MBA in Banking and Financial Institutions

Learn More: Upcoming Live Webinar: Thurs., Aug. 8, 2013, at 12 p.m.

If your interests lie in banking and financial institutions, this concentration offers advanced courses that equip students to excel in areas of commercial lending, credit analysis and branch management.

Our unique cohort system groups students together throughout their educational experience. You will complete the program one class at a time, in a predetermined sequence.

Core Courses

These classes are available in the classroom or online.

Global Managerial and Organizational Behavior

Examine interpersonal behavior related to organizational performance. Behavioral science motivation, social perception, group decision making, ethical leadership and multicultural behavior.

Financial Accounting and Analysis

Introduction of key financial accounting concepts. Analysis of a firm’s historical, current and prospective financial condition and performance. Emphasis on investment and credit decision.

Marketing Design and Strategy

Developing and evaluating brand strategies over the life of the product. Strategies for introducing brands and reviving brands. Includes basic marketing principles of product, price, promotion, environment and customer.

Managerial Economics

Focus on basic microeconomic principles of the firm and relevance in business decisions. Covers supply and demand and its relationship to market outcomes and economic determinants of consumption, savings, and labor behavior.

Seminar in Descriptive Statistics

Basic statistical concepts and analytical tools for data driven decision making. Introduction to concepts of frequency, distribution, variation and normal curve correlations with application to business decisions.

Ethical Strategic Leadership

Decision making, negotiations and ethics. Cultural impact on management strategy. Create value, motivate resources, leading and creating high performance teams. Integrating performance across business units.

Macroeconomic Analysis

Focus on creation of money, function and roles of financial institutions, fiscal and monetary policy and the Federal Reserve system. Covers economic theory of financial markets and impact of government policies, determinants of national income, employment, investment, interest rates inflation and exchange rates.

Management of Human Resources

Analyze policies in human resource management and organizational design, recruitment, selection hiring, development promotion and incentive based pay.

Operations Management

Concentrates on strategic decisions surrounding the production and delivery of goods and services. Value-added activities that transform resources into product. Covers process analysis, quality, inventory control, capacity planning and location decisions.

Concentration Courses

These classes are only available online.

Corporate Finance

Corporate budgeting, working capital management and financial analysis. Corporate decision making regarding complex capital structures and how these decisions impact incentives of claimants.

Managerial Accounting and Analysis

Accounting information used in decision making. Why firms are adopting activity based costing, economic value-added and balanced scorecard decision models. Budgeting, cash flow and incremental analysis.

Managers and the Legal Environment

Understand the legal environment which impacts all businesses. Legal aspects of business relationships and business agreements. Forms of business organizations, duties of officers and directors, intellectual property, antitrust, contracts, employment relationships, criminal law and debtor-creditor relationships including bankruptcy.

Competitive Strategy

Evaluate principles that guide strategic decisions. Includes game theory and strategic moves, industry analysis, basic game theory and competitive interactions. Recognize barriers to brilliant decision making including biases and decision traps. Develop frameworks for scenario analysis and making sound decisions.

Capstone Experience

This experience is designed to integrate the knowledge and skills gained from the MBA program and apply them in a real world business environment. Students will learn how to use teamwork to solve authentic business challenges.

Length and Format

Students can choose from the following class formats:

  • Part-time (in the classroom), two years
  • Online, two years

Course Schedule

  • Part-time: Classes meet Wednesday evenings from 6:00 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. Students take one class at a time for eight-week terms.
  • Online: Students complete all coursework and discussions online. Students take one class at a time for eight-week terms.

Tuition

MBA courses are $690 per credit hour. Most courses are worth three credits. Thirty-nine credits are required to complete the MBA program. Payment is due at the start of each term. Financial aid is available.

Cohort Format

Our unique cohort system groups students together throughout their educational experience. You will complete the program one class at a time, in a predetermined sequence. This collaborative environment accelerates learning and builds strong peer relationships that last a lifetime. We also host occasional networking events for our MBAs, which allows them to interact with other cohorts and alumni.

Class Size

  • Average class size: 15
  • Maximum class size: 25 (15 online)

In the Classroom

We facilitate a close working relationship between students and faculty. Group work is often part of the curriculum, which helps prepare students to work collaboratively in the business world. Student discussion is encouraged as the MBAs learn from each other’s diverse backgrounds.

Project Work

At the end of the program, students will complete a capstone course. This class integrates the knowledge and skills gained from the MBA courses and applies them to a real business environment. Students will work as a team to solve an authentic business challenge.

On-campus Environment

  • Full-service library: Our staff is eager to help you find the resources you need.
  • Study areas: There are various places around campus for group meetings or studying.
  • Wifi: Classrooms and study areas are wifi accessible.
  • Information Technology Services: Our technology staff provides personal attention and prompt care for software, hardware and networking needs.
  • Print Services: Exists to serve students, faculty and staff with their printing and copying needs.
  • Gymnasium, tennis courts, running track and workout facilities: All students have access to on-campus workout facilities.
  • Restaurants: There is a full-service cafeteria available to students as well as a grab-n-go café.
  • Vibrant community: The River Forest and Oak Park area is a lively community filled with restaurants, retail stores, museums and other attractions.
  • Transportation: The Concordia-Chicago campus is accessible via the CTA’s green line train and is minutes from I-290.

Career possibilities for this concentration include:

  • Commercial Banker
  • Mortgage Banker
  • Risk Management Analyst
  • Bank Manager
  • Financial Adviser