FIN - Finance

Finance: FIN

Lower-Division Courses

FIN X19S. Topics in Finance.

This course is used to record credit the student earns while enrolled at another institution in a program administered by the University's Study Abroad Office. Credit is recorded as assigned by the study abroad adviser in the Department of Finance. University credit is awarded for work in an exchange program; it may be counted as coursework taken in residence. Transfer credit is awarded for work in an affiliated studies program.

Upper-Division Courses

FIN X20F. Foundations of Finance.

Principles of effective financial management, including planning, organization, and control; financial intermediaries; securities markets; evaluating alternative assets, debt, and capital structures.

FIN X21K. Intermediate Microeconomics for Business.

Explore microeconomic analysis of consumer theory, producer theory, decision-making under uncertainty, and market equilibrium. Examine game theory, monopoly and oligopoly behavior, and the principal-agent problem. Consider the application of these ideas to decisions made by business leaders in real-world settings.

FIN X22F. Foundations of Personal Finance.

Explore an overview from the individual and family perspectives of financial planning tools, cash management, consumer credit, and basic tax preparation, insurance selection, investment and retirement planning. Includes application of knowledge to hypothetical situations and case studies.

FIN X29S. Topics in Finance.

FIN X32F. Topics in Foundations of Finance.

FIN X34M. Current Issues in Global Sustainability.

Through discussions and guest speakers, explore the most recent issues in the everchanging landscape of sustainability.

FIN X37P. Investment Banking Practicum.

Examine investment banking with emphasis on mergers and acquisitions. Work in cross-level, team-based roles that simulate industry structures to develop and present a comprehensive investment banking pitch book for a live client. Discuss company, market, and industry analysis; strategic assessment; valuation and leveraged buyout modeling; and M&A strategy development. Explore collaboration with alumni practitioners and cross-disciplinary partners to integrate industry-specific research into client recommendations.

FIN X37T. Special Topics in Finance.

FIN X37T.1. Valuing Natural Resources.

Apply economic analysis to sedimentary basin analysis to create exploration and development scenarios. Investigate first principles of sedimentation, stratigraphy, and basin formation as the drivers of economic accumulations of petroleum in many different types of environments of deposition and basins globally including conventional and unconventional petroleum resources. Examine mining, minerals, and other exhaustible resources.

FIN X37T.12. Global Business Sustainability.

Explore the role of sustainability in the corporate sector. Examine how businesses partner with others for sustainability goals, how to value sustainable business practices, and how to report on corporate sustainability.

FIN X37T.2. Energy Finance.

Apply economic and financial analysis to energy projects and firms. Examine discounted cashflow, multiples valuation, NAV analysis, decision and risk analysis, real options, energy economics and risk management.

FIN X37T.4. Electricity Systems and Markets.

Analyze energy and power systems in regulated and competitive environments and implications on business decisions for firms in these industries. Examine mechanisms of energy markets; comparative market systems; determination of prices under different market structures; gas, oil, coal, and electricity market architecture; electricity market design; dispatch and new build decisions; smart grid and renewable energy in electricity markets; risk and risk management in energy including demand and price volatility and use of financial derivatives; and the impact of financial market trends and current and proposed policies on the energy industry.

FIN X40S. Topics in Finance.

This course is used to record credit the student earns while enrolled at another institution in a program administered by the University's Study Abroad Office. or the school's BBA Exchange Programs. Credit is recorded as assigned by the study abroad adviser in the Department of Finance. University credit is awarded for work in an exchange program; it may be counted as coursework taken in residence.

FIN X57. Business Finance.

Principles of finance, with application to all aspects of the business firm; particular attention to cost of capital, investment decisions, management of assets, and procurement of funds.

FIN X57H. Business Finance: Honors.

An investigation of the principles of finance, with application to all aspects of the business firm; particular attention to cost of capital, investment decisions, management of assets, and procurement of funds.

FIN X64P. Global Sustainability Practicum.

Apply concepts and tools learned in other courses to practical projects solving sustainability challenges for companies or nonprofits.

FIN X65P. Energy Finance Practicum.

Students apply skills in the energy industry and focus on additional project management skills through group projects conducted in a professional setting. Students may work with a private or a public enterprise.

FIN X66P. Finance Practicum.

Students apply skills in their major area and focus on additional project management skills through group projects conducted in a professional setting. Students may work with a private or a public enterprise.

FIN X67. Investment Management.

Investment theory, alternatives, and decision making under differing uncertainties and constraints; formulation of objectives and strategies; development of conceptual managerial perspectives and philosophies for investment environments.

FIN X70. Integrative Finance.

Integrates financial decision making in functional areas of finance; utilizes various concepts to promulgate strategies, policies, and procedures in managing funds to achieve objectives.

FIN X70H. Integrative Finance: Honors.

Integrates financial decision making in functional areas of finance; utilizes various concepts to promulgate strategies, policies, and procedures in managing funds to achieve objectives.

FIN X71M. Money and Capital Markets.

Development of modern financial markets, with emphasis on the factors that determine interest rates; institutional characteristics and pricing mechanisms of various interest-sensitive securities.

FIN X71T. Topics in Finance.

FIN X72T. Topics in Finance.

FIN X72T.1. Sustainable Finance Investing.

Assess the actions of investors and corporations with regard to environmental, social, and governance policies, including the potential motivations and resulting consequences.

FIN X72T.10. Economic Principles of Managerial Decisions.

Use of economic concepts and models to make strategic business decisions (adverse selection, game theory, price discrimination, strategic commitment, barriers to entry, network effects). Economics of strategic responses to the legal environment (regulations, antitrust policies, intellectual property, fiduciary duty, liability).

FIN X72T.11. Financial Planning for Wealth Management.

Introduction to basic concepts of personal wealth management and financial planning, including insurance and risk management, investment management, tax planning, estate planning, and retirement planning. Designed for upper-level finance and accounting majors interested in a career in financial services or students pursuing master in professional accounting with interest in this area of the accounting profession.

FIN X72T.14. Quantitative Investment Management.

Examine the economic, statistical, and computing frameworks behind quantitative approaches to evaluating and implementing investment strategies, as well as the empirical evidence on their performance in multiple asset classes. Apply the quantitative big-data approach by developing, pitching, and backtesting an original trading strategy.

FIN X72T.15. Financial Technology.

Explore an overview of the most recent technological advances that are changing the financial services industry and how these technological breakthroughs offer new ways for people to save, invest, borrow, and transact. Analyze how new technologies create value in the financial industry, from reducing unit cost, increasing transparency, increasing competition, creating network effects, leveraging economies of scales, and lowering asymmetric information. Examine the competitive landscape and the market opportunities and threats for incumbents and new entrants.

FIN X72T.16. Optimization Method in Finance.

Explore quantitative methods and techniques in optimization and simulation, and their use in financial decision making. Discuss theory and application in portfolio selection, options and other derivative pricing, index tracking, risk measures, volatility estimating. Examine linear, quadratic, nonlinear, and integer programming; dynamic programming; robust optimization; Monte Carlo methods and variance reduction techniques. Emphasis will be placed on problem solving with advanced computational programming languages.

FIN X72T.2. Valuation of Energy Investment.

Explore the evaluation and financing of energy investments with a focus on upstream oil and gas projects. Develop financial modeling skills from detailed discounted cash flow models to advanced option pricing models using various computational approaches.

FIN X72T.3. Sustainable Finance.

Focuses on using a financial economics perspective to understand how sustainability issues are considered by corporate managers, investors, and other participants in financial markets. Examine how environmental, social, governance, strategy and other issues affect manager and investor decisions from financial perspectives, particularly the risk and return aspects, including how to measure sustainability risk exposures. Discuss how these issues are considered from a nonfinancial perspective such as sustainable and responsible investing, ethical investing and impact investing.

FIN X73. Research Topics in Finance.

FIN X73.1. Advanced Studies in International Finance.

Students work in small research groups to write academic papers on topics in international finance and business. Designed to develop critical thinking skills, writing skills, sophisticated use of technology, and experience working across different cultures.

FIN X74C. Valuation.

An in-depth study of theory and practice of corporate financial management in establishing major financial and investment policies; techniques for analysis, evaluation, and control.

FIN X74S. Entrepreneurial Finance.

Development, implementation, and control of financial plans, strategies, and policies by owner-managers of small and medium-sized firms; analysis of alternatives and decision making.

FIN X76. International Finance.

Explore the international financial environment, with emphasis on the factors affecting exchange rates and how exchange rate changes affect the firm.

FIN X77. Advanced Topics in Investment Analysis.

Second course in investments, with emphasis on quantitative applications and the underlying theory in the analysis and management of securities and portfolios.

FIN X77.1. Portfolio Analysis and Management.

Explore quantitative applications and the underlying theory in the analysis and management of securities and portfolios. Designed for students with career goals in investment.

FIN X77.2. Financial Risk Management.

FIN X77.3. Security Analysis.

FIN X77.4. Financial Analysis.

Application of fundamental analysis and valuation techniques.

FIN X77.5. Energy Financial Risk Management.

FIN X77.6. Fixed Income Analysis.

Explore the role of fixed income securities, and methods of economic and financial analysis relevant to their markets.

FIN X77.7. Security Market Policy.

Analyze current developments in financial market innovation and regulation to understand their effects on capital creation, investor welfare, market efficiency, and financial stability. Explore new financial products, securities fraud and misconduct, shadow banking, technological disruptions, market failures, systemic risk, and policy trade-offs in securities markets regulation.

FIN X79C. Independent Research in Finance.

Graduate Courses

FIN X81F. Financial Technology for Executives.

Analyze the effect technology has on the delivery of financial services and products in the areas of lending, clearing and trading.

FIN X84F. Advanced Corporate Finance and Investment Theory.

Explore valuation theory, corporate finance theory, asset management, applied valuation and capital markets, and empirical finance. Examine theory, practice, and institutional applications.

FIN X85F. Analytic Finance and Machine Learning.

Utilize traditional financial datasets (e.g., financial statements, ratio analysis, credit and fixed income information, stock returns) from a variety of data sources and platforms, including WRDS/Compustat/CRSP, Bloomberg, and Compustat. Explore more advanced techniques designed to yield insights from alternative and unstructured datasets (e.g., text and sentiment analysis of earnings conference calls; SEC filings like 10K's, 10Q's, and 8-Ks; message and discussion boards; marketing/customer feedback; and other big data sources).

FIN X86. Valuation I.

Study of subjects such as financial modeling, derivatives in corporate finance, business valuation, and value-based management.

FIN X86C. Valuation for Executives.

Explore debt and equity valuation, financial markets, firms' cost of capital, and capital structure decisions in greater detail.

FIN X90. Topics in Seminar: Money and Capital Markets.

FIN X90.1. Financial Markets and Institutions.

How financial markets are organized and function. Includes debt equity and foreign exchange markets, primary and secondary market operations, and investment banking.

FIN X90.2. Special Topics in Capital Markets and Financial Institutions.

Study of issues and topics in the capital markets and financial institutions that are not covered in other courses.

FIN X91S. Independent Study.

FIN X94. Topics in Seminar: Financial Management and Theory.

FIN X94.1. Advanced Corporate Finance.

Advanced corporate financial management in the global marketplace: valuation concepts, optimal capital structure, risk management, corporate control and restructuring, and mergers and acquisitions.

FIN X94.10. New Venture Finance.

Explore the process to building a new venture from idea to liquidation event from the perspectives of both the founders as well as sophisticated venture investors. Develop a common financial framework to parse financial instruments through which we can demonstrate the salient points of a new venture's value proposition to its stakeholders. Use this framework to scale the model to express managerial controls, confidence, and ultimately the core values such that the founding team could reasonably expect to raise sophisticated capital.

FIN X94.11. Private Equity.

An examination of the application of advanced corporate finance concepts in the private equity markets.

FIN X94.12. Energy Development and Corporate Strategies.

Introduction to the legal, engineering, business, and financial aspects of energy development and operations.

FIN X94.13. Valuation of Energy Investments.

Covers the theory and practice of the evaluation and financing of energy investments with a focus on application to upstream oil and gas projects. Develop financial modeling skills, from detailed discounted cash flow models to advanced option pricing models utilizing a variety of computational approaches.

FIN X94.14. Venture Capital Fellows Program.

FIN X94.15. Energy Finance Practicum.

FIN X94.16. Corporate Finance and Financial Markets.

FIN X94.17. Advanced Valuation and Financial Modeling.

Construction and use of financial models for valuation and decision-making.

FIN X94.18. Corporate Finance Fellows I.

FIN X94.19. Economic Principles of Managerial Decisions.

Study of how economic principles are used to think strategically about business decisions.

FIN X94.2. Financial Strategies.

An integrated analysis of the interaction between the investment and operating policies of a corporation and its financial strategies.

FIN X94.20. Corporate Finance Fellows II.

FIN X94.21. Advanced Valuation Techniques for Consulting.

Examine financial reporting, the application of various valuation techniques (to measure the fair value of intangible assets), contingent consideration, valuation of synergy, the impact of geography on value, and the effect of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) policies on company valuations.

FIN X94.22. Introduction to Financial Analytics.

FIN X94.23. Financial Modeling and Testing.

FIN X94.24. Valuation II.

Discuss financial modeling, derivatives in corporate finance, business valuation, and value-based management.

FIN X94.26. Mergers and Acquisitions.

FIN X94.27. Investment Banking Practicum.

Participate in the investment banking practicum. Develop a team-based pitch book and mergers and acquisitions idea through project and speaker series. Discuss discounted cash flow, comparable, and leveraged buyouts and mergers and acquisitions analyses.

FIN X94.3. Global Finance.

FIN X94.4. Financial Management of Small Business.

FIN X94.5. Financial Technology.

Analyzes the effect technology has on the delivery of financial services and products in the areas of lending, clearing and trading.

FIN X94.6. Special Topics in Corporate Finance.

FIN X94.7. Raising Capital.

An analysis of the decision to raise capital, including sources of debt and equity, financial distress, restructuring, and financing acquisitions.

FIN X94.8. Financial Strategies for Energy Firms.

An integrated analysis of the interaction between the investment and operating policies of a corporation and its financial strategies, with special emphasis on firms in the energy industry.

FIN X94.9. Advanced Valuation and Financial Modeling for Energy Firms.

Construction and use of financial models for valuation and decision-making, with applications to the energy industry.

FIN X94P. Private Equity for Executives.

Examine the application of advanced corporate finance concepts in the private equity markets.

FIN X95. Topics in Finance Doctoral Seminar.

FIN X95.1. Fundamentals of Financial Theory.

An overview of finance theory and empirical evidence.

FIN X95.10. Empirical Methods in Corporate Finance.

In-depth study of existing empirical work in corporate finance, including econometric and statistical methods.

FIN X95.11. Economics of Information.

Learn about static and dynamic problems with moral hazard and adverse selection using tools from game theory and contract theory.

FIN X95.2. Uncertainty in Economics and Finance.

The notions of risk, risk aversion, prudence, arbitrage, and equilibria in economies that include financial markets. The impact of adverse selection and moral hazard problems on the existence and properties of market equilibria.

FIN X95.3. Asset Pricing Theory.

Detailed introduction to asset pricing theory, focusing on absence of arbitrage, consumption-portfolio choice, and simple equilibrium models.

FIN X95.4. Empirical Methods in Asset Pricing.

In-depth study of existing empirical work in asset pricing, including econometric and statistical methods.

FIN X95.5. Corporate Finance.

Analysis of the theory of corporate finance and empirical evidence regarding corporate finance.

FIN X95.6. Current Research Topics in Finance.

FIN X95.7. Summer Research Topics.

Provides an opportunity for students to develop and conduct original research projects.

FIN X95.8. Special Topics in Finance Theory.

FIN X95.9. Applied Finance Research.

Provides an opportunity for students to develop and conduct original research.

FIN X97. Topics in Seminar: Investment Theory and Management.

FIN X97.1. Investment Theory and Practice.

Analysis of the investment decision-making process, asset allocation, security analysis, risk and expected return measurement, asset-pricing models, and international investment.

FIN X97.10. Environmental, Social, and Governance Investing.

A critical assessment of the actions of investors and corporations with regard to environmental, social, and governance policies, including the potential motivations and resulting consequences.

FIN X97.11. Quantitative Trading Strategies.

Examine statistical analyses that can be used in a variety of application areas, including energy trading, and provide a cutting edge perspective on technical trading and valuation.

FIN X97.12. Investment Management.

Explore investment principles, encompassing portfolio management, asset valuation, and performance evaluation. Learn critical financial skills to make investment-related decisions. Analyze equity, fixed-income securities, and derivatives within the global financial landscape using a combination of theory and practice.

FIN X97.13. Investments and Energy Finance.

Focus on energy-related derivatives and different derivative products and how to apply them. Explore energy markets and learn how to measure and manage the financial risks created by volatile energy prices. Examine and evaluate energy finance.

FIN X97.14. Sustainable Finance.

Focus on financial economics perspective to understand sustainability issues considered by managers, investors and participants in financial markets. Learn environmental, social, governance, strategy and other issues that affect manager and investor decisions from financial perspectives, particularly risk return aspects and measure sustainability risk exposures. Discuss how these issues are considered from a nonfinancial perspective such as sustainable and responsible investing, ethical investing and impact investing.

FIN X97.15. Artificial Intelligence-Powered Fund Management.

Learn to use Artificial Intelligence tools to analyze and visualize data, financial statements, portfolios, and trading strategies.

FIN X97.16. Titans of Investing.

Examine wisdom versus technical competence in leadership and decision making using readings from the most influential theorists and practitioners of 20th and 21st century investing, case studies and portfolio sector exercises in an institutional context, based on detailed assessment of global investment risks.

FIN X97.17. Behavior, Game Theory, and Team Management.

Explore how business leaders and managers can optimize the quality of decision-making and the cohesiveness of their organization. Analyze the problems through the lens of game theory, behavioral economics, and behavioral finance and find solutions to address them.

FIN X97.2. Portfolio Management and Security Analysis.

Modern practices in managing investment portfolios, portfolio optimization methods, asset management for individual and institutional investors, and valuation of equity securities.

FIN X97.4. Financial Risk Management.

Studies how firms manage their financial risk exposures and how they use derivative securities.

FIN X97.5. Fixed Income Analysis.

Comprehensive analysis of debt securities and the techniques used to value these instruments.

FIN X97.6. Special Topics in Investments.

Issues and topics in the investment area that are not covered in other courses.

FIN X97.7. Derivative Securities.

Analysis and pricing of derivative securities, including forwards, futures, and options.

FIN X97.8. Energy Derivatives.

Analysis and pricing of derivative securities, including forwards, futures, and options, with emphasis on derivatives related to the energy industry.

FIN X97.9. Alternative Investments.

Overview of alternative investments, including hedge funds, private equity, and real estate.

FIN X97P. Investments Practicum.

Project-based study with a focus on the application of finance principles to practical investment problems.

FIN X98. Thesis.

FIN X98R. Master's Report.

Preparation of a report to fulfill the requirement for the master's degree under the report option.