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If you have made the decision to head back to grad school in the “Heart of Dixie,” then it is essential that you under what different accredited master’s level finance programs in Alabama are available to take your specialized business career to the next level. While Alabama may be best known through the “Deep South” for its strong agricultural roots, this is just the tip of the iceberg. As the years pass, Alabama is continuing to invest in growing its aerospace, education, healthcare, banking, manufacturing, and mining industries. In fact, it has been reported that Alabama currently has 71,750 managerial positions in business and financial operations. Read on to learn more about the two master’s degree programs in finance that offered by accredited graduate schools to receive a competitive edge in Alabama’s growing industries.
Auburn University
Raymond J. Harbert College of Business
As part of a distinctive group of elite public universities designated with land, sea, and space-grant status for breakthrough research, Auburn University is one of the largest institutions in the South with more than 25,900 students on a vast 1,875-acre suburban campus in the beautiful plains of eastern Alabama within 50 miles east of the state’s capital. Included in the top 100 best values in public colleges by Kiplinger’s, Auburn is currently ranked as the 103rd best college and 48th top public school in the country by the U.S. News and World Report. Also highly regarded as one of the top business schools, the Raymond J. Harbert College of Business is acclaimed for having the 12th best online business masters programs in America.
Master of Science in Finance (MSF)
Boasting nationally and internationally recognized scholars to provide a masters degree with a solid return on investment, the Master of Science in Finance (MSF) program is designed to prepare graduate students to be more qualified for assuming professional positions and advancing further in their career in the principal areas of finance. In the 30-credit curriculum, students will complete a wide variety of courses ranging from corporate finance and investment banking to cost analysis and financial engineering. Students can decide to complete the thesis track to complete a final project and oral defense, or a non-thesis track to focus on coursework with a comprehensive examination. Along with the traditional on-campus program, students can pursue the finance degree 100% online from anywhere for no disruption to work obligations.
Accreditations
Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB)
Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS)
Contact
405 West Magnolia Avenue
Auburn, AL 36849
(334) 844-4835
msfinance@auburn.edu
http://harbert.auburn.edu/academics/graduate/master-of-science-finance/
The University of Alabama
Manderson Graduate School of Business
First founded in 1831 as the state’s flagship comprehensive public research institution, the University of Alabama is based on a main 1,000-acre suburban campus in the city of Tuscaloosa near the Black Warrior River within 60 miles from downtown Birmingham. Well-known for ranking first among public universities in the enrollment of National Merit Scholars in its student body of over 34,000, UA is named the 88th best college and 38th top public school in the nation by the U.S. News and World Report. Furthermore, the Manderson Graduate School of Business takes the 74th spot among the best accredited graduate schools of business in the United States.
Master of Science in Finance (MSF)
Housed within one of America’s best finance schools as a specialized graduate degree, the Master of Science in Finance (MSF) program has been structured to equip students with the knowledge and skills needed to make sense of changing financial markets in our evolving business marketplace. Unlike Master of Arts degrees, the MSF degree has a strong emphasis on the quantitative components of financial institutions and requires a solid background in statistics or calculus for success. From an interdisciplinary approach that covers topics in nearly every financial modicum, the master’s degree creates diversity in student learning to stay competitive in today’s fast-moving enterprises. The program is currently only offered in a full-time format for completion in just one year with on-campus courses in the daytime.
Within the highly rigorous curriculum, graduate students have the option to supplement their finance major with one of the following specializations to concentrate their studies:
• Financial Policy: Students who choose the Financial Policy Specialization in the MSF degree program are specifically prepared to assume leadership roles as critical decision makers, policy drafters, legislators, and financial experts. In this concentration, students will take courses in financial management, microeconomics, quantitative investment analysis, financial policy, capital markets, macroeconomics, mergers and acquisitions, and bank administration.
• Financial Risk Strategy: As the most popular concentration offered in the MSF degree program, the Financial Risk Strategy Specialization is designed to prepare graduates for excelling in the highly competitive world of investment markets with the specific skills needed to make well-informed financial moves. Students will take courses in financial management, microeconomic theory, financial derivatives, bank administration, money markets, quantitative investment analysis, and advanced financial derivatives.
• Real Estate: In a multidisciplinary track, the Real Estate Specialization is available to prepare MSF graduates for developing the analytical thinking, creative problem solving, and strategic decision making abilities needed to find success within the competitive real estate industry. Students will be required to complete courses in financial management, microeconomics, macroeconomics, real estate financing, real estate investment, quantitative investment analysis, and a real estate seminar.
Accreditations
Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB)
Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS)
Contact
226 Alston Hall
Box 870224
Tuscaloosa, AL 35487
(205) 348-8987
rbrooks@culverhouse.ua.edu
http://manderson.cba.ua.edu/academics/departments/masters_program/master_of_science_in_finance
While earning the traditional Master of Business Administration (MBA) will cover a broad range of business functions that can be applicable in virtually every industry, pursuing a master’s degree in finance will provide you with a narrower focus in building the specific skills needed to help organizations achieve continued financial health. Whether you are interested in working in corporate finance, investment banking, personal financial advising, insurance, or any other financial organization, be sure to consider earning one of these accredited masters level finance programs in Alabama offered at some of the best graduate schools in the nation.
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