MBA (Finance)

Total units required for MBA: 33

Program Description

The MBA is intended to improve the participant's capacity for effective decision making, to facilitate his/her professional growth and development for increasing managerial responsibility, and to broaden his/her knowledge and understanding of management. 

MBA Finance concentration provides an advanced understanding of financial theory and techniques, with many opportunities for hands-on experience with state of the art financial tools for analysis. Students earn managerial and technical expertise in areas such as investment, financial advising, banking, asset and portfolio management, security analysis, underwriting, real estate, and risk management. The design of the concentration allows students to pursue several areas of interest while gaining a broad understanding of the complex financial field.

Admission Requirements

All applicants for post-baccalaureate degree programs in Business must have earned a baccalaureate degree from a regionally accredited four-year institution of higher learning or the equivalent from a foreign institution. Admission requirements are different for each of the CBA Graduate Programs. The specific admission requirements for each degree program are listed within the program descriptions under “Admission Information” on the following pages. The College of Business Administration reserves the rights to revise its admissions standards and to limit enrollment in its graduate degree programs.

Applicants who are approved for admission will receive a letter from the Office of Graduate Studies informing them that they have been admitted as a conditionally or fully classified graduate student. 

The following represent minimum academic qualifications and admission criteria. As the College of Business Administration receives a large number of applications each cycle, it reserves the right to admit fewer applicants than those who meet the minimum criteria.

Title V of the California Educational Code requires that MBA candidates must have earned a minimum 2.5 cumulative GPA and an undergraduate degree from an accredited institution.

Unless a valid waiver is presented, applicants must also submit a valid admission test (GMAT or GRE) and/or English Language Proficiency exam scores.

Minimum Admission or Language Test Scores

GMAT: 30% overall, 30% verbal, 30% quantitative; Scores valid for 5 years from test date. Test must be taken by the application deadline. Students are able to apply with pending scores, but must submit an official score report to be considered for admission.

GRE (General Test): 30% verbal, 30% quantitative; Scores valid for 5 years from test date. Test must be taken by the application deadline. Students are able to apply with pending scores, but must submit an official score report to be considered for admission (use institution code of 4671 ONLY when requesting official score reports be sent to Sacramento State; do not use department code).

TOEFL: Paper-based: 550; Internet-based: 80 (International Students only).

IELTS: 7(International Students only).

Deadlines

See the CBA MBA Web site for current admission deadlines: https://www.csus.edu/college/business-administration/graduate/mba.html

Special Admission Process

Applicants not meeting all the admission criteria may be admitted to the program based on evidence of potential success in the program provided by the applicant. Such evidence may include, but is not limited to: the applicant’s maturity, motivation, employment history, managerial potential, letters of recommendation, personal statement, community activities, and other accomplishments that support the applicant’s potential to successfully complete the program. An applicant so considered and recommended for admission may be approved by the Graduate Dean or Dean’s designee.

Application Procedures

All prospective graduate students must file all of the following documents by the application deadline with both the CBA MBA Program Services and the Sacramento State Office of Graduate Studies (River Front Center 215) as noted below:

  1. To Sacramento State, Office of Graduate Studies:
    1. Online Cal State Apply Graduate Application and
    2. Application Fee (you can pay this when you are filling out your online application).
    3. Copies of official transcripts from all colleges and universities attended. Sacramento State current students or graduates: only submit transcripts not previously submitted to the university or from institutions attended after graduation. 
  2. To the College of Business Administration, MBA Program Services Office, the following are required for a complete application:
    1. The MBA Supplementary Application.
    2. Supplemental Application Materials. 
      1. Official GMAT or GRE scores;
      2. Current resume;
      3. 1-2 page statement of purpose;
      4. Two letters of recommendation.
    3. Copies of official transcripts. Please request 2 copies of official transcripts from all colleges and universities you have attended. Send transcripts to both the MBA Program Services office and the Office of Graduate Studies. Sacramento State current students or graduates: only submit transcripts not previously submitted to the university or from institutions attended after graduation. 

Note: Applications are not considered complete and will not be reviewed unless all application materials and transcripts have been received.

Application Submission

College of Business Administration
MBA Program Services 
Tahoe Hall, Room 1020
Sacramento State
6000 J Street
Sacramento, CA 95819-6088
Web site: https://www.csus.edu/college/business-administration/graduate/mba.html
Phone: (916) 278-4501
Email: mba@csus.edu

And to:
Office of Graduate Studies
Sacramento State
River Front Center, Room 215
6000 J Street
Sacramento, CA  95819-6112
Web site: https://www.csus.edu/graduate-studies/
Phone: (916) 278-6470
Email: grad_admissions@csus.edu

International Applicants

International students (F or J Visas) must apply through International Admissions. Do not fill out the general graduate studies application as it will slow down your application process. All materials, inclusive of TOEFL scores, must be turned in to the International Admissions Office. To ensure consideration, international students should submit their material, including GMAT/GRE and TOEFL test scores, to the International Admissions Office one month prior to the CBA MBA Program Services application filing deadline. For an application and details international students should visit The International Admissions Office Web site.

Prerequisites

Prior to enrolling in the Foundation courses, students must be proficient in mathematics, statistics, and computer usage:

  • Mathematics: at least one semester of calculus is strongly preferred;
  • Statistics: an introductory course in probability and statistics; and
  • Computer usage: ability to use common personal computer hardware and software, particularly word processing programs, spreadsheet programs, and internet browsers.

The faculty will assume that all MBA students have these proficiencies. A student may gain the necessary proficiencies in many ways: through coursework, review classes, self-study; or experience. No proficiency courses can count as credit towards program requirements.

Graduate Writing Assessment Requirement (GWAR)

The Graduate GWAR is a CSU wide requirement that should be completed by students before advancing to candidacy. The purpose of the GWAR is for students to demonstrate their proficiency at writing in an academic setting at a graduate-level. 

Graduate students must successfully pass a Graduate Writing Intensive (GWI) course in their Graduate Program to complete the requirement. 

Foundation Courses

The Foundation courses provide an academic background in the various disciplines of business. The MBA degree program is built upon this common background. Foundation courses should be taken after the student has attained the required entry proficiencies (prerequisites) and should be completed prior to taking program requirement courses. 

A student who has a baccalaureate degree or a minor in Business Administration from an AACSB-INTERNATIONAL accredited university may have completed all or most of the Foundation requirements. However, the student will be required to take certain Foundation courses if she/he:

  1. has not previously completed the comparable undergraduate course(s) for academic credit from an AACSB-INTERNATIONAL accredited institution or from a high quality program that has a "national or international reputation";
  2. has earned less than an overall 3.0 ("B") grade point average (GPA) in the comparable undergraduate courses presented for waiver of required courses;
  3. has received a "C" or lower grade in the comparable undergraduate course;
  4. cannot demonstrate currency in these courses (7 year limit); or
  5. has completed the bachelor's degree at a foreign institution.

Courses taken at AACSB-INTERNATIONAL accredited colleges of business will be accepted for transfer credit if the course is regarded as equivalent to the course for which credit is requested. Business Foundation courses and Core courses will not be accepted for transfer credit from programs that are not AACSB-INTERNATIONAL accredited unless taken at institutions that have national or international reputations of high quality programs.


Please visit the MBA Program website to download Foundation Course Waiver forms and petitions for equivalency for graduate, non-articulated courses. The CBA Academic Standards Committee will evaluate whether the institutions satisfy the requirement of "national or international reputations of high quality programs." Subsequently, faculty in the appropriate department will make the final determination for course equivalency, e.g., content, method of instruction, method of evaluating students, and/or course duration. To find out if your university is AACSB accredited go to www.AACSB.edu.

Master students who are registered in the last two Foundation courses must file an Application for Classification with the MBA Program Services at mps@csus.edu, to be able to enroll in the courses designated as Program Requirements. The student's academic status will be reviewed to assure that he/she meets the necessary criteria to be accepted as a classified graduate student.

A GPA of at least 3.0 ("B") is required in all Foundation courses taken at Sacramento State, and program requirement courses presented for the degree.

The foundation courses are available after acceptance into one of the CBA Graduate Programs.

Note: To be completed after the student has demonstrated the required entry proficiencies and must be completed prior to taking Program Requirements in any of the Master's programs.

A graduate student may request a challenge for waiver of a College of Business Administration foundation or core course if it at least one of the following conditions is met:

• The student has taken an equivalent class elsewhere, subject to the GPA requirement in CBA academic policy. For core classes, the equivalent class must be at the graduate level; for the foundation classes, the equivalent class can be taken at the undergraduate level.

• The student has achieved appropriate professional or academic qualification.

• The student has appropriate professional work experience.

It is the responsibility of a student to provide sufficient documentation to support a waiver challenge application.

ECON 204Business Economics3
MBA 201Accounting2
MBA 202Business Communication 2
This requirement will be waived for students who achieve a score of 4.5 or higher on the Analytical Writing Assessment (AWA) section of the GMAT or GRE exam.
MBA 203Legal Environment of Management2
MBA 206Managerial Statistics Analysis2
Total Units11

Minimum Units and Grade Requirement for the Degree

Units required for MBA: 33 (excluding foundation courses)

Minimum Cumulative GPA:  3.0.  The minimum acceptable grade for any graduate business course is “C.” No more than two (2) courses with a grade of “C” will be counted for satisfaction of graduate program requirements.

Advancement to Candidacy

A student's program requirements are governed by the catalog in effect at the time one is accepted into and begins graduate school or by the catalog in effect at the time advancement to candidacy is approved.

Prior to enrolling in Culminating Requirements, a student must advance to candidacy. Initiation of advancement procedures is the responsibility of the student. The application to advance must be filed no later than the semester prior to enrollment in culminating experience requirement.

Eligibility to advance to candidacy requires satisfactory scholastic achievement, presentation of a plan of graduate study, and demonstration of writing proficiency. A classified graduate student in Business Administration may apply to the MBA Program Services at mps@csus.edu for advancement to candidacy for the Master's degree after s/he has completed at least 12 units of the program requirements beyond the Foundation requirements. Students with a GPA deficiency or who have not fulfilled the Writing Placement for Graduate Students Requirement (WPG) cannot advance to candidacy.

Program Requirements

Required Courses (15 Units) 1
MBA 210Managerial Accounting3
MBA 220Financial Management3
MBA 230Behavior Science Applications in Management3
MBA 240Marketing Management 3
MBA 280Value Chain Integration3
Elective Group A (9 Units)
Select at least three of the following:9
MBA 221
Financial Markets
MBA 222
Security Analysis and Portfolio Management
MBA 223
Asset Valuation
MBA 224
Advanced Investment Strategies
MBA 251
Real Estate Finance and Investment
Any 200-level course approved by the MBA Finance advisor
Elective Group B (6 Units)
Select at most two MBA 200-level courses which are not in Group A6
Culminating Experience (Advancement to candidacy) (3 Units)
Select one of the following:3
MBA 501
Culminating Experience Project in Business and Strategy
MBA 500A
Thesis
MBA 500B
Project
Total Units33
1

A graduate student may request a challenge for waiver of a College of Business Administration foundation or core course if at least one of the following conditions is met:

  • The student has taken an equivalent class elsewhere, subject to the GPA requirement in CBA academic policy. For core classes, the equivalent class must be at the graduate level; for foundation classes, the equivalent class can be at the undergraduate level.
  • The student has achieved appropriate professional or academic qualification.
  • The student has appropriate professional work experience.

It is the responsibility of a student to provide sufficient documentation to support waiver challenge application. Academic credit for core courses is not earned by waiver. The requirement for completing a core course is waived, providing the student enrolls in and satisfactorily, completes an elective course in that discipline or an elective approved to the appropriate faculty advisor who grants the waiver.