Finance Economics Major

Professors Gitter, MacLeod, Simon
Associate Professors Breidenbach, Charna, Bryan, Rahman, Skosples, Yazar
Assistant Professors Vollrath, West, Younkman

Primary Finance Faculty: MacLeod, Younkman

Whatever your interest in finance - ranging from wealth management to investment banking to corporate finance-, this major provides a robust and analytical foundation in economics and advanced finance topics. It is an affiliate program of the CFA Institute; scholarships are available for high-performing students to study for CFA Level I in their senior year.

Learning Objectives

Finance Economics majors will be able to

demonstrate command and knowledge of fundamental and technical concepts of finance;
effectively and accurately interpret, analyze and present financial data and information in oral, written and graphic forms;
apply critical-thinking and problem-solving skills in financial-related business areas;
determine when change is appropriate and adapt to change as it occurs;
demonstrate a sense of ethics, responsibility, and service to users of financial data and information;
demonstrate an awareness of the global financial and business environment; and
better discern personal interests and establish career objectives.

Major Requirements

A total of 13.5 units consisting of the following:

Required Courses

9.5 units

Elective Courses

4 upper-level units (numbered 250 or above)

Finance Elective Courses

1.0 unit from ACCT 341 , certain BUS 307 sections (I, J, K, L, M, and potentially others), BUS 490 , BUS 491 (including CFA Level I), BUS 495 , or BUS 499 . For 307, 490, 491, 495 and 499, the focus must be finance related and pre-approved by Prof. MacLeod. Elective course offerings change every year, and new ones are sometimes developed. Talk to Prof. MacLeod or Prof. Younkman for updated information.

Economics Elective Courses

3 Economics (ECON) units. Of these three units, at least one must be an Advanced Economics course, and at least one must be an International course, with the remaining units from any other ECON courses. Recommended: ECON 255 or ECON 259 , ECON 355 , ECON 372 , ECON 378 . NOTE: If both ECON 255 and ECON 259 are taken, one will serve as the required course, and the other may be used as one of the electives.

Advanced Courses

(an Advanced Course is one that has ECON 252 as a prerequisite)

International Courses

ECON 282 , ECON 345 , ECON 353 , ECON 370 , and ECON 372 . BUS courses (BUS 307 I, BUS 345 , BUS 476 and possibly BUS 499 ) may be taken to meet the international requirement, but three ECON electives are still required.

Note(s):

Advanced students are encouraged to complete BUS 361 spring semester of sophomore year to be best equipped for internships, research opportunities, and elective coursework. All majors must complete BUS 361 no later than spring semester of the junior year. A grade of C- or better is required in the senior year finance course (either BUS 462 or BUS 465 ).

A standard pathway for finance courses is ACCT 217 sophomore fall, ACCT 280 sophomore spring, BUS 361 junior fall, BUS 462 and/or finance elective junior spring, finance-related internship summer, BUS 465 senior fall, BUS 462 and/or finance elective senior spring.

An express pathway for finance courses is ACCT 217 frosh spring, ACCT 280 sophomore fall, BUS 361 sophomore spring, first finance-related internship summer, BUS 465 junior fall, BUS 462 and/or finance elective junior spring, second finance-related internship summer, additional finance electives senior year.

Recommended: ENG 310 and MATH 110 for those considering graduate work in finance.

Other Information

Majors and minors should be declared no later than the sophomore year. In order to declare one of the department majors or minors, a student must have either a) a 2.5 cumulative University grade point average, or b) a 2.0 cumulative University grade point average and have earned a B in one course taken in the intended major or minor track.

Double majors in the department are allowed only if one of the majors is Accounting. Some major/ minor combinations are permitted, but a minor in business or economics may not be combined with a major in management economics, or international business. Finance majors may not minor in economics, but they may minor in business by taking an extra business course above that otherwise required for the minor.

A general principle followed by the department is that no more than two courses may be counted towards completing requirements in more than one program. For example, a Finance Economics major (13.5 units) also completing an Accounting major (12 units), may not count more than two courses for both programs, so additional coursework (beyond 23.5 units) will be required to complete requirements for this combination of programs. Additionally, if the Accounting major is combined with another major or minor in the department (business administration major, finance economics major, management economics major, business minor), ACCT 341 , ACCT 348 , or ACCT 349 may only be chosen as an elective course for one designation.

It is recommended that the statistics course (MATH 105 or MATH 230 or PSYC 210 ) be completed by the end of the sophomore year as it is a pre-requisite to ECON 251 and ECON 252. MATH 105 may not be taken for credit after receiving credit for MATH 110 or above. (This includes AP calculus or equivalent.)

Students considering a second economics course should consider courses numbered in the 200s.

Only one unit of 495 may be counted and a maximum of two units from 490A, 490B, 491, and 495 may be counted toward any major in the Economics department.

All elective courses must be upper-level (numbered 250 or above). Students must attain a minimum 2.0 grade point average in their major to graduate. Courses eligible to be counted in the major or minor cannot be taken credit/no entry. All pre-requisite courses must be successfully passed with a grade of C- or better to qualify for enrollment in the subsequent course.

A maximum of 13 units of credit in any one discipline (accounting, business, or economics) and 17 total units of credit in the economics department may be counted in the 34 units required for graduation. Additional discipline or department units will result in greater than 34 units required for graduation.

All economics courses (ECON) below the 490 level meet the Social Science distribution requirement (Group I).

A-Levels, International Baccalaureate, Advanced Placement, and Other Credits

Students who pass A-Levels in Economics with a C or better will receive a total of two credits; one for ECON 110 and one general unit of lower-level Economics credit.

Students who pass A-Levels in Accounting with a C or better will receive a total of only one credit, and that will be for ACCT 217 .

Students who pass A-Levels in Business with a C or better will receive a total of only one credit, and that will be a general-unit of lower level business credit.

Information on credit for International Baccalaureate and Advanced Placement may be found in the Academic Regulations and Procedures section of this Catalog.

Students may use a proficiency examination or an advanced placement examination to meet the requirements of ECON 110 . Information on the proficiency examination for ECON 110 will be given during new student orientation. Advanced Placement Rules are listed in the Academic Regulations and Procedures section of this Catalog.

Students who transfer courses to Ohio Wesleyan University should consult with the department chair regarding the appropriate credit to be awarded. If several courses are transferred at less than 1.0 unit (3.75 credits), additional courses may be required. For all majors and minors in the department, a majority of the courses must be completed at OWU.