300 | 400 | Graduate Courses

Finance
Richard B. Carter, Chair of Department
Professors: Carter, Hayes, Power, Stover
Associate Professors: Campbell, Cowan, Dark, Koppenhaver
Assistant Professors: Piwowar, Sapp

Undergraduate Study
For undergraduate curriculum in business, major in finance, see College of Business, Curricula.

In addition to the basic business requirements, finance majors must also complete: (1) Fin 310, 320; (2) select four from Fin 330, 361, 371, 380, 415, 424, 425, 445, 462, and 472 of which two must be at the 400 level; and (3) select one from Acct 383, 384, 386, 387, any 400-level accounting course and Finance courses listed in (2) above. Statistics 326 is highly recommended to be taken prior to Fin 310 and Fin 320. Statistics 326 is required for Fin 380 and 400 level finance courses.

The courses in finance constitute a broad program of study designed to provide a descriptive, behavioral, and analytical background of financial management to enable students to qualify for opportunities in financial services, insurance, brokerage, government, real estate, and financial management of business enterprises. Finance is also an excellent area for those who wish to become more knowledgeable as consumers, particularly in the fields of investments, insurance, and real estate.

Areas of study in the field of finance include financial management, investments, insurance, real estate, and financial services. Upper-level courses include a review of contemporary literature in the field, case studies, and financial problem analysis integrating finance courses previously taken.

The instructional objective of the Finance program is to provide a well-rounded professional education in finance. Such an education should provide the student with: (1) a mastery of basic financial concepts and methods of analysis; (2) an understanding of financial operations in a global setting and of the role of financial institutions in the economics system; (3) an ability to effectively communicate and work with others as the finance member of a team; (4) an ability to demonstrate leadership capabilities in financial analysis and portfolio management.

The department also offers a minor for non-Finance majors in the College of Business. The minor requires 15 credits from an approved list of courses, of which 9 credits must stand-alone. Students with declared majors have priority over students with declared minors in courses with space constraints.

Graduate Study
The department participates in two graduate degree programs: the M.S. in business and the M.B.A. full-time and part-time programs. The M.S. degree in business is a 30-credit curriculum culminating in a thesis. The M.B.A. program is a 48-credit, nonthesis, noncreative component c curriculum. Twenty four of the 48 credit hours are core courses and the remaining 24 are graduate electives. Within the M.B.A. program, students may develop an area of specialization in finance. This specialization requires that 12 of the 24 credit hours of the graduate electives be from an approved list of graduate finance courses.

Courses open for nonmajor graduate credit: 415, 424, 445, 462, 472.

Courses Primarily for Undergraduate Students
Fin 301. Principles of Finance. (3-0) Cr. 3. F.S.SS. Prereq: Acct 284; Econ 101, Stat 226. Introduction to financial management with emphasis on corporate financing and investment decision making, time value of money, asset valuation, capital budgeting decision methods, cash budgeting, and financial markets.

Fin 310. Corporate Finance. (3-0) Cr. 3. F.S.SS. Prereq: 301. Theory used in a firm's investment and financing decisions. Analysis of environment in which financial decisions are made; applications of analytical techniques to financial management problems.

Fin 320. Investments. (3-0) Cr. 3. F.S.SS. Prereq: 301. Introduction to various investment media and markets from the viewpoint of the individual investor. Emphasis on mechanics of trading, behavior of security prices, corporate stocks and bonds, mutual funds, individual asset and portfolio selection techniques, and performance evaluation.

Fin 330. Financial Markets and Institutions. (3-0) Cr. 3. F.S. Prereq: 301. Introduction to the structure and operations of the United States financial system and its markets and institutions. Emphasis on developing and integrated understanding of markets and financial service providers including global linkages.

Fin 361. Personal Risk Management and Insurance. (3-0) Cr. 3. F.S. Prereq: Econ 101. Risk concepts and the use of insurance by individuals and families. Emphasis on the insurance mechanism and methods of dealing with income, property, and liability risks.

Fin 371. Real Estate Principles. (3-0) Cr. 3. SS. Prereq: Econ 101. Legal, economic, social and financial aspects of real estate, including property rights, contracts, mortgage instruments, tax factors, brokerage, valuation, risk and return analysis, financing techniques, and investments.

Fin 380. International Finance. (3-0) Cr. 3. F.S. Prereq: 301 and Stat 326. Advanced study of contemporary topics and issues in international finance.

Fin 415. Business Financing Decisions. (3-0) Cr. 3. Prereq: 301 and Stat 326. In depth study of the firm's external financing decision. Emphasis on the development of cash flow statements, projected financing needs and the selection of the appropriate financing instrument. Focus on case studies and application of developed techniques on actual field project. Nonmajor graduate credit.

Fin 424. Financial Futures and Options. (3-0) Cr. 3. Prereq: 320 and Stat 326. Advanced study of the pricing and use of derivative market instruments, current topics and issues. Nonmajor graduate credit.

Fin 425. Security Analysis and Portfolio Management. (3-0) Cr. 3. F.S. Prereq: 320, Stat 326 and permission of instructor. Advanced study of security analysis, security selection techniques and portfolio management. Emphasis on the applications of methods learned via the selection and evaluation of a portfolio of actual securities purchased in securities markets in the U.S. or abroad. Tracking and periodic reporting of the portfolio's performance relative to standard benchmarks is also required.

Fin 445. Bank Management Decisions. (3-0) Cr. 3. F.S. Prereq: Stat 326 and Fin 330 or Econ 353. Analysis of operations of depository financial institutions from management viewpoint. Emphasis on evaluating performance, policy formation, asset and liability management, the role of capital, and the operating environment. Nonmajor graduate credit.

Fin 462. Corporate Risk Management and Insurance. (3-0) Cr. 3. F. Prereq: 301 and Stat 326. Analysis of an organization's approaches to the management of price, credit, and pure risk. Emphasis on the consideration and selection of risk control and financing treatments and the decision making framework underlying the alternatives selected. Covers commercial insurance, self-insurance, and alternative financing arrangements. Nonmajor graduate credit.

Fin 472. Real Estate Finance. (3-0) Cr. 3. Prereq: 301 and Stat 326. Introduction to the techniques of assessing the value of real estate and real estate financing instruments. Nonmajor graduate credit.

Fin 490. Independent Study. Cr. 1 to 3 each time taken. Prereq: 301, Stat 326 and permission of instructor.

Fin 499. Finance Internship. (3-0) Cr. 1 to 3. F.S.SS. Prereq: GPA 2.5; permission of internship coordinator; Stat 326; 499A: 330, 445; 499B: 361; 499C: 472. Supervised experience in a private sector banking, insurance or real estate organization or in a governmental agency that regulates such organizations. Offered on a satisfactory-fail grading basis only.
A. Banking
B. Insurance
C. Real Estate

Courses Primarily for Graduate Students, Open to Qualified Undergraduate Students
Fin 505. Financial Valuation and Corporate Financial Decisions. (2-0) Cr. 2. Prereq: Graduate classification. Shareholder wealth maximization as the goal of the firm, financial math, valuation of securities, the financial market place as the test of value, estimation of cost of capital, capital investment decisions, capital structure policy, working capital management.

Fin 510. Advanced Financial Management. (3-0) Cr. 3. Prereq: 505. Modern theory of corporate finance and its application to financial management problems. Advanced treatment of firm's investment, financing, and dividend decisions and survey of related research. Examples of potential topics are the investment banking process, convertible securities and warrants, financial derivatives, asset leasing, mergers and divestitures, leveraged buyouts, international financial management, executive compensation, and pension fund strategy.

Fin 515. Case Studies in Financial Decision Making. (3-0) Cr. 3. Prereq: 505. This course focuses on case studies to develop an integrated set of financial decisions. Topic areas include fixed asset, working capital, capital structure, dividend and merger/acquisition decisions. The objective of the course is to examine different firm settings and establish a framework within which to apply financial tools.

Fin 520. Investments. (3-0) Cr. 3. Prereq: 505. A comprehensive survey of the classical and contemporary theories of optimum portfolio construction; determinants of risk-return trade-off in selection of securities; emphasis on the theory and evidence of efficient capital markets and implications for security selection and portfolio management.

Fin 534. Agricultural Markets. (3-0) Cr. 3. F. Prereq: Graduate classification. A method based course in agricultural markets. Topics covered include; futures and options markets, option pricing, use and rating of insurance products in agriculture, alternative forms of reinsurance, emerging forms of vertical coordination, world grain and livestock markets and the institutions that control these markets. Topical issues such as the impact of new trade arrangements on world agricultural markets will be examined.

Fin 567. Employee Benefits Seminar. (3-0) Cr. 3. Prereq: Graduate classification. Theory of employee benefits including benefit types, purpose, utilization, costs/methods of benefit financing and regulation.

Fin 590. Special Topics. Cr. 1 to 3 each time taken. F.S.SS. Prereq: Permission of instructor. For students wishing to do individual research in a particular area of finance.