Applications for fall 2008 admission to the Financial Economics Certificate Program are due March 31, 2008.

Download the schedule of classes for Financial Economics 2008-2009 (PDF 22 KB) Updated 05/06/08

Principles of Finance, KELLG_FE 310-0. This foundation course for the Financial Economics Certificate is taken by all students in the fall. The course discusses the principles of finance, focusing on the effects of time and uncertainty on value. Students will learn valuation, including discounted cash flows; equity and debt valuation; the term structure of interest rates; portfolio theory; asset pricing; and efficient market theory. The course also examines firms’ financing decisions, including capital budgeting, capital structure, and payout policy. The finance course is also part of the Managerial Analytics Certificate curriculum.

Principles of Finance is taught by Deborah Lucas. the John L. and Helen Kellogg Distinguished Professor of Finance.

Investments, KELLG_FE 312-0
This course aims at developing key concepts in investments from the perspective of a portfolio manager. As such we will focus on both passive and active investment strategies for large portfolios and in particular risk management issues. A number of important topics such as value at risk, the use of financial derivatives and performance evaluation are introduced through applications.

The Investments course is taught by Ernst Schaumburg, assistant professor of Finance.

Derivatives, KELLG_FE 314-0
This course focuses on the use and pricing of forwards and futures, swaps and options. Strategies for speculation and risk management, no-arbitrage pricing for forward contracts, the binomial and Black-Scholes option pricing models and applications of pricing models in other contexts are discussed in depth.

Derivatives is taught by Kellogg School of Management Senior Associate Dean and First Chicago Distinguished Professor of Finance Costis Skiadas.

Topics in Financial Economics, KELLG_FE 316-0
Topical finance issues form this course each academic year. The current focus is on value investing, covering the empirical support for the value approach to investing; quantitative methods for searching for value; balance sheet and earnings power approaches to assessing fundamental value; risk management; and construction of portfolios using the value approach.

In Academic year 2008-09 the Topics course in value investing will be taught by Ravi Jagannathan, the Chicago Mercantile Exchange/John F. Sander Distinguished Professor of Finance.

Related Courses for Further Study

Economics courses that are natural complements to Financial Economics include:

ECON 260-0 Accounting and Business Finance
ECON 311-0 Macroeconomics
ECON 349-0 Industrial Economics
ECON 380-1, 2 Introduction to Mathematical Economics
ECON 331-0, Economics of Risk and Uncertainty