Financial Services Bachelor of Business Administration Degree (B.B.A.)

Not all programs are offered for completion at each campus or through Berkeley College Online®. Please review the academic program pages (https://berkeleycollege.edu/academics/index.html) for information on where each program is offered. Additionally, all students may be required to take some courses at another campus or online. The Internship courses are only offered online.

PROGRAM LEARNING OBJECTIVES

SAMPLE PROGRAM SEQUENCE

Course Requirements

MAJOR CORE COURSES

ACC1112 Financial Accounting II

3 Credits

Course introduces accounting for receivables, plant assets, intangible assets, liabilities, stockholders’ equity, and investments.  Students learn how to prepare and interpret cash flow statements.

Prerequisite: ACC1111

FIN2200 Introduction to Financial Services

3 Credits

Introduces the world of financial services, including banking, insurance, and securities/brokerage. Topics include financial planning, treasury management, risk management, financial analysis, and securities investments.

Prerequisite: ACC1111

FIN2230 Personal Finance

3 Credits

Presents students with the principles of personal finance and provides students with the knowledge and skills considered important in achieving financial success. Topics include time value of money, budgeting and savings, managing credit, making major purchases, minimizing risk, and investment fundamentals.

ECO2201 Applied Macroeconomics

3 Credits

Introduces students to the core concepts and principles of macroeconomics.  Topics include the key measures of macroeconomic performance such as national income, inflation, and unemployment. Emphasis is on the links to the financial and monetary systems including an analysis of short-run economic fluctuations and the role of fiscal and monetary policy in influencing aggregate demand.

Prerequisites: ECO2200

FIN3315 Investment Planning

3 Credits

Explains the principles of constructing and managing investment vehicles in relation to client needs. Topics include an overview of investment vehicles, measures of investment risk and returns, portfolio management, asset pricing, leverage, and hedging options.

Prerequisite: FIN2230

FIN4400 Tax Planning

3 Credits

Provides an overview of the fundamental principles of income tax planning. Topics include income tax fundamentals; taxation of trusts and estates; and cost-recovery, basis, and charitable contributions.

Prerequisite: FIN2230

FIN4416 Advanced Corporate Finance

3 Credits

Analysis of advanced corporate finance concepts, including investment criteria, the use of techniques/tools such as net present value, internal rate of return, risk and return, cost of capital, and long-term financial policy. Financing with derivatives, capital structure management, and corporate restructuring will also be considered.

Prerequisite: FIN3302

FIN4425 Contemporary Issues in Financial Services

3 Credits

Explores contemporary issues in financial services. Students explore issues affecting the current economy and conduct individual research. Projects are designed to integrate topics covered throughout the financial services curriculum with emphasis on application to present day issues.

Prerequisites: FIN3315, FIN4400, FIN4416

Financial Services Electives*(6 credits at the 3000/4000 level)

6 Credits

FIN3310 Insurance Planning

Presents the principles of risk management and insurance planning. Topics include risk exposure; property and casualty insurance; general business liability; and life, health, disability, and long-term care insurance.

Prerequisite: FIN2230

FIN3319 Money & Banking

Explores the relationship between the financial system and the level, growth, and stability of economic activity. This course emphasizes the theory, structure, and regulation of financial markets and institutions. Students examine investment yields and the role of financial markets as the mechanism for allocating financial resources.

Prerequisites: ECO2200, FIN3302

FIN4411 Retirement & Estate Planning

Provides an overview of effective planning and implementation of individual and business-sponsored retirement plans along with tools and techniques for estate planning and wealth transfer.

Prerequisite: FIN4400

FIN4420 Comprehensive Financial Planning

Provides students with the skills necessary to construct a comprehensive personal financial plan based on client information. Students will develop plans that integrate all key areas of personal financial planning.

Prerequisites: FIN2230, FIN3310, FIN3315, FIN4400, FIN4411

FIN4421 Financial Statement Analysis

Provides a broad understanding of and a practical approach to the use of financial statements to assess the financial viability of an organization. Students learn how to read and interpret financial statements from a user’s perspective.

Prerequisites: ACC1112, FIN3302

ECO4401 International Economics

Introduces the commercial and financial relationships between the United States and the rest of the world. The course emphasizes the development of the international monetary system, including a detailed comparison of floating exchange rates with the workings of the gold standard and the Bretton Woods system.

Prerequisite: ECO2200

BUSINESS CORE COURSES

ACC1111 Financial Accounting I

3 Credits

Introduces the basic structure of accounting terminology and procedures of a business organization. Students learn about recording and reporting functions, adjusting entries and closing entries, the preparation of financial statements, accounting for merchandising operations, valuation of inventories, purpose and significant features of internal controls, and preparation of bank reconciliation.

BUS2231 Business Law I

3 Credits

Provides students with detailed knowledge of the laws relating to contracts, commerce, property, sales, negotiable instruments, and employment. Students develop an awareness of business situations requiring legal counsel and a familiarization with the overall structure of the legal system.

CIS1115 Computer Applications

3 Credits

Provides an introduction to computer technology with an emphasis on applications. Students learn to use software, such as Microsoft Windows, Word, PowerPoint, and Excel.

CIS2201 Advanced Spreadsheets

3 Credits

Provides students with experience using spreadsheet applications, such as Microsoft Excel. Topics include building complex worksheets; importing and exporting data; using mathematical, financial, and statistical functions; developing macros; consolidating spreadsheets; creating templates; and utilizing “what if” analyses.

Prerequisite: CIS1115

ECO2200 Principles of Economics

3 Credits

Introduces students to the core concepts and principles of microeconomics. Emphasis is on real-world applications from a personal, business, and governmental perspective.  Topics include tradeoffs and opportunity costs, gains from specialization and trade, supply and demand, and the efficiency of markets.

FIN3302 Corporate Finance

3 Credits

Provides an overview of the fundamental principles relating to the study of finance, including theories and practices in financial management. Students become familiar with the financial organization and operation of a business. Topics include financial analysis, planning and control, budgeting and forecasting, and financing.

Prerequisites: ACC1111, MAT2215, and MAT2218

IBS2201 International Business

3 Credits

Explores the diverse environment, management concerns, financial issues, and marketing questions faced by international business organizations. Students gain a heightened global awareness as they seek the knowledge and skills needed to function competitively in an increasingly interdependent world.

MGT2220 Principles of Management

3 Credits

Examines operational theories of management under the functions of planning, organizing, staffing, directing, and controlling. Emphasizes the manager’s role in creating and maintaining an internal environment for performance. Students discuss cases in detail.

MKT2220 Principles of Marketing

3 Credits

Provides an introduction to fundamental principles and practices in the marketing process, including a detailed study of each marketing mix tool (product, price, place, promotion), along with an introduction to marketing research, target marketing, SWOT construction and analysis, strategic marketing planning, and consumer behavior. This is the gateway course to the Marketing Communications Program.

LIBERAL ARTS AND SCIENCE CORE COURSES*

ENG1105 Writing and Research

3 Credits

An introduction to expository writing through a comprehensive survey of forms of composition. Students are taught to use words with precision and strengthen their understanding and application of grammatical and rhetorical principles. Students are encouraged to appreciate and incorporate the principles of academic and professional writing.

ENG2205 Writing Through Literature

3 Credits

Further develops the writing, reading, and interpretive abilities introduced in ENG1105 through critical engagement with literary texts from a myriad of genres.

Prerequisite: ENG1105

ENG2215 Public Speaking

3 Credits

Supports students in the development of oral communication skills. This course emphasizes the identification of good and poor speech habits, techniques for improving speech, oral interpretation, effective speech planning and delivery, and interpersonal communication.

Prerequisite or Corequisite: ENG2205

ENG3316 The Confident Writer 

3 Credits

Explores a wide variety of non-fiction writing genres, including personal profile, journalism, criticism, and more. Students build their reading, writing, and researching skills while also reinforcing the fundamental concepts and current developments associated with the areas of their respective majors. 

Prerequisite: ENG2205

HUM2225 Introduction to Ethics

3 Credits

Introduces the study of ethics and moral philosophy, including its historical development, the major figures within that history, and ethical and moral issues that face us today. This course presents the ideas of great thinkers throughout history and encourages students’ own thinking on various ethical and moral issues.

MAT2212 Quantitative Methods

3 Credits

Introduces students to the personal use of mathematics and the applications for various business disciplines. This course will explore the business applications of linear functions, quadratic functions, and systems of linear equations. Emphasis will be placed on the use of Excel to solve real-world business problems.

Prerequisite: CSK85 or placement-based score

MAT2215 Statistics I

3 Credits

Introduces statistical methods and procedures. Students become acquainted with the collection, analysis, and presentation of quantitative data. Topics include basic concepts of probability, frequency distributions, binomial distributions, sampling theory, hypothesis testing, and regression and correlation.

SOC1123 First Year Experience

3 Credits

Explores the challenges students most frequently face in pursuing and achieving a college degree. Students will identify their own perceived challenges, share critical insights to meeting them, and implement their own plan of action to address and overcome such challenges.

SOC2231 Human Relations

3 Credits

Students will develop the interpersonal skills known to be key ingredients for successful everyday interactions with a focus on the challenges of workplace relationships involving coworkers, supervisors, and customers/clients. Some major skill areas covered in the course include making a good impression with your employer, managing conflict with difficult coworkers, working on a team with diverse groups of people, providing exceptional service for customers/clients, and managing on-the-job stressors.

Humanities Elective- 3 Credits

Liberal Arts Elective- 3 Credits

Science Elective- 3 Credits

Social Science Elective- 3 Credits

Business Electives - 6 Credits*

Free Electives**** - 18 Credits

120 SEMESTER CREDIT HOURS REQUIRED FOR GRADUATION

*6 Financial Services Electives credits must be at the 3000/4000 level.

**12 credits of Liberal Arts Electives must be at the 3000/4000 level.

***Any courses in the Larry L. Luing School of Business.

****Students planning to take the CFP Examination must take the following pre-certification courses:

FIN2230 Personal Finance
FIN3310 Insurance Planning
FIN3315 Investment Planning
FIN4400 Tax Planning
FIN4411 Retirement & Estate Planning
FIN4420 Comprehensive Financial Planning

Professional Licensure & Certification

Information about professional licensure and/or certification requirements for this program is available online at: https://berkeleycollege.edu/about/accreditation-regulatory/online-state-authorization-info/index.html

This program also requires students to obtain specific supplies, the cost of which totals approximately $35.00. Detailed, itemized information describing the required supplies and listing typical prices for each such item is available at https://berkeleycollege.edu/catalogs/undergraduate-2021-2022/admissions/undergraduate-degree-program-tuition-fees-2021-2022/index.html.