledger section

Days 3 & 4 - Assemble the Financial Puzzle
The technique that will enable you to navigate the debit/credit maze
Mastering the accountants' troubleshooting tool
How the income accounts connect into the balance sheet
Developing the financial picture -- an introduction to preparing financial statements
Gross Profit: What it is, and what it means
PRACTICE: Drill...drill...drill -- Enter over 100 different transactions into 12 different companies

Day 5 - Real Life Data Entry
Setting up a set of books from scratch
How to 'lock-in' on credit purchases
How to capture and report reliable sales data
Know precisely where all those hard earned dollars were spent
Learn what the computer does with all that financial data it is fed
Understand the whys and wherefores of advantageous payment terms used by vendors

Day 6 - Prepare Payroll like a Seasoned Pro
What they don't teach you in college about payroll
Three tests to determine when a person is an employee or not, and how to escape costly IRS penalties by ensuring you're right
When you should use an outside payroll service instead of doing it yourself
An up-to-the-minute review of new payroll rules and guidelines
How and when to prepare those bewildering quarterly reports with confidence
Calculate cost of goods sold faster and with less information
Understand the relationship between markup and profit

Day 7 - Your First Client
Utilize all 3 methods of calculating cost of goods sold in an authentic situation
Experience the accounting system for 3 types of businesses (all under one roof): Grocery store, gas station, and auto repair shop
Understand how subsidiary ledgers tell it all
CASE STUDY: Transform the first month's transactions into a complete set of financial statements for Barry's Gas & Groceries

Day 8 -Two Businesses you Will Want to Know
The right recipe for the bakery and catering business books
Efficient and accurate reporting of inventory adjustments, and owner costs
How to highlight cash shortages and overages -- when are they a problem?
CASE STUDY: Stewart's Bakery has hired you as their accountant -- Complete a month's books from beginning to end
CASE STUDY: Prepare a well-fitted accounting system for a clothing store and prepare the first month's financials for City Clothing Company
SELF-TEST: Test yourself -- see how you are coming so far with a self-checked open book exam.

Day 9 - Dealerships: Accounting doesn't get anymore complicated than this
Dealing with the big bucks
How to effectively handle Flooring - the necessary evil of high-cost retailers
Accounting for creative selling
Understand additional sources of income dealers might have that might earn you profits whether you are the dealer or the customer
CASE STUDY: Discover how dealerships account for large transactions by completing the accounting for a motorcycle dealership

Day 10 - Gear up for an Audit
How to get that iron-clad feeling -- without a shadow of a doubt -- that your financials are right
Identifying, customizing, and instituting effective auditing techniques
Learn how to spot and avoid dangerous trends
How to save the company thousands of dollars in auditing costs
Speak with confidence to auditors and management alike
EXERCISE: Practice reconciling inventory, receivable and liability accounts
The two very first things you must do when accounting for a company
Set up an efficient system from 'scratch'
How to establish an organized system that will ensure your value as an accountant

Day 11 - Establish the Accounting Method that Fits the Business Best
Choosing between the cash and accrual methods
How to set up a hybrid system that will reap the benefits of both methods
CASE STUDY: Complete the accounting for Sonja's Art and Frame on a cash basis then convert it to the accrual method
Deciding on a fiscal or calendar year
6 final adjustments that should be considered at year-end
Resetting the financial score
EXERCISE: Prepare the final adjusting entries and close out the general ledger for a company

Day 12 - Manufacturing and Construction Accounting
How to set up and run an efficient accounting system for the small 'ma and pa' manufacturing company
The simplifying trick to Process Accounting - "SPECs"
How to price manufactured goods
EXERCISE: Calculate the manufacturing costs for three months for the Widget Manufacturing Company
Job Costing -- A simple way to track costs by the project
CASE STUDY: Perform the accounting for two different contractors -- each having different types of operations

Day 13 - Support the Contractor
Three construction computations that you must know
Tracking revenues and costs by month
One step that you must never forget
CASE STUDY: One Last Time - Prepare all journals, general ledgers, subsidiary ledgers, and financial statements for Alfredo's Deli

Day 14 - Put it all Together
An in-depth review of the entire course

Day 15 - Non-Profit Organizations
Accounting for non-profit organizations such as home-owners associations and churches
FINAL EXAM: Take this opportunity to evaluate for yourself if you're ready to practice what we preached

Day 16 - Establish an Action Plan for Success
Making an interview fun
A resume that gets results
Present your self with confidence and professionalism
How to make positive change happen
A 3-phase marketing program that works every time