Major in Finance

Richard J. Fendler, Faculty Adviser

The MS/Finance curriculum is designed to provide graduates with advanced knowledge of master's-level finance, including particular expertise in their area of specialization (chosen from Corporation Finance, Investments, or Financial Institutions and Markets). The primary emphasis of the program is to provide students with the theoretical, analytical, and technical skills necessary to examine particular financial situations and develop policy initiatives. The program prepares graduates to understand the context for issues encountered in the rapidly evolving financial environment. This goal requires a combination of theoretical, policy, and application perspectives in the pedagogy of the program. Quantitative and analytical course requirements in the areas of optimization techniques, computer modeling, and statistical methodology complement the finance course requirements.

Regulations for the Degree

1. All Master of Science students will complete the "Business Communication Skills Requirement" explained earlier in this chapter.  The regulations, policies, and procedures given in the "Master's Enrollment" and "Master's Programs" sections in this chapter apply to the M.S./Finance program. A maximum of six hours of transfer credit is permitted in this program only if 12 hours are taken in section B below; otherwise a maximum of three hours of transfer credit is permitted.



2. Course Requirements. The course requirements for the degree of Master of Science with a major in finance and the format of the program follow.
   
   Undergraduate foundation course descriptions and prerequisites are shown in the Georgia State University Undergraduate Catalog.  This catalog is available from the Georgia State University Bookstore and on the web at www.gsu.edu; click on Students then Catalogs.
   
   
   1. Foundation Courses. The courses in this list are in addition to the 27-30 semester hours required for the degree. They are assigned as part of the admissions process based on a review of each student's transcripts. They can be exempted if equivalent course work has been previously completed with grades of C or higher.
      
      Accounting: MBA 8121 or financial and managerial accounting principles and corporate finance principles (Acct 2101, Acct 2102 and Fi 3300).
      Behavioral Science: Management principles (Mgt 3500) or marketing principles (Mk 3010).
      Economics: Macroeconomics principles (Econ 2105) and microeconomics principles (Econ 2106).
      Mathematics: College algebra (Math 1111) and calculus (Math 1220).
      Statistics: MBA 8011 or Math 1070.
   
   
   
   2. Required Major/Technical Support Courses (9-12 hours). These courses must be completed during the first 18 hours of 8000-level course work in the M.S./Fi program.
      
      DSc 8020    Decision Support and Business Intelligence (3)
      DSc 8240    Business Modeling for Decision Support (3)
      DSc 8300    Applied Regression Analysis (3)
      MBA 8622    Corporation Finance (3) May be exempted if Fi 3300, Fi 4300, and Fi 4320 or their equivalents have been completed with grades of C or higher at the time of admission.

2. Course Requirements continued.
   3. Specialization (18 hours). The following course is required for all M.S./Finance students:
      
      Fi 8000    Valuation of Financial Assets (3)
      
      In addition to Fi 8000, students are required to take a minimum of nine semester hours within a finance specialization.
      
      Three areas of specialization are shown below along with courses considered appropriate for each area. A course marked * is required as part of the nine semester hours in the indicated specialization. The student must also select, with departmental approval, an additional six semester hours of finance-related elective courses.
      
      Corporate Finance
      Fi 8300    Advanced Corporate Finance (3)
      Fi 8320*    Cases and Readings in Corporate Finance (3)
      Fi 8340    International Corporate Finance (3) See note 2 below.
      Fi 8360    Special Topics in Corporate Finance (3)
      
      Investments
      Fi 8020    Financial Analysis and Loan Structuring (3)
      Fi 8200*   Derivative Markets I (3)
      Fi 8220    Derivative Markets II (3)
      Fi 8240    Global Portfolio Management (3)
      
      Financial Institutions and Financial Markets
      Fi 8020    Financial Analysis and Loan Structuring (3)
      Fi 8400    Financial Management of Depository Financial Services Firms (3)
      Fi 8420    The Financial System (3)
      Fi 8440    Multinational Bank Management (3)
      
      The department encourages all students pursuing the M.S. degree with a major in finance to take Fi 8000 early in their program as it is a prerequisite for all electives except Fi 8020 and Fi 8040 and is a corequisite for Fi 8400. Fi 8000 is designed so that it may be taken simultaneously with MBA 8622 to provide students greater scheduling flexibility. M.S./Finance students who take both Fi 8040 and either Fi 8340 or Fi 8440 must take one additional 8000-level finance course.



3. Program of Study. Each student's program must be planned in consultation with the M.S./finance faculty adviser before a non-required course is taken. A copy of the program will be filed with the Office of Academic Assistance and Master's Admissions for review and approval.
   
   Progress toward the degree, including clearance for graduation, cannot be confirmed without an approved program of study. Any changes in the program must be approved by the faculty adviser and a copy of the changes sent to the OAA.
   
   
4. Time Limit. The time limit for completing the M.S./Fi. program is five years from the first semester a course in section B or C (above) is taken.