The Certified Financial Planner (CFP) track focuses on working directly with individuals, helping them to plan for and meet their short- and long-term financial goals. Students must learn to fully understand the client’s financial situation as well as financial laws and legal documents. Investment types commonly dealt with include investments and security planning, estate planning, tax planning, employee benefits planning, and insurance planning.
CAREER OPPORTUNITIES
The demand for qualified personal financial planners is growing rapidly. This demand is due in part to the many Americans who are reaching retirement age in need of personal financial planning expertise. A good financial planner understands investments, taxes, estate planning issues, and how to talk and listen to people. They work in financial services, banks, wealth management companies and independently as entrepreneurs in the field. YSU students who have successfully completed all requirements of BS in Finance CFP Track satisfy the education coursework requirement of the CFP Board and are eligible to sit for The CFP® Certification Examination.
All business majors are strongly encouraged to complete internships. Internships are career-related work experiences that enable students to apply their knowledge and skills in an organizational setting. In the WCBA, internships that are approved for academic credit must be paid. Completing a career-related internship increases a student's job opportunities upon graduation.
STUDENT EXPERIENCES
Finance students at Youngstown State University have the opportunity to build their knowledge and leadership skills through a variety of WCBA student organizations, including the Student Investment Fund.
| COURSE | TITLE | S.H. |
|---|---|---|
| GENERAL EDUCATION | ||
| ENGL 1550 | Writing 1 | 3 |
| ENGL 1551 | Writing 2 | 3 |
| PHIL 2628 | Business Ethics | 3 |
| CMST 1545 | Communication Foundations | 3 |
| GE: Arts & Humanities | 3 | |
| GE: Natural Sciences Onescience course must include a lab | 7 | |
| GE: Social & Personal Awareness | 6 | |
| BUSINESS TOOL COURSES | ||
| Business Tool courses must be completed with the grade of a "C" or higher and cannot be taken credit/no credit. | ||
| BUS 1500 | Exploring Business | 3 |
| MATH 1552 | Applied Mathematics for Management | 4 |
| ECON 2610 | Principles 1: Microeconomics | 3 |
| ECON 2630 | Principles 2: Macroeconomics | 3 |
| MGT 2604 | Legal Environment of Business 1 | 3 |
| ACCT 2602 | Financial Accounting | 3 |
| ACCT 2603 | Managerial Accounting | 3 |
| ACCT 2603L | Managerial Accounting Spreadsheet Lab | 1 |
| ENGL 3742 | Business Writing | 3 |
| ECON 3790 | Statistics for Business and Economics | 5 |
| BUSINESS CORE COURSES | ||
| To enroll in upper level business courses a student must be successfully completed with ENGL 1550, ENGL 1551, PHIL 2628, CMST 1545, ALL Business Tool courses and have a minimum 2.5 overall GPA. | ||
| Upper level business courses must be completed with the grade of a "C" or higher and cannot be taken credit/no credit. | ||
| BUS 3715 | Principles of International Business | 3 |
| FIN 3720 | Business Finance | 3 |
| MKTG 3702 | Business Professionalism | 1 |
| MKTG 3703 | Marketing Concepts and Practice | 3 |
| MGT 3725 | Fundamentals of Management | 3 |
| MGT 3761 | Management Information Systems | 3 |
| MGT 3789 | Operations Management | 3 |
| MGT 4850 | Strategic Management and Leadership | 3 |
| CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNING REQUIRED COURSES | ||
| FIN 3715 | Planning Your Financial Future | 3 |
| FIN 3726 | Insurance Planning | 3 |
| FIN 3730 | Investment Planning | 4 |
| FIN 4833 | Retirement Plans & Employee Benefits | 4 |
| FIN 4838 | Financial Plan Development | 4 |
| ACCT 4813 | Federal Taxation 1 | 4 |
| ACCT 4815 | Estate Planning | 3 |
| FINANCE UPPER LEVEL COURSE | 4 | |
| Select 4 SH of upper level Finance courses not included in major. | ||
| BUSINESS UPPER LEVEL COURSES | 12 | |
| Select 12 SH of upper level business courses (ACCT, ADV, BUS, ENT, FIN MGT, MKTG). Students should consider at least one internship for credit. | ||
| Total Semester Hours | 122 | |
| Year 1 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fall | S.H. | |
| ENGL 1550 | Writing 1 | 3 |
| BUS 1500 | Exploring Business | 3 |
| MATH 1552 | Applied Mathematics for Management | 4 |
| ECON 2610 | Principles 1: Microeconomics | 3 |
| GE: Social & Personal Awareness | 3 | |
| Semester Hours | 16 | |
| Spring | ||
| ENGL 1551 | Writing 2 | 3 |
| ECON 2630 | Principles 2: Macroeconomics | 3 |
| MGT 2604 | Legal Environment of Business 1 | 3 |
| GE: Natural Science | 3 | |
| GE: Arts & Humanities | 3 | |
| Semester Hours | 15 | |
| Year 2 | ||
| Fall | ||
| ACCT 2602 | Financial Accounting | 3 |
| CMST 1545 | Communication Foundations | 3 |
| ENGL 3742 | Business Writing | 3 |
| GE: Social & Personal Awareness | 3 | |
| GE: Lab Science | 4 | |
| Semester Hours | 16 | |
| Spring | ||
| ACCT 2603 & 2603L | Managerial Accounting and Managerial Accounting Spreadsheet Lab | 4 |
| ECON 3790 | Statistics for Business and Economics | 5 |
| PHIL 2628 | Business Ethics | 3 |
| MKTG 3702 | Business Professionalism | 1 |
| Semester Hours | 13 | |
| Year 3 | ||
| Fall | ||
| FIN 3715 | Planning Your Financial Future | 3 |
| FIN 3720 | Business Finance | 3 |
| MKTG 3703 | Marketing Concepts and Practice | 3 |
| MGT 3725 | Fundamentals of Management | 3 |
| Upper Level Business Course | 3 | |
| Semester Hours | 15 | |
| Spring | ||
| FIN 3726 | Insurance Planning (spring term only) | 3 |
| FIN 3730 | Investment Planning | 4 |
| MGT 3761 | Management Information Systems | 3 |
| BUS 3715 | Principles of International Business | 3 |
| ACCT 4813 | Federal Taxation 1 | 4 |
| Semester Hours | 17 | |
| Year 4 | ||
| Fall | ||
| ACCT 4815 | Estate Planning (fall term only) | 3 |
| FIN 4833 | Retirement Plans & Employee Benefits (fall term only) | 4 |
| Upper Level Finance Course | 4 | |
| Upper Level Business Course | 3 | |
| Semester Hours | 14 | |
| Spring | ||
| FIN 4838 | Financial Plan Development (spring term only) | 4 |
| MGT 4850 | Strategic Management and Leadership | 3 |
| MGT 3789 | Operations Management | 3 |
| Upper Level Business Course (internship recommended) | 3 | |
| Upper Level Business Course | 3 | |
| Semester Hours | 16 | |
| Total Semester Hours | 122 | |
ENGL 1550, ENGL 1551, Business Tool and upper level business courses (ACCT, ADV, BUS, ENT, FIN, MGT, MKTG) must be completed with the grade of a "C" or higher and cannot be taken credit/no credit.
To enroll in upper level Business courses students must have successfully completed ENGL 1550, ENGL 1551, PHIL 2628, CMST 1545, all Business Tool courses AND have a minimum 2.5 overall GPA.
Learning Outcomes
The student learning outcomes for majors within the Lariccia School of Accounting and Finance are as follows:
- Students will be able to identify, formulate, and solve discipline-specific problems within the context of business, ethical, and societal constraints;
- Students will learn to function and communicate (in writing and orally) both individually and within multidisciplinary teams;
- Students will develop enhanced technology skills by being exposed to assignments requiring advanced computer/spreadsheet knowledge, expanded presentation activity (e.g. PowerPoint in the oral-intensive courses), and required analysis of financial statements;
- Students will be given opportunities to work with and be exposed to the business community and professionals through internship opportunities, student organizations, and social functions;
- Students will obtain an understanding of professional and ethical responsibilities and a recognition of and an appreciation for the need to engage in life-long learning.