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Finance

Finance Major

The Finance major provides an academic experience sufficient to prepare students for employment in financial services, which includes banking, investment banking, investment management, financial planning, insurance and financial management. It also benefits students interested in pursuing finance-related professional certifications such as the Certified Financial Planner (CFP) and Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA).

Major Requirements

Major: Finance

Degree Type: B.S.
Minimum Credits Required for Degree: 123

General Education Requirements for Baccalaureate Degree

  • A dynamic list of approved general education courses offered by term is available on the NDSU General Education Requirements website.
  • General education courses may be used to satisfy requirements for both general education and the major, minor, and program emphases, where applicable. Students should carefully review the major, minor, and program emphases requirements for minimum grade restrictions, if applicable.
First Year Experience (F)1
Skills For Academic Success (Also offered with the following prefixes: ABEN, AGRI, BUSN, HD&E, ME, NURS, PHRM)
Communication (C)12
College Composition I
College Composition II
Fundamentals of Public Speaking
Upper Division Writing
Quantitative Reasoning (R) 3
Science and Technology (S) 10
Humanities and Fine Arts (A) 6
Social and Behavioral Sciences (B) 6
Wellness (W) 2
Cultural Diversity (D) *†
Global Perspectives (G) *†
Total Credits40

Major Requirements

Pre-College of Business Requirements
ACCT 200Elements of Accounting I *3
ACCT 201Elements of Accounting II *3
COMM 110Fundamentals of Public Speaking (May satisfy general education category C) *3
CSCI 116Business Use of Computers (May satisfy general education category S) *4
ECON 201Principles of Microeconomics (May satisfy general education category B and G) *3
ECON 202Principles of Macroeconomics (May satisfy general education category B and G) *3
ENGL 110College Composition I (May satisfy general education category C) *3
ENGL 120College Composition II (May satisfy general education category C) *3
MATH 144Mathematics for Business *4
PHIL 216Business Ethics (May satisfy general education category A) *3
PSYC 111Introduction to Psychology (May satisfy general education category B) *3
or SOC 110 Introduction to Sociology
STAT 330Introductory Statistics (May satisfy general education category R) *3
STAT 331Regression Analysis *2
Finance Major Requirements **
BUSN 301Organizational Citizen0
ENGL 320Business and Professional Writing (May satisfy general education category C)3
FIN 320Principles of Finance (requires a grade of C or better) 13
MGMT 320Foundations of Management 13
MRKT 320Foundations of Marketing 13
BUSN 430Legal and Social Environment of Business 13
FIN 410Investment Analysis and Management3
FIN 430Management of Financial Institutions3
FIN 460Corporate Finance3
BUSN 489Strategic Management (Capstone Course) 14
MIS 320Management Information Systems 13
Finance Courses **
FIN 420Options, Futures, and Other Derivatives3
FIN 440International Finance3
FIN 470Analysis of Fixed-Income Securities3
300-400 level Courses **18
Select 9 credits from three of the following six areas (includes courses cross-listed with CoB courses):
1) ACCT
2) MGMT
3) MRKT
4) MIS
5) Environment of Business:
Taxation in Management Decisions
International Business
Global Business Environment
Principles of Real Estate
Organizational Communication I
Business Law I-Contracts, Property and Torts
Business Law II-Business Organization and Commercial Transactions
International Business Law
Cooperatives
Managerial Economics
6) Internship up to three credits:
Fe/Coop Ed/Internship
Finance Service Internship
Select 9 credits (minimum) from the following eleven areas (must be 300-400 level); includes courses cross-listed with CoB courses:
1) FIN
2) ACCT
3) AGEC
4) BUSN
5) CSCI
6) ECON
7) MATH
8) MGMT
9) MIS
10) MRKT
11) STAT
*

Pre-college and pre-finance major courses: A grade of 'C' or better is required in these courses for admission to the Finance major.

**

Students must earn a grade of 'C' or better and have a minimum 2.5 cumulative GPA in ALL courses included in the professional program (i.e., all required courses, elective requirements, and additional 300-400 level College of Business electives or breadth electives). The only exception is BUSN 301, which is a P/F course.

1

 Denotes Common Body of Knowledge (CBK) course.

Degree Requirements and Notes

  • Students must include one of the following international courses in their plan of study:
    BUSN 340International Business3
    BUSN 341Global Business Environment3
    FIN 440International Finance3
    MGMT 440International Management3
    MRKT 440International Marketing3
  • Students follow the published curricula for the finance program of study from the semester/year of entrance in the College of Business to graduation provided enrollment at NDSU has not been discontinued for more than one year. Students who change their major are subject to meeting the curricular requirements in effect at the time the new major is declared. 
  • Business courses from programs that do not hold AACSB International accreditation cannot be used for major or minor requirements in the College of Business (CoB); such courses may be eligible for use as free electives.
  • The CoB accepts a maximum of nine credits of non-NDSU 300-400 level business courses from AACSB programs with approval of the department.
  • Admission into the finance major: Students must earn a 'C' or better in the pre-college and pre-finance major courses that are indicated with an asterisk (*), achieve junior standing (60 credits), and earn a 2.50 institutional cumulative grade point average.  Students must submit an online application to the CoB.
  • Admission to the finance major is required to enroll in the advanced 300 or 400 level courses in the CoB.
  • A grade of 'C' or better is required in transfer courses accepted for ACCT 200 Elements of Accounting I and ACCT 201 Elements of Accounting II and all 300-400 level accounting, business administration, finance, management, management information systems, and marketing courses.
  • A letter grade must be earned in any course that fulfills a major requirement (with the exception of some practicum options and BUSN 301).
  • A 2.50 cumulative grade point average is required to enroll in 300-400 level CoB courses.
  • Students must earn a 2.50 institutional GPA to graduate.
  • Of the credits completed in residence at least 30 credits must be in 300-400 level CoB courses.
  • Students must be accepted to the finance major prior to the completion of the last 30 credits in 300 and 400 level CoB courses.
  • A Business Administration minor is NOT offered with this major.
  • For multiple majors within the CoB, at least 15 unique credits of 300-400 level CoB courses must exist between the majors.
  • Prerequisite for Finance Internship: Fin 320 with a grade of C or better.
  • Students should refer to www.ndsu.edu/business for current and complete listing of the major requirements.

Plan of Study 

Freshman
FallCreditsSpringCredits
BUSN 18911COMM 1103
CSCI 1164ENGL 1203
ENGL 1103MATH 144 (Requires Math 103, Math 107, or placement as a pre-requisite)4
Humanities/Fine Arts Elective3PSYC 111 or SOC 1103
Non-major Elective3Cultural Diversity or Non-major Elective3
Wellness2 
 16 16
Sophomore
FallCreditsSpringCredits
ACCT 2003ACCT 2013
ECON 2013ECON 2023
PHIL 2163STAT 3312
STAT 3303Non-major Elective3-4
Science & Technology Elective2-3Science & Technology Elective (w/lab)4
 14-15 15-16
Junior
FallCreditsSpringCredits
ENGL 3203BUSN 4303
FIN 3203300-400 Level Business Elective 3
MGMT 3203300-400 Level Business Elective 3
MIS 3203FIN 4303
MRKT 3203FIN 4603
 15 15
Senior
FallCreditsSpringCredits
FIN 4103BUSN 4894
FIN 4203FIN 4403
300-400 Level Business Elective 3FIN 4703
300-400 Level Business Elective3300-400 Level Business Elective3
Non-Major Elective(s)4300-400 Level Business Elective3
 16 16
Total Credits: 123-125

Note: This is only a sample curriculum; actual class schedules will depend on availability and individual choices. Students are encouraged to meet with their academic adviser on a regular basis to review their plan of study.