What to Expect in an MBA in Financial Planning Program
Friday, August 25, 2017 | 12:00 AM
A Master of Business Administration in Financial Planning program prepares students for careers in financial planning. Degree candidates in these programs can expect coursework in the following areas:
- Accounting: the ramifications of different types of accounting treatments.
- Financial Management: how to track cash flow, use float, and increase the return on existing investments.
- Risk Management: the investment vehicles and strategies to build a portfolio that minimizes risk.
- Investments: how stocks, bonds and other investments differ in philosophy, intended returns and inherent risk.
- Estate Planning: taxes and other implications of wealth transfer upon an individual’s death.
- Tax Planning: managing the tax burden of accumulating wealth.
- Financial Plans: helping clients or corporations create plans for the financial future.
Personal Financial Planning
If you are pursuing your MBA in Financial Planning so that you can advise clients regarding their finances, you can expect coursework that prepares you to assess an individual’s risk tolerance; understand the risk characteristics of different investments; and plan for tax consequences, retirement and estate distribution. Additional certification is available following graduation.
Corporate Financial Planning
Degree candidates interested in corporate finance benefit from courses that prepare them to interpret financial statements, calculate a company’s cost of capital, calculate and assess the risk of different corporate investment opportunities, devise plans to counteract the risk in long-term investments, and present regular financial health reports and updates.
Preparing the Financial Plan
Whether you plan to advise individual clients or work in corporate finance, an essential advantage of completing your online MBA program is the ability to create a viable financial plan. These plans can quantify the financial health of your clients or employer. It will specify the risk profile of the entity and identify available investment options. The plan will also forecast the entity’s financial health at meaningful intervals.
Further, these plans also include anticipated returns and losses from investments as well as strategies to reduce income tax liabilities. Since these strategies span periods of time, they must tolerate changes in market conditions that can affect the risk level or the return on the proposed investments.
Looking to the Future
Earning an MBA in Financial Planning prepares you to create, present and manage investment portfolios that meets your clients’ or employers’ needs. The ability to read and understand financial reports gives you a decided advantage when charting a financial course of action — whether as a financial planner or as a member of a senior management team.
Learn about University of Texas Rio Grande Valley online MBA in Financial Planning Program.
Source:
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission: Financial Planners
How Stuff Works: What’s the Difference Between Strategic and Financial Planning
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