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Home > Academic Programs > Master of Science in Finance > Curriculum

CURRICULUM
Both the Corporate Finance and Quantitative Finance tracks fuse mathematical tools with a strategic understanding of business decision-making.

In the Corporate Finance & Investments track, students take a significant amount of course work alongside finance-oriented MBA students. In the Quantitative Finance track, students take courses to develop a skill set similar to a Financial Engineering program while still including course work in corporate finance, investments and financial markets.

Transfer of Credit
Olin Business School will accept up to nine credits of coursework taken at another AACSB accredited institution if the grades you earned are "B" or better, and the Academic Review Committee judges the courses to be equivalent to Olin MBA classes in quality and content. Submit the course syllabus and transcript to your business adviser upon enrollment. 

Courses
Depending on their academic background, students in either track may be required to enroll in foundation courses upon entering the MS/Finance program in August:
  • FIN 510 Introduction to Finance (2 credits)
  • ACCT 560 Introduction to Accounting (2 credits)
  • ACCT 562 Financial Accounting (Intermediate Accounting) (2 credits)

CORPORATE FINANCE & INVESTMENTS COURSES

Fall Semester (15.5 credits)
Fall A Fall B
FIN 534 Advanced Corporate Finance I - Valuation (1.5) FIN 534B Advanced Corporate Finance II -Financing (1.5)
FIN 532 Investment Theory (1.5)
FIN 527 Financial Markets (1.5)
ACCT 503 Business Analysis Financial Statements (1.5) ACCT 503B Adv. Business Analysis Financial Statements (1.5)
FIN 500N Corporate Finance & Investment Industry Seminar (0.5) *See below

*Choose two of the following electives:
FIN 534C Advanced Corporate Finance III - Frontiers of Valuation (1.5);
FIN523B Mergers and Acquisitions (1.5);
FIN 532B Data Analysis for Investments (1.5);
FIN 530 International Finance (1.5);
FIN 521 Financial Intermediation (1.5);
FIN 527 Financial Markets (1.5) (if not taken Fall A);
FIN 533 Real Option Valuation (1.5)

Choose one of the following semester-long courses:
FIN 560A Research Methods in Finance (3)
MEC 537 Data Analysis, Forecasting, and Risk Analysis (3)

Spring Semester (15 credits)
Spring A Spring B
FIN 525 Fixed Income Securities (1.5)
FIN 524 Options & Futures (1.5)		 FIN 524B Derivative Securities (1.5)

Choose at least one of the following semester-long courses (taking both is an option):
FIN 528 Investments Praxis (3)
MGT 501 Center for Experiential Learning Practicum Course* (3)
*Must be finance related and approved by the Academic Director

Choose at least 7.5 credits from the options below
ACCT 500G Analysis of Financial Institutions & Financial Instruments (1.5) FIN 531 Venture Capital & Private Equity (1.5)
FIN 536 Financial Issues in Leasing (1.5) MEC 540 Money, Capital Markets & Economic Growth (1.5)

MEC 538 Ecomonics of the Organization (1.5)

 FIN 500S Tools of Venture Investing (1.5)
MGT 511A Law & Business Management (1.5) FIN 523B Mergers & Acquisitions (1.5)
FIN 549H Real Estate Finance (1.5) MGT 560D US Macroeconomic Policy After Crisis of 2008-2009 (1.5)

Semester-Long Electives
MGT 550F Critical Thinking Processes & Modeling for Effective Decision Making (3)
MEC 592 Competitive Industry Analysis & Strategic Development (3)

30.5 CREDITS TOTAL

Academic Director – Todd Milbourn


If a student has taken course work comparable to the required curriculum, course substitutions are available to further tailor this track to your specific career goals. Permission of the academic director is required.

ACCT 502 Managerial Control Systems (1.5)
FIN 530 International Finance (1.5)
FIN 533 Real Option Valuation (1.5)
FIN 534C Adv. Corporate Finance III-Frontiers of Valuation (1.5)
FIN 537 Advanced Derivative Securities (3)
FIN 549H Special Topics: Real Estate Finance (1.5)
FIN 500P Computer Programming for Quantitative Finance (3)
FIN 500R Risk Management (3)
MEC 500J Markets, Business, and the Environment (1.5)
MEC 538 Economics of the Organization (1.5)
MEC 538B Compensation, Incentives & Organization (1.5)
MEC 592 Competitive Industry Analysis (3)


QUANTITATIVE FINANCE COURSES

First Fall Semester (16.5 Credits)
Fall A Fall B
FIN 524 Options & Futures (1.5) FIN 524B Derivative Securities (1.5)
FIN 532 Investment Theory (1.5) FIN 532B Data Analysis for Investments (1.5)
FIN 538 Stochastic Foundations for Finance (1.5) Choose one:
FIN 527 Financial Markets (1.5) (Preferred)
FIN 521 Financial Intermediation (1.5)
MGT 537 Invest in Your Career (0)

MEC 537 Data Analysis, Forecasting and Risk Analysis (3)

CSE 501N Programming Concepts & Practices, plus Lab (Java Programming) (3)

Professional Communication Forum (1.5)

Spring Semester (16.5 Credits)
Spring A Spring B
FIN 525 Fixed Income Securities (1.5) FIN 551 Adv. Credit Risk Modeling (1.5)
FIN 534 Adv. Corporate Finance I -
Valuation (1.5)		 Choose one:
FIN 534B Adv. Corporate Finance II -
Financing (1.5)
MEC 540 Money, Capital Markets, and Economic Growth (1.5)

FIN 539 Mathematical Finance (3)

FIN 537 Advanced Derivative Securities (3)

FIN 500Q Quantitative Risk Management (3)

E81 CSE 504N Object-Oriented Software Development Laboratory, plus Lab (C++ programming) (3)

Second Fall Semester (6 credits)
Fall A Fall B
FIN 500K Finance Consulting Seminar (1.5) FIN 534B Adv. Corporate Finance II - Financing (1.5), if not taken in Spring B
FIN 552 Advanced Fixed Income Derivatives (1.5) If FIN 534B taken, choose one:
FIN 533 Real Option Valuation (1.5)
ACCT 503B Advanced Business Analysis/Financial Statement (1.5)
FIN 549 Real Estate Finance (1.5)
FIN 534C Advanced Corporate Finance III - Valuation (1.5)

FIN 500R Topics in Quantitative Finance (1.5)

39 CREDITS TOTAL

Academic Director - Hong Liu, PhD

 

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