ICSAN Intro Accounting study plan
ICSAN Intro Accounting · Give each week a clear focus.
8 weeks · About 7 hours per week
Double-Entry Bookkeeping and Books of Prime Entry & Ledger Accounts, Trial Balance and the Correction of Errors
Apply the dual-entry rule to record 40 transactions across the five accounting categories (assets, liabilities, capital, income, expenses) without looking at a model answer
Post 30 journal entries to the correct ledger accounts (nominal, personal and real) and balance each account off at month end
Identify and use the seven books of prime entry, stating which transaction type belongs in each and how the totals reach the nominal ledger
Extract a trial balance from a set of balanced ledger accounts and explain why it balances and what it cannot detect
Your checkpoint
A hand-written or spreadsheet workbook containing 40 recorded transactions, posted ledgers, and an extracted trial balance that agrees in total debits and credits
Ledger Accounts, Trial Balance and the Correction of Errors & Bank Reconciliation Statements and Control Accounts
Classify the six types of bookkeeping error (omission, commission, principle, original entry, reversal, compensating) and state which affect the trial balance
Correct 15 seeded errors using journal entries and show the effect of each on profit and on the suspense account
Prepare a bank reconciliation statement from a cash book and bank statement, adjusting for unpresented cheques, uncredited lodgements, standing orders and bank charges
Reconcile receivable and payable control accounts to the list of individual balances and explain any difference
Your checkpoint
One reconciliation pack: a corrected trial balance after 15 error corrections, a suspense account cleared to nil, a completed bank reconciliation, and a control account reconciliation showing the list agreeing to the ledger balance
Adjustments, Accruals, Prepayments and Bad Debts & Preparation of Financial Statements for Sole Traders
Record accruals, prepayments and accrued income for six period-end items and show their effect on the statement of profit or loss and statement of financial position
Write off bad debts, create and adjust an allowance for doubtful debts, and calculate the net effect on profit for the year
Prepare a full set of financial statements for a sole trader from an extended trial balance, including adjustments
Reconcile opening capital to closing capital through drawings, profit and additional capital introduced
Your checkpoint
A complete sole trader statement of profit or loss and statement of financial position prepared from a trial balance with at least six year-end adjustments, plus a capital reconciliation that balances
Accounting for Non-Current Assets and Depreciation & Interpretation of Financial Statements and Ratio Analysis
Calculate depreciation under straight-line and reducing-balance methods and record the entries in the asset cost account, accumulated depreciation account and depreciation expense account
Account for the disposal of a non-current asset, including part-exchange, and compute the profit or loss on disposal
Compute the core ratios: gross margin, net margin, return on capital employed, current ratio, quick ratio, receivables days, payables days and inventory turnover
Interpret a set of ratios in writing, identifying two strengths and two weaknesses and linking each to a plausible cause
Your checkpoint
A depreciation and disposal workings sheet plus a one-page ratio analysis of a sole trader with at least eight ratios computed and interpreted in 300 words
Partnership Accounts and Incomplete Records & Interpretation of Financial Statements and Ratio Analysis
Prepare appropriation accounts for a partnership, including interest on capital, partner salaries, interest on drawings and residual profit sharing
Record the admission of a new partner and the revaluation of assets, showing the resulting adjustments to partners' capital accounts
Reconstruct incomplete records using mark-up and margin, control accounts and cash summaries to derive missing figures
Apply ratio analysis to a partnership and explain how drawings and capital structure affect return on capital
Your checkpoint
A partnership financial statement set (appropriation account plus current and capital accounts for three partners) and an incomplete-records reconstruction deriving at least four missing figures
Accounting Concepts, Conventions and the Regulatory Framework & Nature, Purpose and Scope of Accounting
State and apply the accruals, going concern, consistency, prudence, business entity and materiality concepts to eight short scenarios
Distinguish accounting concepts from conventions and explain how each shapes the treatment of a given transaction
Outline the role of the regulatory framework, including the standard-setting body and the purpose of accounting standards, without naming specific standard numbers you are unsure of
Explain the purpose and users of financial statements and the qualitative characteristics that make information useful
Your checkpoint
A one-page concept-application sheet answering eight scenarios with the concept applied and the accounting treatment justified, plus a 250-word note on the regulatory framework
Nature, Purpose and Scope of Accounting & Accounting Concepts, Conventions and the Regulatory Framework & Double-Entry Bookkeeping and Books of Prime Entry & Ledger Accounts, Trial Balance and the Correction of Errors & Bank Reconciliation Statements and Control Accounts
Complete 60 mixed calculation and journal questions across the bookkeeping, error correction and reconciliation domains under timed conditions
Re-derive from memory the structure of a trial balance, suspense account and control account without prompts
Review every wrong answer from weeks 1 to 6 and write the correct rule beside each
Explain the accounting equation and how each transaction type preserves it
Your checkpoint
A scored 60-question timed practice set with a written error log listing each mistake, the correct rule and the domain it belongs to
Adjustments, Accruals, Prepayments and Bad Debts & Preparation of Financial Statements for Sole Traders & Accounting for Non-Current Assets and Depreciation & Partnership Accounts and Incomplete Records & Interpretation of Financial Statements and Ratio Analysis
Complete two full-length mock papers under exam timing and mark them against a model answer
Prepare a full sole trader and a full partnership statement set from trial balances in under 45 minutes each
Compute and interpret a full ratio set from a set of published-style financial statements
Consolidate a final one-page summary sheet of formulae, journal templates and adjustment rules for last-day revision
Your checkpoint
Two completed and self-marked mock papers with a final one-page revision sheet of formulae, journal templates and adjustment rules
Milestones
Week 2: Correct a trial balance with 15 seeded errors, clear a suspense account to nil, and reconcile both a bank statement and a receivable control account to their supporting records without reference notes
Week 4: Produce a sole trader statement of profit or loss and statement of financial position with six adjustments and a depreciation/disposal schedule in under 60 minutes, scoring at least 70% against a model answer
Week 6: Score at least 75% on a 40-question mixed set covering domains 1 to 5, and correctly apply six accounting concepts to unseen scenarios
Week 8: Score at least 70% on two full-length timed mocks, with no domain scoring below 60%, and hold a complete one-page revision sheet covering all ten domains