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LANCASTER UNIVERSITY MANAGEMENT SCHOOL Department of Accounting and Finance AcF 100 Introduction to Accounting and Finance Lent Term: Individual Coursework Essay (10%) This is an individual task. You may work in your project groups to find relevant source materials and share information, but the actual essay must be your own work. There will be a workshop to discuss this coursework task in Lent term (week 1), but you may wish to start gathering source materials for this task in advance. 1. THE TASK You should write an essay on the following topic: Why is it important for external auditors to be independent? Relate your answer to the primary role of external auditors. Give examples of specific ways the lack of auditor independence may impact adversely on an audit. Your aim is to research this topic area widely by using resources available in the library, from course reading materials and on-line sources. Students wishing to score highly on this essay should aim to read as widely as possible, since a better appreciation of the issues will be reflected in your discussions/arguments in the essay if you have read a number of different sources. REQUIRED: Your word-processed essay should be between 1,250 and 1,500 words in length. Essays longer than 1,500 words will be penalised. The essay should be word-processed in Microsoft Word format. Your essay should include: a. a brief introduction b. main body discussion c. a conclusion which summarises the main argument/findings d. a reference list e. an appendix (if desired)

2. GUIDANCE ON REFERENCING A reference list should be provided at the end of your essay, which refers only to those sources, books, articles and website addresses you have actually used in writing your essay. The reference list is not included in the word count. The Department of Accounting and Finance has adopted the Harvard system of referencing. Here are a few specific guidelines about the Harvard system of referencing: a) When making the reference