Teaching 

Financial Statement Auditing

I designed this undergraduate course to be a both a conceptual and hands-on introduction to Financial Statement Auditing in the context of public company audits.  Structurally, this course consists of four case assignments, one group project, and three exams; students are also responsible for staying up to date on current events by listening to the daily podcast Up First (NPR). 

Accounting Ethics 

I designed this undergraduate course three Module course to be a pragmatic and thoughtful introduction to Ethics in Accounting. In Module I students are exposed to behavioral ethics concepts - with a focus on dishonesty (Ariely 2011). In Module II students are introduced to specific concepts and rules in accounting (e.g., AICPA code of conduct, independence requirements, Sarbanes-Oxley Act). In Module III students  understand the context behind historical, contemporary, and seminal corporate fraud and abuse in the United States.  Structurally, this course consists of five case assignments, one individual project, and weekly quizzes; students are also responsible for staying up to date on current events by listening to the daily podcast Up First (NPR).  The majority of course materials are publicly sources and therefore free to students (approximate course cost $30).

Fraud Auditing and Examination

This is an advanced graduate course on contemporary accounting/auditing issues, audit regulation, corporate governance, risk assessment and professional ethics practices. 

Undergraduate Student Testimonials (Spring 2022)

• "I think Professor Kim does a great job of keeping her students engaged. I can tell that she does make an effort to encourage every student in the class to participate. She's also very enthusiastic about the content she teaches and it's easily recognizable. She's a professor I'd willingly reach out to even once the course ends because she seems like both a great educational and life mentor."

• "Professor Westermann is right up there with one of the best professors I have had in the College of Business. Her approach to student learning in Accounting Ethics is one that values the student absorbing information as opposed to regurgitating which I think is extremely helpful. Having quizzes weekly that force students to come to class prepared and ready to talk and learn fosters an environment where students want to be ready for class and are excited to come talk about what they learned. If that isn't a job well done as a professor I don't what would be. I am tired of professors assigning a textbook and telling us good luck and handing us a midterm expecting us to get any sort of quality education out of it, and Westermann is an amazing refresh from that."

• "Hands down one of the best professors I have had at Cal Poly."

• "I thought she was very effective and it was nice that she could bring real-world from accounting into the classroom."

• "Professor Kim makes a genuine effort to connect with her students and engage the classroom. This effort shows in the cohesive classroom environment. She prioritizes classroom engagement, which creates exciting discussion that is so rarely found in accounting classrooms."

• "College is so much about memorizing, and learning rules, but it is often never connected to the real world. I felt that I learned so much from Professor Kim because of this, and I was genuinely excited to come to class every day (which is hard to do in accounting). Sure we were learning more interesting content than debits and credits, but the movies, podcasts, articles, and class discussions that we had on the content were so effective that I believe I got everything out of the class that I could. I believe she is one of if not the most effective accounting professor at Cal Poly."

• "Professor Kim represents what a college-level professor should work to emulate. She shows care to her students and classroom work, her research and the proactive thinking about the field of study, and the University community."

• "Professor Kim truly cares about her students and the information they retain. She has a clear teaching approach and gets students involved. Personally, I am not one to speak in front of the class or answer questions, but was comfortable and motivated in this class to do so."

• "I believe Professor Kim did an amazing job, and she really made sure each assignment added value to the students experience rather than only providing busy work. She was also able to make the course very engaging, so the students were all very tuned into the lectures."

• "I have had her twice now and believe that she is an extremely impactful teacher for all her students. She made harder classes easy to understand and helped her students succeed and develop their passion for accounting even further. She is kind, welcoming, and wants to see her students succeed. While grades are important to her, she prioritizes student growth and understanding as well, helping us be better off in the future."

• Professor Kim is great. She cares about the material she teaches and the students in her classroom. She motivates her students and wants them to perform well. This doesn’t mean she makes exams easy but definitely fair and comprehensive of the material we read

• "Professor Kim challenged me as a student to grow and it was amazing how much we got through in 10 weeks."

• "Professor Kim is an absolutely amazing professor. Out of all my teachers, I feel like I have learned the most from her and this class. She truly cares about her students and makes sure they feel heard and important. The material of the class is taught in such an effective way and I rarely felt bored!!!"

• "Professor Kim is one of my favorite professors I have had at CalPoly. She has a way with engaging students in the concepts of the course to provide them with meaningful takeaways. She has a genuine love for the material and helping students that is evident the first day you walk into class. Not only does she personally introduce herself to everyone in the class by individually shaking our hands and asking our names, but she makes a point in making herself available if we ever need help. When discussing current events or course material and we ask a question that has never been asked before, she will make a note of it to research later and give us an answer for the next class."

• "One of the best professors I have had in college. She really opened student's eyes to seeing all of the career paths available with an accounting degree other than just working for the big four. The ethics class was by far the best accounting class and seeing the history of accounting legislation plus the importance of it reaffirmed my decision to do accounting. I also felt that this was the most "up to date" class I have taken at Cal Poly. You can tell she puts a lot of effort in making the material beneficial to us graduating within 1-2 years."