Graduate Courses
The faculty has approval to offer the following courses in the academic years 2007–2008 and 2008–2009; however, not all courses are taught each semester or summer session. Students should consult the Course Schedule to determine which courses and topics will be offered during a particular semester or summer session. The Course Schedule may also reflect changes made to the course inventory after the publication of this catalog.
Unless otherwise stated below, each course meets for three lecture hours a week for one semester.
Finance: FIN
390. Seminar: Money and Capital Markets. May be repeated for credit when the topics vary. Prerequisite: Graduate standing, Business Administration 385T, and Finance 397 (Topic 1: Investment Theory and Practice).
- Topic 1: Financial Markets and Institutions. How financial markets are organized and function. Includes debt equity and foreign exchange markets, primary and secondary market operations, and investment banking. Additional prerequisite: Finance 394 (Topic 1: Advanced Corporate Finance).
- Topic 2: Special Topics in Capital Markets and Financial Institutions. Study of issues and topics in the capital markets and financial institutions that are not covered in other courses.
394. Seminar: Financial Management and Theory. May be repeated for credit when the topics vary. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and Business Administration 385T.
- Topic 1: Advanced Corporate Finance. Advanced corporate financial management in the global marketplace; valuation of financial and real investments; optimal capital structure; corporate control and restructuring; mergers and acquisitions.
- Topic 2: Financial Strategies. An integrated analysis of the interaction between the operating policies of a corporation and its financial strategies. Additional prerequisite: Finance 394 (Topic 1) and 397 (Topic 1: Investment Theory and Practice).
- Topic 3: Global Finance. Additional prerequisite: Finance 394 (Topic 1) and 397 (Topic 1: Investment Theory and Practice).
- Topic 4: Financial Management of Small Business.
- Topic 6: Special Topics in Corporate Finance.
- Topic 14: Venture Capital Fellows Program. Additional prerequisite: Finance 394 (Topic 1) and 397 (Topic 1: Investment Theory and Practice).
- Topic 15: Energy Finance Practicum.
- Topic 16: Corporate Finance and Financial Markets. Restricted to students admitted to the McCombs School of Business.
395. Finance Doctoral Seminar. May be repeated for credit when the topics vary. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of instructor.
- Topic 1: Fundamentals of Financial Theory. An overview of finance theory and empirical evidence.
- Topic 2: Uncertainty in Economics and Finance. The notions of risk, risk aversion, prudence, arbitrage, and equilibria in economies that include financial markets. The impact of adverse selection and moral hazard problems on the existence and properties of market equilibria.
- Topic 3: Asset Pricing Theory. Detailed introduction to asset pricing theory, focusing on absence of arbitrage, consumption-portfolio choice, and simple equilibrium models.
- Topic 4: Empirical Methods in Finance. In-depth study of existing empirical work in finance, including the econometric and statistical methods.
- Topic 5: Corporate Finance. Analysis of the theory of corporate finance and empirical evidence regarding corporate finance.
- Topic 6: Current Research Topics in Finance. Restricted to doctoral students in finance. Offered on the credit/no credit basis only.
- Topic 7: Summer Research Topics. Restricted to doctoral students in finance. Provides an opportunity for students to develop and conduct original research projects.
- Topic 8: Special Topics in Finance Theory.
- Topic 9: Applied Finance Research. Restricted to doctoral students in finance. Provides an opportunity for students to develop and conduct original research.
397. Seminar: Investment Theory and Management. May be repeated for credit when the topics vary. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and Business Administration 385T.
- Topic 1: Investment Theory and Practice. Analysis of the investment decision-making process, asset allocations, security analysis, risk and expected return measurement, asset pricing models, international investment.
- Topic 2: Portfolio Management and Security Analysis. Modern practices in managing the investment portfolio, portfolio optimization methods, asset management for individual and institutional investors, valuation of equity securities. Additional prerequisite: Finance 394 (Topic 1: Advanced Corporate Finance) and 397 (Topic 1).
- Topic 4: Financial Risk Management. Focuses on how firms manage their financial risk exposures and their use of derivative securities. Additional prerequisite: Finance 394 (Topic 1: Advanced Corporate Finance) and 397 (Topic 1).
- Topic 5: Fixed Income Analysis. Comprehensive analysis of debt securities and the techniques used to value these instruments. Additional prerequisite: Finance 394 (Topic 1: Advanced Corporate Finance) and 397 (Topic 1).
- Topic 6: Special Topics in Investments. Issues and topics in the investment area that are not covered in other courses. Additional prerequisite: Finance 397 (Topic 1).
698. Thesis. The equivalent of three lecture hours a week for two semesters. Offered on the credit/no credit basis only. Prerequisite: For 698A, graduate standing in finance and consent of the graduate adviser; for 698B, Finance 698A.
398R. Master's Report. Preparation of a report to fulfill the requirement for the master's degree under the report option. The equivalent of three lecture hours a week for one semester. Offered on the credit/no credit basis only. Prerequisite: Graduate standing in finance and consent of the supervising faculty member and the graduate adviser.
399R, 699R, 999R. Dissertation. Offered on the credit/no credit basis only. Prerequisite: Admission to candidacy for the doctoral degree and fulfillment of the language requirement for the doctoral degree.
399W, 699W, 999W. Dissertation. Offered on the credit/no credit basis only. Prerequisite: Finance 399R, 699R, or 999R.
Real Estate: R E
386. Seminar in Real Estate Analysis. May be repeated for credit when the topics vary. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and Business Administration 385T.
- Topic 1: Real Estate and Urban Land Economics.
- Topic 2: Real Estate Investment Decisions.
- Topic 3: Real Estate Analysis. Additional prerequisite: Finance 394 (Topic 1: Advanced Corporate Finance), 397 (Topic 1: Investment Theory and Practice), and Real Estate 386 (Topic 2); or consent of instructor.
388. Seminar in Real Estate Finance. Current aspects of real estate finance as they affect lenders, borrowers, and investors. Institutional changes affecting trends in real estate finance, presented within a decision-making framework. Prerequisite: Graduate standing, and Finance 397 (Topic 1: Investment Theory and Practice) or consent of instructor.