Finance, B.S.B.A.

Finance is the study and practice of making money-denominated decisions. Individuals, business corporations, and government agencies located worldwide are all concerned with securing, managing, and investing funds efficiently; i.e., they must practice sound financial decision making. As a discipline, finance can be classified into six areas: corporate financial management, investments, financial institutions and markets, banking and insurance, personal financial planning, and real estate investment and valuation. The finance program at Shippensburg University offers a full range of courses in these areas. Our program is unique in the emphasis placed on the application of finance concepts. In addition to two applied courses in market, company, and security analysis, the finance major can apply for admission to the Investment Management Program class. In this class students utilize their accumulated knowledge and skills in the management of a real-money investment portfolio.

By the beginning of the sophomore year, a student majoring in finance will be expected to have access to a personal computer which is compatible with the hardware and software used in the finance program. Our computer labs, though well-equipped, are utilized by a large percentage of students from the college of business. Due to this high demand, a personal computer is invaluable to fulfilling the major finance course requirements.

B.S.B.A. Core Requirements

All B.S.B.A. majors in the John L. Grove College of Business should satisfactorily complete the 100-/200-level business core courses during their freshman and sophomore years and the 300-400-level business core courses during their junior and senior years, as listed below.

Required Courses in Related Fields

Required Courses in the John L. Grove College of Business

ACC 200 - Fundamentals of Financial Accounting Credits: 3
Accounting majors must earn a C or better in this course.
ACC 201 - Managerial Accounting Credits: 3
Accounting majors must earn a C or better in this course.
BSL 261 - American Legal Environment Credits: 3
BSN 101 - Foundations of Business Administration Credits: 2
ECO 113 - Principles of Economics Credits: 4
ECO 280 - Managerial Economics Credits: 3
FIN 311 - Financial Management Credits: 3
MGT 305 - Organizational Behavior Credits: 3
MGT 447 - Business and Society Credits: 3
MGT 497 - Strategic Management Credits: 3
MIS 142 - Business Computer Systems Credits: 3
MKT 305 - Principles of Marketing Credits: 3
SCM 200 - Statistical Applications in Business Credits: 3
SCM 330 - Supply Chain and Operations Management Credits: 3

Note:

Students who place at the advanced level in the mathematics placement/competency test are not required to take MAT 140A /MAT 140B . In lieu of MAT 140A /MAT 140B , students are required to take an additional free elective.
Completion of ECO 101 and ECO 102 will satisfy the requirement for ECO 113 .
Completion of MAT 117 taken at Shippensburg University will satisfy the requirement for SCM 200 .
MGT 447 Satisfies university diversity requirement.

Major Course Requirements

Students should meet with their faculty advisor to plan the sequencing of their major program of study. Students interested in a double major and/or minor shall be required to take the prescribed courses in each respective major and/or minor. Students can double count one course between business majors with the permission of the respective department chair(s). Refer to the index under Double Majors and Minors for further information.

Required (12 crs.)

Electives (6 crs.)

(Two courses from the following 3-credit courses)

Finance Career Opportunities

Students develop a wide range of analytical skills with both theoretical and real problems and can, therefore, choose a career within a full spectrum of jobs: corporate financial analyst (revenue and capital budget), financial planner, security analyst, portfolio manager or analyst, pension fund manager, security broker or dealer, banking industry analyst, mortgage analyst, corporate risk manager, or consultant on mergers and acquisitions.

Shippensburg University graduates who majored in finance have obtained responsible positions in major corporations, profit and non-profit, and positions in a variety of major and regional banks and other financial institutions.

For those students with a concentration in real estate, career opportunities are available in a wide array of firms. For example, a graduate may take a position with a real estate development firm, a financial institution or real estate investment firm, a real estate brokerage firm, a real estate management firm, or an appraisal firm. There are also a wide variety of job opportunities in the non-profit or governmental sector for a student with an expertise in real estate.