Courses

• GSM ES 743: Career Community III
  Early in semester 1, students will enroll in one section of ES741 that best aligns with their career interests and needs (ES741). There are nine career communities to choose from, as listed in the syllabus for ES740. Each Career Community will have a minimum of two meetings during each semester. Students will enroll in ES742 for second semester, and ES743 for the third semester. Generally, students will sign up for the same Career Community each term, unless they decide that another community aligns better with their evolving career interests and needs. Credit for participation in a Career Community is given for ES743 as students near the end of their MBA program.
• GSM FE 721: Financial Management
  Financial Management examines three sets of problems: (1) saving and investment decisions by households, (2) investment and financing decisions by corporations, and (3) the role of securities markets and financial intermediaries in the economy. Decisions today affect the timing of and uncertainty about future flows of income; both timing and risk determine the current value of those future flows. This course develops the tools required to analyze these decisions and their interaction within the financial system.
• GSM FE 722: Financial Management
  Financial Management examines three sets of problems: 1) saving and investment decisions by households, 2) investment and financing decisions by corporations, and 3) the role of securities markets and financial intermediaries in the economy. Decisions today affect the timing of and uncertainty about future flows of income; both timing and risk determine the current value of those future flows. This course develops the tools required to analyze these decisions and their interaction within the financial system.
• GSM FE 730: Economics and Management Decisions
  The aim of the course is to present many of the decision problems managers face and to present the economic analysis they need to guide these decisions. In the first half of the course, microeconomic tools are used to structure complicated decision problems about production, pricing, investment, and other strategic issues, address uncertainty through probabilistic forecasts and sequential decisions. An additional goal is to distinguish different market structures and apply competitive strategies using game theory. In the second half, the focus shifts to the study of the national and global economic environments within which companies operate. We identify the drivers of fluctuations in GDP, inflation, interest and exchange rates, and other key features of the economies. Since governments play key roles in determining the fate of economies and companies, the final theme is the rationale for and efficacy of government policy tools.
• GSM FE 817: Clean Energy Services: Financial Models and Incentive Structures
  This course explores the reasons behind the slow adoption of clean energy technologies and develops business models that provide incentives and financing to accelerate adoption. We will use ?live? cases that allow students to work with industry participants. *Please note that this new course will not count towards the Finance Concentration.
• GSM FE 820: Corporate Financial Management
  This course provides an in-depth analysis of financial considerations relating to corporate growth. It addresses the settings of financial, or corporate, goals in terms of maximizing shareholders' equity, and relationships among dividend policy, debt levels, capital costs, return on investments, and growth.
• GSM FE 821: Advanced Corporate Finance
  This course is designed for students who are pursuing careers in corporate finance (such as chief financial officer, treasurer, or controller) in an industrial corporation, in the corporate finance department of an investment banking firm or in investment banking. The course provides follow-up on the basic financial frameworks and analytical methods outlined in introductory courses. Three primary areas are covered: risk management; agency, information, and psychology; and real options.
• GSM FE 822: Fixed Income Markets
  This is a course primarily on fixed-income debt securities and markets. Emphasis is placed on the factors that determine bond yields, factors such as the coupon and maturity structure, liquidity, credit risk, and tax status of the security, and on measures of return and risk, statistics such as the yield to maturity, horizon yield, duration, and convexity. We will cover government debt (Treasuries and municipals), corporate bonds (investment-grade and high-yield), agency (Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac) and mortgage-backed debt created via securitization (i.e., collateralized mortgage obligations). We will emphasize how interest rate and credit derivatives are used to manage portfolios of fixed-income securities.
• GSM FE 823: Investments
  This course looks at speculative markets, including organized security markets and exchanges; definitions of securities; relevant tax law and sources of investment information; principles of stock and bond valuation; and security price behavior. Also discussed in this course are problems and models associated with portfolio analysis and management.
• GSM FE 825: Advanced Topics in Investments
  This course is about the theory and practice of science-based investing. It is intended for students who are either already working in the field of investments or plan to become professional investment advisers or portfolio managers. It focuses on building quantitative decision models for individual investors, investment firms, and pension funds. Subjects covered include the framing and quantitative modeling of lifecycle saving, investing, and risk-management decisions, and the design, production, and pricing of structured investment contracts to achieve targeted objectives.
• GSM FE 827: International Financial Management
  This course examines the acquisition, investment, management, and conversion of funds in the international context. Other areas of discussion include: foreign exchange exposure and risk, investment decisions, international capital markets and banking, trade financing and tax planning, balance of payments and national goals, and financial planning from a multinational perspective.
• GSM FE 829: Futures, Options and Financial Risk Management
  Futures and stock options are recognized as important tools of investment and risk reduction. This course covers the theory of futures and option pricing and develops a framework for analyzing hedging and investment decisions using futures and options. Attention is paid to practical considerations in the use of these investments, tax and accounting issues and the institutional features of the market in which the various instruments are traded.
• GSM FE 834: Macroeconomics in the Global Environment
  Macroeconomics is the study of the aggregate behavior of global market participants, i.e. consumers, firms, workers, governments, central banks, foreign investors. Decision making by investment bankers, product/sales managers, policy makers, or consumers inevitably rely on an understanding of the main forces driving GDP, inflation, unemployment, interest rates, and exchange rates. Consider these questions: 1.Should new consumer durable products be launched during recessions? 2.Are countries that experience high productivity growth good investment targets? 3.Will interest rates drop if the US government starts buying back its debt? 4.With significant liquidity demands by the US economy from the public sector, the household sector and businesses, what explains the low US interest rates? Are these factors expected to keep interest rates low also in the future? 5.Can the Euro boost productivity in Europe in the medium to long run and what are the competitiveness challenges for US businesses of such changes? 6.What are the economic effects of wars and how should they be financed? These and other issues will come up in the course. The main goal of this course is to provide a coherent framework that you can use to understand economic events as you confront them in your work environment.
• GSM FE 850: Private Equity: Leveraged Buyouts
  Private Equity (PE) has become a major force in the capital markets. This course will expose students to, and de-mystify, the world of PE. The focus will be centered on LBOs and their position in the ?alternative asset? class. Students will learn about the activities of a PE firm including formation, fundraising, investing (including deal structure, terms, due diligence and governance) and exiting. We will also discuss what other industry sectors serve or are affected by PE and who the players are. Case study and class participation will be the primary mode of learning. Course offered jointly with undergraduate course SMG 450.
• GSM FE 918: Doctoral Seminar in Finance
  This doctoral course, is designed to provide students with an introduction to financial economics. This lecture-based course will cover no arbitrage conditions, preferences and risk aversion, portfolio selection, the capital asset pricing model, asset pricing and dynamic asset pricing. In addition to lectures, this class will include readings and assignments. Open to MBA students with faculty member's permission. Must have strong quantitative background and several courses in finance or economics.
• GSM FE 919: Derivative Securities
  This course provides a comprehensive and in-depth treatment of valuation methods for derivatives securities. Extensive use is made of continuous time stochastic processes, stochastic calculus and martingale methods. The main topics to be addressed include 1) European contingent claims valuation, 2) American claims, 3) valuation in the standard model, 4) barrier options, 5) numerical methods for ingle asset derivatives, and 6) multi-asset options. Additional topics may be covered depending on time constraints.
• GSM FI 600: Quantitative Foundations
  Quantitative Foundations introduces students to the basics of quantitative methods, providing many basic tools used in the MSIM program and the CFA program. Statistical analysis is covered in depth.
• GSM FI 700: Residence Week II: Integrated Investment Management
  Residence Week II provides students an opportunity to apply the knowledge they have gained throughout the program. Students present final recommendations for the Portfolio Management cases to guest practitioners. The SMG Equity fund performance is analyzed and reviewed by students. Several specialized topics in investing, including ethics and alternatives, are also reviewed. Outside speakers and a field trip to Boston?s financial district are also a key part of the week.
• GSM FI 714: Managerial Decision Making
  The aim is to present many of the decision problems managers face and to provide the relevant economic analysis. Microeconomics establishes the setting in which managers must make production, pricing, investment, and other strategic decisions. Macroeconomics provides practical tools to understand the national and international environment.
• GSM FI 720: Financial Statement Analysis
  This course is designed to develop skills in interpreting and analyzing external financial reports. Both traditional and recently advocated methods of financial statement analysis will be studied, taking the perspective of investors and creditors. Among the topics to be investigated are: (1) the mechanics of financial statement analysis; (2) managers' incentives in making accounting choices; (3) the usefulness of accounting numbers in an efficient market; and (4) international comparisons of financial statements.

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