Finance (FINA)

See Course Description Symbols and Terms for an explanation of course description terminology and symbols, the course numbering system, and course credit units.


FINA 101  Personal Financial Literacy  3 Units  GE  
Prerequisite: GE Mathematics/Quantitative Reasoning Ready.  
Typically Offered: Fall and spring  
An introduction to personal finance, providing a background in the areas of time value of money, loans and savings plans, retirement savings, personal taxes, and inflation. The course strengthens quantitative reasoning skills including algebraic models and statistical data analysis. 3 hours lecture.  (021899)  
General Education: Quantitative Reasoning (B4)  
Grade Basis: Graded  
Repeatability: You may take this course for a maximum of 3 units  
Course Attributes: Lower Division  
FINA 307  Survey of Finance  3 Units  
Prerequisite: ACCT 201, ECON 103.  
Typically Offered: Fall and spring  
An introduction to financial management, providing a background in the areas of financial institutions, the time value of money, analysis of financial statements, working capital management, financial structure of the firm, capital budgeting, and related tools of financial analysis. 3 hours lecture.  (003729)  
Grade Basis: Graded  
Repeatability: You may take this course for a maximum of 3 units  
Course Attributes: Upper Division  
FINA 351  Investments  3 Units  
Prerequisite: FINA 307.  
Typically Offered: Fall and spring  
Investments from the point of view of the individual investor, security and non-security investment, analytical techniques; industry studies, and management of the personal portfolio. 3 hours discussion.  (003730)  
Grade Basis: Graded  
Repeatability: You may take this course for a maximum of 3 units  
Course Attributes: Upper Division  
FINA 355  Financial Management: Intermediate Theory  3 Units  
Prerequisite: FINA 307.  
Typically Offered: Fall and spring  
An integrated approach to financial management, including study of intermediate-level financial theory and its application to financial decision-making. 3 hours discussion.  (003732)  
Grade Basis: Graded  
Repeatability: You may take this course for a maximum of 3 units  
Course Attributes: Upper Division  
FINA 369  Real Estate Finance and Investments  3 Units  
Prerequisite: FINA 307.  
Typically Offered: Fall only  
A study of the institutions and methods involved in financing real property and an analysis of the problems, risks, and practices involved in financing and investing in real property. 3 hours lecture.  (008115)  
Grade Basis: Graded  
Repeatability: You may take this course for a maximum of 3 units  
Course Attributes: Upper Division  
FINA 398  Special Topics  1-3 Units  
Prerequisite: Department permission.  
Typically Offered: Fall and spring  
This course is for special topics. Typically the topic is offered on a one-time-only basis and may vary from term to term and be different for different sections. See the Class Schedule for the specific topic being offered. 3 hours supervision.  (003741)  
Grade Basis: Graded  
Repeatability: You may take this course more than once  
Course Attributes: Upper Division  
FINA 399  Special Problems  1-3 Units  
Typically Offered: Fall and spring  
This course is an independent study of special problems and is offered for 1.0-3.0 units. You must register directly with a supervising faculty member. Students registering for this course should prepare a project proposal to be discussed with their faculty advisor before enrolling in the course. 0 hours independent study.  (003742)  
Grade Basis: Credit/No Credit  
Repeatability: You may take this course for a maximum of 6 units  
Course Attributes: Upper Division  
FINA 453  Estate Planning  3 Units  
Prerequisite: FINA 307.  
Typically Offered: Fall and spring  
To give students a basic understanding of the major methods and techniques of preserving and transmitting an individual's wealth, including gift-giving, the use of various trusts, the use of life insurance, and the proper preparation of a will. Students will be expected to be aware of the causes and consequences of an inefficient transfer of wealth and therefore must acquire a working knowledge of the institutional constraints, including the law of property, wills, and intestate distribution, the probate process, and State and Federal estate, gift, inheritance, and generation-skipping transfer taxes. 3 hours lecture.  (001047)  
Grade Basis: Graded  
Repeatability: You may take this course for a maximum of 3 units  
Course Attributes: Upper Division  
FINA 454  Financial Planning: Applications  3 Units  
Prerequisite: FINA 307.  
Typically Offered: Fall and spring  
Overview of personal financial planning including retirement planning and wealth management. Topics include application of time value of money, personal financial statement development and assessment, investment planning and retirement planning; employee benefits. Also covered are ethics and practice standards in client/planner interaction. 3 hours discussion.  (003731)  
Grade Basis: Graded  
Repeatability: You may take this course for a maximum of 3 units  
Course Attributes: Upper Division  
FINA 456  Risk and Insurance  3 Units  
Prerequisite: FINA 307.  
Typically Offered: Fall and spring  
Nature of risk and risk management; fundamentals of property, liability, and life contracts; types of companies; government regulation. 3 hours lecture.  (003734)  
Grade Basis: Graded  
Repeatability: You may take this course for a maximum of 3 units  
Course Attributes: Upper Division  
FINA 458  Management and Regulation of Financial Institutions  3 Units  
Prerequisite: FINA 460.  
Typically Offered: Fall and spring  
The objective of this course is to give students an understanding of the principles of asset, liability, and capital management as they apply to the management of depository and contractual financial intermediaries. The objective nature and importance of regulations are also discussed. 3 hours discussion.  (003736)  
Grade Basis: Graded  
Repeatability: You may take this course for a maximum of 3 units  
Course Attributes: Upper Division  
FINA 459  International Finance  3 Units  
Prerequisite: FINA 307.  
Typically Offered: Fall and spring  
An examination of the benefits of international trade; international financial institutions; the international monetary system, including exchange rate problems and prospects. 3 hours lecture.  (003737)  
Grade Basis: Graded  
Repeatability: You may take this course for a maximum of 3 units  
Course Attributes: Upper Division  
FINA 460  Financial Institutions and Markets  3 Units  
Prerequisite: FINA 307.  
Typically Offered: Fall and spring  
The financial process, financial institutions, and the role of financial markets in allocating funds, absorbing risk, and providing liquidity; the relationship among markets, competition, and efficiency; and financial intermediation in a changing financial system. 3 hours discussion.  (003739)  
Grade Basis: Graded  
Repeatability: You may take this course for a maximum of 3 units  
Course Attributes: Upper Division  
FINA 480  Financial Management: Applications  3 Units  
Prerequisite: FINA 355.  
Typically Offered: Fall only  
Case studies and other experiential techniques are used to develop insight and provide experience in the application of financial theory to such areas as working capital management, capital budgeting, capital structure determination, and dividend policy. 3 hours discussion.  (003733)  
Grade Basis: Graded  
Repeatability: You may take this course for a maximum of 3 units  
Course Attributes: Upper Division  
FINA 481  Investment Analysis and Policy  3 Units  
Prerequisite: FINA 351.  
Typically Offered: Fall and spring  
Principles of security valuation, the development of portfolio construction, and the relationship between investment principles, investment policies, and investment management. 3 hours discussion.  (003735)  
Grade Basis: Graded  
Repeatability: You may take this course for a maximum of 3 units  
Course Attributes: Upper Division  
FINA 487  Understanding the Securities Industry  3 Units  
Prerequisite: FINA 351.  
Typically Offered: Spring only  
This is an exam preparation course covering topics related to the General Securities Representative Exam (Series 7), the most commonly held registration in the U.S. securities industry. This course exposes students to topics currently covered by the Series 7 examination including (but not limited to) corporate, equity/fixed-income securities, local/state/federal government securities, derivative securities, and investment company products. This course is not affiliated with FINRA, the Series 7 exam provider, and does not exempt student from the examination eligibility requirements. Upon successful completion of the course, students earn a certificate representing their knowledge of concepts essential to passing the Series 7 Exam. 3 hours discussion.  (021935)  
Grade Basis: Graded  
Repeatability: You may take this course for a maximum of 3 units  
Course Attributes: Upper Division  
FINA 498  Special Topics in Finance  1-3 Units  
Prerequisite: Senior standing.  
Typically Offered: Fall and spring  
This course is for special topics offered for 1.0-3.0 units. Typically the topic is offered on a one-time-only basis and may vary from term to term and be different for different sections. See the Class Schedule for the specific topic being offered. For advanced students who wish to investigate business problems in specialized areas. Application of research methods. 3 hours supervision.  (003746)  
Grade Basis: Graded  
Repeatability: You may take this course more than once  
Course Attributes: Upper Division  
FINA 499  Special Problems  1-3 Units  
Prerequisite: Faculty permission.  
Typically Offered: Fall and spring  
This course is an independent study of special problems. You must register directly with a supervising faculty member. 3 hours supervision.  (003747)  
Grade Basis: Credit/No Credit  
Repeatability: You may take this course for a maximum of 6 units  
Course Attributes: Upper Division  
FINA 499H  Honors in Finance  3 Units  
Prerequisite: Faculty permission.  
Typically Offered: Inquire at department  
This 3-unit course consists of a comprehensive research study and paper dealing with business policy and strategy, and the integrative and international aspects of business operations, especially as they pertain to the field of finance. A final written report and a public presentation of findings are both requirements of this course. Business Honors Program students must receive at least a B in this course for Honors credit. Students seeking "Honors in the Major" will enroll in this course for two semesters. 9 hours supervision.  (003748)  
Grade Basis: Graded  
Repeatability: You may take this course for a maximum of 6 units  
Course Attributes: Upper Division  
FINA 655  Seminar in Financial Management  3 Units  
Prerequisite: Classified MBA student.  
Typically Offered: Spring only  
Survey of academic literature in managerial finance, with particular emphasis on recent developments in theory and application. 3 hours seminar.  (003751)  
Grade Basis: Graduate Graded  
Repeatability: You may take this course for a maximum of 3 units  
Course Attributes: Graduate Division  
FINA 689  Directed Internship  1-3 Units  
Typically Offered: Fall and spring  
This course is an internship. You must register directly with a supervising faculty member. Study of policy, control, and decision-making in selected organizations, arranged and supervised by a member of the graduate faculty in close working relationship with the management of an organization. 9 hours supervision.  (003756)  
Grade Basis: Credit/No Credit  
Repeatability: You may take this course for a maximum of 15 units  
Course Attributes: Graduate Division  
FINA 697  Independent Study  1-4 Units  
Typically Offered: Fall and spring  
This course is a graduate-level independent study. You must register directly with a supervising faculty member. 9 hours supervision.  (003760)  
Grade Basis: Report in Progress: Graded  
Repeatability: You may take this course for a maximum of 6 units  
Course Attributes: Graduate Division  
FINA 698  Special Topics in Finance  1-3 Units  
Typically Offered: Fall and spring  
This course is for special topics. Typically the topic is offered on a one-time-only basis and may vary from term to term and be different for different sections. See the Class Schedule for the specific topic being offered. 0 hours lecture.  (021758)  
Grade Basis: Graduate Graded  
Repeatability: You may take this course for a maximum of 9 units  
Course Attributes: Graduate Division  
FINA 699T  Master's Thesis  1-3 Units  
Typically Offered: Fall and spring  
You must register directly with a supervising faculty member. 9 hours supervision.  (003761)  
Grade Basis: Report in Progress: CR/NC  
Repeatability: You may take this course for a maximum of 6 units  
Course Attributes: Graduate Division