In an interconnected economy, the most successful leaders understand how to navigate global markets. Our curriculum encourages you to take your finance education across borders, providing a firsthand look at multinational corporate finance and international financial markets.

Study Away Tailored for Finance: Working with the Rinker Center for Study Away, you can choose from semester-long immersions and short-term faculty-led programs that offer rigorous, credit-bearing business and finance coursework. Popular destinations for Business and Accounting students include:

• CIMBA Italy: An ideal location in the beautiful northern Italian community of Pieve del Grappa for studying business and the European Union’s economic environment, provided by the top-ranked University of Iowa Tippie College of Business.
• London, UK: Home to one of the world’s leading financial centers, students often pursue semester programs that include built-in internships at global firms.
• Asia-Pacific Programs: Exploring high-growth emerging markets and the logistical drivers of the global supply chain.
• Theory in Practice Whether you’re taking a course in International Finance while living in a global financial hub or completing a summer internship in a foreign market, you will return with a global perspective that distinguishes you in the domestic and international job markets.

The MayX Stock & Option Trading Challenge: Build Your Own Hands-on Trading Skills in the Real-Time Market!

Step into the high-stakes world of market navigation through our signature May Experience (MayX). This three-week, intensive tournament transforms the Joe & Diana Hurley Finance & Business Analytics Lab into a live trading floor. Leveraging the Bloomberg Terminal and a $1 million seed money simulation, student teams compete to maximize risk-adjusted returns in the real-time market. You will move beyond theory to perform deep-dives into fundamental, technical, and economic analysis while executing sophisticated strategies—including hedging with options and futures. With daily expert feedback following every trading session, this course-length tournament ensures you are “market-ready.”

Experiential Learning that Counts

We don’t just encourage internships; we integrate them. When you secure a finance internship, you can earn major elective credit through a structured program designed to help you set professional goals and reflect on your field experience. Furman continues to cultivate strategic partnerships with regional investment banks, private equity firms, financial advisors, and commercial banks in Charlotte—the nation’s second-largest financial center—as well as Greenville and Atlanta, ensuring our students maintain a competitive edge in the marketplace.

Networking & Recruitment Events

Your education is supported by a robust calendar of events designed to connect you with the professionals who shape the financial world.

• Investment Strategy Seminars: Gain exclusive insights through dedicated seminars on portfolio management, private equity, and global diversification. Held in partnership with the Furman Investment Office, these sessions provide direct opportunities to network with industry leaders.
• The Furman Alumni Pipeline: Build productive access to a powerful network of Furman alumni who are established industry leaders. Dedicated seminars and mentorship sessions—where alumni share high-level financial industry experience—serve as a direct bridge to early-career recruiting and professional guidance.
• Active Pitching & Security Analysis: Refine your pitch and expand your network with local and national investors, as well as our deep bench of Furman alumni. Through the Furman Investment Club, you will have multiple opportunities to present rigorous security, company, and market analyses to seasoned professionals and your peers. To bridge the gap between theory and practice, local investors and business leaders are frequently invited as guest speakers to provide real-time feedback and industry perspective.
• Recruitment & Market Navigation: Benefit from job fairs and market navigation sessions curated specifically for finance students. From introductory sessions on graduate programs to specialized recruiting pipelines, these opportunities ensure you are “interview-ready” for top-tier firms.

Choosing Your Path: Finance-Business vs. Finance-Economics

At Furman, two finance majors are offered. While both majors share a foundation in economics, accounting, and statistics, they diverge to meet different career ambitions.

The Finance-Business Path is housed in the Department of Business and Accounting. This program is designed for future leaders in financial institutions, corporations, professional services firms, and global markets. By integrating marketing, analytics, and strategy into core finance training, the curriculum offers a holistic view of the industry. You will master rigorous financial management and investment analysis through an applied, strategic lens—utilizing hands-on simulations and real-world executive decision-making to prepare for the complexities of the modern market.

The Finance-Economics Path is housed in the Department of Economics. The curriculum adds calculus, econometrics, and economic theory, building toward a research seminar. It’s built around quantitative and analytical depth.

Broad business perspective plus rigorous financial analysis? Start your journey here with Finance-Business. Deeper into the math and econometric modeling? Explore our Finance-Economics path.

Faculty with professional experience who help you meet your goals

The Business and Accounting faculty are more than just instructors—they are industry veterans and hands-on mentors who take your professional success personally. From leveraging their own networks in Charlotte, Greenville, and Atlanta to providing one-on-one interview coaching, our faculty work tirelessly to move your resume from the “pile” to the “shortlist.”

Verginia Gerde Professor: A former engineering consultant, Gerde brings extensive leadership experience from her military service, including a tour in Iraq and commanding a hospital, to the classroom. She currently serves as a reserve research officer at the U.S. Army War College.

Francis Kim Associate Professor: Before his academic career, Kim spent seven years in the banking sector trading foreign currencies, securities, and derivatives, and arranging international syndicated loans. He then served six years as a financial reform manager at the Korea Deposit Insurance Corporation. These combined thirteen years of banking and regulatory experience allow Kim to bring a deep, real-world perspective to the finance curriculum.

Marion McHugh, Associate Professor: Prior to his academic career, McHugh gained significant corporate experience at Deloitte and IBM. He leverages this background in global accounting and technology to provide students with a direct link between theory and industry practice.

Sandy Roberson, Professor: Prior to Furman, Roberson spent nine years in the Ernst & Young assurance practice, leaving the firm as a Senior Manager. She spent eight years with Advantica Restaurant Group and was the Assistant Controller when she left to join the faculty at Furman.  These experiences allow Roberson to bring significant corporate accounting and financial reporting expertise to the classroom.

Tom Smythe Visiting Professor: Smythe served four years as an Army Engineer Officer and nearly seven years as a systems and business analyst at Mobil Oil. He leverages this frontline corporate and leadership experience to teach banking, corporate finance, and capital markets.

Steven Stewart, Associate Professor: Stewart leverages leadership experience from NCR, S.C. Johnson, and Walmart. A former business owner and current startup advisor, he brings a practical, entrepreneurial perspective to his management and entrepreneurship courses.

Jeanine Stratton, Associate Professor: Stratton integrates years of management and marketing consulting across the retail, healthcare, and banking sectors. She leverages this practitioner background to teach behavioral approaches to organizational performance and marketing.