In the last decade, the academic study of finance has experienced an infusion of new concepts and quantitative methodologies that place it among the most sophisticated and growing areas of business and economics. This has led to extensive joint teaching and research between the finance, applied economics, and accounting faculties at Berkeley. Academic contributions are having profound effects on financial practice. A Haas Ph.D. student interested in finance needs a strong course background in mathematics, statistics, and economics.
Students also attend frequent seminars to gain exposure to ongoing research.
Guest speakers are featured from other universities throughout the world. The finance group sponsors the Berkeley Program in Finance, which holds two conferences a year on current topics for finance academics and practitioners. These provide a forum for doctoral students to assess the relevance of academic research in their field of business practice. Because of the many similarities between the research areas of finance and accounting, prospective finance applicants are encouraged to consider applying to the accounting program if research in that field is found to be more closely related to the applicant's research interests. The curriculum plan given below shows a normal program for a business administration doctoral student in finance.