BA 325: Introduction to Taxation

Winter 2007 Syllabus

 

Professor:         Dr. Jared A. Moore                                     E-mail:        mailto:Jared.Moore@asu.edu

Office:              BEXL 224E                                                 Phone:       737-2517

Class Times:     MW 2:00 – 3:50pm (CRN 28431)                 Classroom:  BEXL 207

                        MW 4:00 – 5:50pm (CRN 28432)

Office Hours:    MW  12:45 – 1:45pm   (or by appointment)

                        T  3:00 – 4:00pm

 

COURSE OVERVIEW

 

Welcome to BA 325, Introduction to Taxation. 

BA 325 is the first of two tax courses offered through the College of Business.  It covers concepts related individual and business taxation and focuses primarily on 1) basic income tax law as it relates to individuals, 2) the role of income taxes in decision making processes, and 3) basic income tax research.  In addition, the course is intended to assist students in preparation to become a professional, and thus is structured to aid in the development of technical, analytical, problem-solving and communication skills.

 

Class will be conducted in a lecture-discussion format.  Topics will be introduced and examples will be given in class.  In addition, there will be in-class exercises from time to time that will require participation from students.  Students are expected to bring to class the textbook, a calculator and a printout of the class notes for the chapter(s) to be covered in class.  This is a tough and time-consuming course.  Make sure your schedule allows you sufficient time to be successful. 

 

Prerequisites:

BA 317 and BA 340 (with C or better), and departmental approval.

 

Required Resources:

  Text:   

  Murphy and Higgins, Concepts in Federal Taxation, 2007 Edition (hereafter M&H)

a)      This textbook comes with an access code to the RIA Checkpoint Student Edition online tax research database.  This resource will be used at various points throughout the class.

 

  IRS Forms, Instructions, and Publications:

Certain IRS forms, related instructions, and publications will be used throughout the course.  These documents are available at http://www.irs.gov/ and can be downloaded without charge.

 

  E-mail:  

E-mail will be used at times to communicate course information to students outside of class – and you are responsible for information communicated through e-mail.  All students need to have a functional COB (College of Business) e-mail account (@bus.oregonstate.edu) and check it AT LEAST DAILY.  Everyone in the class has a COB e-mail account – and if you do not regularly check your COB account, it is your responsibility to get your COB account forwarded to the e-mail account you do use. Instructions for setting up your account, forwarding messages, and answers to any questions you might have regarding your COB account may be found at http://faculty.bus.oregonstate.edu/sullivan/it-support/email.htm. 

 

  Blackboard:  

Class notes (Power Point slides) and various other course materials will be available for download from the course Blackboard site at https://my.oregonstate.edu/webapps/login.  Important course announcements will also be posted on this site – and you are responsible for any such information.  Thus, it also needs to be checked AT LEAST DAILY.

 

Important Dates:

Last Day to Drop a Course by Web:                               Jan. 19, 11:55pm

Last Day to Withdraw from a Course:                            Feb. 23, 11:55pm

Last Day for Total Withdrawal from University:              Mar. 16, 5:00pm

 

 

COURSE POLICIES

 

Academic Dishonesty:

Cheating and plagiarism will not be tolerated in this course.  If a student is caught engaging in such activity, he or she will be dealt with according to University and College of Business guidelines and will be subject to penalties ranging from a failing grade on the assignment, exam, quiz, etc. in question to a failing grade for the course.  All students will be required to sign an Academic Dishonesty form at the beginning of the class.

 

Grading:

Final grades will be determined based on the following structure:

 

Tax Research Cases   (2)	20 points
Quizzes	50 points
Tax Return Project	80 points
Midterm Exams   (2)	200 points
Final Exam	110 points
Professionalism	40 points
Total	500 points

 

• Grades are calculated based on the plus/minus system.  Specific information is available on the Blackboard site in the “Syllabus” folder.
• The 500 points listed above are the only points available for the class.  In other words, no extra credit.
• GRADE LIMIT:  A student can earn no more than one full letter grade above his or her exam average (midterms and final).

 

Tax Research Cases:  Two tax research cases will be assigned that will require you to find answers to technical questions and communicate your findings.  These cases are to be completed in a professional manner, meaning that they must be typed, proof read, clear, and accurate.  You may, and are encouraged to, work with a partner to complete the tax research cases (no more than two people per team).

 

Quizzes / Homework:  Problems will be assigned from each chapter to give you practice in applying the concepts learned.  It is essential that you work through these on your own before coming to class so you can participate in any class discussion and so the material presented in class is easier to absorb.  Homework will not be collected, but there are three ways in which failing to complete the homework assigned can adversely affect your grade. 

 

First (and most directly), there will be 6 on-line quizzes worth 10 points each that will consist of questions taken directly from the homework assigned.  The quizzes are 1) “open-book,” 2) do not have a time limit, 3) must be completed by you alone (no working together), and 4) must be completed before 2:00pm on the due date shown on the class schedule.  You will take the quizzes through the Blackboard site.  Your lowest quiz score will be dropped for determination of your final grade.

 

Second, successfully learning the material in this class depends at some level on having adequate practice and repetition.  Much of this practice is provided by the homework.  As such, failure to take the homework seriously often translates into lower exam scores.

 

Finally, coming to class unprepared to participate in class discussions will adversely affect your Professionalism grade for the class (described in detail below).

 

Tax Return Project:  You will be assigned a tax return project worth 80 points in this course.  This project will come in three parts, with portions due at the beginning of class on three different dates.  More information on the nature of the work and time frame will be provided in class.  You may, and are encouraged to, work with a partner to complete the tax return project (no more than two people per team).  There may or may not be some class time available to organize and discuss the assignment; however, substantial out-of-class work will be required to complete it.  Late work will be accepted up to the next class session, but with a 25% penalty for each 24 hours or part thereof that it is late. 

 

Exams:  Both midterm exams will be administered during normal class times on the dates shown on the schedule portion of the syllabus.  The final exam will be held at the times prescribed by university policy, which are also shown on the schedule portion of the syllabus.  All exams must be taken during the times scheduled (missed exams cannot be made up).  Absence from a scheduled exam without prior approval from the professor will result in a grade of zero on the exam.  Approval to be absent from an exam will only be granted in cases of extreme personal emergency.  Written verification of the personal emergency must be provided.  Note that recruiting activities, oversleeping, parking trouble, traffic, etc. are NOT considered extreme personal emergency.

 

Graded exams remain the property of the professor, but may be viewed at any time during office hours.

 

Each student must have his/her own calculator as no sharing will be allowed on exams.  Also, students are responsible for battery failure and/or calculator malfunction – and may not use this as a reason for excused absence from an exam or additional time to complete an exam.  Finally, cell phone calculators or other calculators with text storage capabilities are not permited.

 

Professionalism:  Professionalism consists of class participation, preparation for class, attendance, punctuality, cooperation, respect for colleagues, respect for the instructor, etc.  You are strongly encouraged to come to class prepared and to participate in class discussion (including asking questions when you have them).  Please refrain from behaviors that are disruptive to the learning process and/or disrespectful (to the instructor or to other students) such as coming to class late, working on or reading materials for other classes during class, conversing with other students during class, using your cell phone (e.g., texting) during class, etc.  Please turn cell phones off.  Finally, since both sections of the course are full, please attend the section for which you are registered.  The Professionalism points in this course (noted above) will be awarded on the basis of the professionalism elements listed above and will amount to about 8% of the total course grade. 

 

Grading Disputes:

Students who believe that an error has been made in the grading of an exam, project, or quiz should submit a written request for re-grading within one week of the originally graded exam, project, or quiz being returned in class.  This request must identify the item in question and describe why the student believes it has been graded erroneously.  Students should understand that submission of this request will result in a re-grading of the item in question, which may produce a lower score than originally received.

 

Syllabus Changes: 

Changes to the syllabus are not anticipated and would only occur if absolutely necessary.  However, you are responsible for any changes announced in class, communicated through e-mail, and/or posted on Blackboard.

 

Students with Disabilities
Accommodations are collaborative efforts between students, faculty and Services for Students with Disabilities (SSD). Students with accommodations approved through SSD are responsible for contacting the faculty member in charge of the course prior to or during the first week of the term to discuss accommodations. Students who believe they are eligible for accommodations but who have not yet obtained approval through SSD should contact SSD immediately at 737-4098.

 

 

OBJECTIVES FOR BA 325

 

The primary learning objectives of this course are to acquire suffiecient knowledge and comprehension of the internal revenue code and regulations and federal income tax forms to enable you to apply income tax concepts and income tax law to properly prepare income tax returns, to analyze and solve income tax compliance issues, to formulate solutions to complex income tax planning problems, to assess various income tax issues that arise based on the underlying facts and circumstances, and to communicate your understanding of income tax issues to clients and colleagues.

 

 

 

 

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