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Master of Science in Business Administration

The Master of Science in Business Administration (MSBA) program is a 33-hour program that has a typical graduation timeline of two (2) years.

The program offers the most in depth exploration of Finance & related topics of any of the Master's programs offered at the University of Memphis. Prominent features of the program are the wide range of Finance electives, evening classes that are convenient to students working in the Memphis area and small class sizes.


Overview of the MSBA Program


The Master of Science in Business Administration (MSBA) programs give students more emphasis in the specialty area than traditional MBA programs. Fogelman MSBA graduates work on several goals such as the following. 

  1. Acquiring theoretical & practical financial knowledge & skills consistent with 21st century organizational needs & financial industry careers.

  2. Learning about academic opportunities for future success in financial certification exams or a terminal degree in Finance.

  3. Becoming well-rounded professionals consistent with the needs in a wide variety of working situations.

The MSBA program assumes a pre-qualification in Calculus. Students entering with a bachelor's degree in Business or Engineering are usually able to enter the program without further study.

 

Program Requirements


Prerequisite of MATH 1830 or its equivalent

GRE or GMAT score required

Students with the necessary pre-qualifications may have the prerequisite waived by the program coordinator.

 

Program Outline


Each candidate must complete a minimum of 33 semester hours of approved graduate courses

The 33 graduate credits include a minimum of 18 hours in the concentration (21 if a thesis is written; students electing to write a thesis should familiarize themselves with the Thesis/Dissertation Preparation Guide before starting to write). At least 24 semester hours must earned in courses at the 7000 level or higher.

Finance Concentration = 18 hours

  • Six courses (18 semester hours) must come from the following list, with at least three (9 semester hours) at the 7000 level or higher.
  • NOTE: this list is subject to change. Students must consult the UofM Catalog or their academic advisor to ensure they are taking the correct courses.

 

6000 Level Courses

  • FIR 6011 - Retirement & Estate Planning
  • FIR 6331 - Stock Portfolio Mgmt.
  • FIR 6340 - Real Estate Appraisal
  • FIR 6550 - International Finance
  • FIR 6610 - Cases in Financial Planning & Analysis 
  • FIR 6620 - Cases in Financial Planning   
  • FIR 6710 - Commercial Banking   
  • FIR 6720 - Mgmt. Financial Institutions
  • FIR 6721 - Fixed Income & Derivatives   
  • FIR 6730 - Financial Analysis/Cert.   
  • FIR 6770 - Security Analysis/Portfolio Mgmt.
  • FIR 6810 - Prop & Liability Insurance   
  • FIR 6820 - Life & Health Insurance   
  • FIR 6870 - Risk Management

7000 Level Courses

  • FIR 7070 - Financial Conc/Business   
  • FIR 7160 - Executive Financial Mgmt.
  • FIR 7170 - Multinational Financial Mgmt.
  • FIR 7171 - International Financial Markets   
  • FIR 7173 - Financial Analys/Certification
  • FIR 7301 - Contmp Real Estate Theory/Prac.
  • FIR 7310 - Sustainable Real Estate   
  • FIR 7302 - Real Estate Devlp & Sustainblty   
  • FIR 7320 - Financing Real Estate Transactions   
  • FIR 7350 - Real Estate Invest Analys   
  • FIR 7410 - Investment Theory Portfolio Mgmt.
  • FIR 7648 - Entrepreneurial Finance   
  • FIR 7710 - Sem Investment Theory   
  • FIR 7721 - Financial Derivatives   
  • FIR 7724 - Micro-Structure Theory   
  • FIR 7725 - Equity Markets: Trading/Structure
  • FIR 7810 - Adv Financial Mgmt.
  • FIR 7840 - Python for Finance   
  • FIR 7911 - Internship in FIR   
  • FIR 7996 - Thesis (1-6)

8000 Level Courses

  • FIR 8170 - Intl Financial Mgmt.
  • FIR 8410 – Investment Theory Portfolio Mgmt.
  • FIR 8710 - Sem Investment Theory   
  • FIR 8721 - Financial Derivatives   
  • FIR 8724 - Microstructure Theory   
  • FIR 8725 - Financial Mkts: Trad/Struct   
  • FIR 8810 - Adv Financial Mgmt.
  • FIR 8820 - Theory/Practice Finance Mgmt.
  • FIR 8840 - Quantitative Finance App.
  • FIR 8850 - Seminar In Finance   
  • FIR 8910 - Problems In Finance (1-6)

 

  • Electives = 15 hours
    • The remaining 5 or less courses (15 semester hours) may be chosen from graduate courses offered by other departments in the Fogelman College. Upon approval of an advisor, a graduate course can be taken from colleges other than the Fogelman College. Between concentration requirements & electives, no more than 3 courses (9 semester hours) may be taken at the 6000 level.

 

Courses taken as part of the MSBA Finance Program can also be counted toward the Professional Real Estate Program, Financial Analyst Certificate or the Financial Planning Certificate.

Applying to the MSBA Finance Program


Prospective students applying to the MSBA Finance program should submit an online application & pay the relevant application fee ($35 for domestic students & $60 for international students). They should also send transcripts of their undergraduate work & test scores on either the GRE or GMAT to the Graduate Admissions Office. Once applications are complete, the Graduate Admissions Office forwards them to the Graduate Programs Office & the FIR department for review.

For US students, the Fall application deadline is July 1. The Spring application deadline is December 1.

Well-qualified undergraduate students who are in their final year of the BBA program in the Fogelman College may benefit from the Accelerated BBA/MSBA Finance program. Interested students must make an appointment with the MSBA Finance program coordinator prior to registering for their final semester of undergraduate work. These students must hold an undergraduate GPA of 3.25 or above. Once accepted in the accelerated program, students may register for up to 9 hours of graduate courses that may count for both undergraduate & graduate credit. As a result, students would be able to earn the MSBA Finance degree with only 24 hours beyond the BBA degree. Another benefit of the accelerated program is that prospective graduate students can avoid the GRE/GMAT requirement.

The college requires an evaluation of transcripts by WES for students who are applying for a graduate degree program in the Fogelman College who earned their last degree at a university outside of the USA.

Admission Process

Applicants to all MSBA programs in the Fogelman College must have the following:

  1. An undergraduate degree from an accredited college or institution;
  2. Application for admission & appropriate fee;
  3. Official transcript from each college or university attended;
  4. Satisfactory performance on undergraduate coursework & a satisfactory score on the Graduate Management Admissions Test (GMAT) or the Graduate Record Examination GRE;
  5. International applicants must submit an acceptable TOEFL score.

Qualified candidates may enter these programs at the beginning of any semester.

The Graduate Non-Degree classification allows individuals who have not yet decided to pursue a graduate degree or who have professional development needs to enroll in MSBA courses (a maximum of 9 credit hours). To remain enrolled as a Graduate Non-Degree student, individuals must maintain a minimum GPA of 3.0. Students should note that the 9-hour maximum is more stringent than the University Graduate School policy.

 

Internships


Students in the MSBA Finance program may obtain up to 3 hours of academic credit for finance-related internships. In order to get 3 hours of credit for FIR 7911, they must work a minimum of 150 hours in the internship & work with a faculty member to show evidence of their accomplishments in the internship. A major advantage of studying in the Memphis area is the wide variety of employers who are able to offer work & internship opportunities for students.

The Professional Development Center (PDC) located in the Fogelman College offers a wide variety of support services to students who need assistance finding internships & career opportunities in the areas of finance & business. Students turn to the PDC for help in improving their resumes, strategies to enhance their interviewing & networking skills, & seminars to learn how to be successful in the corporate world. Finance students benefit from the professional development series Futures in Finance aimed specifically at students seeking a career in Finance.

 

Experiential Learning


MSBA Finance students seeking further practical learning in the investments area may benefit from participating in the CFA Institute Research Challenge & the TVA Investment Challenge. In the CFA Institute Research Challenge, selected students compete against students from other universities to show evidence of superior ability in analyzing a single company. In the TVA Investment Challenge, students invest actual money held by the Tennessee Valley Authority with the goal of earning a higher return than teams from other regional universities.

In both competitions, University of Memphis students have at their disposal the resources of the Cook Analytics & Trading Lab, which is located on the ground floor of the Fogelman Classroom Building. This new facility greatly enhances students' abilities to conduct financial research & to acquire cutting-edge research skills that employers seek.

* Classes students must take to meet the CFP Board Approved Educational Program & qualify to sit for the exam.
  • FIR 7155
  • FIR 6870
  • FIR 7410
  • FIR 6011
  • FIR 6620 OR 6610
  • ACCT 3510 must be taken - outside of FIR department

^are the above courses correct?

 

Next Step


Visit our "Apply Now" page or contact April Jones.

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Program Advisor


April Jones

April Jones, Academic Advisor
Email | 901.678.3499