Transcripts

Applicants must have earned a bachelor's degree from an accredited U.S. or international institution. Three-year degrees that are equivalent to a U.S. bachelor's degree will be considered for admission.

Unofficial transcripts from all post-secondary institutions attended are required (including transfer credit, study abroad, post-graduate work, etc.) Applicants whose transcripts are not in English must provide both original language and English-translated transcripts. Official transcripts are required from each institution only if you accept an offer of admission.

GMAT or GRE Score
A GMAT or GRE score is required for this program. GMAT and GRE scores are valid for up to five years.

The Brandeis IBS GRE code is 3122.

The Brandeis IBS GMAT code for this program is 3FD-QK-07

An unofficial test score should be submitted as part of the online application. Official test scores are required if you accept an offer of admission.

TOEFL, IELTS or PTE Score

Applicants must submit a TOEFL, IELTS or PTE Academic score  unless they meet either of the following conditions:

Will complete or have completed a bachelor's degree (equivalent to at least three years of study by the program start) in one of the countries listed below.

TOEFL, IELTS and PTE scores are valid for up to two years.

The Brandeis IBS TOEFL code is 3122.

A TOEFL (internet-based) score of 100, TOEFL (paper-based) score of 600, IELTS score of 7.0 or PTE Academic score of 68 is required for admission.

An unofficial test score should be submitted as part of the online application. Official test scores are required if you accept an offer of admission.

Resume and Work Experience
A current resume detailing educational and employment history is required. This program does not require work experience.

We also require a detailed employment history as part of the online application so that we may fully understand your previous and current roles and assess your career progression. Candidates with little or no full-time work experience should include internships in the employment history section of the online application.

Essay

One written essay is required as part of the online application.

The written essay question is as follows:

How will a degree in finance help you achieve your short-term and long-term goals in this field? (500-1000 words)

If necessary, you may submit a second, optional essay with additional information that you would like the Admissions Committee to consider as part of your application. You should use this space to discuss gaps in your employment, academic issues (probation, dismissal, failing grades, GMAT or GRE performance, etc.) (500-1000 words)

Video Essay

Applicants must submit a brief video responding to three questions posed by the Brandeis IBS community, as well as a written response to a fourth question. The video essay is a great way for the admissions committee to learn a little bit more about you. You will be prompted to complete the video essay once you have submitted your application.

Prerequisites

The following prerequisites must be completed prior to beginning the MSF program. These courses must be taken at an accredited 3- or 4-year, not-for-profit college or university. Courses to satisfy the prerequisites may be taken online. Courses taken at other educational institutions will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.

Students must earn a grade of “B” or better in order to meet the requirement. Each course must be at least at least 3 credits or the equivalent of a full semester course.

Financial Management

Students should have completed an introductory course in Finance that covers projected financial statements, the time value of money, capital budgeting, financial leverage, security valuation, risk/return, working capital management, and international finance. The course should also cover basic financial statistical analysis.

The Financial Management prerequisite can also be met by passing CFA Level 1.

Statistics

Students should have completed a basic course focusing on the analytical tools of statistics that are applicable to management practice. The course should include descriptive statistics and probability. In addition to basic concepts of estimation and hypothesis testing, the course should include coverage of topics such as analysis of variance, regression, probability, hypothesis testing, Z-scores, P-values, the standard normal distribution, OLS regression, t-statistics, and Chi-square distributions.

Recommendations
Two recommendations are required for this program. One recommendation should come from a professional contact and one recommendation should come from an academic contact. You will be asked to provide your recommenders' contact information as part of the online application. Use your recommender's institutional or corporate email address. Submissions from anonymous email addresses (Gmail, Hotmail, Yahoo) may be subject to additional review. An email with instructions on submitting the online recommendation will be sent to your recommenders. Only online recommendations will be accepted, and recommendation letters must be submitted on the recommender's organization letterhead.

Interview
Interviews are available by invitation only, but we encourage prospective students to visit our campus at any time during the admissions process.

Application Fee

A $100 non-refundable application fee payable by credit/debit card is required of all applicants.