Finance
How money, risk, and investment decisions work.
Finance studies how individuals, companies, and markets allocate capital and manage risk, covering corporate finance, investments, and financial markets. You'll build a quantitative foundation (statistics, financial modeling) and apply it to questions like how a company should raise money or how an asset should be valued.
Many programs incorporate trading simulations, financial modeling projects, or access to real-time market data platforms, since fluency with financial tools and models is central to the field.
Typical courses you might take
- ✓Financial Accounting
- ✓Corporate Finance
- ✓Investments
- ✓Financial Markets & Institutions
- ✓Financial Modeling
- ✓Statistics for Business
- ✓Risk Management
- ✓Capstone Finance Project
Sample four-year plan
Illustrative, not a registration planOne possible way these courses could be sequenced alongside general education and elective credit. Real programs vary in order, pacing, and prerequisites by school, use this to get a rough sense of the arc, not to plan actual registration.
- ✓Financial Accounting
- +General education requirement
- ✓Corporate Finance
- +General education requirement
- ✓Investments
- +General education requirement
- ✓Financial Markets & Institutions
- +Free elective
- ✓Financial Modeling
- +Free elective
- ✓Statistics for Business
- +Elective in the major (or minor coursework)
- ✓Risk Management
- +Elective in the major (or minor coursework)
- ✓Capstone Finance Project
- +Capstone, thesis, or culminating project (common in many programs)
Skills you'll build
This major might be a good fit if you...
- ★Strong with numbers and comfortable with uncertainty/risk
- ★Interested in markets, investing, or corporate decision-making
- ★Enjoys building models and testing assumptions
- ★Detail-oriented but also comfortable with ambiguity
Common minors & double-major pairings
Economics · Mathematics · Statistics
Roles this major could lead to
Factual, day-to-day descriptions from our Career Role Encyclopedia, not a guarantee this major leads to any specific job.
Financial Analyst
Evaluates financial data to guide investment or business decisions.
Accountant
Tracks, verifies, and reports an organization's financial activity accurately.
Actuary
Uses math and statistics to measure and price financial risk, mainly in insurance.
Management Consultant
Advises organizations on solving specific business problems.
Frequently asked questions
What is a Finance major?
How money, risk, and investment decisions work.
What courses do Finance majors take?
Typical coursework includes classes like Financial Accounting, Corporate Finance, Investments, among others, see the full course list above for this major's typical lineup.
What skills do you build in a Finance program?
Finance coursework typically builds skills like Financial modeling and valuation, Quantitative and statistical analysis, Reading and interpreting financial statements, Risk assessment.
Is Finance a good major for me?
It tends to be a good fit if signals like "Strong with numbers and comfortable with uncertainty/risk" or "Interested in markets, investing, or corporate decision-making" describe you. See the full "good fit if you..." list above for more.
What can you do with a Finance degree?
Majors in this field often go on to roles like Financial Analyst, Accountant, Actuary. See our Career Role Encyclopedia for more, a major shapes what you study, not a guarantee of any specific job.
What other majors pair well with Finance?
Common minor or double-major pairings include Economics, Mathematics, Statistics.
How is Finance different from Accounting?
They're related but distinct. Finance: How money, risk, and investment decisions work. Accounting: Recording, analyzing, and reporting how organizations use money. Use the compare tool to see courses and skills side by side.
How long does it take to earn a Finance degree?
Most bachelor's degrees, including this one, are designed to be completed in about four years of full-time study. Exact timing depends on your school, course load, transfer credit, and any changes of major along the way.
From our guides
Printed from majoratlas.com/majors/finance