Courses of Study

  • Master of Arts in International Economics and Finance
  • Master of Science in Finance
  • Master of Business Administration
  • Doctor of Philosophy

Sections

Brandeis International Business School

Last updated: November 4, 2010 at 3:21 p.m.

History and Organization

The Brandeis International Business School (IBS) is a pioneering professional school dedicated to teaching and research in global finance, management, and economic policy.

Established in 1994, the school responds to the growing need for international vision and expertise by preparing exceptional individuals from around the world to become principled leaders of global companies and public institutions.

The school teaches cutting-edge theory, immerses students in international experiences, and connects them to best practice in business and policy. This learning experience transforms the way its graduates view the world and helps them develop insights to chart its future.

The school’s research covers many fields including technology and globalization, international trade and investment, corporate governance and executive compensation, currency markets, corporate finance, computational finance, corporate alliances, entrepreneurial investing, online commerce, cross-cultural interaction, organizational change, regulation, and risk. Its major research units include the following:

The Asper Center for Global Entrepreneurship
The Asper Center for Global Entrepreneurship is IBS's platform for exploring the contributions of entrepreneurship in different professions and across borders. The Center provides a wide array of learning experiences, brings entrepreneurs from around the world to the Brandeis campus, and conducts research on the structure and impact of global entrepreneurship. The Asper Center was established in 2006 by Leonard J. Asper '86.

The Perlmutter Institute for Global Business Leadership
The Perlmutter Institute for Global Business Leadership, established by Brandeis Trustee Louis '56 and Barbara Perlmutter, will prepare IBS students for leadership positions in the global corporation of the future through a combination of theoretical and technical knowledge along with pragmatic skills

The Rosenberg Institute of Global Finance
The Rosenberg Institute of Global Finance seeks to analyze and anticipate major trends in global financial markets, institutions and regulations, and to develop the information and ideas required to solve emerging problems. It focuses on the policy implications of economic globalization. To this end, it sponsors informal exchanges among scholars and practitioners, conducts research and policy analyses, and participates in the school’s teaching programs. The Institute, founded in 2002, is named for Barbara C. Rosenberg '54 and Richard M. Rosenberg.

The Center for Asia-Pacific Business and Economics
The Center for Asia-Pacific Business and Economics, addresses trade, investment, finance, and development in the Asia Pacific as a whole, and particular countries of the region.

Additional information on the school, its programs and activities, and its admissions policies may be obtained from the school’s Web site, www.brandeis.edu/global, or by contacting its administrative offices at Brandeis.

Objectives

IBS prepares students for the challenges of the emerging global marketplace. Its programs address the complex responsibilities faced by business and government leaders in their varied professional environments.

Degree Programs

MAief Program
The Lemberg MA in International Economics and Finance is a two-year (four academic semesters) professional degree that integrates analytical skills in economics and capital markets with practical management insights and global economic perspectives. It prepares students for careers in finance, economic policy, consulting, multinational corporations, and international organizations.

MBA Program
The MBA at IBS is a two-year (four academic semesters) professional degree, and offers in-depth training in all business and management functions with special emphasis on finance and strategy. Its internationally focused curriculum distinguishes it sharply from "generic" MBA degrees.

MSF Program
The MS in finance is a ten-course, part- or full-time program focused on the quantitative and analytical tools of modern finance, with emphasis on applications in investments and corporate financial management. The program accommodates the schedules of working professionals by offering year-round evening courses.

PhD Program
The PhD in international economics and finance, offered in collaboration with the university's economics department, provides advanced training in economic theory, research techniques, and creative problem-solving in an integrated, global economic framework. The program prepares students for research, teaching, and policy making careers in business, government, and international agencies.

Combined BA/MA Programs
Brandeis and Wellesley College undergraduate students may apply for admission to a special BA/MA track within the Lemberg MAief Program in the spring of their third year. They begin taking program courses in their fourth year of undergraduate study and satisfy the master's degree requirements in one additional year of study at the graduate level after receiving their BA.

Admission


How to Be Admitted to the Brandeis International Business School


The school seeks outstanding candidates from around the world and from a wide range of backgrounds and experiences. Factors critical in the evaluation of applicants to all IBS degree programs include academic achievement, aptitude for graduate study, motivation, leadership, and experience. Detailed information regarding admission requirements, applications, policies, and procedures is available on the IBS Web site and by contacting the Office of Admissions.


Test Scores and Deadlines


Applicants for the Lemberg MAief Program must submit the results of either the GMAT or the GRE. Applicants for the MBA and MSF programs must submit GMAT or GRE scores. PhD applicants are required to submit the results of the GRE. A TOEFL score of 600 or higher is normally required for students whose native language is not English. Although interviews are not required, they are recommended.

Early action: For the Lemberg MAief program and MBA program, IBS offers an early action and scholarship priority deadline of November 15.

Lemberg MAief Program: November 15 and February 15 Priority Deadline for Scholarships/April 15 Final Deadline.

Lemberg MAief Program, BA/MA track: March 15.

MBA Program: November 15 and February 15 Priority Deadline for Scholarships/April 15 Final Deadline.

MSF Program: January 7 for spring entry/April 15 for summer entry/August 1 for fall entry.

PhD Program: January 15. Note: Admission is offered only in the fall of even years (2010, 2012, etc.).

Academic Regulations

Registration

Every resident, post-resident, and continuation student must register at the beginning of each term, whether attending regular courses of study, carrying on research or independent reading, writing a thesis or dissertation, or utilizing any academic service or facility of the university. All students on semester abroad must register and enroll in ECON 290a for that semester.

Please refer to the Academic Calendar for specific deadlines for adding and dropping courses. In order to drop a class after the end of the registration period, a student must receive permission from the instructor either by completing the Add/Drop form available from the IBS Office of Administration and Student Services or the Office of the University Registrar’s website. The completed form with all necessary signatures must be returned to the Office of the University Registrar, Kutz 121.


Auditing Courses


The privilege of auditing courses without paying a fee is extended to all regularly enrolled full-time graduate students except special students. Special students may audit courses by paying for them at the same rate as those taken for credit. No courses may be audited without the permission of the instructor. Auditors may not take examinations or expect evaluation from the instructor. No credit is given for an audited course.


Course Exemptions


Students may request an exemption from one or more required courses if comparable academic work was done prior to beginning an IBS program. The work must be relevant and relate closely with the material covered in the IBS class, which the program directors will determine. The request must be in writing on a requirement completion form, which may be obtained from the IBS Office of Administration and Student Services. A course syllabus and transcript must accompany the completed form. All requests for course exemptions must be made during a student’s first semester at IBS. Obtaining an exemption from a required course does not reduce the number of courses needed to complete the program; rather, exempted courses need to be replaced with electives.   


Incompletes


A student who will not complete the research or written work for a course may file for an extension by completing an Excused Incomplete Form, available on the IBS website. The approval of the instructor and advisor are required.  Examples of conditions for which such an extension may be granted are serious illness, family emergency or similar serious matter.  The instructor will indicate on the form the date on which all outstanding work is due, and will submit a temporary EI (Excused Incomplete) grade for the student.  A final permanent grade must be submitted to the Office of the University Registrar by the incomplete grade deadline as indicated on the Academic Calendar.  After the deadline, if the grade is still outstanding, the EI will be converted to a grade of I (Permanent Incomplete) or E (Fail) at the instructor’s discretion.
 
A student who cannot take a final examination as scheduled during Finals Week may, with the permission of the instructor, file for a make-up exam by completing an Excused Absence Form, available on the IBS website. The exam may be taken at a time mutually agreeable to the student and instructor.  If a mutually agreeable arrangement cannot be identified, the make-up exam will be administered by the Office of the University Registrar according to university policy.  A make-up examination may not take place prior to the scheduled exam.
 
A temporary grade of EA (Excused Absence) will show on the student’s transcript until the final grade for the course has been determined.  The exam must be completed no later than is allowed by the university Registrar’s make-up exam schedule.  Failing to do so will result in a failing grade on the exam. 

Residence Requirements


Residence requirements vary by program and can be found in a later section of this Bulletin.


Post-Resident Students


A graduate student who has completed residence requirements and who needs to utilize the full range of academic services and university facilities while completing degree requirements is a post-resident student and should register for CONT 500a (Graduate Research) or the appropriate courses required to complete his/her program.


Continuation Students


A doctoral student who has completed all degree requirements except the dissertation is eligible for continuation status. A student in this category enrolls on a full-time basis, and is eligible for university health insurance, borrowing privileges in the Library, a computer account, use of gym facilities, and purchase of a parking sticker. They are not normally eligible for fellowships or for leaves of absence, except for health reasons.

A student must be registered and enrolled in the term(s) in which the dissertation is defended.

Continuation students must enroll before the end of registration period each semester in CONT 500a (Graduate Research). For questions regarding these enrollments, please contact the Office of the University Registrar.

International students must enroll in CONT 500a (Graduate Research). Please contact the International Students and Scholars Office (ISSO) if there are special circumstances.


Special Students


Properly qualified applicants who wish to audit or to take courses without working for a degree may be admitted. Special students are normally not eligible for university loans, scholarships, fellowships, or teaching or research assistantships. Special students who later wish to change their status to that of part-time or full-time students working for a degree must apply for admission as resident students. They must also file a petition if they wish credit to be accepted for any courses they took at Brandeis as special students. Credit for such course work may be granted in exceptional cases. Normally, no more than two courses taken for credit may be transferable if the student is admitted to either the master's or doctoral program.


Leave of Absence


Students may petition for a leave of absence. The petition must have the approval of the assistant dean of administration and student services. Leaves of absence of up to one year will normally be granted to students in good academic standing who present compelling personal reasons. Returns from leave may be subject to conditions established at the inception of the leave. Time spent on authorized leaves of absence will not be counted toward the maximum time permitted to complete degree requirements.

If for any reason a student must extend a leave of absence, he or she must request such an extension in writing before the leave of absence expires. Failure to do so will result in involuntary withdrawal from IBS. Students who extend their leaves of absence beyond one year may lose funding. Should a student wish to return, the student will be considered for funding as part of the school's entering class of students.


Withdrawal


A student who wishes to withdraw voluntarily from IBS during a semester must do so in writing to the ssistant dean of administration and student services and must file his or her request before the last day of instruction of the semester. Failure to notify in writing of a withdrawal may subject the student to loss of eligibility for refunds in accordance with the refund schedule outlined in the "Fees and Expenses" section. Permission to withdraw voluntarily will not be granted if the student has not discharged all financial obligations to the university or has not made financial arrangements satisfactory to the bursar. When a student withdraws during or at the end of a semester course enrollments are not expunged from his or her record; rather, a grade of W ("withdrawn") is entered for each course.

Students who are obliged to register and fail to do so by the appropriate deadline or who fail to pay their bill will be administratively withdrawn. They may be readmitted (see below) for study in a subsequent term, but not for the term in which they were withdrawn for failure to register. Belatedly fulfilling financial obligations will not negate the effects of administrative withdrawal.


Readmission


A student who was not enrolled in IBS for one year or more and has not obtained a leave of absence will need to apply for readmission and may be charged the readmission fee. IBS will determine in each case whether a student should be readmitted. If requirements have changed during the student's absence or the student is not deemed current in his or her field of study, the student may be required to repeat or supplement previous academic requirements. When a student is reinstated, he or she will be informed of current status regarding credits and time to degree.


Graduate Cross-Registration


A full-time graduate student at Brandeis may enroll in one graduate course each term at Boston College, Boston University, Tufts University, Bentley University, or Babson College. Information on available courses for cross-registration is available at the graduate school office of each institution.

A student at Brandeis who wishes to enroll in a graduate course at one of the host institutions must obtain a cross-registration form from the Office of the University Registrar and secure the approval via signature of the IBS academic advisor, the instructor of the course, and both the Brandeis and host registrar's office.

Due to differences in academic calendars among the colleges in the consortium, it is not advisable for degree candidates to enroll in a cross-registered course in their final semester.

Fees and Expenses

Tuition and Fees


Tuition
Tuition for full-time resident students for the 2010-2011 academic year is $19,497 per semester (or $38,944 per two-semester academic year) for Lemberg MAief, MBA, and PhD students. The same tuition rate applies if studying abroad while participating in the IBS exchange program. The tuition rates for the part-time MSF is $3,750 per course / $1,875 per module course ($937.50 per credit). Due to inflation, students who will be at Brandeis more than one year may expect tuition and other charges to increase slightly during their academic careers.

Payment of tuition and other fees is due on August 13, 2010, for the fall semester and January 7, 2011, for the spring semester. A student who has not paid such fees by the day of registration will be refused the privilege of registration. A late fee will be assessed to all student accounts with outstanding balances after the stated due date. The amount of the late fee will be $100, or 2 percent of the outstanding balance, whichever is greater.

Returned Check Fee: $25 per incident
A bank service fee will be charged to a student's account if a payment or a check negotiated through Brandeis is returned by the bank for any reason.

Transcript Fee: $5
Students, former students, and graduates should request official transcripts of their records from the Office of the University Registrar. Students are entitled to twenty formal transcripts of their academic work without charge. A charge of $5 will be made for each subsequent transcript. Requests by mail for transcripts must be accompanied by a check in the correct amount, payable to Brandeis University. Official transcripts will be issued only to those students whose university financial records are in order.

Orientation Fee: $42 per year

Graduate Activity Fee: $66 per year

Student Health Services Fee: $636 per year (optional)
Entitles the full-time graduate student to use of Health Services.

Student Health Insurance Plan (single coverage): $1,607 per year (estimated)
All three-quarter or full-time students are required by state law to show certification of health insurance. Students without insurance of their own must purchase the Student Health Insurance Plan through the university. The fee is payable prior to registration and no portion is refundable. Student insurance is optional for special students. Additional insurance options, including family coverage, are described in A Guide to University Health Services, which is available from Health Services.

Parking Fee: $60 - $250 per year
Payable annually at fall registration for privilege of parking an automobile on campus. Fee varies with assigned parking area.

Late Fee: $100, or 2 percent of the outstanding balance, whichever is greater
A student who defaults in the payment of indebtedness to the university shall be subject to suspension, dismissal, and refusal of a transfer of credits or issuance of an official transcript. In addition, the university may refer the debt to an outside collection agency. The student is responsible for costs associated with the collection of the debt.

Such indebtedness includes, but is not limited to, delinquency of a borrower in repaying a loan administered by the student loan office and the inability of that office to collect such a loan because the borrower has discharged the indebtedness through bankruptcy proceedings. If the student is a degree, certificate, or diploma candidate, his or her name will be stricken from the rolls.

A student who has been suspended or dismissed for nonpayment of indebtedness to the university may not be reinstated until such indebtedness is paid in full.

Final Doctoral Fee: $235
This fee covers all costs for the year in which the PhD degree will be conferred, including the costs for the full publishing services for the dissertation; publication of the abstract of the dissertation in Dissertation Abstracts; issuance of a Library of Congress number, appropriate library cards, and deposit of the dissertation in digital format at the Library of Congress; binding four copies of the dissertation—one hardbound for the author, and three xerographic softbound copies (for the author, IBS, and Library); and a microfiche for the Brandeis Library. The final doctoral fee covers the rental expenses for academic robes for graduation and the cost of the diploma.

Note: All candidates for the PhD degree must pay the $235 final doctoral fee at the Office of Student Financial Services before they file the application for their degree with the Office of the University Registrar.

Refunds


The only fee that may be refundable, in part, is the tuition fee. No refund of the tuition fee will be made because of illness, absence, or dismissal during the academic year. A student who is withdrawing must notify IBS in writing; refunds will be based on the date of notification and calculated in accordance with the following:

1. Tuition

Withdrawal

Before the opening day of instruction: 100% of the term's tuition.

On or before the second Friday following the opening day of instruction: 75% of the term's tuition.

On or before the fifth Friday following the opening day of instruction: 50% of the term's tuition.

After the fifth Friday following the opening day of instruction: no refund.

Requests for refunds should be addressed to the Office of Student Financial Services.

2. Scholarship

In the case of a scholarship student who withdraws, the student's account will be credited with the same proportion of the term scholarship as charged for tuition: 75% if the student leaves on or before the second Friday; 50% on or before the fifth Friday, and no refund thereafter.

3. Stafford Loans

In compliance with federal law, special refund arrangements apply to students receiving aid under Title IV. Contact the IBS financial aid officer for additional information.

Refund Policy for Dropped Courses

A student who drops courses on the per-course tuition-charge basis is allowed a refund following this schedule:

1. Full semester-long courses

Before the opening day of instruction through the last day of the registration period (see the Academic Calendar): 100% of the dropped course’s tuition fee.

On or before the fifth Friday following the opening day of instruction: 50% of the dropped course’s tuition fee.

After the fifth Friday following the opening day of instruction: no refund.

2. Module courses

On or before the second Friday of module instruction (see the Academic Calendar): 100% of the dropped course’s tuition fee.

After the second Friday of module instruction: no refund.


Housing


Ten-month living expenses in the Waltham area for a single individual on an economical budget are estimated to range from $9,000 to $18,261. Limited housing is available in the university's graduate residence halls and is usually reserved for exchange students during the fall semester. Costs for on-campus housing range from approximately $3,273 to $4,208 per semester for a single person. Graduate housing includes kitchen facilities, but students may also purchase university meal plans.


Financial Aid


Both U.S. residents and international students are eligible for merit- and need-based financial support from IBS and are also encouraged to explore outside funding sources. To be considered for need-based financial aid through federal loan programs, U.S. residents must submit a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) online at www.fafsa.ed.gov. In past years, international students have received support from the Fulbright, Muskie, Ford, Mandella, Soros, and other scholarship programs and from their governments and employers.


Scholarships


Committed to enrolling a highly qualified student body, the school awards scholarships and loans based on academic and professional promise, need, and availability of funds. All students—U.S. residents and international students—are automatically considered for scholarship assistance upon admission.

Financial support varies by program. Financial aid is not available for part-time or full-time MSF students. MAief and MBA students are sometimes offered partial tuition scholarships, but in all cases are expected to finance their own living expenses. Exceptional PhD students may receive full tuition waivers and support toward living expenses. Master’s degree students who study abroad receive a grant toward the cost of airfare to the partner school.

The school’s major scholarship programs include:

Dean’s Prize Scholarships
American Leadership Awards
Global Leadership Awards
Jeffrey J. Steiner Fellowships
Milton W. Feld Fellowships
Peter Petri Global Fellowship
Isaiah Leo Scharfman Fellowships
National Society of Hispanic MBA Scholarships
National Society of Black MBA Scholarships

Further information on eligibility and application requirements for these scholarships and for the school’s need-based aid is provided on the IBS Web site and can be obtained also by contacting the IBS Office of Admissions.


Assistantships


A limited number of research and teaching assistantships are available for qualified students.


Loans


Direct Subsidized Federal Stafford Loans are available to U.S. citizens and permanent residents who are enrolled at least half-time in a degree or certificate program and who demonstrate need by filing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Graduate students may borrow up to $8,500 per year in subsidized money. The maximum aggregate limit for the program (including undergraduate borrowing) is $65,500.

Direct Unsubsidized Federal Stafford Loans are available to students who are not eligible for subsidized Stafford Loans based on need. Applicants must still file the FAFSA. Graduate students may borrow up to a maximum of $12,000, with an aggregate maximum of $73,000 in unsubsidized money. Eligible students may borrow from the subsidized and the unsubsidized Stafford programs, as long as the annual total does not exceed $20,500.

The interest rate on both versions of the Stafford Loan is a fixed rate of 6.8%

Repayment of a Stafford Loan begins six months after the borrower ceases to be enrolled at least half-time. The repayment period is ten years, during which time interest is charged. (Please go to www.studentloans.gov for information about alternate repayment plans.) There is no interest charged during the in-school period for subsidized loans. However, students are required to pay the interest during the in-school period or have it capitalized and added to the loan balance for the unsubsidized loan.

The terms for the above loan programs are subject to federal legislation, regulations, and other guidance, and may change. Additional current information is available from the International Business School.

Students wishing to apply for this loan must complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid online at www.fafsa.ed.gov and should contact the Graduate School for any additional required application materials.

The Graduate PLUS Loan is a federal loan that allows graduate students to borrow up to their total cost of education less any financial aid received. The student must pass an independent credit review. The PLUS Loan has an origination fee of 2.5% and the interest rate for the 2010-2011 academic year will be a fixed rate of 7.9%. Please go to www.studentloans.gov to apply for this loan.

Faculty

John Ballantine, Director of the MSF Program
Bank regulation. Corporate finance. Financial institutions. Labor economics. Strategic management. Energy. Business citizenship.

Carol Osler, Director of the MAief Program
Currency market microstructure. Exchange rates. Behavioral finance.

Benjamin Gomes-Casseres, Director of the MBA Program
International business. Alliance management. Business strategy.

Blake LeBaron, Director of the PhD Program
International finance. Exchange rates. Artificial stock markets.

Brenda Anderson
Accounting and financial analysis.

Robert Angell
Accounting. Business planning. Entrepreneurship. Financial management. Operations. Strategic planning.

Preeta Banerjee
Strategy. Entrepreneurship. Innovation.

Edward Bayone
Credit risk. Real estate. Country risk.

Linda Bui
Environmental economics. Industrial organization. Public economics.

Laarni Bulan
Empirical corporate finance. Real options.

Alfonso Canella
Airline industry. Health care economics. Project evaluations. Valuations.

Judith Dean
International economics. Economic development. Econometrics.

Can Erbil
Development economics. Political economy. International trade. Economic modeling.

Kathryn Graddy
Applied microeconomics. Empirical industrial organization.

Jens Hilscher
Asset pricing. Corporate finance. International finance.

Adam Jaffe, Dean of Arts and Sciences
Technology. Economic growth. Industrial organization.

Gary Jefferson
China. Technical progress. Open economy macroeconomics. Transition economics.

Richard Keith
Finance, planning, and control. Managerial accounting.

Hong Li
Time series econometrics. Macroeconomics. Monetary economics.

Ricardo Lopez
International Trade. Development Economics. Productivity Analysis. Latin America.

Catherine L. Mann
International finance. Outsourcing. Technology. U.S. economic policy.

Rachel McCulloch
International trade theory. Trade policy. Macroeconomic coordination. Investment and technology transfer.

Nidiya Menon
Development economics. Econometrics. Labor economics.

Andrew Molinsky
Cross-cultural interaction. Organizational behavior.

Brad Morrison
Operations and service management. Supply chain management. Global outsourcing.

Peter Petri
International trade. Development. Japan. Asia-Pacific.

Alon Raviv
Asset pricing. Derivatives. Financial institutions. Fixed income. International finance. Quantitative finance.

Charles Reed
Entrepreneurship. General management. International marketing.

Robert R. Reitano
Asset liability. Risk management. Derivative hedging applications. Equity and fixed income derivative pricing. Quantitative finance.

Elif Sisli Ciamarra
Corporate finance. Corporate governance. Hedge fund performance.

Xin Wang
Pricing auctions in marketing. Consumer behavior. International marketing. Market research.

Grace Zimmerman
Business planning. International entrepreneurship. Strategic marketing.

Other distinguished practitioners and educators serve as adjunct professors. An up-to-date list is available on the school's Web site, www.brandeis.edu/global.

Requirements for the Degrees


Combined BA/MA Program


IBS offers a BA/MA for qualified Brandeis undergraduates who wish to earn the Lemberg Master of Arts in International Economics and Finance (MAief) with one year of post-BA study. IBS also invites qualified Wellesley College students to apply for the BA/MA program.

Students in this track begin taking program courses in their fourth year of undergraduate study and satisfy the master’s degree requirements in one additional year of study at the graduate level after receiving their BA.  Students who are interested in the program should apply in the second semester of their junior year, no later than March 15 for application to begin in the fall semester, and October 15 to begin in the spring semester.

Students admitted to the program must fulfill all BA requirements and receive their BA before full matriculation into the graduate MAief program. It is important to note that students in the BA/MA program are considered undergraduates until they have successfully satisfied all of the requirements for the BA. Students who begin the BA/MA program in their final undergraduate semester must complete three graduate semesters.

Applications may be made online through the IBS web site. Students must submit a completed application, official undergraduate transcripts, three letters of recommendation, essays, and a resume. The GRE is not required for admission to the program. An interview is required of all applicants. Admission into the program will be announced in mid-April for the fall semester and mid-November for the spring semester. A student’s preparation for the Lemberg MAief Program normally includes the following Brandeis undergraduate courses (or equivalent courses for Wellesley College students): Introduction to Economics (ECON 2a), The Global Economy (ECON 8b), Microeconomic Theory (ECON 80a), and Statistics (ECON 83a).

Program of Study
In general, BA/MA students at IBS have to meet the same requirements as two-year Lemberg MAief students. The following provides special guidance for BA/MAs.

The BA/MA student is required to take sixteen semester courses (64 credits) in the field of study.  While specific courses can vary, students will take courses in the following areas: international economics, finance, accounting, and quantitative methods.  All IBS BUS, ECON and FIN courses (200 and 300 level) apply to this requirement, as do 100-level electives in ECON.  Field of study credit will be given for any of these courses taken prior to admission to the BA/MA program.  Such credit will count towards the sixty-four field of study credits, but courses taken prior to admission to the BA/MA program will not reduce the sixty-four credits required during residency (see “Residency” below).
 
Students should refer to the MAief course requirements for a general overview.  In a number of cases, undergraduate ECON classes can be used to fulfill MAief program requirements. A detailed description of all acceptable substitutions for required courses can be found in the IBS BA/MA Program Handbook.  Students should plan their four semesters of study upon admission to the program.  While enrolled in the program the student is permitted to take up to one course (4 credits) in a field related to a student’s professional interests (e.g.: an advanced language course, an area studies course, a politics or history course).
 
The BA/MA student is expected to take a minimum of two IBS courses (8 credits) in each undergraduate semester after being accepted into the program.

Residency
The BA/MA program requires four semesters of residency at Brandeis from the semester students begin the program— no more than two semesters at the undergraduate level and no fewer than two at the graduate level. During these four semesters students need to complete sixteen courses (64 credits) even if they have taken elective or required courses before they begin the program. The residency requirement may not be waived or reduced.

International Experience Requirement
BA/MA students need to fulfill the international experience requirement required of all IBS MAief students, unless they are exempted for having lived or worked abroad. Most BA/MAs fulfill this requirement by a study abroad semester at one of our partner schools in the fall semester of their second year in the MAief program. The study abroad experience should be economics/business related. Timing of foreign study is determined on a case-by-case basis. IBS has affiliations with leading universities around the world, including in France, Denmark, Italy, Germany, Spain, Mexico, Brazil, Israel, Japan, China, and Taiwan. A semester abroad counts towards the student’s four semester residency requirement.

IBS approval is required for a prior study abroad experience to satisfy the BA/MA international experience requirement. Earlier study does not count toward the residency requirement whether or not it qualifies as international experience.

Language Requirement
BA/MA students must fulfill the language requirement for the undergraduate degree; there is no additional language requirement for the master’s degree.


Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts


Program of Study
Students must successfully complete an approved schedule of at least sixteen semester-length courses (or the equivalent) during their four semesters of residency at Brandeis. This includes seven required courses (in the areas of accounting, financial theory, quantitative techniques, international economic environment, international trade, international macroeconomics, and international corporate finance) and the remaining nine must be selected from a list of approved electives. Four semester-length courses (or the equivalent) may be completed during a semester abroad.

Residence Requirement
Two years (four semesters) of full-time residence is required. One of these may be a semester spent at a foreign university associated with the program. For candidates on the BA/MA track, one year of residence as a graduate student is required. Students admitted through the University of Paris Dauphine program complete three semesters of full-time residence at Brandeis.

International Experience Requirement
Students are required to have international experience through living, working, or studying outside the United States. This requirement can be fulfilled with experience gained prior to entry into IBS or while the student is enrolled at IBS. For a list and explanation of the options available for satisfying the requirement, consult the IBS Web site or the Office of Administration and Student Services.

Language Requirement
Students are required to have basic knowledge of a language other than English. This requirement can be fulfilled with a language learned prior to entry into IBS or while the student is enrolled at IBS. For a list and explanation of the options available for satisfying the requirement, consult the IBS Web site or the Office of Administration and Student Services.

Concentrations
Students may concentrate in one of three fields: international finance, international economic policy, or international business. Concentrating requires taking four semester-equivalent courses in the field beyond the required core courses. Students who complete this option receive the MA in international economics and finance with a concentration in international finance (or international economic policy or international business).


Requirements for the Degree of Master of Science in Finance (MSF)


Program of Study
Students must successfully complete an approved schedule of ten semester-length courses (or the equivalent), a minimum of eight courses at the International Business School. Five courses are required (in the areas of accounting, investment analysis, quantitative techniques, international economic environment, and international corporate finance), and the remaining five must be selected from a list of approved electives. MSF students have the option of transferring in a maximum of two graduate-level courses taken within the last five years, with approval of the program director.

Residence Requirement
Students may complete the requirements at their own pace. Full-time residency is not required. However, students are normally required to complete their requirements within four calendar years after beginning work in the program.

Concentrations
Students may concentrate in one of two fields: business finance or international investments. Concentrating requires taking three semester courses (or the equivalent) in the field beyond the required courses. Students who complete this option receive the MS in finance with a concentration in business finance (or international investments).


Requirements for the Degree of Master of Business Administration (MBA)


Program of Study
Students must successfully complete a minimum of sixteen semester-length courses (or the equivalent) during their four terms of residency at Brandeis. At least nine and one-half semester-course credits must be taken within a required set of subjects (in the areas of economic environment of business, quantitative methods, accounting and control, finance, marketing, operations, organizational behavior, and business policy) and the remaining courses must be selected from a list of approved electives. Four semester-length courses (or the equivalent) may be completed during a semester abroad.

Residence Requirement
Two years (four semesters) of full-time residence are required. One semester may be spent at a foreign university associated with the program.

International Experience Requirement
Students are required to have international experience through living, working, or studying outside the United States. This requirement can be fulfilled with experience gained prior to entry into IBS or while the student is enrolled at IBS. For a list and explanation of the options available for satisfying the requirement, consult the IBS Web site or the Office of Administration and Student Services.

Language Requirement
Students are required to have basic knowledge of a language other than English. This requirement can be fulfilled with a language learned prior to entry into IBS or while the student is enrolled at IBS. For a list and explanation of the options available for satisfying the requirement, consult the IBS Web site or the Office of Administration and Student Services.

Concentrations
The name of the IBS MBA degree is the “MBA in International Business.” Beyond the specialization that is already implied in this name, students can concentrate in three fields: international finance, international economic policy, or socially responsible business. Concentrating in finance requires taking four semester-equivalent finance courses beyond the required core courses. Students concentrating in international economic policy are required to take four semester-equivalent courses in economics beyond the required core courses. A concentration in socially responsible business requires four semester courses in related topics. Consult the program chair about which courses are appropriate for the requirement.


Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy


Program of Study
Requirements include successful completion of formal course work, outstanding performance in examinations designed to measure field competence, and completion of a thesis that represents substantial original research. Students are required to complete seven core courses (in the areas of microeconomics, macroeconomics, econometrics, and finance) and must also complete at least two elective courses in two of the five following major fields:

1. International trade

2. Finance

3. Advanced macroeconomics

4. International business

5. International development

After core and field examination requirements are substantially completed, students are required to enroll in ECON 399a (Dissertation Workshop). This workshop provides opportunities for students to hear research presentations by faculty members and visitors, present papers in progress, and define thesis objectives.

Residence Requirement
Three years of full-time residence are normally required. However, for most students it takes four or more years of full-time study to complete the degree.

Core and Field Examinations
Each candidate for the PhD must pass a written examination, offered annually, covering the core required subjects. Students must also pass written examinations in two of the five major fields (see above) to demonstrate competence in a broad specialty. Field examinations are offered as required.

Dissertation and Defense
All candidates for the PhD will submit a dissertation in a form approved by his or her dissertation director and by a committee appointed by the director of the PhD program. The student will defend the dissertation at a final oral examination.

Information about Courses

Listed on the following pages are graduate courses of instruction for IBS. Courses meet for three hours a week unless otherwise specified.

Most courses are available to all students qualified to take them. Access to some courses is governed by the signature of the instructor. Other courses impose a numerical limit to preserve environmental conditions suitable to the pedagogy the instructor employs; students increase their chances of gaining enrollment in such courses by participating in early registration.

Generally, a course is offered with the frequency indicated at the end of its description. The frequency may be designated as every semester, every year, every second year, every third year, or every fourth year.

Courses numbered 100-199 are for undergraduate and graduate students; courses numbered 200 and above are primarily for graduate students. Undergraduates may not enroll in courses numbered 200 or above without the written permission of the instructor.

IBS degree programs are structured with the assumption that all students will be taking their required courses at their first opportunity and as outlined in the program guide. While some electives may be taken concurrently to these required courses, most electives assume that the student has already mastered their content.  Prerequisites are noted in the following course descriptions.

Students wishing to exempt from a course requirement based on earlier studies are expected to submit a Petition for Exemption in their first semester. Students are not to assume that an exemption will be granted. 

Course abbreviations are as follows:

 BUS
 Business
 CONT  Continuation
 ECON  Economics
 FIN  Finance







Suffixes after course numbers have the following meanings:

A or B Semester course
F Half-semester course, half-course credit
G Quarter-course credit

A semester course carries one semester course credit (four semester-hour credits). Exceptions are noted under the individual course descriptions. Certain courses do not count for rate of work and do not carry course credit toward graduation. Occasionally, courses are awarded additional semester-hour credits, yet count as only one semester course toward graduation. All such courses are specifically identified in the course listing. Certain courses require a laboratory course taken concurrently.

The university reserves the right to make any changes in the offerings without prior notice.

Courses of Instruction

(200 and above) Primarily for Graduate Students

BUS 211f Information Management
Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Surveys quantitative techniques and computer tools in management information systems including database manipulation. Objective of the course is to help students acquire advanced computer skills through cases and hands-on applications. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Carver

BUS 220a Organizational Behavior
Open only to master's degree students.
Covers the fundamentals of organizational behavior, including the topics of leadership, work motivation, organizational culture, organizational structure, group dynamics, perception, decision-making, and cross-cultural interaction. Assignments include group project analysis of a real organizational dilemma using concepts covered in class. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Molinsky

BUS 221a Managing across Cultures
Focuses on interpersonal challenges of managing across cultures. Using a combination of lecture, role-plays, video, and student presentations, this course will equip students with skills and perspectives that will enable them to function more effectively in foreign cultural situations. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Molinsky

BUS 222a The Leadership Experience
Presents the challenges of leading and managing in interpersonally challenging situations. Topics include delivering bad news, conducting performance reviews, handling difficult employees, and giving and receiving feedback. Extensive use of role-plays and simulated managerial situations. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Molinsky

BUS 223a Global Business Leadership
Provides students with a practical but intellectually challenging roadmap to their development as leaders. Multi-disciplinary readings supplement students' own experience. Insights provided by leaders from industry and government enable students to explore leadership as a concept and as a vocation. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Thomas

BUS 224f Launching Your Global Career
Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
The goal of this course is to equip students with the career management skills essential to surviving and excelling in today's global labor market. Provides graduate students with a foundation and necessary tools for identifying target positions; conducting an effective and efficient job search; building career-planning and job-search skills that will be useful throughout their careers.
Ms. Katz

BUS 225a Organizations and Management
Explores organizational structures and processes of firms. Topics include alignment of strategy and structure, elements of organizational design, organization of multibusiness and multinational firms, internal and external networks, public policy, and organizational leadership. Uses case studies and class discussion extensively. Usually offered every year; will not be offered 2010-2011.
Mr. Gomes-Casseres

BUS 226f Managing Global Human Capital
Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
An introduction to the strategic role international human resource management plays in creating competitive advantages for firms. Topics include global strategies for Employment, Compensation, Leadership Development, and Policies and Procedures. Students will learn the nuances of managing human capital in multinational firms. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Suderow

BUS 228f Management Communication
Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
This course will help students significantly improve their business communication skills by learning how to present their business ideas, facts, and analyses more clearly and concisely, with significantly more impact on influencing senior management decisions. Usually offered every semester.
Mr. Singer

BUS 230a Entrepreneurship
Addresses the fundamentals of starting and growing a business, including entrepreneurial finance and financial management. Covers theory and practice and includes presentations by speakers engaged in entrepreneurship, underwriting, and venture capital. The major assignment is a team project to construct a business plan for a startup company using actual data. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Reed

BUS 231a Entrepreneurial Finances and Business Plans
Open only to IBS students.
Introduces techniques for preparing business plans and explores the process of using a business plan to acquire funding. Requires students to prepare a business plan for a new venture and to present this plan in front of a critical audience. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Reed

BUS 235f Real Estate Fundamentals
Prerequisite: FIN 212a. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Introduction to the analysis, financing, and management of income-producing real property. Explores how investors and developers identify projects, determine value, design marketing strategies, and obtain financing in the debt and equity markets. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Bayone

BUS 236f International Real Estate: The Emerging Markets
Prerequisite: BUS 235f. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
The course looks at the analysis, financing, and management of income-producing real property in the Emerging Markets. Using case discussion, we will explore how developers and investors identify projects, determine value, design marketing strategies, and obtain financing in their various markets. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Bayone

BUS 237f International Real Estate: The Mature Markets
Prerequisite: BUS 235f. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Building on BUS 235f, this course looks at the analysis, financing, and management of income-producing real property in mature markets abroad. Using case discussion, it explores how developers and investors identify projects, determine value, design marketing strategies, and obtain financing in their debt and equity markets. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Bayone

BUS 238a Real Estate Development
Prerequisite: BUS 235f. May not be repeated for credit by students who took BUS 238f in pervious semesters.
Focuses on how developers create value from real estate assets. Examines development process: market analysis, site selection, acquisition, planning, construction, leasing and permitting. Working in teams, students plan and present actual original development projects to a visiting panel of professionals. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Katzen

BUS 250a Global Marketing
Starting with a brief overview of marketing disciplines, the course will develop strategies for entering and operating in diverse international markets at varying levels of investment. The case study method will be used to examine the process that leads to a successful marketing strategy, including financial analysis, economic and geographic evaluation, cultural and political assessment, and infrastructure evaluation. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Wang

BUS 251a Financial Product Marketing
Focuses on the application of general marketing concepts and practices to financial services and products. Strongly recommended for students pursuing a marketing career in the financial industry. Usually offered every year; not offered 2009-2010.
Staff

BUS 252a Marketing Management
An in-depth exploration and practical application of the basic marketing tools of product policy, pricing, promotion, distribution, sales management, customer segmentation, and retention in order to analyze marketing opportunities and develop marketing programs for a variety of management situations. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Zimmerman

BUS 253a Marketing Research: Design and Analysis
This course may not be repeated for credit by students who have taken BUS 256f in previous years.
A practical exploration of a broad sampling of market research techniques to compile, analyze, and apply consumer, product, and market intelligence to strategic and marketing decisions concerning market segmentation, targeting, positioning, product design, and demand forecast. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Wang

BUS 254a Marketing Strategy
Prerequisite: BUS 252a
Examines the value of building, sustaining, and communicating a company's brand and its value proposition through promotional activities and channels of distribution. A competitive, online simulation is used to enhance case studies. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Zimmerman

BUS 255f Consumer Behavior
Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Focuses on consumer behavior and the underlying cognitive process at various purchase stages. Provides students hands-on experience collecting and interpreting qualitative consumer behavior data. Through team projects and case studies, students explore how consumer motives, values, and perceptions influence their purchase decisions and the firm's marketing mix strategies. Usually offered every year; will not be offered 2010-2011.
Ms. Wang

BUS 257f Marketing Communications
Prerequisite: BUS 252a. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Explores the activities a company undertakes to educate, engage and prompt to action its various target customer segments. Topics include advertising, promotions, event sponsorship, internet marketing, social media marketing, corporate blogs, word-of-mouth advertising, and marketing communications for social initiatives. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Zimmerman

BUS 258f Sales and Sales Management
Prerequisite: BUS 252a. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Explores concepts and techniques for professional sales and sales management. Including strategies for maximizing revenue and customer satisfaction while optimizing costs to sell, service and maintain customer relationships. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Zimmerman

BUS 260a Competition and Strategy
Introduces frameworks for analyzing industries and firm competitive advantage and reviews key concepts in business strategy. Uses case method to practice strategic thinking and team projects to practice business research. Core for MBA students and recommended for other business students. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Gomes-Casseres

BUS 261a Managing Technology Businesses
May not be repeated for credit by students who took BUS 261f in pervious semesters.
Focuses on skills and strategies needed to develop businesses based on new technologies. Through discussion of cases and concepts, the course explores innovation and technology management, strategy, marketing, financing, and performance of new ventures in entrepreneurial or existing firms. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Banerjee

BUS 262f Alliance Strategy
Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
In many industries, collaboration between firms now goes hand in hand with competition. Inter-firm alliances of various sorts (e.g., joint ventures, joint research, and long-term supply contracts) have become critical to success in high-technology industries, as well as in certain geographic markets. Surveys the strategic and organizational issues involved in using such alliances. Discusses ideas from the theoretical, empirical, and normative research on the topic, and applies these ideas to managerial decisions using case studies. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Gomes-Casseres

BUS 263f Knowledge Flows in Global Competition
Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Deals with managing the flow of knowledge within and across organizational boundaries. Using the case method, explores how firms respond to the challenges of technology transfer in a global context. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Banerjee

BUS 264f Business and the Environment
Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Deals with environmental issues in business strategy. Using the case method, the course explores firm responses to environmental policy, the challenges of developing clean technologies, and the opportunities for firms to differentiate themselves with "green" strategies. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Banerjee

BUS 265a Consulting Perspectives
A hands-on view of the consulting industry and the experience of working on a consulting team. Provides insights into the consulting role, consulting tools and processes, working in teams, and guidelines for making effective presentations. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Sherden

BUS 266f Nonmarket Strategy I: Relationships with Governments
Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Explores how firms can identify significant government-related opportunities and problems, and how they can take advantage of the opportunities and avoid the problems. Considers the differences between countries and examines the challenges facing businesses operating in foreign countries. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Leon

BUS 267f Investment Banking
Corequisite: FIN 201a. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
A study of the role of investment banks in the capital markets, with particular focus on M&A, stock and fixed income underwriting, asset securitization, global financial markets, and trading. Usually offered every year; not offered 2010-2011.
Staff

BUS 268f Nonmarket Strategy II: Relationships with Activists, Media, and NGOs
Prerequisite: BUS 266f recommended. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Not just customers and suppliers, but other actors influence whether a company is successful. Learn how to manage relationships with activists, the media, and NGOs. Topics include dealing with reporters, crisis communication, forming unconventional alliances, and pursuing corporate responsibility sensibly. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Leon

BUS 269f The Future of Global Financial Institutions
Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Analysis of the current and future role of global financial institutions, key drivers influencing the industry, and strategic challenges and opportunities facing today's financial services' CEOs. Usually offered every year; not offered 2010-2011.
Staff

BUS 270a International Management and Business Development
Focuses on how large and small businesses operate across national borders.
Through discussion of cases and concepts, the course explores the strategy,
management, and performance of multinational enterprises. Special focus on
business development strategies of new enterprises pursuing opportunities in
international markets. Usually offered every year.
Staff

BUS 271f Conducting Business in Economies in Transition
Prerequisite: ECON 201a, FIN 201a, and FIN 212a. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Examines their history to understand their context and key industries, and makes inferences on how these economies may do business in the future. Students will spend one week overseas to gain some first-hand understanding of how these transitions may evolve.
Mr. Canella

BUS 272a Operations Management
Explores how different business strategies require different business processes, and, conversely, how different operational capabilities support different strategies to gain competitive advantage. Topics may include inventory management, cycle time management, supply chain management, quality management, and process management and improvement, as well as recent developments such as lean or world-class manufacturing, just-in-time operations, time-based competition, and business reengineering. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Morrison

BUS 273f Supply Chain Management
Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Studies classic and contemporary issues in supply chain strategy and management. Examines what capabilities a supply chain must have to support a firm's business strategy and the implications for supply chain structure. Topics include the strategic role of the supply chain, methodologies for designing and planning a supply chain, and issues in the management of supply chains. Uses analytical spreadsheet models and case studies to examine structure and performance of domestic and global supply chains in a variety of industries. Usually offered every year; not offered in 2010-2011.
Mr. Morrison

BUS 274f Global Outsourcing
Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Explores the key strategic issues firms face in deciding whether to outsource and when, where, and how to do so. Draws on the experiences of a series of guest speakers as context for classroom discussion. Usually offered every year; not offered in 2010-2011.
Mr. Morrison

BUS 275f Transnational Negotiations
Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Explores the dynamics of international business negotiations in the context of evolving global industries. Students will develop an understanding of negotiation strategy, positioning, and process, as well as the skills necessary to effectively design, negotiate, and manage transnational deals. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Cohen

BUS 276a Business Dynamics: Managing in a Complex World
A study of why so many business strategies generate disappointing results or outright failure. Case studies include successful applications of system dynamics in growth strategy, management of technology, operations, project management, and implementation of improvement programs. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Morrison

BUS 277f Managing the Triple Bottom Line
Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Through case studies and meetings with corporate decision makers, students explore shifting strategies and developing programs in the rapidly changing arena of corporate social responsibility.
Mr. Appell

BUS 278f Corporate Governance: From Colossal Failures to Best Practices
Prerequisite: FIN 212a. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
How the board of directors, management, shareholders, and an external auditor should work. How individual goals and external pressures influence individuals, and how their decisions impact a corporation's failure or success. Focuses on the United States with comparisons to Europe and Asia. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Schumann

BUS 279f Corporate Fraud: Detection and Prevention
Prerequisite: FIN 212a. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Exposes students to the problem of fraudulent financial reporting, including its causes, impact, and practical, cost-effective responses. Using actual and simulated case material, students will acquire skills needed to identify, investigate, and report findings on corporate fraud. Usually offered every third year.
Mr. Schumann

BUS 280f Operational Risk Management
Prerequisite: FIN 212a. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Today's managers must be able to assess the risk profile of their business and respond to issues as they arise. Examines how companies are dealing with massive changes in legislation that have made executives in the U.S. and abroad fully accountable for effective operational risk management and how they are using the Enterprise Risk Management framework of COSO and COBIT, and the Balanced Scorecard. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Schumann

BUS 281f The Legal Environment for Global Managers
Prerequisite: It is recommended that students have taken a core of economics or finance courses. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
An introductory course intended to explore fundamental legal issues and concepts that impact financial management. Recent events in commercial and financial markets make it evident that legal and compliance risks require the same level of scrutiny and review as other financial activities, such as capital budgeting. While this module does not undertake to completely or totally prepare students to engage in these reviews, it provides the basic building blocks. Students should emerge with an understanding of the nexus of law and finance. The text primarily used is Managers and the Legal Environment: Strategies for the 21st Century and is supplemented with case studies to ensure learning of the application of legal concepts. Usually offered every year; not offered in 2010-2011.
Mr. Aikens

BUS 286a Applications of System Dynamics
Prerequisite: BUS 276a.
Gives students the opportunity to apply the standard method of system dynamics to assist a real company or organization. The core activity in the course is to work with a client organization, using the tools of system dynamics, to develop insights into a problem the client has identified. Students experience conceptualizing and building a system dynamics model "from scratch," learn a set of standard pieces of model structure called "molecules," and gain an appreciation for the challenges and rewards of consulting for clients in a helping relationship. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Morrison

BUS 295a Field Projects in Consulting
May be repeated twice for credit with permission of the instructor.
Provides students with the opportunity to apply their skills and knowledge to solving actual client problems. Includes up to twenty-one students, who in teams of three, will be assigned to one of seven projects for the duration of the course. The projects involve a wide array of management topics, such as: strategy, marketing, organization, mergers and acquisitions, profit improvement, cost reduction, customer service, and process improvement. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Sherden

BUS 297a Internship
Prerequisite: Two semesters at IBS or permission of program director. Yields half-course credit. This course may not be repeated for credit.
Offers students an opportunity to apply the theories and key themes covered in the core courses in a real-life setting. Requires completion of at least six weeks of a paid or unpaid internship approved and monitored by a faculty advisor. The project could involve a research or consulting assignment or a structured internship in the school's fields. Interested students should consult the guidelines established by the school. Usually offered every year.
Staff

BUS 297g Internship
Prerequisite: Two semesters at IBS or permission of program director. Yields quater-course credit. This course may be repeated twice for credit.
Offers students an opportunity to apply the theories and key themes covered in the core courses in a real-life setting. Requires completion of at least six weeks of a paid or unpaid internship approved and monitored by a faculty advisor. The project could involve a research or consulting assignment or a structured internship in the school's fields. Interested students should consult the guidelines established by the school. Usually offered every year.
Staff

BUS 298a Independent Study
Normally available for a student who wishes to pursue advanced reading on research in a subject or field not available in the department's course listings. Usually offered every semester.
Staff

BUS 298f Independent Study
Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
See BUS 298a for course description.
Staff

BUS 299a Master's Project
Prerequisite: Two semesters at IBS or permission of program director.
A student wishing to complete a master's project under the guidance of a faculty advisor may enroll in this course during his or her final semester in the master's program. Projects may involve a short analytical thesis, the solution of an applied problem, or a report on work completed in an appropriate internship. Usually offered every year.
Staff

ECON 200f Fundamentals of Microeconomics
Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Designed for first-year MA students. An introduction to key theoretical concepts in microeconomics. Calculus will only be used in a very limited number of cases. Emphasizes topics important in other IBS classes, such as financial theory or international trade. Some material is applicable to courses in business strategy. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Bilgic Alpaslan

ECON 201a Global Economic Environment
A look at global economic environments from the perspective of all stakeholders, including governments, businesses, consumers, labor, rich, and poor. Takes a multidisciplinary approach drawing on international politics, economy, finance, and business management. The course is divided in two major themes: the economic finance dimension and the political social dimension. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Ballantine, Ms. Dean, or Ms. Mann

ECON 202a Applied International Macroeconomics
Prerequisite: ECON 201a or the equivalent.
Reviews basic domestic and international macroeconomics, including the goals and functioning of monetary authorities, national income and balance of payments accounting, PPP, interest parity, and the relative merits of different exchange-rate regimes. Advanced topics include exchange-rate crises, hyperinflation, inflation stabilization, and "global imbalances." Lectures, assignments, and tests stress applications to countries throughout the world. Also covers the basic skills required to understand and manipulate macroeconomic data. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Osler

ECON 203f Advanced International Macroeconomics: Theory, Evidence, and Policy
Prerequisites: ECON 201a, 202a (may be taken concurrently), and one course in econometrics (graduate module or undergraduate course). Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Builds on and extends the economic frameworks developed in ECON 201a and 202a to focus on economic models that are fundamental to international macroeconomic analysis, policy making, and business strategy. Students apply data to the models, and discuss journal articles that apply the frameworks to macroeconomic questions. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Mann

ECON 205f Applied Business Cycle Analysis
Prerequisites: ECON 201a and 202a. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Focuses on the determinants of short-run economy-wide fluctuations in output, unemployment and inflation. Develops the time-series tools needed to summarize the data and provides an introduction to macroeconomic forecasting and empirical policy analysis. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Hall

ECON 210f Fundamentals of Statistical Analysis
Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Intended for students with little or no prior coursework in statistics. Introduction to statistical thinking and analytic methods, emphasizing business decision-making. Considerable use of statistical software (Stata), readings, cases, and projects permits focus on concepts, models, and interpretation of results. Topics include descriptive statistics, financial models, estimation, hypothesis testing, and regression analysis. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Carver or Mr. Fournier

ECON 211f Introduction to Econometrics
Prerequisite: Statistics or ECON 210f. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Survey of quantitative techniques and computer tools in data analysis and forecasting, including econometric estimation. The course will include case studies and the use of computer applications. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Fournier

ECON 212f Applications of Econometrics
Prerequisite: ECON 211f or equivalent. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Applications of econometric theory including the multiple regression, heteroskedasticity, auto correlation, multicollinearity, and dummy variables.
Mr. Fournier

ECON 232f Country Risk Analysis
Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Explores country risk from the perspective of bankers who seek long-standing relationships with clients in emerging markets. Examines quantitative and qualitative techniques to manage country risk in a dynamic environment. Various country crises and success stories will be analyzed by using case studies. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Bayone

ECON 241f Economics of Antitrust and Mergers
Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Although the U.S. economy is a market economy, government regulation exists in almost all areas. Thus, for would-be regulators and for managers of private enterprises who have to function in this environment, it is important to understand the rationale behind government intervention into the market, in the U.S. and in an international context. Considers theoretical and practical aspects of competition policy, intellectual property rights laws, and regulation. Various economic theories about how regulators behave are also looked into, although the focus is on current policy issues and regulatory structure. Also focuses on the recent move away from regulation and the pros and cons of deregulation. Two particular industries are studied--telecommunications and transportation. The case studies used help to illuminate the various types of regulation and competition policy, how they work in reality, the problems associated with them, and suggested remedies wherever possible. Usually offered every second year.
Staff

ECON 242f Regulation, Deregulation, and Privatization
Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Focuses on the rationale behind regulating private public utility regulation, with particular emphasis on the rate of return regulation. Six particular industries are studied: telecommunications, electric utilities, environment, transportation, drugs, and workplace safety. Usually offered every second year.
Staff

ECON 251f Political Economy of International Trade
Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Emphasizes the interaction of economic and political processes and explores the integration of trade and financial markets from a political economy perspective. Tries to understand how interest-group politics and informational problems and asymmetries interact in shaping policy outcomes. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Erbil

ECON 252f The Economy of China
Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Provides an analytical overview of China's economic transformation, emphasizing the period since 1980. Topics covered include the reform process, the role of institutions, including the financial and fiscal sectors, corporate governance reform, trade and foreign direct investment, science and technology, regional and income disparities, and the changing laws, practice, and culture that define the role of business within China. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Jefferson

ECON 253a Asia: Center of World Economy
With half of the world's population, one quarter of its output, and twice its growth rate, Asia is emerging as the center of the world economy. This course examine Asia's economic dynamism and the companies, investments, and policies that are shaping its future. Usually offered every other year.
Mr. Petri

ECON 260a International Trade Policy and Institutions
Prerequisite: ECON 201a.
Develops the fundamental economic theories behind the various policies that regulate and interfere with international trade. Examines the predominant national and international institutions that are charged with administering these policies as well as the scope and process for potential reform. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Lopez

ECON 261a Empirical Analysis of Trade Policy
Prerequisite: One semester (or module) of econometrics, at either the undergraduate or graduate level.
Explores contemporary empirical issues in trade policy, through studying recent econometric research, learning advanced econometric tools, and carrying out original research, from data collection to econometric testing and evaluation. Readings include papers from professional journals and chapters from econometrics textbooks. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Dean

ECON 262f Outsourcing and Offshoring: Multinationals, Technology, and Globalization
Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Outsourcing and offshoring raise questions of economic theory, business strategy, and policy emphasis for both industrial and emerging economies. This course examines and assesses empirically different theories of the multinational firm. Addresses how pervasive application of information technology exposes firms to business opportunities and economies to policy challenges. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Mann

ECON 270a Economic Development Strategies
Prerequisite: ECON 201.
Discusses the current situation of developing countries and the main theories of development and underdevelopment. Introduces the field and tools of development economics, explores the theoretical and policy debates around developing economies, and looks at alternative development strategies. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Erbil

ECON 271a Agents of Development: Individuals, Households, and Firms
Prerequisite: ECON 201a.
Studies the micro agents of development--individuals, households, and firms. Explores the foundations of health and nutrition, population growth, labor power, credit, technology adoption, child labor, corruption, and outsourcing in developing countries. Discusses how households in developing countries cope with risk. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Menon

ECON 274f Investment Policy in Developing Countries
Prerequisites: ECON 201a and a reasonable understanding of basic macro- and microeconomics. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Provides an analytical introduction to investment policy in developing countries. Emphasis is on applied economic analysis. Although the focus is on developing countries, the material is highly pertinent to transitional and emerging economies as well. Usually offered every year.
Staff

ECON 275a Political Economy of Development: Case of the Middle East
Covers major issues concerning the political economy of the contemporary Middle East, including economic development strategies, population growth, water resources, investment in human capital, the changing role of the state, impact of current political reforms, and integration into the global economy. Usually offered every year.
Staff

ECON 276f International Institutions in the Global Economy
Prerequisite or corequisite: ECON 202a. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Explores the role of international organizations in the development process. Topics include alternative approaches to lending for development and the global financial architecture. Case studies of World Bank and IMF experience, with particular emphasis on East Asia and Latin America, illustrate the application of different strategies. Experts from these institutions will participate in the delivery of the course. Usually offered every year.
Staff

ECON 297a Internship
Prerequisite: Two semesters at IBS or permission of program director. This course yields half-course credit. This course may not be repeated for credit.
Offers students an opportunity to apply the theories and key themes covered in the core courses in a real-life setting. Requires completion of at least six weeks of a paid or unpaid internship approved and monitored by a faculty advisor. The project could involve a research or consulting assignment or a structured internship in the school's fields. Interested students should consult the guidelines established by the school. Usually offered every year.
Staff

ECON 297g Internship
Prerequisite: Two semesters at IBS or permission of program director. This course yields quarter-course credit. This course may be repeated twice for credit.
Offers students an opportunity to apply the theories and key themes covered in the core courses in a real-life setting. Requires completion of at least six weeks of a paid or unpaid internship approved and monitored by a faculty advisor. The project could involve a research or consulting assignment or a structured internship in the school's fields. Interested students should consult the guidelines established by the school. Usually offered every year.
Staff

ECON 298a Independent Study
Normally available for a student who wishes to pursue advanced reading or research in a subject or field not available in the department's course listings. Usually offered every semester.
Staff

ECON 299a Master's Project
Prerequisite: Two semesters at IBS or permission of program director.
A student wishing to complete a master's project under the guidance of a faculty advisor may enroll in this course during his or her final semester in the master's program. Projects may involve a short analytical thesis, the solution of an applied problem, or a report on work completed in an appropriate internship. Usually offered every year.
Staff

ECON 301a Advanced Microeconomics I
Prerequisites: Microeconomics and math.
Study of the theories of microeconomics, including optimization, theory of the firm, theory of the consumer, duality theory, general equilibrium, welfare economics, public goods, and externalities. Usually offered every second year.
Staff

ECON 302a Advanced Microeconomics II
Prerequisites: Econ 301a
This course will focus on game theory with specific emphasis on its application to firm behavior, information economics, and the study of market organization including auctions. Important contributions of behavioral economics will also be address in this course. A strong emphasis will be placed on acquiring the tools that are required for economic research. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Graddy

ECON 303a Advanced Macroeconomics I
Prerequisites: course work in microeconomics and mathematics.
Study of modern theories of short-run and long-run determination of aggregate income. Topics include private consumption and investment behavior, fiscal policy, the current account and exchange rates, economic growth, and stochastic dynamic programming with applications to macroeconomics. Usually offered every second year.
Staff

ECON 304a Advanced Macroeconomics II
Prerequisite: ECON 303a.
Current research issues in macroeconomics, such as the impact of supply shocks, real demand shocks, and monetary shocks on output, interest rates, and exchange rates. Empirical studies and testing of competing macroeconomic theories. Usually offered every year.
Staff

ECON 307f Empirical Methods for Dynamic Economic Models
Prerequisite: ECON 304a. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
An advanced topics course on contemporary methods to solve, estimate, and evaluate structural models. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Hall

ECON 311a Advanced Econometrics I
Prerequisites: Statistics and math. May not be repeated for credit by students who took ECON 215a in previous years.
Econometric theory and applications. Discusses the statistical theory of regression modeling and associated hypothesis testing, with emphasis on the construction, interpretation, and use of econometric models. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Li

ECON 312a Advanced Econometrics II
Prerequisite: ECON 215a or ECON 311a.
Covers several econometric topics drawn from cross-sectional and time series disciplines. A theme throughout the course is the use of computational models such as bootstrapping and Monte Carlo experiments. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Li

ECON 314f Topics in Applied Econometrics
Prerequisite: Ph. econometrics core course. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Provides a solid understanding of advanced cross-section and panel data econometric models. Usually offered every second year.
Staff

ECON 326f Agent-Based Modeling
Prerequisites: ECON 302a and 304a. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Agent-based models are used to build computational mode economies, starting with the construction of individual agents. Computational methods are used to build realistic macroeconomies from simple building blocks. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. LeBaron

ECON 330a International Macroeconomics
Prerequisite: ECON 304a.
Applications of macroeconomic theory to open economies. Topics include international parity theorems, models of exchange rate determination, and central bank management of the exchange-rate. Usually offered every year.
Staff

ECON 332f Topics in Empirical International Economics: Questions, Methods, and Data
Prerequisite: Open to IBS PhD students only. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Students present and discuss current working papers in international economics focusing on the questions that are being asking, the empirical methods used, and the sources of data. Course prepares students for the thesis process and for presenting thesis work. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Mann

ECON 335f Central Banking
Prerequisites: ECON 302a and 304a. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Introduces students to the theory and practice of central bank design and monetary policy implementation. An advanced PhD-level class that assumes a basic knowledge of theoretical econometrics. Usually offered every second year.
Staff

ECON 340a Industrial Organization
Prerequisite: ECON 302a.
This course examines the theoretical and empirical methods that are used in the study of firm and industry behavior. Topics include price discrimination, oligopoly behavior, product differentiation, entry and exit, asymmetric information, and auctions. The course places a strong focus on the questions that are being asked, the empirical and theoretical methodology used, and the sources of data in order to prepare students for the thesis process and for presenting thesis work. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Graddy

ECON 360a International Trade Theory
Open only to IBS students.
Analyzes the economic issues involved in the integration into world markets of trade in consulting and professional services, investment, financial and banking services, telecommunications, and transportation. Also addresses the tradeoffs in regulating services trade through the WTO's General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS), regional initiatives, as well as conflict areas and dispute settlement. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Tovar

ECON 365f International Trade Agreements and Disagreements
Prerequisite: ECON 302a. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Examines the core theoretical and empirical research in multilateral and preferential trade agreements and disagreements. Topics include the economics of rules of reciprocity, nondiscrimination, enforcement, antidumping and countervailing measures, safeguards, and dispute settlement. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Bown

ECON 370a Development Economics
Prerequisite: ECON 302a
Reviews neoclassical and endogenous growth theory as it relates to the experience of developing countries. Also examines recent applied work relating to household fertility, natural resource depletion, technology, and sustainable growth, and various political economy issues, including the link between inequality and growth, the interaction between economic growth and political systems, and a range of issues that engage the new institutional economics. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Jefferson

ECON 398a Readings
Usually offered every year.
Staff

ECON 399a Dissertation Workshop
Prerequisites: ECON 302a and ECON 304a.
Involves invited lectures by Brandeis faculty and other researchers. Presentation and discussion of dissertation topics and work in progress. Usually offered every year.
Mr. LeBaron

ECON/FIN 256a Financial Market Regulation: Designing a Comprehensive Global Framework
Prerequisites: ECON 201a, FIN 201a, FIN 202a.
Explores why financial markets are susceptible to crises, how those crises affect workers and taxpayers, and how the risk of financial crises can be mitigated by regulation/supervision, monetary policy, macro-prudential policies and risk management. Highlights importance of international regulatory coordination. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Balder

FIN 201a Financial Theory
Prerequisite: ECON 210f or statistics (may be taken concurrently). May not be taken by students who have taken FIN 205a.
Covers topics related to financial economics, including investors' attitudes toward risk, capital allocation, portfolio selection, asset pricing models (Capital Asset Pricing Model and the Arbitrage Pricing Theory), the efficient market hypothesis, fixed income markets, equity valuation, and options and futures markets. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Hilscher or Mr. Raviv

FIN 202a International Corporate Finance
Prerequisite: FIN 212a (may be taken concurrently)
Focuses on how companies make their investment, financing, and dividend decisions in a global environment. Examines the theory and practices of firms through a combination of current articles, problems in the text, and case analysis. Students will have a firm understanding of how companies create value through their decisions. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Ballantine, Ms. Bulan, or Ms. Ciamarra

FIN 203f International Financial Management
Prerequisites: FIN 201a, FIN 202a, FIN 212a, and ECON 201a. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Explores the characteristics of international financial markets and evaluates associated risks and benefits. Addresses the distinct risks multinationals face, the financial tools they use to manage these risks, their tax and working capital management, and their financing and investment decisions. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Sisli Ciamarra

FIN 205a Accelerated Financial Theory
This course may not be repeated for credit by students who have taken FIN 201a.
An accelerated version of FIN 201a. Relies more heavily on statistics and basic calculus and covers more material. Topics include investors' attitudes toward risk, capital allocation, portfolio selection, asset pricing models (capital asset pricing model and the arbitrage pricing theory), the efficient market hypothesis and behavioral finance, fixed income markets and the yields curve, equity valuation, and derivatives markets (options and futures). Usually offered every year.
Mr. Alt

FIN 212a Accounting and Financial Analysis
May not be taken for credit by students who have taken FIN 210f or FIN 211f.
Introduction to basic accounting principles, including analysis of financial statements using case studies. Develops fundamental concepts and accounts and applies them to income measurement, capital values, and costs, with a focus on international accounting issues. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Anderson, Mr. Angell, Mr. Keith, or Ms. Weihs

FIN 213a Intermediate Financial Accounting
Prerequisite: FIN 212a or an approved an introductory course in the area of financial accounting.
Students should be familiar with the formal financial statements, transaction analysis, income measurement and accural accounting. This course provides an extensive expansion of the introductory accounting course. Additional topics include revenue recognition, long term construction contracts, deferred taxes, capital leases, pensions, inventory valuation, dollar value LIFO, earnings per share and share based compensation. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Keith

FIN 214a Managerial Accounting
Prerequisite: FIN 212a.
Introduction to internal reporting issues and problems employed in planning, control, and evaluation. Topics include cost behavior, overhead cost allocation, budgeting, and variance analysis. Taught from the perspective of the decision maker rather than the accountant who prepares the information. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Anderson or Mr. Keith

FIN 216f Financial Statement Analysis
Prerequisite: FIN 212a or FIN 213a. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Designed to develop skills in analyzing external financial reports. Topics include financial statements terminology, mergers and acquisitions, cash flow analysis, and foreign exchange and foreign tax issues. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Keith or Ms. Weihs

FIN 217f Financial Modeling
Prerequisite: FIN 202a and FIN 212a. May take FIN 217f during second module concurrently with FIN 202a. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Introduces quantitative modeling techniques for analyzing the financial performance of projects and companies and valuing earning streams. A key objective is to help students develop sophisticated skills in using spreadsheets and related software through cases and hands-on applications. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Canella

FIN 218f Financial Modeling II
Prerequisite: FIN 217f. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Continues Financial Modeling I (Fin 217f) in the analysis of quantitative financial performance of projects and companies and valuing earning streams. It supplements Fin 217f in its use of real options for valuations, new industries with their own peculiarities (insurance, pharmaceuticals), and the privatization of a telecommunications firm. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Canella

FIN 221f International Banking
Prerequisite: FIN 201a. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Provides a survey of international banking. Topics will include structures and functions of global banks, financial innovations, syndications, offshore banking centers, supervision, and risk analysis. Students will use case studies and will form teams to perform a country analysis project. Usually offered every year.
Staff

FIN 222f International Capital Markets
This seminar provides students with a better understanding of the forces driving change in the international capital markets and how change is reflected in selected sub-sectors of the capital market. Usually offered every year; not offered in 2010-2011.
Staff

FIN 223f Project Finance
Prerequisites: FIN 202a, FIN 217f. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Examines the financial, economic, political, and technological factors that affect very large, capital-intensive projects. Looks at how they are combined into a coherent structure and financed via a combination of non-recourse debt and equity. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Canella

FIN 230a Trading and Exchanges: Focus on Foreign Exchange
Prerequisites: FIN 201a, basic statistics.
The microeconomics of financial markets, with special focus on the foreign exchange market. Topics include market structure, transparency, determination of bid-ask spreads, price discovery, common trading strategies, currency market efficiency. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Osler

FIN 231f Private Equity
Prerequisites: FIN 202a and 212. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Explores the history, structure, players and adjacent industries of Private Equity; the kinds of companies that make attractive candidates for investment; how PE firms add value; what they do when things go wrong; and how they create successful exits. Usually offered every year.
Mr. McKay

FIN 232a Mergers and Acquisitions Analysis
Prerequisites: FIN 201a and FIN 202a (may be taken concurrently).
Reviews the core concepts involved in mergers and acquisitions; value, negotiation, deal structuring, corporate strategy and valued added, financing, and tax consequences. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Ballantine

FIN 233f Relative Values of Securities
Prerequisites: FIN 212a or FIN 216f strongly recommended. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Introduces students to the issues and analysis necessary for making the decision to purchase securities. The principal focus is on publicly traded securities. Debt and equity security values will be addressed. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Aikens

FIN 234a Capital Budgeting
Prerequisite: FIN 202a (may be taken concurrently).
Companies make long term investments to increase the value of the company. Often these investments are in long term assets (new plants, new product development), but sometimes the investment may involve the acquisition of another business or company. Significant strategic expenditure programs, such as R&D and marketing, which may not appear on the balance sheet, may also be thought of in this way. The purpose of this course is both to deepen the students' understanding of and ability to apply analytical tools to make informed financial recommendations to management and boards of directors and to consider these analyses in a variety of industries and contexts. The case method will be used as the main teaching approach and will call upon students to consider a range of factors as they assume the role of a senior financial officer in a corporation. The course might alternatively be called Corporate Financial Decision Making. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Lewis

FIN 234f Corporate Financial Decision Making
Prerequisite: FIN 202a. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit. May not be taken for credit by students who take FIN 234a.
Capital budgeting involves assessing business opportunities/investments, preparing cash flow forecasts, and comparing the returns of these investments. This course employs criteria such as NPV, IRR and APV to explore investment decisions described in articles, textbook readings, and cases. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Canella

FIN 235a Investing in Energy: Fossil Fuels to Cleaner Energy
May not be taken for credit by students who took FIN 235f in spring 2008.
How do energy companies and investors make investment decisions in our current economic/political environment? How do investors assess the risks and the long term opportunities, and what are the potential returns? And how do companies manage energy projects and implement new technologies across many markets and countries? To evaluate energy investments students need to acquire the background knowledge, the technical skills, and an appreciation of the politics of energy policy. This course will establish a broad framework of analysis and it will also let students analyze the economic viability of a specific energy project. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Ballantine

FIN 236f Technical Analysis
Prerequisite: FIN 201a. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
From FX to equity indexes to real estate futures markets, traders rely on technically-derived signals to enter speculative positions, set protective orders, and time their exits. Provides an introduction to technical analysis and familiarizes students with strategies in common use. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Kirkpatrick

FIN 241f Financial Planning and Control
Prerequisite: FIN 202a (may be taken concurrently).
Examines financial planning methodologies and tools as well as financial control mechanisms. Includes case studies using real-life examples, accounting, and financial objectives. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Canella

FIN 242f Credit Risk Analysis
Prerequisite: FIN 212a. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Examines credit risk (i.e., the possibility that an obligor will fail to perform as agreed) from the perspective of the commercial banker. Focuses on a sound understanding of the firm and its business plan and how the banker constructs the appropriate structure for the senior loan. Topics include asset-based, real estate, and cash flow lending. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Bayone

FIN 244f Credit Risk Analysis II
Prerequisite: FIN 242f. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Examines credit risk (i.e., the possibility that an obligor will fail to perform as agreed) for foreign companies that largely operate in their overseas markets. Based on a sound understanding of the firm, its business plan, and the environment in which it operates, the banker constructs the appropriate structure for the senior loan. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Bayone

FIN 245f Off Balance Sheet Finance
Prerequisite: FIN 202a. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Delves deeply into the various mechanisms and vehicles that corporations use to finance operations and ventures outside of their balance sheet. Topics include leasing, venture leasing, and Special Purpose Entities (SPEs), among others.
Mr. Canella

FIN 246a Applied Corporate Finance
Prerequisites: FIN 202a and 212a.
Explores the application of core finance disciplines to real-world situations. Students who take this course should have completed course work or have actual knowledge of managerial accounting, financial management and control, valuation, M&A, strategic marketing, financial forecasting, etc. Additionally, students should be near graduation and preparing for a career in a private sector firm. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Aikens

FIN 247f Commercial Bankruptcy: Creditor Relationships in the U.S.
Prerequisites: FIN 202a (may be taken concurrently) and 212a. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Focuses on the relationship between debtors and creditors in a deteriorating financial environment, through lectures and case studies. Explores how U.S. courts work, jurisdictional issues that impact debtor/creditor relationships, the importance of advocacy, the relationship between state and federal law, and the hierarchy of creditor claims. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Aikens

FIN 248a Financial Strategies
Prerequisites: FIN 201a and FIN 202a.
Focuses on the techniques used by financial practitioners to understand and then enhance shareholder value. Students taking the course will improve their skills in financial statement analysis, analyze alternative methods of valuation analysis, and examine an array of asset and liability restructuring techniques used by corporate managers and investment bankers to boost shareholder value. Usually offered every year; not offered 2010-2011.
Staff

FIN 250f Financial Forecasting
Prerequisite: ECON 210f or equivalent. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Covers some of the basics of financial time series analysis with a special emphasis on forecasting. Basic time series skills are covered, drawing many examples from finance. These include linear regression, ARMA models, trend modeling, and vector autoregressions. We also cover more unusual topics such as bootstrapping and technical trading rules. Usually offered every year.
Mr. LeBaron

FIN 253f The Current Financial Crisis: Winners and Losers
Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Examines the winners and losers in the current crisis in three sectors of the financial services industry: investment banks, depository institutions, and asset management firms. The final project will be an analysis of Citigroup--winner or loser? Usually offered every year; not offered in 2010-2011.
Staff

FIN 254f Financial Manias and Crises
Prerequisite: FIN 201a. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Class investigates speculative financial manias--their causes, characteristics, effects, and policy responses. Using historical and recent examples from the United States and abroad, the psychological aspects of markets and other factors that contribute to manias are examined.
Staff

FIN 255a World Financial Centers
Prerequisite: A knowledge of financial theory is highly desirable. Intended primarily for MSF students, but MAief and MBA students with appropriate background knowledge in finance may also apply. Consult the program administrator for details regarding special costs and meeting times. May be repeated once for credit in a different center.
Meets each summer in a financial center of global significance. Provides analysis of international financial markets, institutions, and regulatory systems in the host center. Explores their relationship with global financial trends and systems. Includes examining the microstructure of markets, equity trading, futures and options, mergers and acquisitions, banking and currencies, and regional issues of topical interest. Usually offered every summer and run in collaboration with overseas academic partner.
Mr. Ballantine and Mr. Sherrington

FIN 255f World Financial Centers
Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit. Open only to students who completed FIN 255a in a prior semester.
Meets each summer in a financial center of global significance. Provides analysis of international financial markets, institutions, and regulatory systems in the host center. Explores their relationship with global financial trends and systems. Includes examining the microstructure of markets, equity trading, futures and options, mergers and acquisitions, banking and currencies, and regional issues of topical interest. Usually offered every summer and run in collaboration with overseas academic partner.
Mr. Sherrington

FIN 258a Introduction to Quantitative Finance
Prerequisite: Open to IBS students only.
Covers at a fairly rigorous level much of the mathematics needed for finance applications encountered in an investment finance career (e.g., security analysis, portfolio management, trading, investment banking) and prepares students for more advanced courses in quantitative finance. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Reitano

FIN 261a Fixed Income Securities
Prerequisites: FIN 201a or FIN 205a, or permission of the instructor.
Studies fixed income securities; cash flow structures, pricing risk measures; features of major fixed income sectors; valuation of fixed income securities with embedded options; portfolio management and performance measurement; interest rate derivatives and applications to asset/liability management. Usually offered every semester.
Mr. Raviv

FIN 263a International Portfolio Management
Prerequisite: FIN 201a or FIN 205a. May not be taken for credit by students who have taken FIN 262a in previous years.
A blend of advanced theory and state-of-the-art practice with a two fold aim: to ground students in the theory of international portfolio investments and to immerse them in the application of global portfolio management in the real world. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Raviv

FIN 266f Hedge Fund Management
Prerequisite: FIN 201a. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
Covers the historical evolution of hedge funds, analyzes the regulatory government, and considers key issues in the "hedge fund universe," such as price versus value, risk versus volatility. Usually offered every year.
Staff

FIN 270a Options and Derivatives
Prerequisites: FIN 201a, or FIN 205a, or permission of the instructor.
Introduces students, at a reasonable mathematical level, to a broad range of topics related to the securities, markets, pricing, and applications of financial derivatives. Special focus is placed on how financial arbitrage is used to price derivatives. Usually offered every semester.
Mr. Reitano or Ms. Becker

FIN 271a Options & Derivatives II
Prerequisites: FIN 270a and courses or experience in statistics, calculus, and programming.
Explores in some detail the mathematics of pricing financial derivatives on equities and other tradable securities, with particular emphasis on the various discrete computational methods and their convergence properties. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Reitano

FIN 279a Applied Risk Management
Prerequisites: FIN 201a, or FIN 205a and FIN 212a.
Studies risk management applications as well as the use of financial derivatives. Focuses on case studies and can be taken in addition to the more quantitative course, FIN 280a. Students are expected to work through examples and develop strategies. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Reitano

FIN 280a Financial Risk Management
Prerequisite: FIN 201a, or FIN 205a.
Introduces many of the approaches financial institutions take to model, quantify, and manage risk. Types of risk covered include financial (equity, interest rate, and credit), as well as operational. Students will be expected to have some exposure to financial derivatives from FIN 201a or 301a as well as to the basic concepts from calculus and statistics. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Reitano

FIN 282f Real Options in Decision-Making
Prerequisite: FIN 202a. Corequisite: FIN 217f and FIN 270a. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit. This course may not be repeated for credit by students who have taken FIN 282a in previous years.
Combines traditional valuation with options valuations, using Black-Scholes. When firms accelerate, decay, or invest in parts of a project, with more investment to be evaluated later, the firm's value can change, and is measurable as an option price. Usually offered every year; not offered in 2010-2011.
Mr. Canella

FIN 285a Computer Simulations and Risk Assessment
Prerequisite: FIN 201a.
Examines recent advances in computational methods for evaluation risk and decision making in risky situations. Emphasizes a common computational framework for solving many problems from business, finance, and economics using statistical methods, such as Monte Carlo and resampling. Usually offered every year.
Mr. LeBaron

FIN 297a Internship
Prerequisite: Two semesters at IBS or permission of program director. Yields half course-credit. May not be repeated for credit.
Offers students an opportunity to apply the theories and key themes covered in the core courses in a real-life setting. Requires completion of at least six weeks of a paid or unpaid internship approved and monitored by a faculty advisor. The project could involve a research or consulting assignment or a structured internship in the school's fields. Interested students should consult the guidelines established by the school. Usually offered every year.
Staff

FIN 297g Internship
Prerequisite: Two semesters at IBS or permission of program director. Yields quarter course-credit. May be repeated twice for credit.
Offers students an opportunity to apply the theories and key themes covered in the core courses in a real-life setting. Requires completion of at least six weeks of a paid or unpaid internship approved and monitored by a faculty advisor. The project could involve a research or consulting assignment or a structured internship in the school's fields. Interested students should consult the guidelines established by the school. Usually offered every year.
Staff

FIN 298a Independent Study
Normally available for a student who wishes to pursue advanced reading or research in a subject or field not available in the department's course listings. Usually offered every semester.
Staff

FIN 298b Independent Study
Course yields half-course credit.
Normally available for a student who wishes to pursue advanced reading on research in a subject or field not available in the department's course listings. Usually offered every semester.
Staff

FIN 299a Master's Project
Prerequisite: Two semesters at IBS or permission of program director.
A student wishing to complete a master's project under the guidance of a faculty advisor may enroll in this course during his or her final semester in the master's program. Projects may involve a short analytical thesis, the solution of an applied problem, or a report on work completed in an appropriate internship. Usually offered every year.
Staff

FIN 305f Asset Pricing
Prerequisite: ECON 301a. Meets for one-half semester and yields half-course credit.
A course in asset pricing for PhD candidates. Topics include risk aversion and choice under uncertainty, no arbitrage and stochastic discount factor, mean variance analysis, factor models, and recent empirical puzzles. Focuses on theory and empirical applications. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Hilscher