What Does a Tax Specialist Do? 2025 Career Guide
January 15, 2025
Article
This course is part of Fundamentals of Accounting Specialization
Instructor: Kevin E. Jackson
75,286 already enrolled
Included with
(1,338 reviews)
(1,338 reviews)
Describe the purpose of a balance sheet and its three components.
Recognize and understand the meaning of several items typically presented on a balance sheet.
Explain the broader purpose of financial statements and the role of accounting in producing the financial statements.
Read and, to some extent, interpret real-world balance sheets.
Add to your LinkedIn profile
13 assignments
Add this credential to your LinkedIn profile, resume, or CV
Share it on social media and in your performance review
This course is designed to provide a basic understanding of financial statements with an emphasis on the balance sheet. However, to understand accounting driven financial statements, it is important to recognize that accounting is less about counting and more about measuring. “What is it that is being measured?” Well, as the course unfolds, you will learn about the three measurement questions and how the balance sheet helps to answer the first two of these questions. By touring a real company and interviewing real business people, the course describes the basic content of financial statements in a simple yet relevant context. The goal of the course is to leave a lasting impression about what balance sheet consists of and what it reveals. The next course in the Fundamentals of Accounting Specialization completes the conversation by addressing the remaining measurement question.
Upon successful completion of this course, you will be able to: • Describe the purpose of a balance sheet. • Define the three components of a balance sheet. • Recognize and understand the meaning of several items typically presented on a balance sheet. • Explain the broader purpose of financial statements and the role of accounting in producing the financial statements. • Read and, to some extent, interpret real-world balance sheets. If you enjoy this business course and are interested in an MBA, consider applying to the iMBA, a flexible, fully-accredited online MBA at an incredibly competitive price offered by the University of Illinois. For more information, please see the Resource page in this course and onlinemba.illinois.edu.
You will become familiar with the course, your classmates, and our learning environment. The orientation will also help you obtain the technical skills required for the course.
1 video5 readings1 assignment1 discussion prompt1 plugin
This module will introduce you to the basics of financial statements by emphasizing the links between accounting, measurement, and financial statements.
2 videos2 readings3 assignments
This module will explain the basics of the balance sheet, provide a working definition of assets, and give you an overview of assets typically presented on the balance sheet.
2 videos2 readings3 assignments
This module will introduce you to the concept of liabilities and explain what they are and how they can arise.
2 videos2 readings3 assignments
This module will build an intuition for what equity represents. It will also explain how the components of the balance sheet relate to one another.
3 videos3 readings3 assignments1 peer review1 discussion prompt1 plugin
We asked all learners to give feedback on our instructors based on the quality of their teaching style.
The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is a world leader in research, teaching and public engagement, distinguished by the breadth of its programs, broad academic excellence, and internationally renowned faculty and alumni. Illinois serves the world by creating knowledge, preparing students for lives of impact, and finding solutions to critical societal needs.
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Course
Duke University
Course
Corporate Finance Institute
Course
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Build toward a degree
Course
1,338 reviews
80.68%
16.48%
1.86%
0.29%
0.67%
Showing 3 of 1338
Reviewed on Nov 30, 2020
It's a good course for beginners. Coursera Courses can only provide you the full benefits of the learner completes the whole specialization, not just a single course.
Reviewed on Aug 24, 2017
Kevin is such a great professor! He really knows how to break the jargon and the concepts down so that they're easy to understand. Such a fantastic teacher!
Reviewed on May 22, 2016
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
Unlimited access to 10,000+ world-class courses, hands-on projects, and job-ready certificate programs - all included in your subscription
Earn a degree from world-class universities - 100% online
Upskill your employees to excel in the digital economy
Access to lectures and assignments depends on your type of enrollment. If you take a course in audit mode, you will be able to see most course materials for free. To access graded assignments and to earn a Certificate, you will need to purchase the Certificate experience, during or after your audit. If you don't see the audit option:
The course may not offer an audit option. You can try a Free Trial instead, or apply for Financial Aid.
The course may offer 'Full Course, No Certificate' instead. This option lets you see all course materials, submit required assessments, and get a final grade. This also means that you will not be able to purchase a Certificate experience.
When you enroll in the course, you get access to all of the courses in the Specialization, and you earn a certificate when you complete the work. Your electronic Certificate will be added to your Accomplishments page - from there, you can print your Certificate or add it to your LinkedIn profile. If you only want to read and view the course content, you can audit the course for free.
If you subscribed, you get a 7-day free trial during which you can cancel at no penalty. After that, we don’t give refunds, but you can cancel your subscription at any time. See our full refund policy.
Yes. In select learning programs, you can apply for financial aid or a scholarship if you can’t afford the enrollment fee. If fin aid or scholarship is available for your learning program selection, you’ll find a link to apply on the description page.