Finance Degree Requirements

• 1 economics course (microeconomics or managerial economics only)
• 1 finance course (principles or managerial finance only)
• 1 statistics course
• 1 accounting course (financial or managerial accounting only)
• 1 financial statement analysis course
• 1 investment theory course
• 1 corporate finance course
• 1 business valuation course
• 1 applied active learning elective (see on-campus experience)
• 3 finance electives
  • EXPO 34 Business Rhetoric is an elective option.

Learn how to search and register for courses.

You can choose to concentrate your degree studies in a specific topic within finance to earn a certificate along the way.

Graduate Certificates:

• Business Economics
• Corporate Finance
• Data Analytics
• Principles of Finance
• Real Estate Investment

To meet the on-campus requirement, you choose the Standard on-campus option and study with us in the summer. You can easily request an I-20 for the F-1 student visa for a Harvard Summer School 3-week session. For more information, see International Student Study Options page.

Come to Cambridge for Convocation (fall) to celebrate your hard-earned admission, Harvard career fairs offered throughout the year, HES alumni networking events (here at Harvard and around the world), and, of course, Harvard University Commencement (May).

• Prior to enrolling in any degree-applicable courses, you must possess a 4-year regionally accredited US bachelor’s degree or its foreign equivalent. Foreign bachelor’s degrees must be evaluated for equivalency.
• If English is your second language, you’ll need to prove English proficiency before registering for a course. We have multiple proficiency options.

To begin the admission process, you simply register — no application required — for the following three, four-credit, graduate-level degree courses (available online).

These prerequisite courses count toward your degree once you’re admitted; they are not additional courses. They are investments in your studies and help ensure success in the program.

• 1 economics course (microeconomics or managerial economics)
  • Before registering, you’ll need to pass our online test of critical reading and writing skills or complete EXPO 34 Business Rhetoric with a grade of B or higher.
• 1 finance course (principles or managerial finance)
• 1 statistics course

The three courses don’t need to be taken in a particular order or in the same semester, but each course must be completed with a grade of B or higher, without letting your overall Harvard cumulative GPA dip below 3.0.

Learn how to search and register for courses.

During the semester of your third degree course, submit the official application to the program.

Don’t delay! You must prioritize the three degree courses for admission and apply before completing subsequent courses. By doing so, you’ll:

• Avoid the loss of credit due to expired course work or changes to admission and degree requirements.
• Ensure your enrollment in critical and timely degree-candidate-only courses.
• Avoid the delayed application fee.
• Gain access to exclusive benefits.

Eligible students who submit a complete and timely application will have nine more courses after admission to earn the degree. Applicants can register for courses in the upcoming semester before they receive their grades and while they await their admission decision.

Prospective ALM students can expect acceptance into the program by meeting all the eligibility and academic requirements detailed on this page, submitting a complete application, and having no academic standing or conduct concerns.

We offer two alternative pathways to admission:

MITx MicroMasters® Credential Admissions Pathway

If you have earned the MicroMasters® Program credential in Statistics and Data Science, you may apply the credential toward admission and complete one additional course at the Harvard Extension School. Learn more about the MicroMasters Pathway.

HBS Online CORe Admissions Pathway

Through the Credential of Readiness (CORe) pathway, you may prepare for admission to the Finance Degree Program by earning the CORe credential from Harvard Business School Online and then completing one degree course at Harvard Extension School. Learn more about the CORe Admissions Pathway.

GPA. You need to earn a B or higher in each of the three degree courses required for admission and a B– or higher in each of the subsequent courses. In addition, your cumulative GPA cannot dip below 3.0.

Withdrawal Grades. You are allowed to receive two withdrawal (WD) grades without them affecting your GPA. Any additional WD grades count as zero in your cumulative GPA. Please note that a WD grade from a 2-credit course will count as one of your two allowed WD grades. See Academic Standing.

Repeat Courses. We advise you to review the ALM program’s strict policies about repeating courses. Generally speaking, you may not repeat a course to improve your GPA or to fulfill a degree requirement (if the minimum grade was not initially achieved). Nor can you repeat a course for graduate credit that you’ve previously completed at Harvard Extension School or Harvard Summer School at the undergraduate level.

HBS Online CORe

GPA. You need to earn a passing grade in CORe and a B or higher grade in the economics course, without letting your overall Harvard cumulative GPA dip below 3.0.

HBS CORe does not count for credit toward the degree (even the credit version) and does not replace the required finance (principles of or managerial finance) or statistics requirements, which you’ll need to complete once admitted with grades of B or higher.

For the accounting requirement, you’ll need to register for the non-CORe version of the Financial Accounting Principles course or choose Managerial Accounting.

MITx MicroMasters®

GPA. You need to earn a B or higher in the economics and finance requirements and a B– or higher in all other courses. In addition, your cumulative GPA cannot dip below 3.0.

Withdrawal Grades. You are allowed to receive one withdrawal (WD) grade without it affecting your GPA. Any additional WD grades count as zero in your cumulative GPA. See Academic Standing.

Repeat Courses. We advise you to review the ALM program’s strict policies about repeating courses. Generally speaking, you may not repeat a course to improve your GPA or to fulfill a degree requirement (if the minimum grade was not initially achieved). Nor can you repeat a course for graduate credit that you’ve previously completed at Harvard Extension School or Harvard Summer School at the undergraduate level.

Courses over five years old at the point of admission will not count toward the degree.

Further, you have five years to complete your degree requirements. The five-year timeline begins at the end of the term in which you complete any three degree-applicable courses, regardless of whether or not you have been admitted to a degree program.

If you are admitted using the MIT MicroMasters® pathway, your five-year timeline begins at the end of the term in which you complete any one degree-applicable course, whether or not you have been admitted to the degree program.

If you are admitted using CORe, you have six years to complete your degree requirements. The six-year timeline begins at the end of the term in which you complete any one degree-applicable course, whether or not you have been admitted to the degree program.

Potential degree candidates must plan accordingly and submit their applications to comply with the five-year course expiration policy or they risk losing degree credit for completed course work. Additionally, admission eligibility will be jeopardized if, at the point of application to the program, the degree completion policy cannot be satisfied (i.e., too many courses to complete in the time remaining).

When you have fulfilled all degree requirements, you will earn your Harvard University degree: Master of Liberal Arts (ALM) in Extension Studies, Field: Finance. Degrees are awarded in November, February, and May, with the annual Harvard Commencement ceremony in May.

When you become an officially admitted degree candidate, you have access to a rich variety of exclusive benefits to support your academic journey. To learn more, visit degree candidate academic opportunities and privileges.