ONLINE MASTER OF SCIENCE IN FINANCE
BUILD A CAREER WITH A WORLD-WIDE IMPACT
The online Master of Science in Finance program from Fordham University’s Gabelli School of Business empowers business professionals to gain the specialized skills they need to succeed in today’s financial services industry. Designed for those who want to build a finance career in the global landscape, the program allows for direct access to industry-connected faculty experts based in NYC, one of the financial capitals of the world.
- AACSB-accredited
- Complete in as few as 12 months
- No finance background required
- No GMAT/GRE required
- Choose from multiple start dates
- Pursue tracks in Portfolio Management, Investment Banking and Financial Analytics
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ADMISSIONS REQUIREMENTS
The online MS in Finance is designed for ambitious students who want to gain expertise in the growing and evolving world of finance. As part of your application, you must provide official transcripts, a letter of recommendation, essays, and a current résumé.
GMAT or GRE scores are a component of the application process and play an important role in our holistic evaluation process. However, considering challenges brought about by the Covid pandemic, for the 2021-2022 admissions cycle, these tests will be optional for this program.
If you choose to submit an official GMAT or GRE test score, you will need to add your test score as part of your online application.
Visit the application requirements page for a full list of items required. Before applying, we also recommend that you visit the tuition and financial aid page to learn more about program costs and financing your education.
PREREQUISITE COURSES
To ensure you are prepared for the academic demands of the program, you must have completed introductory coursework in four key subject areas. Specifically, you must show you have earned a grade of B or higher in the following prerequisite classes:
- Basics of Accounting
- Basics of Finance
- Basics of Statistics
- Basics of Economics
Completed prerequisite courses should be included on your transcripts and will be evaluated during the application process. Students will be notified whether or not they have fulfilled the prerequisite requirements when they receive an admissions decision.
Students who need to take one or more prerequisite classes may do so either online through the Gabelli School of Business or at another accredited college or university. Any prerequisite courses taken outside of the Gabelli School will require prior review and approval.
APPLICATION DEADLINES
The online MS in Finance program offers start dates throughout the year, and the admissions committee reviews applications on a rolling basis. The final deadline for the September 2023 cohort is July 6, 2023.
If you need to take prerequisite coursework, you are required to apply by the Round 3 deadline to allow time to complete prerequisites before your desired start date. Students that need to take more than two prerequisite courses may need to defer their start date to complete all prerequisite coursework prior to program enrollment. Connect with an admissions officer to discuss your options.EARN YOUR MASTER’S IN FINANCE ONLINE FROM FORDHAM UNIVERSITY
An online MS in Finance will help you gain the key knowledge and skills you need to succeed in the world of finance.
WHY CHOOSE THE GABELLI SCHOOL OF BUSINESS?
Located in the heart of New York City, the Gabelli School of Business is in one of the largest and most dynamic financial capitals of the world. As a student, you’ll connect with—and learn from—experienced, New York City-based faculty who are authorities in today’s modern global finance market.
The Gabelli School also has three finance-specific research centers. Committed to conducting cutting-edge research and disseminating it to the widest possible audience, these centers provide valuable market insights for university peers, working professionals, and Fordham students. These centers also sponsor special events and conferences that encourage collaboration and share faculty work.
- The Center for Research in Contemporary Finance: focuses on current challenges and developments in the financial industry
- The Center for Global Security Analysis: promotes investment analysis, including value investing and behavioral finance
- The Frank J. Petrilli Center for Research in International Finance: supports interdisciplinary collaborations among financial engineers, historians, monetary economists, and legal scholars
A VIBRANT ALUMNI NETWORK
As a graduate of the online MS in Finance program, you will have access to ongoing networking opportunities with business leaders in the Gabelli School community.
Joining a talented group of more than 40,000 Gabelli School of Business alumni around the world, you’ll stay connected through in-person events led by faculty, students, and research centers, helping you stay up to date with the business community.
The Gabelli School also offers a variety of on-campus business undergraduate, graduate, and executive degrees. Visit the Gabelli School website to learn more about in-person programs.
WHAT STUDENTS ARE SAYING
“The sense of community is very strong in this program. We have students that are located everywhere. As soon as we get into Fordham, we almost feel like we’ve known each other for a long time.”
—Sandy Lovstad
MS in Global Finance (now MS in Finance)
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CURRICULUM
The online MS in Finance curriculum includes corporate finance and investment courses complemented by relevant electives. All of our courses are taught by professors with a combination of research-based expertise and extensive professional experience.
As a student in this program, you will:
- gain key domain skills, from asset valuation in Financial Markets & Responsibility to Corporate Finance Applications and Computational Finance; and
- analyze financial and economic data by applying data visualization and using programming languages such as Python and Matlab.
RESIDENCY
As part of the program, students will participate in a three-day residency experience in New York City, where they will hear from business leaders and network with students and faculty who have worked for some of the world’s most esteemed companies. The residency is part of our whole-person approach to education, which fosters critical thinking about your goals, values, and career.
The residency is required and you must attend to earn the MS in Finance.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS
The online MS in Finance program can be completed in as few as 12 months. Students will take 30 credits over four terms. Each term is 10 weeks long. Each course includes one weekly live class which will take place on weekdays at either 6 p.m. ET or 8 p.m. ET. Class start times may vary. Before students can begin the program, they must fulfill four prerequisite course requirements.
Our terms are Fall, Spring, Summer 1, and Summer 2. Start dates are available in Spring and Fall.
All students will take the following four core courses required for the MS in Finance program:
- Computational Finance
- Corporate Finance Applications
- Financial Markets and Responsibility
- Investment Applications
Students will have several options for electives; examples include:
- Advanced Corporate Finance
- Behavioral Finance
- Emerging Markets
- Financial Econometrics
- Financial Modeling
- Global Equity Portfolio Management
- Machine Learning for Finance
- Research Seminar
- Sustainability Reporting and Finance
To learn more about the curriculum, please refer to our course descriptions.
TRACKS
Advance your knowledge of the world’s leading financial industries, and leverage it in your career, by pursuing courses in the following industry-relevant tracks: Portfolio Management, Investment Banking, and Financial Analytics. As a student, you will have the option to focus your electives and select one or more tracks depending on your course of study. Although tracks will not be noted on the transcript, you are encouraged to include your track(s) on your résumé—your industry insights could help you stand apart in your chosen field.
Portfolio Management: Focus your plan of study around multimillion-dollar fund management and discover how to increase your clients’ profit margins.
Investment Banking: Engage in a series of courses designed to teach you how to collect the capital your clients need to secure high-priority deals and grow valuable businesses.
Financial Analytics: Delve into complex course material that will show you how to organize and interpret financial data from various sources to make informed fiscal recommendations.
To learn more about the courses associated with each track, please refer to our course descriptions.
LEARN MORE ABOUT FORDHAM’S ONLINE
FINANCE CURRICULUM
Speak to an admissions officer to learn how our online courses will prepare you to build a robust career in global finance.
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CAREER OUTLOOK
Graduates of the MS in Finance program can pursue a wide variety of career paths, including the following:
- Investment banking
- Asset management
- Risk management
- Corporate finance
15%
Estimated Annual Growth Rate for Financial Managers from 2019–20291
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FACULTY
As a student in this program, you will learn directly from accomplished Fordham University faculty with significant experience in business-related research, as well as in the finance industry. As New York City-based experts, they have access to some of the world’s leading organizations and finance professionals.
MEET OUR PROGRAM DIRECTOR
Michael Cheah
Program Director
Michael Cheah is the clinical associate professor and program director for the collaborative and online MS in Finance programs at Fordham’s Gabelli School of Business. He is the 2017 recipient of the Gabelli School of Business graduate-level Stanley Fuchs Award and the graduate-level Gladys and Henry Crown Award for Faculty Excellence.
With more than 30 years of market experience in the financial industry, Professor Cheah has held positions as the executive vice president of Capital Position, the senior vice president and senior portfolio manager at AIG SunAmerica Asset Management Corp., and the head of the U.S. Bond Division, Markets, and Investment Department at the Monetary Authority of Singapore.
Professor Cheah received his bachelor’s degree in business administration from the National University of Singapore and a Master of Science degree from London Business School, where he was a Sloan Fellow and a Monetary Authority of Singapore postgraduate scholarship recipient. He is a chartered financial analyst and financial risk manager.
FEATURED FACULTY
An Yan, PhD
Professor
An Yan received his PhD in finance from Boston College and his undergraduate degree from Tsinghua University, China. His main research interest is in theoretical and empirical corporate finance. Professor Yan has published his research in the Journal of Financial Economics, the Review of Financial Studies, the Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, and other significant academic outlets.
Yusif Simaan, PhD
Professor
Yusif Simaan holds a PhD from Baruch College of the City University of New York; a master’s from Technion, the Israel Institute of Technology; and a BA from Haifa University in Israel. Professor Simaan has served as an expert witness on algorithmic trading issues; offered consulting expertise to the Electronic Traders Association and Automated Trading Desk, Citi Bank, AQR, and other hedge funds; and won best-paper honors from Open Economies Review.
N.K. Chidambaran, PhD in Finance
Associate Professor
N.K. Chidambaran earned both his PhD and master’s from New York University and an undergraduate degree from the Indian Institute of Technology in Bombay. He teaches corporate finance, corporate governance, and risk management, and he does research in corporate finance and financial derivatives. Professor Chidambaran’s work has been published in leading academic journals such as the Journal of Financial Economics, the Journal of Risk and Insurance, the Journal of Derivatives, and the Financial Analysts Journal, as well as in books and as part of conference proceedings. He has made presentations at major academic conferences.
Paul McNelis, PhD in Economics
Robert Bendheim Professor of Economic & Financial Policy
Paul McNelis began his career at Georgetown University in 1977 after completing theological studies leading to ordination in the Society of Jesus in 1977 and his PhD in Economics from The Johns Hopkins University in 1974. He has worked with various international development organizations in Washington as well as with central banks around the world, most recently the Bank of Finland’s Institute for Transition Economies and the Hong Kong Monetary Authority. As an educator with experience as a visiting professor at universities in Europe, South America, and Asia, Professor McNelis has offered short courses on machine learning methods in finance and has written on computational methods for dynamic open economies, related to problems of financial instability and economic growth.
Barbara Porco
Clinical Associate Professor
Dr. Porco is the recipient of:
- Fordham University’s prestigious Bene Merenti Medal
- 2019 National Innovation in Auditing & Assurance Education Award from the American Accounting Association (AAA)
- 2017 National Teaching Innovation Award from the American Accounting Association (AAA)
- 2010 National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) Excellence in Teaching Award for KPMG’s Ethical Compass
- National Outstanding Faculty Award by Beta Alpha Psi
- Gabelli Dean’s Net Impact Award
- 2017 Gabelli Teaching Innovation Award
Dr. Porco is a licensed Certified Public Accountant (CPA), Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE), Certified in Financial Forensics (CFF) by the AICPA and certified in Corporate Sustainability Management from Harvard University. She has been ranked nationally in the Top 50 Researchers in Accounting Education by the American Accounting Association.
Dr. Porco is the director of Fordham’s Center for Professional Accounting Practices (CPAP), which promotes interdisciplinary collaboration among accounting, auditing, tax, and forensics professionals, as well as business and legal scholars. Under her leadership, CPAP launched a partnership with the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) to educate the next generation of business leaders and embed sustainability accounting into best practices at companies and investment organizations alike.
With more than 30 years in academia as well as vast experience in accounting and finance, Dr. Porco serves as a valuable resource for students who want to improve their accounting literacy and learn more about sustainable accounting practices.
ARE YOU READY TO BUILD YOUR FINANCE CAREER?
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THE ONLINE LEARNING EXPERIENCE
By offering quality curriculum content combined with the convenience of online learning, we are broadening the Fordham community and creating the kind of business leaders the world most needs today. You can benefit from the resources Fordham has to offer through highly interactive live online classes and asynchronous virtual coursework.
As a student of the online master’s in finance program, you will benefit from the following features:
- Online Dashboard — Access upcoming assignments, live classes, grades, and 24/7 tech support. All features of the online dashboard are also available on a mobile app.
- Weekly Live Classes — Attend seminar-style online classes hosted on the Zoom HD platform where you can directly interact with Fordham faculty, collaborate with classmates in break-out rooms, and participate using real-time presentation and annotation tools.
- Personalized Learning Experience — Personalize the way you complete your coursework to align with your learning style by utilizing dark mode to avoid eye strain while studying at night, varying video speeds and searchable transcripts to successfully digest content, or streaming content to your TV.
- Student Support — Receive support from your dedicated academic and student success advisers, program directors, and Fordham faculty, who will further your development throughout the program.
- Networking Opportunities — Connect with our national network, filled with professors and peers from across the country, and take advantage of participating in school-sponsored events, including presentations and talks with industry leaders, as well as student leadership opportunities.
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