The purpose of the Finance, MS program is to prepare students for successful careers in financial industries and private sectors with finance-related job functions.

This degree will provide the opportunity for prospective students to further their education by offering a specialized program that helps them develop technical financial skills to fill the projected market demand and have a successful career in a global economy.

Overall, the Finance, MS program is ideal for students who have limited work experience or have decided to pursue a finance-related career path after receiving their undergraduate degrees.  The program is designed to equip students with advanced knowledge and abilities essential for the highly skilled financial work environment.       

Admissions

All students registering for School of Business graduate courses must have graduate standing.  Non degree student status is not available. 

Full eligibility and admission requirements can be viewed here.

Policies

For policies governing all graduate degrees, see AP.6 Graduate Policies.

Graduate level courses offered by the School of Business cannot be audited.

Banner Code: BU-MS-FNAN

Degree Requirements

Total credits: 33

Required Courses

MSF 603Managerial Economics and Decisions of the Firm3
MSF 632Statistical and Quantitative Methods for Finance3
MSF 643Financial Economics and Statement Analysis3
MSF 672Corporate Finance and Governance3
MSF 683Ethical and Professional Standards in Finance3
MSF 705Venture Capital, Private Finance, and Alternative Investments3
MSF 706Investment Analysis3
MSF 707Futures, Options and Other Derivatives3
MSF 717International Finance and Financial Markets3
MSF 732Fixed Income Securities3
MSF 777Student Managed Investment Fund3
Total Credits33

Bachelor's Degree (any)/Finance, Accelerated MS

Overview

This BAM Pathway will provide the opportunity for prospective undergraduate students to further their education by offering a specialized accelerated program that helps them develop technical financial skills to fill the projected market demand and have a successful career in a global economy.

Highly-qualified undergraduates may be admitted to the Bachelor's/Accelerated Master's program and obtain a BS/BA in a chosen major and an MS in Finance in an accelerated time-frame after satisfactory completion of a minimum of 141 credits.

See AP.6.7 Bachelor's/Accelerated Master's Degree for policies related to this program.

Students in an accelerated degree program must fulfill all university requirements for the Master's degree. For policies governing all graduate degrees, see AP.6 Graduate Policies.

BAM Pathway Admission Requirements: Applicants to all graduate programs at George Mason University must meet the admission standards and application requirements for graduate study as specified in Graduate Admissions Policies and Bachelor's/Accelerated Master's Degree policies. For information specific to this accelerated master's program, see Application Requirements and Deadlines on the departmental website.

Students will be considered for admission into the BAM Pathway after completion of a minimum of 60 credits, with a minimum overall GPA of 3.25. For additional program specific requirements, please visit the School of Business Website

Students who are accepted into the BAM Pathway will be allowed to register for graduate level courses after successful completion of: a minimum of 75 undergraduate credits, program specific requirements found on the School of Business website, and course-specific pre-requisites.

BAM-MSF Pathway Admission Requirements

Students already admitted in the BAM Pathway will be admitted to the MS in Finance program, if they have met the following criteria, as verified on the Bachelor’s/Accelerated Master’s Transition form:

• Minimum overall GPA of 3.25

• Minimum grade of B in each advanced standing course

• Successfully meeting Mason’s requirements for undergraduate degree conferral (graduation) and completing the application for graduation.

FNAN-MSF Pathway Courses

To maintain the integrity and quality of both the undergraduate and graduate degree programs, undergraduate students interested in taking graduate courses choose from the following:

Advanced Standing courses (up to 12 credits; grade of B or better required):
Managerial Economics and Decisions of the Firm
Statistical and Quantitative Methods for Finance
Financial Economics and Statement Analysis
Corporate Finance and Governance
Ethical and Professional Standards in Finance
Reserve Credit courses (up to 6 credits) taken while an undergraduate and will only count for the graduate degree program:
Managerial Economics and Decisions of the Firm
Statistical and Quantitative Methods for Finance
Financial Economics and Statement Analysis
Corporate Finance and Governance
Ethical and Professional Standards in Finance

For more detailed information on coursework and timeline requirements, see AP.6.7 Bachelor's/Accelerated Master's Degree policies.