Finance Concentration
Finance is at the core of every business in every industry. Whether an entrepreneur is developing a new business or growing an existing one, whether a corporation is launching a new product or a portfolio manager is considering new investments, finance provides tools to evaluate these decisions. At large, finance provides the framework for understanding how businesses, financial institutions as well as individual investors make decisions in accessing and deploying capital (money). As businesses are ever more complex, the tools to help make financial decisions become ever more important.
About our Program
Poole College’s Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, Concentration in Finance provides an extensive background in functional business areas while helping students to develop the skills necessary to engage with local, national and global financial stakeholders.
Students complete core courses in business functions, as well as specialized courses in financial strategy and management. Poole College’s concentration in finance helps graduates develop the analytical skills to navigate a wide range of professional environments with ethics and integrity.
The program curriculum explores the topics of financial analysis, capital markets and financial intermediaries, business and project evaluation, personal finance, and international finance – all of which prepare students to answer complex finance questions.
B.S. in Business Administration, Finance Concentration
What Will I Learn?
Finance concentration graduates will understand how to:
- Organize and express ideas using appropriate language and grammar in a business context.
- Organize, analyze and apply information to make business decisions.
- Make financial decisions in numerous applications.
- Analyze investment choices and build portfolios.
- Integrate finance across functional areas of an organization.
- Value firms, projects and securities.
- Utilize key financial principles.
- Employ a framework for making business decisions.
Why Finance at NC State?
NC State’s finance program provides students with a strong quantitative background, along with solid technical skills. We give students real world data experience with practical applications to big data along with software skills that will allow them to thrive within the profession.
With NC State’s strong reputation in STEM subjects, graduates of the program will be highly sought after by recruiters.
From the Classroom to the Trading Floor
Curriculum Overview and Degree Requirements
Students start their time at NC State Poole College of Management as either a management first year student (if you are a freshman) or in a major (if you are a transfer student). Regardless of your path, you will have plenty of time to explore the different things you want to do in business and finance.
The business administration, finance concentration requires that students complete 120 credits towards the degree, comprised of courses in humanities and social sciences, mathematics, natural sciences, general electives and credits specific to the finance program. Students with a finance concentration also get a broad education in key business areas by taking core courses in accounting, entrepreneurship, operations and supply chain management, human resources management, IT, marketing along with a capstone business strategy course.
Business Administration major – Finance concentration requirements include 46 credits:
- Core Business Courses (34 credits), including MIE 201 Introduction to Business Processes, ACC 210 Concepts and Financial Reporting, ACC 220 Introduction to Managerial Accounting and BUS 320 Financial Management
- Finance Requirements (6 credits), including BUS 420 Financial Management of Corporations and BUS 422 Investments and Portfolio Management
- Finance Electives (6 credits), including BUS 425 Advanced Personal Financial Management and BUS 428 Financial Analytics
For full degree requirements, visit the NC State Catalog. To view individual courses, descriptions and schedules, use the Course Search.
Career Opportunities
Many students are drawn to careers in finance because it is a high-paying and dependable profession. The average salary for a financial analyst in the U.S. is $62,108, according to payscale.com.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that employment in business and finance is projected to grow 8% from 2020 to 2030 – adding approximately 750,000 openings annually.
Careers include:
- Financial analyst
- Equity analyst
- Portfolio manager
- Risk manager
- Bank loan officer
- Financial consultant
- Investment banker
- … and more!
Launch your career –– the Career Center at Poole is here to support you. #PoolePackAlum
