MS in Investment Management

The Master of Science in Investment Management program is structured to accommodate working professionals in a convenient, executive-style class setting. Classes meet Tuesday evenings each week from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. and alternate Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The program also includes two separate full-time intensive weeks of instruction called Residence Weeks. In the Summer Semester (July and August), classes meet on a Tuesday/Thursday schedule.

Beginning in January and ending in May of the next year, the program is completed in 17 months. A small cohort of students moves through the program together, offering unique learning and networking opportunities.

MSIM Curriculum

All courses are 4 credits, except where noted.

Residence Week I and Spring (Semester 1)

  • FI 600 Quantitative Foundations (2 cr)
  • FI 714 Managerial Decision Making (2 cr)
  • FI 720 Financial Statement Analysis (3 cr)
  • FI 728 Principles of Finance
  • CFA Level I taken

Summer (Semester 2)

  • FI 730s Corporate Finance
  • FI 735s Equity Analysis

Fall (Semester 3)

  • FI 742 Fixed Income Analysis
  • FI 748 Derivatives

Residence Week II and Spring (Semester 4)

  • FI 700 Integrated Investment Management (3 cr)
  • FI 752 Risk Management
  • FI 756 Portfolio Management
  • CFA Level II taken

MSIM Residence Weeks

The two Residence Weeks are an essential part of the MSIM program. They bookend the curriculum, taking place in the first week of the program (in January) and the final week (in May of the next year).

Both Residence Weeks are mandatory, and most MSIM students take vacation days to secure the release time from work. Breakfast, lunch, and parking are included for Residence Weeks.

Residence Week I

Residence Week I takes place during the first semester of the program. This is not a stand-alone course, but is designed to orient new students to the program and the school, while allowing students to cover the equivalent of 3 credits of coursework. Students get a jump-start on the curriculum so that the rest of the semester resembles a typical 8-credit semester in terms of class meetings (for a total of 11 credits during the Spring Semester).

Coursework covered during Residence Week I is a blend of the following:

  • FI 714 Managerial Decision Making (2 cr)
    The aim is to present many of the decision making problems that 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. The majority of Managerial Decision Making is covered during Residence Week I.
  • FI 720 Financial Statement Analysis (3 cr)
    Students will learn the financial accounting foundations for this 3-credit course during Residence Week I, which prepares them to continue in this course during the rest of the Spring Semester. This course is designed to review financial accounting rules and 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.

The goals for students in Residence Week I are to:

  1. Analyze a product’s revenues and cost and find profit-maximizing quantities and prices.
  2. Distinguish different market structures: competition, monopoly, and oligopoly.
  3. Measure macroeconomic performance (including cross-country comparisons).
  4. Identify the determinants of long-run growth.
  5. Understand the causes of short-run economic fluctuations and business cycles.
  6. Learn how to use government monetary and fiscal policies to stabilize the economy.
  7. Analyze international trade and capital flows.

The week also includes an introduction to business accounting, including accounting theory, T accounts, and a review of financial statements.

Billing and Grading for Residence Week I

MSIM students will be billed in one lump sum for their entire Spring Semester in the MSIM program. No courses are individually detailed on the University invoice. If you need something to present to your employer, please contact Elizabeth Dick, Assistant Director of the MSIM Program, at ecdick@bu.edu.

Students will complete the majority of the economics course, Managerial Decision Making, during the week (19.5 hours of the 22.5 hours). Because Managerial Decision Making is a half-semester course, faculty will submit grades for this course mid-semester. The remaining Spring Semester grades will be posted at the end of the semester.


Residence Week II

FI 700 Integrated Investment Management: supporting the direct application of the knowledge the program imparts (held in early May). This course serves as the curriculum’s capstone. It provides an opportunity for students to present their final case proposals to guest practitioners, review equity fund performance, and discuss special topics, including ethics and alternatives.

Scheduled for the final week of the program, this residence week draws on each of the topics covered within the other MSIM courses. A number of guest speakers from the investment world are a part of the week’s sessions.

MSIM Readings on Reserve

The MSIM program stocks study materials in the Frederick S. Pardee Management Library’s reserve section, including most recommended readings for CFA exam preparation as well as additional readings for specific MSIM courses. The materials are for the use of all members of the MSIM community.

Academic Standards

The MSIM program follows a non-standard schedule in the Spring and Summer Semesters. Special MSIM withdrawal deadlines will be published for the Spring and Summer Semesters and communicated to students via email and published on the MSIM site on SMGtools. For the Fall Semester, MSIM students should follow the regular full-semester withdrawal deadlines published by the School of Management’s Graduate Programs Office, Room 104. It is the student’s responsibility to read communications and postings regarding this information.

The MSIM program recognizes that unforeseen work or personal situations may cause a student to withdraw from the MSIM program. Any MSIM student who would like to take a Leave of Absence from the MSIM program must be in good academic standing (cumulative grade point average of 2.70 or higher). A Leave of Absence is one calendar year, and the student can join the following year’s cohort in the appropriate semester. For example, if a student takes a Leave of Absence from the MSIM program during the Summer Semester, he or she can join the next cohort one year later at the beginning of the Summer Semester. This ensures that all students take the MSIM courses in the required sequence.

A student who is not in good academic standing (GPA of below 2.70) and would like to take a Leave of Absence from the program must appeal to the MSIM Program Development Committee (PDC) to be reinstated into the program in the appropriate semester. The MSIM PDC will review the records of students who do not meet these minimum performance standards. Students can be academically withdrawn from the MSIM program at the discretion of the MSIM PDC.

Academic Performance Review

To qualify for the MSIM, students must:

  • Complete all core courses for a total of 38 credits
  • Have a cumulative GPA of at least 2.70
  • Have no “I” grades

The MSIM PDC monitors students’ academic performances at the end of the Spring, Summer, and Fall Semesters. The MSIM PDC reviews the academic records of all students whose grade point average after 11 credits (or at the end of the first Spring Semester) is 2.30 or lower and on an as-needed basis. The MSIM PDC has final responsibility for decisions regarding students with poor academic performance. The committee determines whether students will be permitted to stay in the MSIM program, and if so, what specific steps must be taken to regain acceptable academic standing.

Please be aware that your GPA can also affect your eligibility for continuing financial aid, including scholarships and loans. Students must maintain satisfactory academic progress (at least a 2.70 GSM GPA) in order to be eligible for continued Federal Stafford Loan funding.