Overview
The Bachelor of Science in Accounting and Finance (People and Society)
The Bachelor of Science in Accounting and Finance (BSAF) degree is designed for students who arrive at the business school with a clear interest in careers in the financial services industry or in corporate financial management. The content of the degree is equivalent to a BBA with a double major in Finance and Accounting and a minor in Business Analytics. Because of its emphasis on the development of quantitative skills in data analytics, the degree is intended for quantitatively-oriented students. In order to prepare students for industry internships during their junior year, the BSAF degree is designed to facilitate accelerated coursework in Finance, Accounting, and data analytics during the freshman and sophomore years.
The minimum standards for the BSAF degree are comparatively higher than those of the BBA degree. Students must maintain a minimum overall cumulative GPA of 3.0 in order to remain eligible for the BSAF degree, calculated at the end of each semester or term, including the first. The University Repeat Rule may be utilized by BSAF students to replace a D or F only if the cumulative GPA meets the requisite 3.0 GPA without the repeat. Given the accelerated pace of the BSAF core, repeated courses are not to be used to retroactively reinstate a student into the program.
Every course completed in satisfaction of the BSAF degree (with the possible exception of some electives) must be taken for a grade. A minimum grade of “C-“ or higher must be earned for all BSAF Business Core Requirements, except for ACC 223 and FIN 302 for which a grade of “B” or higher is required. (A grade of "B-" is not sufficient.) To graduate with the BSAF degree, students must maintain a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 in all Accounting courses and in all Finance courses. Students who do not meet program requirements at any point in the degree's completion will be converted to the BBA or BSBA program, as appropriate.
A minimum of 125 credit hours is needed to graduate with the BSAF degree.
Curriculum Requirements
Students pursuing the Bachelor of Science in Accounting and Finance must complete the University General Education Requirements, the BSAF Business Core Requirements, and the specific coursework as follows:
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| BSAF Business Core Requirements 1 | ||
| Foundational Courses | ||
| ACC 223 | Principles of Financial and Managerial Accounting (minimum grade of B required) 2 | 4 |
| BSL 212 | Introduction to Business Law and Ethics | 3 |
| BUS 150 | Business Analytics | 3 |
| BUS 211 | Professional Development for Finance and Accounting | 1 |
| BUS 300 | Critical Thinking and Persuasion for Business 3 | 3 |
| ECO 213 | Principles of Economics 2 | 4 |
| FIN 302 | Fundamentals of Finance (minimum grade of B required) | 3 |
| FIN 433 | Case Studies for Financial Professionals | 1 |
| MAS 201 | Introduction to Business Statistics (minimum grade of C- required) | 3 |
| MAS 202 | Intermediate Business Statistics | 3 |
| MGT 304 | Organizational Behavior | 3 |
| MKT 201 | Foundations of Marketing | 3 |
| or MKT 301 | Marketing Foundations | |
| MTH 161 | Calculus I (minimum grade of C- required; fulfills Quantitative Skills Requirement) | 4 |
| BSAF Core Business Principles Choice Courses (select three courses) 4 | 9 | |
| The Law of Financial Transactions | ||
| Fundamentals of Business Technology and Innovation | ||
| Operations Management | ||
| Negotiation Strategies | ||
or BSL 324 | Negotiation | |
| Strategic Management | ||
| Leading Teams | ||
| Professional Selling | ||
| Accounting Courses | ||
| ACC 301 | Cost Accounting | 3 |
| ACC 311 | Intermediate Accounting I | 3 |
| ACC 312 | Intermediate Accounting II | 3 |
| ACC 402 | Auditing | 3 |
| ACC 403 | Fundamentals of Taxation | 3 |
| ACC 406 | Accounting Systems | 3 |
| Finance Required Courses | ||
| FIN 303 | Intermediate Financial Management | 3 |
| FIN 320 | Investment and Security Markets | 3 |
| Finance Choice Courses | 12 | |
Select two approved courses (6 credit hours) at the 300-500 level from the Finance departmental offerings. 5 | ||
Select two approved courses (6 credit hours) at the 400-500 level from the Finance departmental offerings. | ||
| Additional Required Courses | ||
| BTE 320 | Python Programming: Fundamentals and Algorithms | 3 |
| MAS 332 | Data Acquisition, Preparation and Visualization | 3 |
| MAS 342 | Introduction to Optimization and Decision Making | 3 |
| or MAS 548 | Machine Learning for Analytics | |
| MAS 432 | Data Analysis | 3 |
| UMX 100 | The University of Miami Experience | 0 |
| Electives 4, 7 | 15 | |
| General Education Requirements | ||
| Written Communication Skills: | ||
| WRS 105 | First-Year Writing I 6 | 3 |
| WRS 106 | First-Year Writing II 3, 6 | 3 |
| or ENG 106 | Writing About Literature and Culture | |
| Quantitative Skills: | ||
| Calculus I (fulfilled through the BSAF business core) | ||
| Areas of Knowledge: | ||
| Arts and Humanities Cognate | 9 | |
| People & Society Cognate (fulfilled through the major) | ||
| STEM Cognate (fulfilled through the Additional Required Courses) | ||
| Total Credit Hours | 125 | |
- 1
Students must maintain a minimum overall cumulative GPA of 3.0 to remain in the BSAF. Every course completed in satisfaction of the BSAF Business Core must be taken for a grade and a grade of “C-“or higher earned (except as noted for ACC 223 and FIN 302 for which a grade of “B” or higher is required). Students must maintain a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 in Finance courses and in Accounting courses. A minimum of 125 credit hours is needed to graduate with the BSAF degree. All courses must be taken within the current pre-requisite structure.
- 2
Students who wish to change from the BSAF to the BBA or BSBA after completing ACC 223 will receive credit for ACC 211 and must complete ACC 212 to satisfy the BBA or BSBA business core requirements. Students who wish to change from the BSAF to the BBA or BSBA after completing ECO 213 will receive credit for ECO 211 and must complete ECO 212 to satisfy the BBA or BSBA business core requirements. Conversely, BSAF students who have completed both ECO 211 and ECO 212 do not need to complete ECO 213, and BSAF students who have completed both ACC 211 and ACC 212 do not need to complete ACC 223.
- 3
Students who do not earn at least a C- in WRS 106 or ENG 106 must either repeat WRS 106 or ENG 106 and earn at least a C- or complete WRS 230 with at least a C- before enrolling in BUS 300.
- 4
Students who intend to sit for the CPA exam should take BSL 401 as one of their electives if they have not selected it as one of their BSAF Business Principles Choice Courses.
- 5
Excluding FIN 300, FIN 308, and FIN 336.
- 6
WRS 105 and WRS 106 or ENG 106, or their equivalents, must be completed prior to attaining junior year classification, per the University General Education Requirements.
- 7
At least one course with an international focus must be completed within the degree requirements. The Vice Dean for Undergraduate Business Education determines the appropriateness of the course.
Sample Plan of Study
This Sample Plan of Study represents one possible version of a new freshman Business student’s 8-semester plan. The individual student's plan may vary depending upon the initial placement into English Composition and mathematics. Moreover, other plan variations are possible if a student enters the University with advanced college credits, wishes to participate in study abroad, participates in the Foote Fellow program, or selects additional cognates or minors.
Note that each major/minor at the University of Miami satisfies a particular "Area of Knowledge" within the general education requirements of the University and therefore a separate cognate in these areas would not be required. Business School students are required to satisfy the Arts and Humanities Area of Knowledge by completing a cognate, minor, or major through another School or College at the University.
Students construct their individualized plans in collaboration with their assigned academic advisor.
| Freshman Year | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fall | Credit Hours | |
| ECO 213 | Principles of Economics | 4 |
| MAS 201 | Introduction to Business Statistics | 3 |
| MKT 201 | Foundations of Marketing | 3 |
| MTH 161 | Calculus I | 4 |
| WRS 105 | First-Year Writing I | 3 |
| UMX 100 | The University of Miami Experience | 0 |
| Credit Hours | 17 | |
| Spring | ||
| ACC 223 | Principles of Financial and Managerial Accounting | 4 |
| BUS 150 | Business Analytics | 3 |
| FIN 302 | Fundamentals of Finance (minimum B grade) | 3 |
| MAS 202 | Intermediate Business Statistics | 3 |
| WRS 106 or ENG 106 | First-Year Writing II or Writing About Literature and Culture | 3 |
| Credit Hours | 16 | |
| Sophomore Year | ||
| Fall | ||
| ACC 311 | Intermediate Accounting I | 3 |
| BTE 320 | Python Programming: Fundamentals and Algorithms | 3 |
| BUS 211 | Professional Development for Finance and Accounting | 1 |
| FIN 320 | Investment and Security Markets | 3 |
| MAS 332 | Data Acquisition, Preparation and Visualization | 3 |
| Arts and Humanities Cognate Course | 3 | |
| Credit Hours | 16 | |
| Spring | ||
| ACC 312 | Intermediate Accounting II | 3 |
| BSL 212 | Introduction to Business Law and Ethics | 3 |
| FIN 303 | Intermediate Financial Management | 3 |
| MAS 432 | Data Analysis | 3 |
| Arts and Humanities Cognate Course | 3 | |
| Credit Hours | 15 | |
| Junior Year | ||
| Fall | ||
| ACC 403 | Fundamentals of Taxation | 3 |
| BUS 300 | Critical Thinking and Persuasion for Business | 3 |
| MGT 304 | Organizational Behavior | 3 |
| Finance Choice Course | 3 | |
| Arts and Humanities Cognate Course | 3 | |
| Credit Hours | 15 | |
| Spring | ||
| ACC 301 | Cost Accounting | 3 |
| ACC 402 | Auditing | 3 |
| FIN 433 | Case Studies for Financial Professionals | 1 |
| MAS Course (or elective) | 3 | |
| Business Principles Choice 1 | 3 | |
| Finance Choice Course | 3 | |
| Credit Hours | 16 | |
| Senior Year | ||
| Fall | ||
| Business Principles Choice | 3 | |
| Finance Choice Course | 3 | |
| Elective (or MAS course) | 3 | |
| Elective | 3 | |
| Elective | 3 | |
| Credit Hours | 15 | |
| Spring | ||
| ACC 406 | Accounting Systems | 3 |
| Business Principles Choice | 3 | |
| Finance Choice Course | 3 | |
| Elective | 3 | |
| Elective | 3 | |
| Credit Hours | 15 | |
| Total Credit Hours | 125 | |
- 1
Students who intend to sit for the CPA exam should take BSL 401 as one of their Business Principles Choice Courses or as one of their electives.
Mission
The mission of the Miami Herbert Business School (MHBS) is to develop innovative ideas and principled leaders that transform global business and society. Consistent with that mission, the proposed Bachelor of Science in Accounting and Finance (BSAF) is designed for quantitatively strong students arriving at the MHBS with a clear interest in careers in the financial services industry or in corporate financial management. This program addresses the growing demand from recruiters for students with a strong background in finance, accounting, and data analytics. By allowing students to focus on finance, accounting, and data analytics early, this program provides students with the background necessary to secure valuable internships and excel in them, leading to a broader set of career opportunities.
Goals
First destinations of graduating seniors (i.e., job placement or graduate school) and student satisfaction rates will be used as program performance metrics. The first program goal is to have at least 90% of students with a secure first destination by six months after graduation. The second goal is for the mean of BSAF graduates’ responses to reflect at least 90% of students reporting satisfaction level of “Generally Satisfied” or above.
Student Learning Outcomes
- BSAF graduates will be critical thinkers, able to select and apply appropriate models, tools, and techniques, and frameworks to enable them to render analytically sound business decisions.
- BSAF graduates will be able to identify, analyze and resolve ethical issues in business scenarios.
- BSAF graduates will demonstrate professional written communication skills.
- BSAF graduates will have strong technical skills.
