The MBA degree is known for its versatility. MBA programs typically offer foundational knowledge in various aspects of business administration, including finance. All students in Northern Kentucky University’s online Master of Business Administration program are required to take a course titled Financial Management in Organizations, which equips them with foundational knowledge in the financial aspects of running a business. In this course, students learn analytic techniques for decision-making and basic financial analysis for managing corporate finances.
NKU’s online MBA program offers further specialization in finance through stacks courses. Finance is one of six stacks. The other five are Innovation Through Competitive Intelligence, Leadership, Healthcare Administration, Marketing, and Data Analytics.
The Finance stack includes these advanced courses:
- Corporate Finance: This course explores capital budgeting, dividend analysis, capital structure, risk/return analysis and more.
- Investment and Security Analysis: This course teaches modern theories of investing. Students engage in in-depth discussions on risk and rate of return, portfolio theory, valuation of financial claims such as bonds, stocks, derivative securities, and other key investment topics.
- International Finance: In this course, students engage in explorations of the impact of globalization, dividend analysis, capital structure, risk/return analysis, costs of capital and more.
Completing Finance stack courses equips students with know-how for a number of careers that require an MBA coupled with finance expertise.
Rewarding Careers in Finance
Here’s information on three of the many roles available to graduates of a finance-focused MBA program. Salary data is from August 2019.
Senior Financial Planner: Financial planners assess the needs of their clients before investing funds and developing a framework for investments. They work for banks, investment companies or themselves, and must have a keen understanding of how investments work. A master’s degree is typically preferred for the senior financial planner role. The average yearly salary for senior financial planners is $88,497, according to PayScale, with top earners exceeding $130,000 per year.
Accounting Manager: Responsibilities commonly include recruiting and training staff, overseeing sales and cash flow reports, managing budgets, and administering payroll. Performing audits and ensuring regulatory compliance can also fall to accounting managers. Being organized and detail-oriented are essential for success in this role. PayScale places the average salary for accounting managers at $70,163 per year, with top earners drawing $100,000 annually.
Senior Financial Analyst: At the senior level, financial analysts use their finance background to identify trends, assisting companies in making investment and spending decisions. Their responsibilities may include preparing annual financial budgets and financial forecasts, and they are often tasked with managing teams of analysts. The average salary is $79,536 per year, according to PayScale, with top earners making $100,000 per year.
Launch Your Career in Finance With an Online MBA from NKU
Whether you are looking to start or further your finance career, you can gain the knowledge and tools you’ll need for a variety of roles through Northern Kentucky University’s online MBA program. NKU’s College of Business holds AACSB accreditation, and its fully online program can be completed in as few as 12 months.
Learn more about NKU’s online MBA program.
Sources:
PayScale: Senior Financial Planner Salary
PayScale: Accounting Manager Salary
PayScale: Senior Financial Analyst
