Early Bird Price: $549 Valid until Wednesday, February 17th, 2021
Description:
This comprehensive hybrid certificate program introduces non-financial decision-makers and managers to financial techniques, tools, and processes needed to make informed decisions. Participants will learn to read financial statements, make investment decisions using financial and investment ratios, and build budgets for financial planning and performance monitoring. In addition to the 9-hour online portion of this program, participants will learn to utilize Microsoft Excel to conduct investment analyses and build budgets in a live classroom environment. Throughout the program, participants will be presented with the opportunity to complete a comprehensive capstone project to integrate and apply finance competencies learned in class.
Sessions Details:
In this introduction session, we will discuss the significance of finance in decision-making, review course learning objectives, assign online course content and explore the capstone/case study exercise.
In this session, you will learn to navigate a balance sheet, income statement, and cash flow statement and distinguish between assets, liabilities, equity, revenues, and expenses. You will build an understanding of components affecting profit on an Income Statement to make better financial decisions to improve profitability and performance.
Learning Objectives:- Identify, compare, and contrast company-wide financial statements
- Learn about critical components and accounts used in financial statements for decision-making and analysis
- Implement a performance and profitability improvement mindset while analyzing financial statements
In this session, you will understand how to use basic investment valuation techniques to make informed investment decisions. You will apply Microsoft Excel to calculate and evaluate investment decisions using conventional financial analyses: Return on Investment (ROI), Cost-Volume-Profit (CVP) for break-even and profitability decisions, and Net Present Value (NPV).
Learning Objectives:- Learn to use popular financial ratios for period-to-period comparisons and performance analysis
- Understand and implement time value of money concepts in investment analysis
- Identify metrics and ratios critical to profitability assessments for decision-making
In this session, you will learn how to build a budget on Microsoft Excel to plan financial performance and strategic direction. You will understand the importance of budgeting elements such as sales, labor, materials, overhead, production, and expenses. In addition, you will learn how to conduct basic analyses to monitor performance against a budget.
Learning Objectives:- Understand the importance of a budget and how it aligns to organizational strategy
- Learn to build and recognize different schedules in the development of a master budget
- Perform calculations to build budget line items and conduct performance analyses
In this closing session, participants will have the chance to review and share lessons learned in the course, attend a Q&A session with our instructor, and wrap-up course content.
McAllen Course Information
Dates:
Wednesdays, March 10 - April 7, 2021
Times:
In-Class Sessions: 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. (Mar 10 & Apr 7)
Duration:
In-Class Session: 8 hours (Instructor-Led)
Online Instruction: 9 hours (Asynchronous)
Location for In-Class Sessions:
McAllen Teaching Site * (review "notes" section below for further details)
Instructor:
Ms. Christine Bradley
Cost:
$ 599
Notes:
*Until further notice, due to COVID-19 restrictions, in-class courses will be primarily offered online via Zoom. However, we will allow up to 6 participants in the classroom on a first-come, first-served basis.
If you wish to secure your in-person seat, please contact us at continuinged@utrgv.edu as soon as you complete the registration for the course.
Course Details
Who Should Attend
This course is designed for participants who are new to finance and would like to build their competency to make informed financial decisions. This is especially suited for non-financial managers, decision-makers, and professionals taking on decision-making roles that require a basic knowledge of finance to make decisions.
Capstone
The capstone will encompass the reading and analysis of financial statements (Session 1), the evaluation and selection of alternative investment options to improve financial performance (Session 2), and the incorporation of an investment decision and use of prior-year financial statements to develop a budget (Session 3). The capstone will ensure that participants can effectively utilize and integrate all course competencies in a simulated, real-world environment. Participants will present a completed budget report for review and receive feedback.
Prerequisites
This course requires a basic understanding of Microsoft Excel.
Private Loans
Qualifying candidates may apply for a private loan to cover the registration fee via private loans. Once you identify the private loan that best meets your needs, please use UTRGV’s School Code: 00359902. In addition, please note that the requested loan amount you indicate in the application cannot exceed the open enrollment course fee displayed on our website. Please note that the private loan request amount cannot be less than $500.00. Depending on the loan provider, additional service charges may apply.
Loan InfoInstructors
Christine Bradley
Christine is a proud resident of South Texas since 1993 and a lifelong learner who brings leadership industry experience in finance, manufacturing, and accounting. For the last 16 years, she has been the Senior Finance Manager at GE Aviation in McAllen, responsible for general accounting, controllership, and serving as a business partner to the operating team for initiatives, growth, and profitability. Prior to that, she was a controller for various maquiladoras. She has also practiced as a CPA in Texas and Minnesota. She received her MBA from the University of Texas-Pan American.
