Finance Major

Associate Dean: Joseph Bailey, Ph.D.
Assistant Dean: Brian Horick

Finance encompasses:

  1. Corporate finance:  The financial management of corporations
  2. Investments:  The management of securities and portfolios
  3. Financial institutions and markets:  The management of financial institutions and the study of their role in the economy

The Finance curriculum is designed to familiarize the student with the institutions, theory, and practice involved in the allocation of financial resources within the private sector.  It provides an educational foundation for careers involving corporate financial analysis and management, investment analysis and portfolio management, investment banking, risk management, commercial banking, and international finance; it also provides a foundation for graduate study in business administration, economics, and law.

Admission to the Major

See "Admission Requirements" on the Robert H. Smith School of Business page.

Program Learning Outcomes

  1. Apply elements of critical thinking.
    2.
  2. Identify common situations in chosen career that could result in ethical dilemma.
    3.
  3. Analyze ethical scenarios and apply frameworks to develop solutions.
    4.
  4. Foster and sustain team environments that are inclusive of ideas from all contributing members.
    5.
  5. Apply leadership skills to motivate and coordinate with other to achieve goals.
    6.
  6. Write professional-grade business documents.
    7.
  7. Develop and deliver effective oral presentations.
    8.
  8. Identify and use appropriate quantitative tools and techniques.
    9.
  9. Use software applications to analyze and solve problems.
    10.
  10. Explain how functional areas interact and drive one another.
    11.
  11. Apply financial theory to solve a problem where a change in capital structure impacts the cost of equity capital.
  12. Analyze capital budgeting using discounted cash flow techniques.
    13.
  13. Determine the value of a firm with and without leverage.
Course Title Credits
College Requirements
BMGT343Investments3
BMGT440Advanced Financial Management3
Select four of the following courses:12
BMGT342
Wall Street Finance
BMGT347
Quantitative Financial Analysis
BMGT441
Fixed Income
BMGT442
Advanced Portfolio Management
BMGT443
Applied Equity Analysis and Portfolio Management
BMGT444
Futures and Options Contracts
BMGT445
Banking and Financial Institutions
BMGT446
International Finance
BMGT447
Intermediate ECON
One intermediate Macro (ECON305/ECON325) or Micro (ECON306/ECON326) course
In addition, a MAXIMUM OF ONE of the following courses (3cr) may be applied towards this 12 cr requirement:
BMGT349
Private Equity and Venture Capital
BMGT448
Special Topics in Finance
BMGT449
Investment Fund Management: Lemma Senbet Fund
Select one of the following:3
BMGT310
Intermediate Accounting I
BMGT313
Financial Statement Analysis
BMGT332
Quantitative Models for Management Decisions
BMGT430
Data Modeling in Business
BMGT438A Applied Quantitative Analysis (QUEST) and ECON423 Econometrics II (ECON majors) are approved as course substitutes for this major requirement.
Upper Level Economics Requirements for the Finance major
ECON330Money and Banking3
or BMGT341 Financial Markets
Total Credits24

Click here for roadmaps for graduation plans in the Robert H. Smith School of Business.

Additional information on developing a graduation plan can be found on the following pages: