Finance
Why pursue a finance degree at North Central College?
Finance majors stemming from our school of business and entrepreneurship are prepared to do a variety of jobs, including corporate finance, investment banking, wealth management, financial services, and law and government to obtain their business finance degrees. This program is designed to help students solve complex quantitative problems and learn the communication skills to be able to explain financial analysis to CEOs, stockholders, and individual clients within commercial banking.
At North Central, you will have the opportunity to gain hands-on experience in business finance and investment banking as early as your first year on campus. As a financial analyst, you’ll be responsible for activities like creating sturdy financial plans, giving investment advice, and performing risk management for assets and debts. By learning to create meaningful economic impact across industries, you’ll be ready to succeed in any environment.
IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN
- Financial planning and capital plans curating investment decisions for corporations
- Giving investment management advice to clients
- Tracking and performing risk management for assets and debts
then a degree in FINANCE might be for you.
Why study finance at North Central College?
In the Classroom
Coursework topics:
- 11-course comprehensive business core (including Corporate Finance, Microeconomics, Macroeconomics, Financial Accounting, and Managerial Accounting)
- Advanced Corporate Finance
- Derivatives: Markets, Pricing, and Applications
- Financial Institutions
- Forecasting and Valuation
- International Finance
- Investments and Portfolio Management
- Statistical Applications in Finance
- Wealth Management
Beyond the Classroom
As a finance major, you can:
- Simulate trading and access thousands of proprietary reports in the Bloomberg Finance Lab, equipped with ten dual-monitor workstations, Bloomberg Terminal software, and Bloomberg’s unique keyboards.
- Become “Bloomberg certified” by completing a series of advanced financial modules in our Bloomberg Finance Lab.
- Join Finance Club and participate in networking events with finance professionals, attend guest speaker and panel presentations and visit the Chicago Board of Trade, Chicago Board of Options and the Federal Reserve.
- Research investments, recommend investment options and manage a real portfolio’s risk and returns with a Student-Managed Investment Fund.
- Sit for the CFA Level 1 Exam (North Central is a CFA Program Affiliated University).
- Apply for internships and jobs through robust faculty and alumni networks or the Center for Career and Professional Development.
- Learn about personal finance and work with local high schools through the Center for Financial Literacy.
Finance, B.B.A.
Finance broadly emphasizes the study of financial instruments, institutions and markets. Graduates are employed in a wide variety of careers including financial analysis, financial advising, financial instrument investment and portfolio management and insurance. Finance professionals work for investment banking firms, private firms, governmental units and not-for-profit organizations.
The finance major requirements provide a substantial portion of the content coverage for the level 1 examination in the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) program. In addition to the required finance courses and common SBE core, students interested in obtaining the CFA designation are encouraged to complete additional finance, economics and accounting electives.
For additional information and courses in this program, see Accounting and Finance.
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SBEN 100 - Globalization and Society
SBEN 100 - Globalization and Society
4.00 credit hours
An introductory course identifying the role of the business institution in our society, how business behavior is shaped and influenced by its stakeholders-managers, consumers, employees, government and community members. Key topics include: business systems, corporate governance, the business and society relationship, business and public issues, ethical dilemmas in business, corporate social responsibilities in relation to stakeholders, globalization, ecological and sustainability issues and the influence of technology on business and society.
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ACCT 201 - Financial Accounting
ACCT 201 - Financial Accounting
4.00 credit hours
An introduction to accounting principles and procedures as they are employed in the communication of financial information to various users, such as management, stockholders and government agencies. Topics include accounting for assets, liabilities, owner's equity and other reporting issues.
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ACCT 202 - Managerial Accounting
ACCT 202 - Managerial Accounting
4.00 credit hours
Analysis of accounting for managerial decision-making, planning and control. Topics include budgeting, variance analysis, traditional and nontraditional product costing methods and cost-volume profit analysis.
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BUSN 205 - Business Law and Ethics
BUSN 205 - Business Law and Ethics
4.00 credit hours
Surveys the major aspects of the law governing business and commerce including the domestic and international legal environment, the range of dispute resolution processes, legal liability including torts and negligence, contracts, employment law including employment discrimination, business entities, commercial transactions and intellectual property—all with particular emphasis on business ethics and ethical decision making.
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BUSN 265 - Business and Economics Statistics
BUSN 265 - Business and Economics Statistics
4.00 credit hours
Provides an overview of basic statistics as it applies to business. The focus is on learning statistical concepts by applying analytical reasoning to business applications. Examples illustrating the relevance of statistics to broad areas of business are used. The course requires students to use spreadsheet programs, statistical programs, the Internet and other computer tools in analyzing statistics. The focus is on application of the material and on solving problems. Only one of BUSN 265 and
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BUSN 485 - Business Strategy
BUSN 485 - Business Strategy
4.00 credit hours
The capstone course requirement for all business majors. As befits a capstone, student skills in business strategy are developed in a highly integrative manner such that students use knowledge and frameworks from all functional areas of business to develop a holistic perspective of firms and competitive advantage. The knowing component of this course is focused on theoretical knowledge and frameworks applied in the critical analysis of business case studies. The doing component of this course centers on an online simulation where students compete to run a successful business.
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ECON 200 - Principles of Microeconomics
ECON 200 - Principles of Microeconomics
4.00 credit hours
Introduction to the theory of consumer choice, social and individual welfare, the behavior of business firms and market structure, and other applied microeconomic topics.
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ECON 205 - Principles of Macroeconomics
ECON 205 - Principles of Macroeconomics
4.00 credit hours
Introduction to macroeconomic theory, with emphasis on factors which explain changes in national income, unemployment and inflation. Other topics include money and banking, fiscal and monetary policies, distribution of income and economic crises.
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FINA 350 - Corporate Finance
FINA 350 - Corporate Finance
4.00 credit hours
An introduction to corporate financial management. Topics include financial statement analysis, discounted cash flow analysis, bond and stock valuation, common stock/debt financing, risk and return, cost of capital, and capital budgeting.
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MGMT 305 - Management and Organizational Behavior
MGMT 305 - Management and Organizational Behavior
4.00 credit hours
Provides a formal overview of why organizations exist and how they operate within the context of society. Basic management issues such as the structure of organizations are explored. In many cases management topics are covered in a generic manner that can be applied to any organization. Other issues are addressed with specific applications to certain firms. This course examines our role as individuals as it pertains to organizations. It is generally meant to provide a framework to analyze organizations that exist in the U.S. but will also cover some international topics.
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MKTG 300 - Principles of Marketing
MKTG 300 - Principles of Marketing
4.00 credit hours
Presents an overview of Marketing as a principle, a discipline, and as a profession. Students examine all elements of Marketing including integrated promotional strategies, consumer behavior, and ethics and social responsibility. Emphasis is placed on the Marketing Mix (Product, Place, Promotion and Price) as students design and implement a comprehensive marketing plan.
Finance Courses
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FINA 370 - Wealth Management
FINA 370 - Wealth Management
4.00 credit hours
A broad-based course on personal financial planning and wealth management. Topics include financial planning, tax management, housing decision, insurance planning, personal investment, professional ethics and conduct, retirement and estate planning.
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FINA 400 - Investments and Portfolio Management
FINA 400 - Investments and Portfolio Management
4.00 credit hours
Study of topics related to investment tools and portfolio management including fundamental analysis, technical analysis, stock and bond valuations, portfolio analysis, efficient market hypothesis, and international financial markets.
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FINA 425 - Financial Institutions
FINA 425 - Financial Institutions
4.00 credit hours
The study of measuring and managing the risks faced by financial institutions. Topics include the organizational and regulatory structure of the financial services industry.
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FINA 475 - Derivatives: Markets, Pricing and Applications
FINA 475 - Derivatives: Markets, Pricing and Applications
4.00 credit hours
Students learn about financial derivatives and their use in managing risk and creating leverage. Topics include American options, forwards, futures and swaps. Emphasis is on applying learned strategies to control risk or leverage returns arising from fluctuating stock prices, interest rates, exchange rates and commodity prices.
Two of the following:
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FINA 385 - International Finance
FINA 385 - International Finance
2.00 credit hours
This course examines global financial market activities, including topics such as exchange rate determination and its effects, international arbitrage, interest rate and purchasing power parity, forecasting exchange rate, measuring and managing exchange rate risk, and multinational capital budgeting.
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FINA 450 - Advanced Corporate Finance
FINA 450 - Advanced Corporate Finance
2.00 credit hours
Study of advanced corporate finance related theories and practices. The topics are cash flow estimation and risk analysis, capital structure, distribution for shareholders, and working capital management.
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FINA 460 - Forecasting and Valuation
FINA 460 - Forecasting and Valuation
2.00 credit hours
Application of econometric models to detect and replicate patterns in time series business and economic data. The course covers forecasting trends, forecasting seasonality, forecasting cycles, forecasting volatility, and contemporary forecasting methods.
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FINA 480 - Statistical Applications in Finance
FINA 480 - Statistical Applications in Finance
4.00 credit hours
Introduction to coding in a programming language(s) used in Quantitative Finance. Topics include from data handling, data visualization, data analysis and financial modelling.
Finance Minor
The Finance Minor introduces students to key and core aspects of the financial markets, investments and financial institutions. A minor in finance is appropriate for a wide-range of student majors and can provide the basis for continued graduate study in finance at the masters' degree-level or a Master of Business Administration.
For additional information and courses in this program, see Accounting and Finance .
A minimum of 28 credit hours, including:
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ACCT 201 - Financial Accounting
ACCT 201 - Financial Accounting
4.00 credit hours
An introduction to accounting principles and procedures as they are employed in the communication of financial information to various users, such as management, stockholders and government agencies. Topics include accounting for assets, liabilities, owner's equity and other reporting issues.
-
ECON 200 - Principles of Microeconomics
ECON 200 - Principles of Microeconomics
4.00 credit hours
Introduction to the theory of consumer choice, social and individual welfare, the behavior of business firms and market structure, and other applied microeconomic topics.
-
BUSN 265 - Business and Economics Statistics
BUSN 265 - Business and Economics Statistics
4.00 credit hours
Provides an overview of basic statistics as it applies to business. The focus is on learning statistical concepts by applying analytical reasoning to business applications. Examples illustrating the relevance of statistics to broad areas of business are used. The course requires students to use spreadsheet programs, statistical programs, the Internet and other computer tools in analyzing statistics. The focus is on application of the material and on solving problems. Only one of BUSN 265 and
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FINA 350 - Corporate Finance
FINA 350 - Corporate Finance
4.00 credit hours
An introduction to corporate financial management. Topics include financial statement analysis, discounted cash flow analysis, bond and stock valuation, common stock/debt financing, risk and return, cost of capital, and capital budgeting.
Finance Electives
Twelve credit hours from the following:
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FINA 370 - Wealth Management
FINA 370 - Wealth Management
4.00 credit hours
A broad-based course on personal financial planning and wealth management. Topics include financial planning, tax management, housing decision, insurance planning, personal investment, professional ethics and conduct, retirement and estate planning.
-
FINA 385 - International Finance
FINA 385 - International Finance
2.00 credit hours
This course examines global financial market activities, including topics such as exchange rate determination and its effects, international arbitrage, interest rate and purchasing power parity, forecasting exchange rate, measuring and managing exchange rate risk, and multinational capital budgeting.
-
FINA 400 - Investments and Portfolio Management
FINA 400 - Investments and Portfolio Management
4.00 credit hours
Study of topics related to investment tools and portfolio management including fundamental analysis, technical analysis, stock and bond valuations, portfolio analysis, efficient market hypothesis, and international financial markets.
-
FINA 425 - Financial Institutions
FINA 425 - Financial Institutions
4.00 credit hours
The study of measuring and managing the risks faced by financial institutions. Topics include the organizational and regulatory structure of the financial services industry.
-
FINA 450 - Advanced Corporate Finance
FINA 450 - Advanced Corporate Finance
2.00 credit hours
Study of advanced corporate finance related theories and practices. The topics are cash flow estimation and risk analysis, capital structure, distribution for shareholders, and working capital management.
-
FINA 460 - Forecasting and Valuation
FINA 460 - Forecasting and Valuation
2.00 credit hours
Application of econometric models to detect and replicate patterns in time series business and economic data. The course covers forecasting trends, forecasting seasonality, forecasting cycles, forecasting volatility, and contemporary forecasting methods.
-
FINA 475 - Derivatives: Markets, Pricing and Applications
FINA 475 - Derivatives: Markets, Pricing and Applications
4.00 credit hours
Students learn about financial derivatives and their use in managing risk and creating leverage. Topics include American options, forwards, futures and swaps. Emphasis is on applying learned strategies to control risk or leverage returns arising from fluctuating stock prices, interest rates, exchange rates and commodity prices.
-
FINA 480 - Statistical Applications in Finance
FINA 480 - Statistical Applications in Finance
4.00 credit hours
Introduction to coding in a programming language(s) used in Quantitative Finance. Topics include from data handling, data visualization, data analysis and financial modelling.
Finance Internships and Jobs
A North Central education integrates career preparation with rich academic study. Our faculty encourages you to refine and apply your knowledge in an interconnected world. Here you'll learn to think independently and work globally to solve problems and lead.
Internships
Finance majors have numerous internship opportunities. The following are some examples of recent internship experiences:
- Financial services intern, Wachovia, Naperville, IL
- Mortgage lender, Aspen Mortgage Corporation, Naperville, IL
- Retirement planning, Northwestern Mutual, Lombard, IL
- Financial advisor, Morgan Stanley Smith Barney, Naperville, IL
- Financial anaylst, Calamos Investments, Naperville, IL
Careers
Companies recently hiring finance majors:
- Allstate
- Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois
- BMO Harris Bank
- Edward Jones
- Exelon
- FCB Banks
- Ford Motors
- Groupon
- Hub Group
- Liberty Mutual
- Navistar
- Northern Trust Bank
- Walgreens
Invest in your future
Choosing the right college is a big decision. Don’t make it alone. North Central’s admission and financial aid team is here to help you design a financial aid solution that works best for you and your family.
Merit scholarships, grants, loans, campus employment - these are just some of the resources available to you. Over 95 percent of students and 100 percent of all eligible students receive aid. Let our team partner with you in finding the best value for your education.
Learn more about financial aid and costs for North Central College
Apply to North Central College
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