MS in Finance

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Get graduate-level training in finance at a Research 1 university in the heart of Chicago.

The Master of Science in Finance at UIC Liautaud is a 32-credit-hour accredited program at a Research 1 university overlooking downtown Chicago. MSF students gain a solid foundation in the principles of modern finance, and specialize in one of four areas: corporate finance, asset management, banking and capital markets, and commodities, derivatives, and financial exchanges. Students perform coursework in the Market Training Lab, a virtual trading center featuring state-of-the-art industry software.

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Important Dates

International Applicants

Fall Semester Deadline

February 15

Spring Semester Deadline

July 15

Domestic Applicants

Fall Enrollment Deadline

June 15

Spring Semester Deadline

November 1

Curriculum

The MSF program provides a strong foundation in the principles and practice of modern finance. The program introduces the latest concepts and issues affecting today’s financial professionals.

Fast-paced and flexible: Thirty-two credit hour degree program that can be completed in one year full-time study (or more than one year of part-time study).

Areas of Specialization:
The program offers tracks including:

Corporate Finance
Asset Management
Commodities, Derivatives, and Financial Exchanges
Banking & Capital Markets

Market Training Lab: Virtual trading center featuring industry software products, and academic research data.

Financial Certification Preparation: Preparation for professional exams.

More Information

For a full list of requirements, including prerequisites, visit the UIC Catalog
For a full list of offered courses, visit the Course Catalog
For information about tuition and fees, visit the Tuition Office
To view the MSF brochure, click here.

View Degree Requirements

Course List
Code	Title	Hours
Required Courses (12 hours)
FIN510	Investments
FIN520	Corporate Finance
FIN570	Quantitative Methods in Finance
Electives (20 hours)
Elective courses will be selected in consultation with an advisor based upon student's educational and professional goals. Courses can be chosen from following list of approved electives; other courses may be chosen with approval of director of graduate studies. At most, 8 hours can be in disciplines other than finance.
FIN512	Portfolio Analysis
FIN516	Theory and Structure of Options and Futures Markets
FIN530	Money and Banking
FIN531	Capital Markets
FIN542	International Finance
FIN551	Financial Decision Making I
FIN571	Empirical Issues in Finance
FIN594	Special Topics in Finance
FIN596	Independent Study in Finance
ACTG502	Financial Accounting I
ACTG516	Financial Statement Analysis
ACTG585	Corporate Valuation and Accounting Information
IDS572	Data Mining for Business
IDS 582/ECON537	Business Research and Forecasting I
IDS 583/ECON538	Business Research and Forecasting II

Program Faculty

Ozgur Arslan-Ayaydin

Clinical Associate Professor of Finance

Gib Bassett

Department Head of Finance

Andriy Bodnaruk

Associate Professor of Finance

Featured Courses

FIN 594: Energy Markets and Contracting

There is growing demand for business professionals and engineers alike who understand how energy is traded on the open market. This course will teach business majors how the energy industry determines pricing and market options, and will also teach engineers how financial markets operate. Students in both fields will learn how consumers use new technologies to minimize energy costs, and how they obtain their own energy contracts from marketing organizations.

Co-taught by adjunct professors in Business and Engineering.

For more information, contact: gib@uic.edu

FIN 594: Behavioral Finance

Standard finance theory assumes that market participants are rational, an assumption that leaves basic facts of the stock market unexplained. By assuming that some investors aren’t fully rational, behavioral finance better explains some financial phenomena. This course will focus on two areas: limits to arbitrage and how rational traders react to irrational traders, and investor psychology and the deviations from full rationality we can expect to find in financial markets.

For more information, contact Andriy Bodnaruk at bodnaruk@uic.edu.

FIN 594 Securities Markets and High-Frequency Trading

Learn how securities are traded in modern electronic financial markets. You'll uncover the design, operation, and regulation of trading processes with a special emphasis placed on trading simulations related to agency trading, liability trading, and market
making. This course is suited to people who plan to work or are interested in securities exchanges and trading.

"The MSF program at UIC bridged the gap between my undergraduate degree in psychology and my interest in financial services. Through the breadth of the coursework and the practical project-based experience, the program helped me reach my goal of becoming an alternative investments analyst with a respected firm."

Collin Baffa, Northern Trust

MSF '15

Student Organizations/Activities

The Graduate Finance and Investment Group (GFIG) sponsors talks by Chicago finance professionals on recent developments in Finance.

Students participate in investment challenge competitions against other universities.

Career Placements

Financial Analyst, Portfolio Manager, Trader, Risk Management, Corporate Finance, Commercial Banking

Resources

The MSF program offers resources to enhance your educational experience including talks by executives from Chicago financial exchanges and trading firms. The market trading lab introduces software used by industry professionals.

Business Career Center

Job search facilitated by the Business Career Center. Professional guidance enables an efficient job search tailored to career goals.

Market Training Lab

The Lab offers tutorials that introduce trading and statistical software.

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