Online Finance certificate program curriculum
With a combination of fundamental courses and specialized, career-focused electives, our online Finance certificate program curriculum starts with the basics and gives you the opportunity to tailor your education to meet your goals.
From accounting and personal finance to different types of investments and financial institutions, you’ll graduate with a well-rounded knowledge of how to manage the finances of a company or an individual. It’s the ideal platform for further education—or an entry-level role—in financial analysis.
Required course
C09 - Principles of FinancePrinciples of Finance offers a broad overview of corporate finance, including the goals of financial management. You'll examine how the information contained in financial statements is used in analysis and forecasting. The topic of valuation is introduced, with a focus on valuing stocks and bonds. You'll review the financial manager's role in estimating risk and return, computing cost of capital, evaluating capital structure policies, making investment decisions, and raising capital. Other topics include financial securities and derivatives, long-term and short-term planning, and innovations in corporate finance.
By the end of this course, you'll be able to do the following:
- Describe the financial markets and the roles played by their participants.
- Analyze financial statements.
- Apply time value of money tools.
- Apply the principles of risk and return relationships.
- Apply the tools and processes of capital budgeting.
- Interpret the types of financing available to a company, their components, and issues associated with them.
- Explain the models and tools that help manage the flow of funds.
- Describe how capital structure, dividend policy, and international issues impact the firm.
Credit Hours: 3
Course electives
A01 - Introduction to AccountingIntroduction to Accounting introduces basic concepts of accounting using a balance of theory and practice. Topics covered include double entry bookkeeping, the accounting cycle for service and merchandising enterprises, notes and interest, bad debts, merchandise inventory, and accounting for fixed assets.
By the end of this course, you'll be able to do the following:
- Apply accounting principles to the accounting equation and balance sheets.
- Explain the expanded accounting equation and the financial documents involved.
- Demonstrate the use of a T-Account in recording transactions.
- Apply accounting principles to the trial balance and financial statements.
- Apply accounting principles to the processes of journalizing and posting.
- Apply accounting principles to the adjusting process.
- Apply accounting principles to the completion of the accounting cycle.
- Apply accounting principles to banking.
Credit Hours: 3
This course will equip you to understand, plan, and manage your personal financial affairs. The course focuses on the development of practical methods of organizing and interpreting your financial information, developing achievable and worthwhile goals, and implementing actionable plans and risk management techniques to meet those goals. Specific topics covered include money management, home and automobile purchasing, insurance, and investing.
By the end of this course, you'll be able to do the following:
- Assess the personal financial planning process, the life cycle of financial plans, and methods of goal achievement.
- Formulate a budget, record-keeping system, and tax planning strategy based on current financial goals.
- Develop a cash management strategy and a plan to facilitate the home or automobile buying process.
- Establish a plan to effectively avoid credit problems and protect yourself against credit card fraud.
- Evaluate life, health, and property insurance policies to identify the best policies for your needs at the lowest cost.
- Design a diversified investment portfolio that addresses several different investment objectives.
- Differentiate between open- and closed-end mutual funds, exchange-traded funds, and direct and indirect real estate investments.
- Create a financial plan that covers your income needs in retirement and helps protect you and your estate.
Credit Hours: 3
This course focuses on the economics of money, banking, and financial markets. Detailed explanations of money, interest rates, and financial hazards explain how this medium of exchange changes value with economic fluctuations. The banking industry, including the Federal Reserve System, and national and international monetary policy, and monetary theory, are also a focus of this course. You'll learn how money, its policies, and its uses affect short-term and long-term spending and saving.
By the end of this course, you'll be able to do the following:
- Demonstrate an understanding of money and financial markets.
- Discuss interest rates and the market.
- Explain financial influences, systems, and policies.
- Distinguish banking industry operations.
- Relate the factors and policies that affect money supply.
- Discuss the foreign exchange market and international transactions.
- Interpret aggregate demand and supply curves and policies.
- Demonstrate how monetary policy affects the economy.
Credit Hours: 3
In this course, you'll take a detailed look at the various types of organizations that make up the financial industry and the markets within which these organizations operate. This course includes complete coverage of Federal Reserve monetary policy, bonds and interest rate risk, money markets, mortgage markets, equity markets, derivatives markets, international markets, commercial banking, international banking, thrift institutions, finance companies, insurance companies, pension funds, investment banking, venture capital, investment companies, and hedge funds.
By the end of this course, you'll be able to do the following:
- Explain financial markets, institutions, and associated interest rates.
- Describe interest rate variables and financial market efficiency.
- Give examples of the purposes and functions of financial institutions and the Federal Reserve.
- Review various financial markets.
- Demonstrate an understanding of mortgages, foreign exchange, and the international market.
- Identify banking and financial industry regulation.
- Summarize various financial funds and investments.
- Discuss financial risk management.
Credit Hours: 3
This course presents the art of analyzing financial statements and the accompanying notes to identify the financial health of a business enterprise. The four financial statements required by generally accepted accounting principles are thoroughly analyzed and the techniques of detecting financial statement fraud are introduced.
By the end of this course, you'll be able to do the following:
- Demonstrate effective quantitative skills.
- Demonstrate job-specific technical and professional skills.
- Demonstrate a high level of inquiry, analytical, and problem-solving skills.
- Demonstrate computer and information literacy.
- Solve important accounting principles and concepts by creating four types of financial statements: balance sheet, income statement, statement of retained earnings, and statement of cash flows.
- Explain inventory systems, the inventory process, and the role of ethics in accounting.
- Explain cash and receivables, assets, current liabilities, and debt.
- Analyze stocks and the statement of cash flows and financial statements that are used to assess the value of a business.
- Solve accounting problems using knowledge of accounting forms and functions.
Credit Hours: 3