Syllabus

Mon/Wed Syllabus, Tue/Thu Syllabus

Copyright

© The contents of the syllabus, class materials, lectures, and course book for this course are protected under the copyright laws of the United States. They are intended for the private use of students and may not be reproduced in any way, shape, or form without the express written permission of the author.

Course Objectives

  • Introduction to the theories and applications associated with the functions of capital markets. This includes the conceptual foundations of portfolio theory, risk management, and asset valuation. We will examine the markets for equity, money, bonds, mortgages, futures, options and swaps.
  • Familiarization with some of the technologies which dominate the business world into which the student will graduate.

Pre-Requisites

  • Successful completion of Finance 221.
  • Basic Mathematics
  • Working knowledge statistics and basic linear regression techniques. The Regression and Excel skills learned in Econ 203 will be used in the Equity Project.

Required Material

  • Financial Markets (2nd Edition) by Elisabeth Oltheten & Kevin G. Waspi. Great River Technologies 2012
  • GRT online access code included with the textbook. The online code is required in order to access the homework and UISES. Details on registering your code with GRT are included in the documentation. If you already have a code with GRT from another course or from a previous semester then you need to add a course. Details are included in the documentation.
  • Financial Calculator. Two models of business calculator are authorized for use on graded homework, quizzes and the exams:
    • Texas Instruments BA II Plus (including the BA II Plus Professional) and
    • Hewlett Packard 12C (including the HP 12C Platinum).

    Note: These are the same two calculators that are authorized for use on the
    CFA exams. Calculator policy will be strictly enforced on all exams. Other electronic devices, including, but not limited to, all programmable/graphing calculators, cell phones, pagers, PDAs, laptop computers, tablets and music players (including earphones/headphones), are prohibited during exams. Students must store them in such a way that they are not visible the student or to the proctors and are not readily accessible. Power must be removed from all devices that may emit sounds, such as cell phones. Electronic devices that are improperly stored will, at the minimum, be considered as evidence of attempted use of unauthorized study aids, which falls under the definition of Cheating in the Student Code. Students found in possession of such devices (even if they are not observed using them) will have their exam confiscated, will receive a score of 0 points on the affected exam, and will be subject to further disciplinary action.

General Requirements

 

  • Read!
    Every interview season, interviewing firms come back with variations on the same theme: the students that impressed them most were those who

 

      • kept a high grade point average
      • demonstrated a committment in extra-curricular or community affairs
      • were in touch with the financial, business, and political issues of the day.

This requires a steady course of reading. Even if you only read the Wall Street Journal for 15 minutes every afternoon, or Business Week every Sunday morning, stay in touch with the world around you and be prepared to comment and express your own opinions on various topics during your interview season. You might actually find that it makes you a better, more informed person all around.

Then take that better, more-informed person you are and choose a few works from the further readings mentioned in your textbook. Few investments will pay you better dividends.

Course Requirements

 

The course consists of individual and group work. Students must complete and pass each of component of the course in order to pass the course.

 

      1. Individual Work

 

  • Two Mid-term examinations.
    The mid-term examinations consist principally of questions similar to the Chapter Questions in the course book and the weekly homework. The exam is taken in the regular class time.

 

 

  • Final Exam.
    The Final Exam is cumulative and is taken during final exam week.

 

 

 

 

  • Pop Quizzes
    In-class quizzes as defined by your professor

 

    2. Group Projects
    • Equity Analysis & Bond Analysis Projects
      The analysis projects are designed to reflect the potential professional environment in which a student in finance may find him/herself after graduation. Students are free to form their own teams of four. The team will perform one equity analysis and one bond analysis. You may, but are not required to, keep the same team for both the equity and the bond analysis.

Registration Notes

  • Finance 300 is a required course for all finance majors. For this as well as several other good reasons Professors are not allowed to mess with registration for this course. If you have trouble getting into finance 300 please consult the Finance Department Advisor.
  • If you must re-take Finance 300 for any reason then you must do with a different Professor. If you register with the same Professor for more than one semester then the Department will de-register you.
  • The reason that finance 300 is only 3/4 of a unit for graduate students is that it is an undergraduate course and thus should not count for a full graduate credit. You are free to take the course and we would be happy to see you in class but you must recognize that an undergraduate course – even with a paper tacked on the end – is not taught at the same level as a graduate course covering the same material.

Letters of Recommendation

Finance 300 is a required course in Finance. For those students who plan to continue their education in Finance it is expected that you do well in fundamental courses – an A is expected as minimum level of expertise in Finance 221, 300, and 321. You will need to take advanced courses in Finance and do well enough in these advanced courses to generate your letters of recommendation. Most Universities also require work experience before continuing into a Masters level program.