I wrote about the University of San Diego Masters in Finance program a while ago and decided to check out the program and noticed a lot had changed in the well over a year (most likely longer) since I wrote about it. Well that simply wont do as I have been getting asked a lot about West Coast MSF programs and San Diego is one of the nicest cities in California. Update is below. Enjoy!
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Program Overview
The program was originally 12 months when I first wrote about it. Now it is a 10 month program that is designed to prepare students for the first two levels of the CFA. Students take 32 classes over two semesters. I am not sure if you can pick your classes, but from the looks of the sample schedule, it seems as if there are a number of classes to choose from. This is a full time, day program as well, so keep that in mind.
The GMAT can also be waived if you have a 3.5 GPA in a related business field (or STEM). Pretty nice for those who are looking to avoid the time and cost of studying for the GMAT. Merit based scholarships are also offered.
Tuition is $50,080. Admissions are rolling with the next two deadlines being March 1st and May 1st.
Class Profile
This is a little dates (it is the 2018 class), but should give you a good idea of what the application pool looks like.
- Average GPA – 3.09
- Average GMAT – 587
- International Students – 42%
It looks like this program pulls students from all the California state schools as well as elsewhere. Finance was the predominant undergraduate major, but students came from accounting, economics, math and social sciences. About half the class also has post undergraduate work experience.
STEM Certified
This program is now STEM Certified, which is now effectively the industry standard. I honestly don’t know why a MSF program would not go for this at this point as any program that isn’t STEM is at a disadvantage. Luckily, this isn’t a problem the San Diego MSF program needs to worry about.
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In summary, a lot of changes going on with this program and I think they all are really good. GMAT optionality, preparation for the CFA, being STEM certified, and a 10 month program are things that students look for. For more info on program, check out the link below.
Here is a link to the University of San Diego Masters in Finance Program
