The B.B.A. degree with a major in finance requires a minimum of 120 credit hours of undergraduate course work. Students enrolled at James Madison University who wish to change their major to finance should go to the Student Center in MyMadison to submit a request. Students must be in good academic standing to change their major to finance and, if they have taken any FIN prefix courses at the time of the change request, must meet the prerequisites for the required courses in the finance major.
Students who plan to major in finance and earn a score on the Math Placement Exam sufficient for placement into MATH 235 are strongly encouraged to enroll in MATH 235.
Required major courses provide finance majors with a foundation in financial management, investments and institutions. Electives within the major permit students to obtain an additional emphasis and explore other areas within the field of finance.
Transfer Credit
Each program in the CoB will accept no more than two courses of transfer credit toward the major except in extraordinary circumstances. The major is defined as the course work required by a major field of study in addition to the lower and upper-level BBA core courses. For a course to be considered for acceptance in the student's major, it must have been completed in an AACSB International-accredited business program, or a similarly accredited program, at a four-year university.
In general, all finance course work must be completed at JMU. Transfer credit for finance courses is awarded only in certain circumstances. In no case will transfer credit be awarded for FIN 488. Contact the department head for more information on transfer credit.
Admission and Retention Requirements
College of Business Progression Standards
Any student admitted to JMU can declare any major offered by the College of Business. However, students must make satisfactory progress in order to be formally admitted into the College of Business. Requirements to continue pursuing a B.B.A. degree, often referred to as progression standards or formal admission, can be found on the College of Business catalog page.
Degree Requirements
Degree and Major Requirements
Degree Requirements
Credit Hours
General Education courses 1
41
B.B.A. core courses 2
45-46
Finance major requirements
24
Electives
9-10
Total
120
1
The General Education program contains a set of requirements each student must fulfill. Some credits may be fulfilled by courses required within the major
2
Up to seven hours of core requirements in economics and calculus may also be taken for General Education credit.
B.B.A. Core Component
Course List
Code
Title
Credits
B.B.A. Lower-Level Core Component
B.B.A. majors must complete all of the B.B.A. core components as part of their degree program. The following courses comprise the B.B.A. Lower-Level Core Component:
Calculus is required but not used in calculating the B.B.A. core GPA. Students may substitute MATH 231, MATH 233 or ISAT 151 to fulfill the calculus requirement. MATH 235 is preferred for Economics and Finance majors.
6
All four COB 300 courses must be taken during the same semester.
In addition to these core courses, the student majoring in finance must successfully complete 12 credit hours of finance elective courses. Finance electives include any 300- level or 400-level finance course. Students may use these 12 credits to complete a concentration in financial analysis, financial technology and analytics, or risk management (see below).1
12
A student may choose up to one of the following courses to satisfy the finance elective credit hours: 2
FIN 301, FIN 345 and the finance major core courses do not count as finance electives.
2
A finance major cannot take more than 10 credit hours of FIN prefix courses in any one semester. In addition, three credits of FIN 499 (FIN 499A/FIN 499B/FIN 499C) will count toward the finance electives.
Concentrations
Though not required, finance majors may elect a concentration in financial analysis, financial technology and analytics, or risk management. Students electing these concentrations take specific electives in place of the required four electives for the major. Finance majors who wish to declare a concentration may do so once accepted into COB 300 or during any semester following. A student must earn a 2.0 in the courses designated for a concentration in order to have successfully completed the concentration.
Financial Analysis Concentration
Many James Madison University finance graduates go on to careers in financial analysis, and the need for financial analysts remains strong. The financial analysis concentration helps prepare students for these careers and also Levels I and II of the Chartered Financial Analyst exam.
Students wishing to declare and complete the financial analysis concentration must have a minimum grade of "C" in COB 241 and COB 242.
The changing landscape of finance requires increased knowledge of technology. The financial technology and analytics concentration will prepare the students to be agile in financial information systems and expose them to various analytical and visualization tools.
A focus in risk management is designed for finance majors pursuing a more in-depth review of the issues facing organizations and the tools needed to address those uncertainties. In the risk management concentration, students focus on the theory of risk management, risk identification, risk measurement and applications in the form of risk modeling techniques such as Value-at-Risk and Monte Carlo simulations.
Students planning to major in finance must complete the 27-28 credit hour, lower-division B.B.A. core curriculum prior to enrolling in upper-division core courses, normally taken in the first semester of the junior year. It is expected that the lower-division core curriculum will be completed during the first two years of study along with most of the university General Education curriculum. Failing to complete all lower-division B.B.A. core requirements on time will delay enrollment in upper-division core and major courses.
Third and Fourth Years
Finance majors will follow the course schedule below to complete the final two years of their program. It is possible to deviate from this program, but care must be taken to ensure that all course prerequisites are met. Finance majors are encouraged to enroll in FIN 360 during the same semester as COB 300 or during the semester following completion of COB 300. Note that students taking FIN 360 concurrently with COB 300 will have more choices in finance electives in subsequent semesters because FIN 360 is a prerequisite for most finance courses. It is anticipated that students will complete the finance requirements in three semesters following COB 300.
Plan of Study Grid
First Year
Credits
General Education courses, B.B.A. core requirements and/or university electives
30
Credits
30
Second Year
General Education courses, B.B.A. core requirements and/or university electives
