Master of Science in Finance

This course is intended for graduate students who expect at some point in their careers to use financial statements to evaluate earnings quality, performance, prospects, and value of a business. The primary emphasis will be on the analysis of public companies, but most of the tools and techniques utilized are also relevant to private firms’ financial analysis. This course focuses on the fundamental analysis of valuation, with a focus on developing and applying methods for valuing firms using financial statement analysis.

This course is designed to introduce the principles and practices of various financial decision-making tools and techniques, and the statistical methods which are used both in the direct solution of financial problems and as foundations for more advanced statistical models and analysis. Topics include collecting data; describing, sampling, and presenting data; probability; statistical inference; regression analysis; forecasting; and risk analysis. Microsoft Excel is used extensively for organizing, analyzing, and presenting data.

This course aims to provide students with a robust understanding of the theoretical foundations and logical frameworks within financial economics. Students will explore standard economic models that studies the behaviors of consumers and producers in financial settings, exploring the consequential impact on resource allocation and market efficiency. The course will also scrutinize fundamental economic tools, including optimization, comparative statics, and equilibrium, emphasizing their direct application to financial contexts. Throughout the course, emphasis will be placed on how economic tools can be adeptly applied to address challenges in both financial and business domains. By the end of the course, students will have developed a strong comprehension of the theoretical underpinnings of financial economics and the practical skills to navigate financial decision-making.

This course focuses on the source, nature, and interpretation of accounting information; the analysis of financial data; the role of ethics in finance and accounting; and the impact of technology on accounting and financial information. Students will develop a better understanding of complex accounting topics, including equity transactions and cash flow statements. Students will utilize key financial features in Excel  and will evaluate a company’s financial performance based on its financial statements and related disclosures.

This course continues financial statement analysis of public companies, with a focus on special issues such as income taxes, post-employment compensation plans, and intercorporate investments. Students will investigate financial reporting in publicly traded companies, and develop an understanding of financial statement analysis from a global perspective. Techniques for adjusting financial statements and determining the quality of financial reports will be used throughout the course. The course will culminate in a research paper that comprehensively assesses the investment quality of a company based on its financial reports. Prerequisite: FIN 671

This course focuses on the strategic use of cost information for planning and control, as well as costing products, services, and customers. Students will learn alternative ways of measuring costs to meet different management objectives, the role of budgeting as a planning and management tool, the use of cost analysis as a control tool to help management meet short- and long-term profit objectives, and the importance of ethics in achieving all of these objectives.

This course is designed to introduce the principles and practices involving finance and investment decisions of multinational firms operating globally. Topics will include foreign exchange markets, financial instruments in the international capital markets, corporate exchange risk management, international investment decisions, global financing strategies, financial crises, and related issues. This course will be exclusively focused on financial management and investment as it relates to the international environment.

This course focuses on the essential elements of money, banking and financial markets. The emphasis is on macroeconomics including forms and functions of money, financial markets, the role of electronic trading, interest rates, efficient markets, depository institutions and regulations, money supply, central banks, the role of the Federal Reserve, and monetary policy. Students will explore advanced treatment of money and its role in the economy. Students will also examine and analyze the various financial structures and institutions, the Federal Reserve System, and the increasing importance of the global financial arena. Special emphasis is placed on financial events and policy issues.

This course is designed to explore the field of security analysis, beginning with an in-depth study of fixed income securities. Students will learn to apply theory of analysis and valuation of fixed income securities through course assignments and activities. Topics include markets and trading, valuation, risk and return, credit analysis models, and term structure theories.

This course is designed to explore advanced methods and techniques of corporate finance with an emphasis on application. Topics include corporate structure and governance; working capital and liquidity; capital investments; capital structure and cost of capital; dividends and share repurchases; corporate restructurings; and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) considerations in investment analysis.

This course covers the major classes of derivative securities: forward contracts, futures contracts, options, and swaps. A derivative security is a financial security whose value depends on (or derives from) other more fundamental underlying financial variables, such as the price of a stock, an interest rate, an index level, a commodity price, or an exchange rate. Derivatives can be used to hedge or obtain insurance against existing risk exposures; however, derivatives do not offer a panacea in managing risk. Prerequisite: FIN 678.

 

This course deals with the construction and management of an institutional investment portfolio. The course provides the necessary understanding and tools crucial in portfolio management activities. Students will develop an appreciation for the various perspectives and techniques associated with portfolio management and security analysis and apply their knowledge by analyzing stocks and other investments with the guidance of their professor.

This course is the capstone course for the Master of Science in Finance program and provides students with an integrated learning experience grounded in finance. Students will manage an investment portfolio in a market simulation program and evaluate the outcomes. The course integrates advanced methods and techniques of finance with an emphasis on investment management. Prerequisite: FIN 673, FIN 679, FIN 672, and FIN 683.