The field of finance encompasses three closely related perspectives: how businesses raise and invest capital; how individuals allocate their savings among different investment alternatives; and how markets function to equate the demand for capital by firms and the supply of capital by investors.
Saint Louis University’s finance program prepares students for successful careers in an ever-increasing global economy. In addition to gaining professional finance knowledge, students develop strong analytical, communication, problem-solving, decision-making and spreadsheet skills for success in today’s environment.
Through the management of more than $1 million in University endowment funds, senior-level students have the opportunity to gain hands-on experience in evaluating common stocks as investments and in the fiduciary management of investment assets.
Join the Wall Street Club, which provides students with the opportunity to learn about the different career paths in finance, as well as the opportunity to network with finance professionals from the area. In addition, students develop leadership and communication skills through various roles in the club.
Saint Louis University’s Department of Finance is a member of the CFA Institute University Affiliation Program. Being an affiliated university means that our curriculum is closely tied to the practice of investment management and is helpful to students preparing for the CFA program exams. Our graduates have been extremely successful on the Series 7 Exam and on other professional exams that are necessary for certain career paths in finance.
Degree Programs
- Bachelor of Science in Finance
- Financial analysis track
- Minor in Finance
- Master of Business Administration
MBA students can select to focus their studies in an emphasis area, including finance. - Post-baccalaureate certificate in finance
Faculty
- Naresh Bansal, Ph.D.
- Bidisha Chakrabarty, Ph.D.
- Thomas Doellman, Ph.D.
- Norman Guo, Ph.D.
- Cathy Mai, Ph.D.
- Marcus Painter, Ph.D.
- Olgun Sahin, Ph.D.
Emeritus
Applied Portfolio Management
The Applied Portfolio Management (APM) course at Saint Louis University provides students in the Richard A. Chaifetz School of Business with an opportunity to actively manage a portion of the University’s endowment fund.
Established in the fall of 2002 with an initial investment of $500,000, the APM course seeks to blend academic rigor with real-world experience in portfolio management. The class follows a top-down approach to investing. Consideration of the macroeconomic environment will be followed by an analysis of the 11 S&P GICS sectors.
The class decides on the sector weightings for the portfolio. Students will also select stocks for the portfolio based on a business and financial valuation analysis of potential candidate stocks.
The applied portfolio management course is recommended for students targeting careers in equities analysis, portfolio management, investment banking, corporate finance, and financial analysis, as well as students interested in gaining a better understanding of equities selection.