2023-2024 Undergraduate Bulletin

Finance

Office:  Daniels College of Business, Room 555
Mail Code: 2101 S. University Blvd. Denver, CO 80208
Phone: 303-871-3322
Web Site: https://daniels.du.edu/finance/bachelors/

The program in finance is a broad area of study directed toward the financial elements of business organizations and government units, focusing on investments, corporate finance, financial institutions and international finance. Courses in these areas prepare students for careers in business finance, investment analysis and financial institutions. 

Finance

Bachelor of Science in Business Administration Major Requirements 

(185 credits required for the degree)

Minimum of 36 credits.  Requirements include the following:

Required Courses
FIN 3110Financial Institutions4
FIN 3200Corporate Financial Problems4
FIN 3300Investments4
FIN 3410Multinational Financial Management4
ACTG 3220Understanding Financial Statements4
Electives
Select four Finance electives.16
Total Credits36

Minor Requirements

The Finance minor is available only to students pursuing a major in the Daniels College of Business.

16 credits, including the following:

Required Courses
FIN 3110Financial Institutions4
FIN 3200Corporate Financial Problems4
FIN 3300Investments4
Elective
Select one Finance elective.4
Total Credits16

Requirements for Distinction in the Major in Finance

Upon reaching 90 credit hours completed, students with a 3.50 cumulative GPA or higher, and a 3.85 Daniels GPA or higher, are invited to either create a portfolio of in-depth business experiences or to write a thesis to earn Distinction. See Daniels Undergraduate Programs or faculty in the department for more information. 

Finance

This course plan is a sample schedule. Individual course plans will vary based on incoming transfer credit, admission path to Daniels, prerequisites, availability of courses, minors, and other scheduling factors. Please meet with your Daniels academic advisor to develop an individual graduation plan for your specific needs.

First Year
FallCreditsWinterCreditsSpringCredits
First-Year Seminar (FSEM)4WRIT 11224WRIT 11334
MATH 120014INFO 10104INFO 10204
BUS 14404ECON 102024ACTG 22004
Foreign Language4Foreign Language4Foreign Language4
 BUS 10990 
 16 16 16
Second Year
FallCreditsWinterCreditsSpringCredits
FIN 28004ACTG 23004FIN 31104
MGMT 21004INFO 20204FIN 32004
LGST 20004MKTG 28004BUS 30004
Scientific Inquiry: The Natural and Physical World4Scientific Inquiry: The Natural and Physical World4BUS 20990
 INTZ 250131-2Scientific Inquiry: The Natural and Physical World4
 16 17-18 16
Third Year
FallCreditsWinterCreditsSpringCredits
Study Abroad16MGMT 30004Analytical Inquiry: Society and Culture4
Elective FIN 33004ACTG 32204
 FIN 34104FIN Elective 4
 Elective4BUS 38004
 BUS 30990 
 16 16 16
Fourth Year
FallCreditsWinterCreditsSpringCredits
Analytical Inquiry: Society and Culture4Scientific Inquiry: Society and Culture4Advanced Seminar (ASEM)4
FIN Elective 4FIN Elective 4Elective4
Elective4Elective4FIN Elective 4
Elective4Elective4 
 16 16 12
Total Credits: 189-190
1

 Analytical Inquiry: The Natural and Physical World

2

  Scientific Inquiry: Society and Culture

3

INTZ 2501 Exploring Global Citizenship is required for any student who studies abroad, and may be taken in any quarter within the year prior to studying abroad.

FIN 2800 Financial Decision Making (4 Credits)

Basic financial principles and analytical skills including ratio analysis, breakeven analysis and leverage, net present value, internal rate of return, and standard forecasting techniques. Prerequisites: ACTG 2200.

FIN 3030 Personal Finance (4 Credits)

This course provides an overview of topics that are critical to lifetime personal financial planning, which is especially important as a college student and young professional. Main topics in this course include: Principles of Taxation, Basics of Estate Planning, Lifetime Asset Allocation, Principles of Insurance, Proper Debt Management, the Real Estate Housing Decision and College Financial Planning. Prerequisite: FIN 2800 or permission of the instructor.

FIN 3060 Life Cycle -Financial Planning (4 Credits)

This course is one of the intermediate courses for the wealth management track. Students who are interested in pursuing the Certified Financial Planner™ designation should take this course. Study will focus on several aspects of personal financial planning: goals, cash management, budgeting, investing, taxation and estate management. Prerequisite: FIN 3030.

FIN 3090 Wealth Management (4 Credits)

This course covers topics such as the Financial Planning Process, Insurance Basics, Investment Basics and Strategies, Retirement Planning, and Estate Planning. We are pleased to work with the College for Financial Planning (CFFP), located in Denver, to provide instruction from their “The Foundations of Financial Planning” program. This course can lead to the Financial Paraplanner Qualified Profession™, which will be a valuable addition to your resume.

FIN 3110 Financial Institutions (4 Credits)

FIN 3110 provides a comprehensive analysis of financial institutions and how they operate within the markets. Topics include the management of commercial banks and other financial institutions and their relationship to money and capital markets. Keeping up with current events is integral to this course, as the course evolves alongside current events. Prerequisites: C- in FIN 2800.

FIN 3120 Commercial Bank Management (4 Credits)

This course attempts to study the changing environment within which banks operate and develop solutions to current bank management problems. FIN 3120 is designed for students who want to learn more about the commercial banking industry, the impact of the economic environment, managing interest rate risks, services provided, changing regulations, and the vast array of current challenges facing the industry. Prerequisite or Co-requisite: FIN 3110.

FIN 3150 Advanced Business Valuation (4 Credits)

Business valuation is at the heart of intelligent decision-making in many areas of finance and business -corporate finance, investment banking, private equity, venture capital, investment management, entrepreneurial finance, estate planning, and financial litigation. This course covers the advanced topics related to business valuation in both a conceptual and practical framework. Students will be exposed to sound practices and the latest developments in valuation at the core of financial professions.

FIN 3200 Corporate Financial Problems (4 Credits)

This course is an advanced study of the theory, concepts, and techniques applied in managerial finance. The major focus will be on how managers of corporations create value for their shareholders through asset investment decision, such as capital investment decisions and lease or buy decisions. This course aims to use the application of corporate financial theory in “real world” problems and uses Excel spreadsheets, Excel solver, as well as financial calculators. Prerequisite: FIN 2800.

FIN 3210 Corporate Financial Theory (4 Credits)

This course provides an expansion to FIN 3200 to include mergers and acquisitions, risk analysis, valuation and capital structure, corporate financial planning, and financial applications of decision theory. Prerequisite: FIN 3200.

FIN 3230 Entrepreneurial Finance (4 Credits)

FIN 3230 focuses on the financial aspects of small and emerging businesses. This course places an emphasis on the new enterprise, funds acquisition and valuation. Upon completion of FIN 3230, students will be able to differentiate between the challenges faced by small businesses compared to large businesses, describe stages of development of a business, calculate the value of an emerging business, among other topics. Prerequisite: FIN 3200.

FIN 3300 Investments (4 Credits)

This course provides a survey of marketable securities, markets, regulation, and risk and return measurement alongside an introduction to fundamental and technical analysis. This is an introductory investment course that will provide a sound basis for making and evaluating investment decisions. This course is essential for students who want to become investment professionals, but it will also help with personal investing. Prerequisite: FIN 2800.

FIN 3310 Equity Analysis (4 Credits)

FIN 3310 is an advanced course that focuses on the analysis of equity securities. The curriculum is primarily derived from the Candidate Body of Knowledge (CBOK) from the Chartered Financial Analyst® (CFA) Program. The CFA Institute regularly surveys practicing investment experts to develop a CBOK that reflects the knowledge, skills, and abilities of a generalist investment practitioner with four years of experience. Prerequisite: FIN 3300.

FIN 3330 Equity Portfolio Management (4 Credits)

This course is designed to give students an introductory understanding of the portfolio management process including concepts related to defining an investment philosophy and portfolio objectives, how to translate it into a suitable, realistic and disciplined investment strategy, understand the various methods used to construct portfolios and discuss implementation related issues, as well as measuring and analyzing portfolio performance and risk exposures. Practical implementation of this process will be done in the context of an equity portfolio but other asset classes will be discussed.

FIN 3340 Fixed Income Securities (4 Credits)

Fixed income markets are huge and constantly growing. In order to succeed in the financial profession, it has never been more important to understand how these markets work. Additionally, understanding the many factors at play in the fixed income market will develop your skills that are applicable to all areas of investments and risk management as well as greatly improve your understanding of how some of the most significant financial institutions work. Prerequisite: FIN 3300.

FIN 3360 Analysis of Derivatives (4 Credits)

The objective of this course is to provide a theoretical foundation for the pricing of contingent claims and for designing risk-management strategies. It is intended for students who have a more quantitative background and are interested in enhancing their knowledge of the way in which derivatives can be analyzed. This course covers: option pricing models, hedging techniques, trading strategies, portfolio insurance, value-at-risk measure, multistep binomial trees to value American options, interest rate options, and other exotic options. Prerequisites: FIN 3300.

FIN 3410 Multinational Financial Management (4 Credits)

This course provides a survey and analysis of financial management within an international arena. It covers Eurodollars, Euromarkets, and foreign currencies. Prerequisite: FIN 2800.

FIN 3500 Financial Modeling (4 Credits)

FIN 3500 focuses on the construction and development of financial models from corporate finance, investments, and financial markets. It is intended for students who have basic familiarity with Excel, but are not necessarily familiar with R. The course addresses advanced topics such as pro-forma modeling in Excel and uncertainty modeling and portfolio optimization using R. Prerequisite: C- in FIN 2800.

FIN 3610 Financial Forecasting (4 Credits)

This course focuses on methods of forecasting both economic and financial variables. Emphasis will be placed on techniques used by business and forecasters. Cross listed with STAT 3620, STAT 4783. Prerequisite: FIN 2800.

FIN 3700 Topics in Finance (4 Credits)

Exploration of various topics and issues related to finance. Prerequisite: FIN 2800.

FIN 3710 Reiman Fund I (4 Credits)

This course is a practical portfolio management class designed to cover the major areas of the investment management lifecycle. This course focuses heavily on learning and using leading industry data and analytical tools to support the investment decision-making process in a live portfolio environment. The class recommendations and decisions are implemented in the Reiman Fund portfolio. This is an elective course that is the first in the series of classes involving the Reiman Fund portfolio. Prerequisite: FIN 2800 and instructor's permission.

FIN 3720 Reiman Fund II (4 Credits)

This course is a practical portfolio management class designed to cover the major areas of the investment management lifecycle. This course focuses heavily on learning and using leading industry data and analytical tools to support the investment decision-making process in a live portfolio environment. The class recommendations and decisions are implemented in the Reiman Fund portfolio. This is an elective course that is the second in the series of classes involving the Reiman Fund portfolio. Prerequisite: FIN 3710 (minimum grade of C-).

FIN 3730 Reiman Fund III (4 Credits)

This course is a practical portfolio management class designed to cover the major areas of the investment management lifecycle. This course focuses heavily on learning and using leading industry data and analytical tools to support the investment decision-making process in a live portfolio environment. The class recommendations and decisions are implemented in the Reiman Fund portfolio. This is an elective course that is the third in the series of classes involving the Reiman Fund portfolio. Prerequisite: FIN 3720 (minimum grade of C-).

FIN 3800 Organized Walk Down Wall Street (4 Credits)

This course provides the opportunity to learn and reinforce financial concepts, tools, methodologies, and practices used by Wall Street professionals in the finance industry. After preparatory classes in Denver, students will spend a week in New York visiting and learning from investment bankers, leveraged lenders, individuals in private equity, and asset managers. Prerequisites: FIN 2800 and instructor's permission.

FIN 3885 Investment Banking and External Financing (4 Credits)

This course is an advanced Corporate Finance course, focusing on the activities involved in investment banking and the decisions by companies related to external sources of financing. There will be a mix of theory and practice, with many outside speakers providing insight into the practice component. Topics will include business valuation, mergers and acquisitions, startup financing, angel investing and venture capital, bank loans, private equity, stock issuance, and going private.

FIN 3980 Finance Internship (0-10 Credits)

Practical experience (field study); requires written report. Prerequisites: FIN 2800 and instructor's permission.

FIN 3991 Independent Study (1-4 Credits)

Independent research/study; requires written report. Prerequisites: FIN 2800 and instructor's permission.

Faculty

Shahram Amini Moghadam, Assistant Professor, PhD, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Conrad S. Ciccotello, Professor and Director, PhD, Penn State University

Doina C. Chichernea, Associate Professor, PhD, University of Cincinnati

Maclyn L. Clouse, Professor, PhD, University of Washington

David Brookreson Cox, Teaching Professor, JD, University of Denver

Paul Raibourn Harrison, Teaching Assistant Professor, MTax, University of Denver

Chris Hughen, Associate Professor, PhD, University of Missouri

Michael Aaron Jacobs, Teaching Assistant Professor, MBA, Duke University

Irina N. Khindanova, Teaching Associate Professor, PhD, University of California-Santa Barbara

Kenneth Leung, Teaching Associate Professor, PhD, Johns Hopkins University

Peter Lung, Associate Professor, PhD, Texas Tech University

Alex Petkevich, Associate Professor, PhD, Texas A&M University

Ronald Rizzuto, Professor, PhD, New York University

Andy J. Sherbo, Teaching Professor, PhD, Saint Louis University

Jack Strauss, Professor, PhD, Duke University

Tracy Xu, Associate Professor, PhD, University of Washington

Cheng Zhang, Assistant Professor, PhD, London School of Economics

Thomas Cook, Professor, Emeritus, PhD, University of Washington

Gary Farmar, Associate Professor, Emeritus, MBA, University of Denver

Leon G. Giles, Professor, Emeritus, PhD, University of Illinois

C. Thomas Howard, Professor, Emeritus, PhD, University of Washington

Tommi Johnsen, Associate Professor, Emerita, PhD, University of Colorado

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