Master of Science in Finance (MSF) Curriculum

Curriculum and Program Requirements

The Master of Science in Finance (MSF) is a broad and flexible graduate program in finance. The MSF program is designed to be a 3-semester residential program. The curriculum consists of preparatory courses, required courses and elective courses. Students need to complete a minimum of 40 graduate level credits, at least 28 of which, including preparatory and required classes, are in Finance

*Most preparatory and required courses would be completed in the first fall semester; however, dependent upon a student’s background and career goals, some preparatory courses may be waived, substituted, or taken in the spring semester.

Preparatory Courses

MSF students are from a variety of backgrounds, not necessary in business or finance. Some students may need to work on their fundamental knowledge in important areas during their first semester. We offer four preparatory classes in the fall semester:

• FIN 580 Corporate Finance (4 credit hours)
  This course will cover a broad range of corporate finance topics providing a comprehensive overview of the material. At the conclusion of the course, students will understand the broad fundamental concepts of corporate finance in a unifying model. The text we will be using provides an excellent introduction to the concepts. Topics can be explored in more detail based on class interest and experience. Required but may be waived if the student has the appropriate training at undergraduate level.
• FIN 504 Accounting for Financial Analysis (2 credit hours)
  Introduces the fundamentals of reading and understanding financial statements. The basics financial statements will be introduced and there will be in-depth examples and cases demonstrating how the statements are constructed and how to carry out basic analysis. At the end of the class students should feel comfortable understanding a typical annual report. Required but may be waived if the student has the appropriate training at undergraduate level.
• FIN 502 Quantitative Finance (2 credit hours)
  This course provides an introduction to quantitative methods that are applicable in several areas of finance; presents concepts and methodologies from probability theory, statistical inference, and regression analysis; emphasis is placed on software applications of real data on stock returns, CAPM and Fama-French models, and cross-section firm data. Required but may be waived if the student has the appropriate training at undergraduate level.
• FIN 580 GP Data Science and Python for Finance (2 credit hours)
  The financial industry is increasingly adopting Python. Libraries such as NumPy and pandas provide extraordinary insights into data analysis. This course focuses specifically on introducing Python for financial analysis. The first part of the course provides a detailed understanding of Python basics. Data structures, numerical computing with NumPy, and data analysis with pandas will be explained. The second part applies Python in solving problems in corporate finance and performing investment analysis. Topics include capital budgeting decisions, equity valuation, risk and return, portfolio optimization, and technical trading strategies.

Required Courses

The program is focused on providing a flexible set of classes for students to tailor to their own specific career aims. There are only three required courses in the program:

• FIN 501 Financial Economics (4 credit hours)
  Firms’ long-run value ultimately depend on their business fundamentals. This course covers micro- and macro-economic drivers of such fundamentals, such as consumer demand, market competitiveness, government regulation, interest rates, business cycles, and monetary policy. Also includes topics in risk and intertemporal decision-making.
• FIN 511 Investments (4 credit hours)
  Introduction to investment analysis, including the theory and implementation of portfolio theory, empirical evidence on the performance of financial assets, evaluation of portfolio investment strategies, and the extension of diversification to international markets.
• FIN 581 Professional Development (2 credit hours)
  Effective communication skills are one of the most sought-after traits of business leaders across industries and throughout the world. Understanding the world around you, as well as communicating clearly and persuasively is critical to your success as a student, as an employee, and as a leader in the business world. These skills will help establish your own credibility and lead you to become an effective leader among your peers and colleagues. This course will introduce successful strategies for structuring both written and verbal communication in the business world, with an eye toward the specific outcomes listed below.

Specializations

The MSF program offers courses in the following areas of finance: asset management, corporate finance, data analytics and fintech, quantitative finance, and finance research. Students can specialize in one of these areas by following a specialization track. By specializing in a specific area of finance, students become more marketable to employers in that area. A minimum of 16 credits of courses in any chosen area is needed to be awarded a specialization. Please click on the links below to see the extensive offerings in each specialization.

Concentrations

A concentration is an extension of a graduate major comprised of a coherent set of courses some or all of which count toward the major. Students must take a minimum of 12 credits of the required courses in order to earn a concentration.

The MSF offers two concentrations. Unlike the specialization, the concentration will appear on your final transcript:

• Accountancy
• Data Analytics in Finance

Electives available for students

All of our extensive elective offerings are included in at least one of the MSF Specializations listed above. Here is a list of the electives that have been offered in the MSF program in previous semesters. Please visit the Finance Course Catalog to view course descriptions.

Gies News and Events