Tom & Vi Zapara School of Business

Creating Value, Making a Difference

Management of finances is essential to the success and sustainability of any organization. And nearly every decision made in the daily and strategic-level operations of a business involves it. Students who develop sharp analytical skills in financial management, decision-making, and planning, are well-prepared for any situation or environment in business

Due to the highly competitive but rewarding nature of related careers, the right education and opportunities for experience are an essential start for any student in finance.

What is Finance?

Simply put, finance deals with the management of money, risk and time. Whether managing finances in the public sector, business, or the personal level, proper financial planning and management can have a significant impact on an even global scale.

What Can I Do with a Degree in Finance?

Most degree holders in Finance enter into careers as financial analysts, financial advisers, or financial managers. In an organization, financial managers are often responsible for the management of investments, financial reports, and strategic planning and goal-setting to support the mission and vision of the organization.

For the most current occupational information regarding finance and other careers, including required education and median salary amounts, we recommend you visit O*NET OnLine, a very useful website created for the U.S. Department of Labor. You may also click here for the latest information on careers in Finance from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

What Level of Education is Required for Careers in Finance?

A bachelor’s degree in finance, administration, accounting, or economics is often a requirement for even entry-level positions in Finance. Due to the current level of competition in this area, a Master’s degree combined with experience is highly recommended. Even self-employed personal financial advisors will find difficulty in obtaining clients in a market full of degree holders with relevant experience. Education and experience offering the practice of analytical skill are highly applicable for careers in Finance.

What Makes Finance a Good Choice for College Students?

What Should I Look for in a Finance Degree Program?

The world today has plenty of workers with degrees in business, including finance. And it takes much more than just a degree to compete with them. Employers today want employees not only competent in their field but who can communicate effectively, work in and lead teams, and are able to observe and analyze a situation to quickly identify the best solution. You won’t find this experience in just any degree program.
The best business education should include two important standards: (1) Everything you learn should be useful in the world right now, not just twenty years ago or “someday in your future career.” (2) You should be given the opportunity to put what you learn to the test. Many universities offer excellent lessons in business theory. Others offer a more training-based education. Very few can offer you both.

Finance at La Sierra University

The School of Business offers students an engaging experience in finance. All of our professors hold Master's Degrees or above, and have extensive professional experience in the field. Our curriculum prepares students for a number of applicable careers with a real-world focus on learning and the course experience. Click here to view the most recent curriculum sheet for Finance majors.

Is La Sierra University a Good Choice for Finance Students?

Absolutely. In our School of Business, we believe that the value of your education is found in how you can use it right now. So we not only hire professors with the highest level of education available in their respective fields, we find those who are also active in research, publications, consulting work, and other opportunities for active engagement in finance. By the time you graduate from La Sierra University with a degree in finance, we want you to already have valuable experience not only in the standards and practices of this field, but in acting as a leader, a team-member, an effective communicator, a sharp analyst, and an ethical decision-maker.

How Large is the Finance Program?

In our School of Business, we believe in the value of small class-sizes combined with highly engaged professors. We limit the maximum enrollment of each of our courses to thirty students or fewer, allowing our professors to work closely with each student, maximizing their potential for learning. In addition, each of our professors holds regular office hours, a time for students to meet with them for assistance, questions, advice, or even to learn of networking or career opportunities. There is nothing that delights our professors more than students interested in their own growth.

Are There Opportunities/Activities Available Outside of the Classroom?

Yes. We strongly believe in the value of engagement outside of the classroom. All students are given opportunities to apply what they learn in the classroom in useful ways to our local and global community. Whether it be through community engagement in our Service-Learning courses, student-led projects in our Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE) Team, events and activities with our highly active business club and other student groups on campus, our students learn through experience.
We also work actively to engage students in job and internship opportunities. The fact that La Sierra University lies in the fastest growing county in the state and a city known for its affinity to business provides our students with excellent prospects for local work and internship opportunities. Our annual Meet the Firms Night event stands as one such opportunity for students to meet and network with potential employers.

How Should Future Finance Students Prepare for College?

One of the most common mistakes potential business students make is assuming that the study of business is only for those who “enjoy math” or “working with numbers.” Today’s employers need students with strong communication, leadership, critical thinking, and analytical ability. As a university, we seek well-rounded students with these same characteristics. And based on current trends across the United States, students who put extra effort into their written and oral communication skills before college end up in high demand.

Conduct real trades and manage our investment portfolio in the Finance Lab.

Through the Finance Lab and its accompanying Investor Club, students are able to participate in financial management and investing activities including trading stocks, options, futures, bonds and mutual funds from more than 50 global exchanges. Students can also utilize our state-of-the-art StockTrak software for virtual trading.

The lab’s ZSB Investor Club, open to La Sierra students, employees and alumni, will manage the growth of a $100,000 portfolio for the business school, with a future portfolio potential of $250,000 to invest.

Educational Qualifications

Most positions require a bachelor’s degree. A number of fields of study provide appropriate preparation, including accounting, economics, finance, statistics, and mathematics. For advanced positions, employers often require a master’s degree in business administration (MBA) or a master’s degree in finance. Knowledge of options pricing, bond valuation, and risk management are important.