Ph.D. in Business Administration, Specialization in Finance

Description

The Ph.D. program in Business Administration with a specialization in finance is a research-oriented program designed to prepare students for careers in academics and business. The coursework in the Ph.D. program is designed to be an intensive course of study in both the theory and empirical application of finance. The course of study includes a combination of classroom instruction, seminars, and work with the Finance faculty. In addition to coursework, students are required to pass written and oral comprehensive examinations, write a high quality dissertation and pass a final oral examination. The Ph.D. finance specialization is lock-step with a class admitted every other year. Students are not normally admitted in off years but will be considered in special cases.

Admission

Requirements

1. Students beginning the lock-step program need a minimum of one year of calculus and one semester of probability and statistics. We recommend that students have three semesters of calculus, one semester of linear algebra and a probability and statistics course.
2. Must submit Official GMAT Score. Applicants are expected to have a minimum score in the 80^th percentile (approximately 650) for admission.
3. Applicants whose first language is not English and who have not received a previous degree from English speaking Institution must submit a Test of Spoken English (TOEFL). Applicants should attain a minimum score of 550 – paper or 80 – IBT.
4. Additional qualifications may be required, particularly for prospective teaching assistants. International students accepted into the program will be required to attend the Institute of International Teaching Assistants in the summer prior to the start of their program.

Application Procedures

The Office of International Affairs provides orientation, counseling and advising to international students, and serves as the official liaison between your sponsoring agency and the United States government. Staff members are also available to help you make contacts on campus and in the Lincoln community.

Office of Graduate Studies - Requirements

1. Apply online at the Office of Graduate Studies and submit the $50 application fee. The next day you will receive instructions for the UNL GAMES application system (Graduate Admission Management and Evaluation System). Please note: All application materials (except transcripts and finance resource certification) must be submitted electronically. Do not send paper recommendation forms or resume.

2. Recommendation for Graduate Admission. Three letters of reference are required and should be submitted through GAMES.

3. Professional Résumé. Your résumé should be submitted through GAMES.

4. Graduate Management Admissions Test (GMAT). You should register to take the GMAT and have the results forwarded to UNL (use institution code S40-HW-48). You should also submit your scores through GAMES.

5. International Students should also include:
   • TOEFL score (minimum score of 550 written, 213 computer based or 80 iBT) (Use institution code 6877)

   Guidelines for international students can be found at http://www.unl.edu/gradstudies/prospective/international.

6. Transcripts. Ask each college or university that you have attended to send one official transcript to:

   University of Nebraska-Lincoln
   Graduate Admissions Office
   1100 Seaton Hall
   Lincoln, NE 68588-0619
   Tel: (402) 472-2875

Current Information on Tuition and Costs.

Note to International Students

It is recommended that you start your application process at least one year prior to the date you would like to be admitted. You must also be aware of the additional requirements that you need to meet in order to be admitted to the College of Business Administration.

Assistantships

All full-time doctoral students are funded with a departmental teaching or research assistantship, university fellowship, or external assistance. Full-time students are provided with office space, computer resources and departmental office support. The assistantship includes a competitive stipend, health benefits and teaching and research opportunities for the expected four years of study. Students are normally assigned as research assistants the first year of the program. Teaching duties normally start in the second year of the program. Part-time students are admitted only under special circumstances.

Program Requirements

Coursework

The lock-step curriculum requirements are as follows:

The total hours required by the Graduate College	90
Minimum hours of coursework required by Finance Department	57
Required hours of Finance Seminars	18
Required hours of Econometrics	9
Required hours of Probability and Statistics (graduate level)	12
Required hours of Economic Theory	9
Required hours of Accounting Seminars	3
Required hours of Research and Teaching Methods	3
Required supporting elective hours	3

Admitted students are expected to have completed coursework in mutivariate calculus, linear algebra and probability and statistics at a sufficient level to immediately enroll in graduate level economics and statistics courses. Courses are expected to be completed in the following sequence:

Year 1

Semester 1:

FINA 961 Advanced Theory of Finance

ECON 873 Microeconomic Models

STAT 882 Mathematical Statistics I

STAT 870 Multiple Regression Analysis

Semester 2:

FINA 969 Seminar in Corporate Finance

FINA 996 Research Methods

STAT 883 Mathematical Statistics II

FINA 867 Options and Futures or STAT 875 Categorical Data Analysis

Summer

FINA 996 – Teaching Methods

Year 2

Semester 1:

FINA 966 Seminar in Investments

ECON 973 Advanced Microeconomic Theory I

FINA 968 Finance Seminar

Semester 2:

FINA 995 Research Process

ECON 957 Econometrics I

ECON 974 Advanced Macroeconomic Theory I

Summer

Comprehensive Exam

Year 3

Semester 1:

ECON 958 Econometrics II

STAT 873 Applied Multivariate Statistical Analysis

Semester 2:

ACCT 991 Seminar in Capital Market Research

ECON 959 Econometrics III

Summer

Dissertation Proposal

Year 4

Dissertation

Students with prior graduate study experience may transfer in elective hours and probability and statistics coursework.

Approved Supporting Elective Courses

• FINA 812 Life and Health Insurance
• FINA 833 Enterprise Risk Management
• FINA 850 Multinational Financial Analysis
• FINA 855 Capital Markets
• FINA 863 Portfolio Management
• FINA 865 Bank Management
• FINA 867 Options, Futures and Derivative Securities
• FINA 882 Real Estate Finance
• ACCT 916 Seminar in Contemporary Accounting Theory
• ACCT 992 Seminar in Behavioral Accounting Research
• ACCT 996 Directed Readings
• ECON 871 Public Finance
• ECON 971 Public Expenditure, Taxation and Fiscal Incidence
• ECON 974 Advanced Macroeconomic Theory I
• ECON 983 Advanced Microeconomic Theory II
• ECON 984 Advanced Macroeconomic Theory II
• STAT 884 Applied Stochastic Models

Other courses may be taken with the permission of the Graduate Adviser.

Areas of Concentration

• Banking
• Corporate Finance
• Insurance
• International Finance
• Investments
• Real Estate

Annual Review

Each student must undergo an annual review to determine their progress. The review is conducted with each student by a faculty committee.

Qualifying Exam

First year students are required to take a Qualifying Examination in financial theory after completion of the first year. Students who fail this exam will be terminated from the program. Second year students are required to demonstrate a mastery of the core areas by passing a comprehensive examination.

Program of Study

Students must file a program of study in their first year of study which requires the appointment of a Supervisory Committee. Upon completion of the comprehensive examination, a student may consult with the Graduate Chair to make changes to their committee. Students are encouraged to work with faculty on research projects that lead to publishable papers.

Comprehensive Examinations

All Ph.D. students in the finance program must take the comprehensive examination at the end of their second year of study. If a student fails the comprehensive written examination, he/she will be given a second opportunity at the next regularly scheduled comprehensive examination.

After a successful completion of the comprehensive exam and all coursework, the student must submit the Application for Admission to Candidacy for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy to the Graduate College. Candidacy for the Ph.D. degree commences as of the date of completion of the oral defense of the dissertation topic.

Doctoral Dissertation

Every Ph.D. student must submit a tentative outline of their dissertation to the Supervisory Committee and defend the proposed topic and methodology before the committee as a condition of approval of the topic.

The doctoral dissertation involves a substantial research project and indicates evidence of the candidate’s ability to carry on independent, original research in his/her field. Accordingly, it reflects the candidate’s mastery of the appropriate scientific tools and to engage in fruitful research in the future.

The question, problem or hypothesis under investigation should be well defined and delimited so that it is manageable with the resources available. The dissertation should be a well-organized, tightly –written manuscript suitable for publication as a monograph or series of publishable papers.

The following suggestions are offered to students regarding the dissertation:

• The student should begin thinking about possible dissertation topics early in his/her doctoral studies and should commit to a research subject well before the completion of formal course work. The student should seek suggestions from professors in the area of his/her interest.
• The student should select a dissertation project which is manageable with respect to: (1) library resources, (2) data available or obtainable at reasonable cost, (3) methodology, and (4) time (i.e., one year of full-time work). After the initial stages of research the candidate may find it necessary to reduce the scope of his/her project to meet the manageability criteria.
• The dissertation area should be explored sufficiently to determine if the topic is feasible and to make certain that it has not been explored before or is not currently under active investigation.
• A tentative outline should be developed early, but it should be kept flexible to permit changes.
• The student should follow the rules of an appropriate style manual in the dissertation submitted to the adviser for evaluation. The Graduate College has an approved list of style manuals.
• International students may need to develop facility in writing scientific English before they begin dissertation research. The submission of samples of their writing during the initial stages of the doctoral program will enable their advisers to assist in acquiring such a facility.

Additional Information

For detailed program requirements, visit http://bulletin.unl.edu/graduate/Business.

For course descriptions, visit http://bulletin.unl.edu/graduate/Business#courses.

If you would like more information concerning the Finance Ph.D. program, contact:

For more information on majors in the College of Business Administration at the University of Nebraska, go to http://www.cba.unl.edu/programs/