This program is available at the following locations:

• Corvallis
• Ecampus

Options available:

• Dean's Academy
• Financial Planning
• International Business

The goal of the finance program at OSU is to prepare students for careers in institutional finance, which includes careers in banking, brokerage, insurance and other fields.

Individuals entering a career with a financial institution have many opportunities open to them. Many who go into banking select career paths in either operations or lending. Within the lending area, finance majors can specialize in installment credit lending to consumers of durable goods, mortgage lending to home builders and buyers, or commercial lending to help finance the growth of businesses.

People entering the securities industry find careers as stock and bond brokers, security analysts or portfolio managers. Individuals choosing the area of insurance typically enter company operations through either claims or underwriting positions. Those with sales positions can choose to work either with corporations or individuals as a client base. In addition, many decide to work for the government as finance personnel in charge of revenue and expenditure programs.

Financial managers engage in many activities designed to ensure the efficient use of an individual's or organization's capital resources. The finance field involves the management of funds in our economic system. Because financial managers deal with other people's money, finance is a career choice for individuals who enjoy working with people and who desire challenging assignments.

The BS/BA in finance has been accepted into the Chartered Financial Analyst® (CFA) Institute University Recognition Program. This status is granted to institutions whose degree program or programs incorporate at least 70 percent of the CFA Program Candidate Body of Knowledge (CBOK), which provides students with a solid grounding in the CBOK and positions them well for the CFA exams.

Major Code: 182

Upon successful completion of the program, students will meet the following learning outcomes:

• Apply the fundamental concepts and tools of finance.
• Apply financial management concepts and tools to the decisions faced by a manager in investment decisions.
• Apply financial management concepts and tools to the financing decisions and dividend decisions faced by the firm.
• Evaluate the corporate governance structure of firms and examine the interactions, from a governance perspective, between firm management, financial markets and stakeholders.
• Appraise the risk profile of firms; specifically, estimate the costs of capital, including debt and equity capital using financial data.
• Discuss the operations of three distinct capital markets: the equity market, the bond market and the derivatives market, and the financial assets traded in each of these markets.
• Explain the global financial environment and the globalization process experienced by multinational corporations.

The lower-division business core involves completion of courses within the first and second year that build a solid foundation for the upper-division finance and business curricula. The lower-division business core course work may be completed at OSU or any accredited college or university that offers equivalent courses transferable to OSU.

¹

Credits listed are minimum to fulfill Bacc Core with Business requirements overlapping. As coursework in this grouping may not satisfy both Bacc Core and Business requirements, check with advisors for best course selections to overlap and complete requirements in both groups

²

Options and minors are available to provide specializations and fulfill unrestricted elective credits

Business Administration Core Curriculum 

The business administration core curriculum provides students with a broad overview of business; basic skills in accounting and quantitative methods; an understanding of the legal and social environment of business; a background in management and organizational behavior, marketing, finance, and operations management; an understanding of the entrepreneurial process; and the opportunity to integrate course work and further develop decision-making skills through the analysis of business cases.

*

Baccalaureate Core Course (BCC)

^

Writing Intensive Course (WIC)

+

Core Education course. Applies only to students admitted to an OSU undergraduate degree from Summer 2025 onwards

¹

The COMM, ECON, MTH and WR courses listed meet the university's Baccalaureate Core requirements for Speech, Social Processes & Institutions, Mathematics, and Writing II. All students must meet the other Baccalaureate Core requirements and the other requirements for baccalaureate degrees

²

Courses require a grade of C or higher

Finance Curriculum

Major Code: 182

Degree plans are subject to change and the following is only an example of how students may complete their degree in four years. Students should consult their advisor to determine the best degree plan for them. Contact details for advisors can be found on the Academic Advising page.