Kogod School of Business

Info For

Our Approach to Learning

MBA

MS in Finance

When is the next deadline?
Start Your Application
SPRING START
International Student Deadline

Oct 15, 2024
Final Deadline for International Applicants
SPRING START
Round 3

Nov 15, 2024
Final Deadline for Applicants
At a Glance

An MS in finance gives you the technical skills for that next step in your career. The program prepares you for the CFA, CAIA, CFP, and FRM exams, which will open up leadership positions and other professional opportunities. Plus, this targeted expertise will help you better position yourself in today's job market.

33 Credits
Advance Your Management Skills

Take the next step in your career with our experience-based curriculum. Manage more than $1M in assets with the Student Managed Investment Fund.

12-24 Months
Full-Time and Part-Time Options

Earn your degree on your own terms. Attend the program part-time or full-time, depending on your work and life demands. The average completion time is three semesters.

$1M+
Investment Fund

Gain real-world experience in securities analysis and portfolio management through our Student Managed Investment Fund. 

Why get an MS in Finance at Kogod?

Prime Location in the Nation's Capital

As the oldest business school in Washington, DC, our program has been a vibrant part of the city's financial community. You'll have access to rich networking, internship, and employment opportunities across all sectors of the financial industry.

Professional Certification Preparation

Our curriculum is focused on tangible outcomes. Our classes will prepare you for the CFA (Chartered Financial Analyst), CAIA (Chartered Alternative Investments Analyst), CFP (Certified Financial Planner), and FRM (Financial Risk Manager) exams.

Experiential Learning

Our small class sizes center around the applied practical skills you will face in real-world scenarios. You'll also have the opportunity to participate in the Student Managed Investment Fund or use our cutting-edge Financial Services and IT Lab as your virtual trading floor.

What You'll Learn

The MS in finance consists of 33 credit hours. Our flexible curriculum means you can take specialized courses to succeed in specific careers like governance, risk management, corporate finance, and more.

Personalized Plan

Students take Introduction to Finance the week before the term begins. This gives them a solid understanding of basic financial concepts they will revisit in later courses. The rest of the curriculum is divided into 12 credit hours in core courses and 21 credit hours in electives. We offer a wide variety of electives ranging from investment banking, financial analysis, risk management, and more so you can customize your plan of studies.

Practical Experience

One of our most sought-after electives is the Student Managed Investment Fund course, a collaborative class that provides valuable, real-time experiential learning in securities analysis and portfolio management. This is your chance to oversee more than $1M in assets.

Degree Requirements

You'll Walk Away With

  • Institutional Framework—understanding of the purpose and characteristics of evolving financial markets, and the role that institutions play in capital formation and allocation; ability to identify and explain the function of the major financial instruments.
  • Data Analysis Skills—ability to explain and use appropriately sophisticated analytical and econometric techniques to analyze financial data. 

  • Valuation Skills—ability to describe and apply financial valuation techniques in areas, such as corporate valuation, individual equities, and/or fixed-income securities.

  • Teamwork and Communication—participate in working teams and construct effective, clear, and well-written financial analyses.

Program Highlights
Student speaking in class

Student Managed Investment Fund

Gain real-world experience in securities analysis and portfolio management through our Student Managed Investment Fund. Students mimic the structure of an asset management team and oversee $1M+ worth of assets throughout the semester.

Financial Services and IT Lab

Financial Services and IT Lab

Learn about and apply the cutting-edge technology that finance professionals work with every day in our Financial Services and IT Lab. In addition to training and workshops, you can also use it as your virtual trading room.

STEM Designated

STEM-Designated Specialization

Our STEM-designated finance program is available to graduate finance students who are accepted into the finance analytics specialization and complete four courses that are specific to the STEM designation. The designation may allow F-1 international students to apply for a 24-month extension of their Optional Practical Training, granting them the ability to work in the US for up to three years in their major field of study.

Speaker at a real estate event

Graduate Certificate in Real Estate

Complement your studies with a graduate certificate in real estate, designed for new and current real estate managers seeking to advance in the field. Complete the certificate with an additional 6-12 credits.

Professor Casey Evans

Dedicated Faculty

Our faculty are renowned experts in their field and continue to lead national firms. As mentors, they are invested in the professional and academic success of our students.

Hands meeting in middle

CFA and CAIA Affiliation

Our partnership with CFA and CAIA grants you access to career resources, networking events, scholarship opportunities for reduced exam fees, and more.

Expert Faculty
The New Trading Landscape

During a recent alumni event, Kogod professors Robin Lumsdaine and Jeff Harris discussed the popular trading app Robinhood and the implications of its decision to halt GameStop trades for a day back in February. Find out more about their analysis of the situation and what they think it says about the market for the future.

Class Profile
32%
Women
42%
International Students
15%
US Minorities*
1.3 Years
Average Work Experience
26
Average Age
3.31
Average GPA

*Black = Black or African American; Hispanic = Hispanic/American or Latino; AIAN = American Indian or Alaska Native; NHPI = Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander.

Careers & Outcomes

Our graduates have found professional success in a wide variety of sectors in the financial industry. Six months after graduation, 94 percent of our students report they are either fully employed, in graduate school, or both.

Our alumni pursue jobs in:

  • Asset management
  • Real estate finance
  • Commercial banking
  • Corporate finance
  • Financial regulation
  • Investment banking
  • Development banking

Recent employers include:

  • Capital One
  • Freddie Mac
  • Sun Trust Bank
  • TIAA
  • The World Bank
  • Cambridge Associates
  • Merril Lynch
  • Bloomberg LP
  • Deloitte
  • The Carlyle Group

Recent Finance News

August 8, 2024
Banking on Transferrable Skills

Kogod School of Business MBA student Kael Lopes combines his previous experience with his open mind...

May 20, 2024
Experts Converge at the Kogod-Hosted Third Conference on Islamic Finance

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April 25, 2024
Navigating International Finance: Ahmet Aytekin's Path to Policy Leadership

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March 14, 2024
Expert Opinions: Best High-Yield Savings Accounts

Kogod School of Business professor of finance Octavian Ionici spoke with WalletHub about how to...

March 1, 2024
For Kogod’s Investment Fund Students, Learning is Collaborative

Students in the Kogod School of Business’s SMIF and REIT courses reflect on the inaugural SMIF-REIT...

February 16, 2024
Kogod Professor Valentina Bruno Explores the Architecture of Finance in Installation Ceremony

Professor Bruno’s discussion of banking and monetary policy was part of a ceremony celebrating her...

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