Pre-MBA Quantitative Skills: Finance from Coursera

This short course surveys all the major topics covered in a full semester MBA level finance course, but with a more intuitive approach on a very high conceptual level. The goal here is give you a roadmap and framework for how financial professional make decisions.

We will cover the basics of financial valuation, the time value of money, compounding returns, and discounting the future. You will understand discounted cash flow (DCF) valuation and how it compares to other methods. We also step inside the mind of a corporate financial manager and develop the basic tools of capital budgeting. We will survey the how, when, and where to spend money, make tradeoffs about investment, growth, dividends, and how to ensure sound fiscal discipline. Our journey then turns to a Wall Street or capital markets perspective of investments as we discuss the fundamental tradeoff between risk and return. We then synthesize our discussion of risk with our valuation framework and incorporate it into series of direct applications to practice.

This course requires no prior familiarity with finance. Rather, it is intended to be a first step for anyone who is curious about understanding stock markets, valuation, or corporate finance. We will walk through all of the tools and quantitative analysis together and develop a guide for understanding the seemingly complex decisions that finance professionals make.

By the end of the course, you will develop an understanding of the major conceptual levers that push and pull on financial decision making and how they relate to other areas of business. The course should also serve as a roadmap for where to further your finance education and it would be an excellent introduction of any students contemplating an MBA or Finance concentration, but who has little background in the area.

Note: This course has been ported from the "Finance for Non-Financial Professionals" from James Weston and Rice University. If you have already attempted or completed that course, your progress will carry over to this instance.

What's inside

Syllabus

Course Overview and Basic Principles of Financial Valuation Discounting

Welcome Pre-MBA Quant: Finance! In this section you will find general information about the course and instructions on how to navigate the course. For the first week of lectures, we will be covering the basics of financial valuation. We will start with the basics of compounding and discounting rates of return over time. Using these tools we will then move on to valuation using the discounted cash flow method. Along the way, we will demonstrate our valuation tools with a variety of practical examples and compare our analysis with other valuation techniques.

How to Spend Money (Capital Budgeting tools)

In this week of the course, we will build on the basic valuation tools from week one to start making capital budgeting decisions. Our capital budgeting review covers the basic tools like Net Present Value, Internal Rate of Return, Payback period, and return on capital. Our discussion of the relative advantages of each different tool leads us into sensitivity analysis and the advantages of spreadsheet modeling.

Measuring Cash Creation and Flow

In our third week together, we will go on a treasure hunt through the financial statements. Using discounted cash flows as our motivation, we search through the income statement and balance sheet for all the uses and sources of cash. Our search leads us to our primary measure of value creation: Free Cash Flow. Free cash flow will form the basis of most financial analysis and this module gives us a roadmap for estimating and forecasting cash creation within any organization.

How Much Does Money Cost? Evaluating the Cost of Capital

Welcome back everyone! In our final week together in this course, we switch gears and take an external view of the firm from a Wall Street, or capital markets, perspective. We think about the basic tradeoff between risk and return, how to measure risk, and how to put a risk premium on different kinds of investments. We then take our analysis of risk and return and use it to estimate a firm's cost of capital. Finally, we circle back to free cash flows, capital budgeting and valuation to tie together all four weeks and get ready for our capstone case analysis.

Capstone Case: Putting it All Back Together from Main Street to Wall Street

In this final part of the course we bring all of our analysis to bear on a realistic case study. We will evaluate the investment prospects of Sunrise Bakery. As their CFO considers a large capital expenditure, she needs to think about the tradeoff between spending money today and generating more free cash flow in the future. Our job in this case is to forecast the amount of cash generation the new equipment will produce, discount the cash flows, and use all of our capital budgeting tools to make a sound financial recommendation.

Good to know

Know what's good

, what to watch for

, and possible dealbreakers

Introduces core aspects of finance and accounting, particularly regarding risk and return

Emphasizes the practical applications of financial principles

Provides a thorough overview of the field, making it suitable for beginners

Instructors have a strong reputation in the finance industry

Course materials are well-structured and easy to follow, making learning more accessible

Activities

Be better prepared before your course. Deepen your understanding during and after it. Supplement your coursework and achieve mastery of the topics covered in Pre-MBA Quantitative Skills: Finance with these activities:

Review accounting concepts

Show steps

Ensure a solid foundation in accounting principles to support your understanding of financial concepts.

Browse courses on Accounting

Show steps

Review the basic concepts of accounting, such as assets, liabilities, and equity.
Understand the accounting equation and how it relates to financial statements.
Practice analyzing financial statements to extract key financial information.
Identify the different types of financial ratios and how they are used to evaluate companies.

Review basic financial terms and concepts

Show steps

Review the basic building blocks of finance, ensuring you are ready for the course.

Browse courses on Finance

Show steps

Create a list of key financial terms commonly used in the industry.
Provide definitions for each term, ensuring you understand the underlying concepts.
Identify real-world examples of these terms being used, solidifying their meaning.
Test your knowledge by taking a practice quiz or completing a mock exam.

Review Differential Calculus

Show steps

Reviewing differential calculus will help you refresh concepts like limits, derivatives, and integrals, which are essential for understanding financial valuation and capital budgeting.

Browse courses on Differential Calculus

Show steps

Identify areas where you need to improve your knowledge of differential calculus.
Practice using online resources or textbooks to strengthen your grasp of these concepts.
Solve practice problems and review examples to improve your fluency.

Six other activities

Expand to see all activities and additional details

Show all nine activities

Attend a finance industry event

Show steps

Connect with professionals in the finance industry to expand your knowledge and network.

Show steps

Find a finance industry event in your area.
Register for the event and attend.
Network with other attendees, including professionals from various finance sectors.
Learn about current trends and challenges in the finance industry.

Learn about financial modeling

Show steps

Expand your knowledge of financial modeling techniques to enhance your financial analysis skills.

Browse courses on Financial Modeling

Show steps

Find an online tutorial or course on financial modeling.
Follow the tutorial step-by-step, creating your own financial model.
Experiment with different inputs and assumptions to see how they affect the model's outputs.
Present your financial model to a friend or colleague and get feedback.

Discuss case studies with classmates

Show steps

Engage with peers to share insights and perspectives on real-world financial scenarios.

Show steps

Find a study group or join a discussion forum related to the course.
Select a case study or financial scenario to analyze.
Share your analysis with your peers and discuss different approaches.
Listen to the perspectives of others and be open to feedback.

Calculate time value of money

Show steps

Work through practice problems to master the concept of time value of money.

Browse courses on Time Value of Money

Show steps

Find a set of practice problems on time value of money.
Set a timer for 30 minutes and try to solve as many problems as possible.
Check your answers and identify areas where you need more practice.
Repeat the process until you can consistently solve the problems correctly and efficiently.

Develop a financial plan

Show steps

Apply your understanding of financial concepts to create a personalized financial plan.

Browse courses on Financial Planning

Show steps

Gather information about your current financial situation, including your income, expenses, and assets.
Set your financial goals, both short-term and long-term.
Develop a budget that outlines how you will allocate your income to meet your goals.
Identify investment opportunities that align with your risk tolerance and financial goals.
Create a plan for managing your debt and improving your overall financial health.

Contribute to a financial open-source project

Show steps

Gain hands-on experience and contribute to the broader finance community by participating in an open-source project.

Show steps

Find an open-source financial project that aligns with your interests.
Read the project documentation and familiarize yourself with the codebase.
Identify an area where you can contribute, such as adding a new feature, fixing a bug, or improving documentation.
Create a pull request with your proposed changes.
Collaborate with the project maintainers to finalize your contribution.

Career center

Learners who complete Pre-MBA Quantitative Skills: Finance will develop knowledge and skills that may be useful to these careers:

Financial Planner

Financial Planners provide financial advice to individuals and families, helping them achieve their financial goals. This course may be useful in developing the skills needed to understand financial valuation, capital budgeting, and risk management, as well as providing a foundation in financial planning principles.

See salaries and explore the career path for Financial Planner

Quantitative Analyst

Quantitative Analysts use mathematical and statistical models to analyze financial data and make investment decisions. This course may be useful in developing the skills needed to understand financial valuation, capital budgeting, and risk management, as well as providing a foundation in quantitative analysis techniques.

See salaries and explore the career path for Quantitative Analyst

Financial Advisor

Financial Advisors provide financial advice to individuals and families, helping them achieve their financial goals. This course may be useful in developing the skills needed to understand financial valuation, capital budgeting, and risk management, as well as providing a foundation in financial planning principles.

See salaries and explore the career path for Financial Advisor

Data Scientist

Data Scientists use data to solve business problems and make data-driven decisions. This course may be useful in developing the skills needed to understand financial valuation, capital budgeting, and risk management, as well as providing a foundation in data analysis techniques.

See salaries and explore the career path for Data Scientist

Actuary

Actuaries use mathematical and statistical models to assess risk and uncertainty. This course may be useful in developing the skills needed to understand financial valuation, capital budgeting, and risk management, as well as providing a foundation in actuarial science principles.

See salaries and explore the career path for Actuary

Insurance Analyst

Insurance Analysts use financial and statistical models to assess risk and uncertainty in the insurance industry. This course may be useful in developing the skills needed to understand financial valuation, capital budgeting, and risk management, as well as providing a foundation in insurance analysis principles.

See salaries and explore the career path for Insurance Analyst

Corporate Finance Manager

Corporate Finance Managers oversee the financial planning and management of corporations. This course may be useful in developing the skills needed to understand financial valuation, capital budgeting, and risk management, which are essential for success in this role.

See salaries and explore the career path for Corporate Finance Manager

Economist

Economists study the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. This course may be useful in developing the skills needed to understand financial valuation, capital budgeting, and risk management, as well as providing a foundation in economic principles.

See salaries and explore the career path for Economist

Market Researcher

Market Researchers study the market for goods and services. This course may be useful in developing the skills needed to understand financial valuation, capital budgeting, and risk management, as well as providing a foundation in market research principles.

See salaries and explore the career path for Market Researcher

Portfolio Manager

Portfolio Managers manage and invest funds on behalf of clients, with the goal of achieving their financial objectives. This course may be useful in developing the skills needed to understand financial valuation, capital budgeting, and risk management, which are essential for success in this role.

See salaries and explore the career path for Portfolio Manager

Business Analyst

Business Analysts analyze business processes and make recommendations for improvement. This course may be useful in developing the skills needed to understand financial valuation and capital budgeting, as well as providing a foundation in business analysis techniques.

See salaries and explore the career path for Business Analyst

Financial Analyst

Financial Analysts design financial models, evaluate investments, and provide advice on financial decisions to individuals, businesses, and institutions. This course may be useful in developing the skills needed to build foundational knowledge of financial valuation, capital budgeting, and risk management, which are essential for success in this role.

See salaries and explore the career path for Financial Analyst

Investment Banker

Investment Bankers provide financial advice to corporations and governments, and help them raise capital through the issuance of debt or equity. This course may be useful in developing the skills needed to understand financial valuation, capital budgeting, and risk management, which are essential for success in this role.

See salaries and explore the career path for Investment Banker

Management Consultant

Management Consultants help organizations improve their performance. This course may be useful in developing the skills needed to understand financial valuation, capital budgeting, and risk management, as well as providing a foundation in management consulting principles.

See salaries and explore the career path for Management Consultant

Risk Manager

Risk Managers identify, assess, and mitigate financial risks within organizations. This course may be useful in developing the skills needed to understand financial valuation, capital budgeting, and risk management, which are essential for success in this role.

See salaries and explore the career path for Risk Manager