Course Content and Outcomes Guides (CCOG)

CCOG for BA 177 Winter 2025


Course Number:
BA 177
Course Title:
Payroll Accounting
Credit Hours:
3
Lecture Hours:
30
Lecture/Lab Hours:
0
Lab Hours:
0

Course Description

Covers fundamental skills and basic knowledge in the area of business payroll. Focuses on payroll and personnel record keeping. Includes calculation of gross pay using various methods, Social Security and Medicare taxes, federal and state income taxes, and federal and state unemployment taxes. Covers journalizing and posting payroll entries, and completing various federal and state forms. Recommended: MTH 58 or MTH 60 and spreadsheet experience. Audit available. Prerequisites: BA 111 or BA 211 or instructor permission, (WR 115 and RD 115) or IRW 115 and MTH 20 or equivalent placement.

Addendum to Course Description

Students will prepare a business payroll in both a manual and computer format.  Fundamentals of payroll accounting will be
 learned.  Major topics include: record keeping, wage calculation, federal and state regulations and how they impact business, and
 payroll journalizing.  A manual and a computer based payroll project are assigned.  This course is a requirement for the
 Associate of Applied Science in Accounting.
 

Intended Outcomes for the course

Upon completion of the course students should be able to:

  1. Prepare payroll reports containing gross taxable compensations, common withholdings, net pay amounts, and do the related accounting in a non-automated system.
  2. Prepare payroll reports and form filings in compliance with government regulations.
  3. Use a basic payroll system to determine employer’s and employees’ taxes to be paid.

  4. Identify the methods of submission of payments in a non-automated system.

Course Activities and Design


    The materials in this course will be presented in lecture format.
    Other strategies such as discussion, guest lectures, research
    papers and group work may also be used.
   
    The lecture time will be used to explain federal and state laws and
    procedures that are used in payroll accounting.  Time will also be
    devoted to explaining the procedures to be used in completing the
    manual and computer payroll projects.
   
    The student is expected to do the homework assigned for each
    chapter, a manual payroll project, and a computer payroll project.
 

Outcome Assessment Strategies


    At the beginning of the course, the instructor will detail the
    methods used to evaluate student progress and the criteria for
    assigning the course grade.  Grades will be determined by the
    student's demonstration of understanding by applying course
    material in the manual and computer payroll projects, the assigned
    homework, and tests and/or quizzes.  Policies with regard to late
    homework and make-up tests should be established in the first class
    meeting.
   
    EXPECTED STUDENT COMPETENCIES:
    The learning outcome will be demonstrated by achievement of
    proficiency in these three performance tasks. 
   
     1.  Payroll and personnel record keeping.
     2.  Calculation of pay.
     3.  Payroll journalizing.
   
    Performance tasks will demonstrate proficiency in these skills and
    abilities:
   
     *Calculation of gross pay and net pay for an individual
     *Journalizing of all payroll transactions
     *Calculation of the the employer's unemployment taxes 
     *Recording of a payroll in a payroll register and 
             journalizing from it
     *Recording in an individual employee's earnings record
     *Application of federal and state regulations to a payroll