Paper Assignment

The final assignment for this course is a Final Paper. The purpose of the Final Project is for you to culminate the learning achieved in the course by describing your understanding and application of knowledge in the field of accounting. The paper must (a) identify the main issues in the chosen area, (b) contain and reference new learning that has occurred, (c) build upon class activities or incidents that facilitated learning and understanding, and (d) present specific current and/or future applications and relevance to the typical workplace. The Final Paper should also focus on real life, real time application of topics covered in this course; the uses you have seen and the uses you can envision. The paper must be submitted to your instructor no later than 11:59 pm of the time zone in which you reside on the last day of class.

Focus of the Final Paper

Submit a paper on one of the major topics listed below and incorporate at least two other related articles of your choice:

• How does the firm use "Cost-Volume-Profit Analysis" to assess performance? How would you use such a system to measure how costs change as production changes? How do you develop a "break even analysis" for a given firm and how would you use it?

• What is "Activity Based Costing" and how does it work? What does it do for a firm employing such a system? How do you go about developing such a system in a firm? What are the steps? What would an example look like?

• Why is cost accounting so important to the success of the firm? What are the various methods of cost accounting and how are they used?

• How does an operating budget work to discipline a firm's management? What are the elements of a budget? How are budgets constructed? What is "Variance Analysis" and how is it used?

Writing the Final Paper

The Final Paper:

• Must be 8 to 10 double-spaced pages in length, and formatted according to APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center.
• Must include a title page with the following:

- Title of paper
- Student's name
- Course name and number
- Instructor's name
- Date submitted

• Must begin with an introductory paragraph that has a succinct thesis statement.

• Must address the topic of the paper with critical thought.

• Must end with a conclusion that reaffirms your thesis.

• Must use at least 5 scholarly resources, including a minimum of 2 from the Ashford Online Library.
• Must document all sources in APA style, as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center.

• Must include a separate reference page, formatted according to APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center.