Finance Master's Degree

Overview

Here's what to know about pursuing Finance specifically at the master's degree level: what this level actually prepares you to do in this field, how it fits with the field's real licensure and career structure, and what the concrete numbers (credits, time, and typical cost) look like — rather than marketing language from any single school. A master's degree is an advanced credential built on top of a bachelor's degree, either deepening expertise in the same field (an MS in Computer Science after a CS bachelor's) or adding a professional credential in a new direction (an MBA after an undergraduate degree in an unrelated field). Some fields require a master's degree for licensure or independent practice — nurse practitioners, licensed clinical social workers, and many school counselors, for example — while in other fields it is optional and primarily useful for advancement or specialization.

A master's degree in Finance builds on bachelor's-level preparation, typically adding specialization, management-track coursework, or a credential some more senior roles expect. It is generally optional in this field rather than required for entry-level work, and is most valuable for advancement, a career pivot within the field, or a specific specialization not covered at the bachelor's level.

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Is the master's degree the right level for you?

Graduates seeking a licensure-required credential their field mandates beyond the bachelor's; professionals seeking a specific specialization or management-track credential; and students pursuing academic or research careers on the way to a doctoral program. Compare this against the ladder overview on the main Finance programs page if you're not yet sure which level in this specific field fits your goals — the right entry point varies more by field than most general advice about "an associate vs. a bachelor's" acknowledges, and finance has its own specific answer described above.

Curriculum at this level

A master's degree in finance typically covers graduate-level, more advanced treatment of a subset of the topics below, building on undergraduate-level foundations most students already have, typically culminating in a thesis, applied capstone project, or comprehensive exam. Core topics commonly found across finance programs generally, adjusted in depth for this level, include:

• Corporate Finance
• Investment Analysis
• Financial Markets and Institutions
• Portfolio Management
• Risk Management
• Financial Modeling
• International Finance
• Capstone Case Studies

Ask any specific program at this level for its actual course list and sequencing, since the emphasis and depth of these topics — and how many of them a program actually offers at the master's degree level — varies by institution even when program titles look similar.

Accreditation to verify

For finance specifically, the field's primary programmatic accreditors to check are AACSB International and ACBSP. Programmatic accreditation standards can differ by degree level within the same field — some accreditors only accredit at the bachelor's level and above, for example — so confirm the accreditor you're checking actually covers the master's degree specifically, not just the institution's programs generally.

1. Search the accreditor's own program directory for the specific institution and program name.
2. Cross-check the institution's overall accreditation status in the U.S. Department of Education's Database of Accredited Postsecondary Institutions and Programs (ope.ed.gov/dapip).
3. Ask the program directly for its current accreditation status in writing if you can't find it published, and be wary if a program is vague or evasive about naming its accreditor.
4. Recheck accreditation status close to enrollment, since status can change between when you first research a program and when you actually enroll.

See our full accreditation guide for how institutional and programmatic accreditation work together, and why the distinction matters for financial aid eligibility as well as licensure.

Time, credits & cost

A master's degree typically requires 30-36 credits (some professional master's programs, including many MBA and nursing programs, require up to 50) and takes 1-3 years of full-time study, most commonly about 2 years. On cost: Highly variable by field and institution type; public in-state graduate tuition is generally lower than private, and many students fund graduate study in part through assistantships (common in research-focused fields) that include a tuition waiver and stipend.

Total cost for a Finance master's degree program depends far more on the specific institution and your residency status than on the field itself, but the same financial aid mechanics apply across every field on this site: the FAFSA determines eligibility for federal grants, loans, and work-study; institutional and state aid layer on top; and net price (not published tuition) is the number that actually matters for comparison. See our full financial aid guide for current federal figures, and our degree-level pages for typical credit-hour and cost ranges at each level. Where Finance master's degree has field-specific cost drivers — required lab fees, clinical supervision costs, licensing exam fees, or extended clinical/residency training — those are noted in the licensure section above.

Curious how this level stacks up? Here's how it compares to the other four in typical credits and duration:

Career outlook at this level

At the master's level, expect access to more specialized, senior, or management-track versions of the roles below, generally with higher earning potential than bachelor's-level entry, though a master's degree is not required for every role listed and its value depends heavily on the specific role and employer.

These national BLS figures (May 2024 wages; 2024-34 projections) describe the field as a whole, not this degree level specifically — the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics does not break out wage data by exact degree level for most occupations, so treat these as a field-wide reference point and adjust your expectations up or down based on where the master's degree sits in this field's real career ladder, as described above. See our careers page for how to find more granular, state- and metro-level wage data through BLS's OEWS program.

Licensure & certification

Licensure/certification pathway: Series 7/63/65 licenses (FINRA) for brokerage/advisory roles; CFA charter and CFP certification are common voluntary credentials.

A master's degree in Finance builds on bachelor's-level preparation, typically adding specialization, management-track coursework, or a credential some more senior roles expect. It is generally optional in this field rather than required for entry-level work, and is most valuable for advancement, a career pivot within the field, or a specific specialization not covered at the bachelor's level.

Typical admission requirements

A completed bachelor's degree (often, though not always, in a related field), a minimum undergraduate GPA (commonly around a 3.0, though this varies significantly by program), letters of recommendation, a statement of purpose, and sometimes standardized test scores (GRE or GMAT, program-dependent) or relevant professional work experience, particularly for professional master's programs.

These are general norms across institutions, not a guarantee for any specific program — always confirm current requirements directly with the admissions office of any school you're seriously considering, since requirements can change from one enrollment cycle to the next.

Format: online vs. on campus

Many Finance master's degree programs are now available online, in a hybrid format, or fully in person, and format flexibility has become one of the more consequential ways individual programs differ from one another. Fully online programs tend to suit working adults and students managing family or geographic constraints; in-person programs offer more direct access to labs, studios, or clinical facilities where the field requires them; hybrid formats attempt to combine both. This field does not typically require the kind of supervised clinical placement that limits online delivery at this level, though a specific program may still include an internship, practicum, or capstone with in-person or employer-site components. Whichever format you're considering, confirm institutional accreditation applies equally to the online version of the program (it generally does, since accreditation applies to the institution and program rather than the delivery method) and, if you live in a different state than the institution, confirm the program is authorized to enroll students from your state — see our locations guide for how state authorization (NC-SARA) works.

Other levels in Finance

Finance is offered at multiple degree levels, each playing a different role in this field (see "Is the master's degree the right level for you?" above). Explore the other levels:

Or return to the full Finance programs overview for the complete picture across all five levels, including the field's curriculum, accreditation, and career data in one place.

How to evaluate a specific master's degree program

1. Confirm institutional and (for this field) programmatic accreditation directly, using the steps above — and confirm it applies to the master's degree specifically.
2. Compare the actual course list against the curriculum guidance above, adjusted for this level's typical depth.
3. Check outcomes data specific to the program at this level — licensure pass rates where applicable, or graduate placement and continuing-education data.
4. Get a personalized net price using the school's net price calculator, not the published cost range above.
5. Confirm the admission requirements above against the specific program's current published requirements.
6. Use our comparison framework to weigh finalists side by side across accreditation, cost, curriculum, outcomes, and support.
7. If you're weighing this level against an adjacent one (for example, an associate vs. a bachelor's in this field), revisit the "Is this the right level for you" section above before comparing specific schools, since the two levels may lead to meaningfully different outcomes in this particular field.

You can also research finance master's degree programs by state through our state directory, which adds state-specific context like relevant licensing boards, regional public university systems, and state financial aid programs.

Frequently asked questions