Two Applied Programs in Finance Attract National Attention

The University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Business has the distinction of offering two applied graduate programs focusing on different aspects of finance.

One is a pioneer and leader in the field of applied security analysis, whose students currently manage more than $12 million in equities, REITs and fixed-income assets. The other, which focuses on applied corporate finance, is gaining increased national prominence for offering students practical experience working on corporate finance consulting projects with leading firms, including 3M, Procter & Gamble and UBS Warburg.

The program in applied security analysis, now coordinated by the Stephen A. Hawk Center for Applied Security Analysis, was founded in 1970. Fortune magazine has lauded the Applied Security Analysis Program for producing “an extraordinary number of high-profile, successful fund managers and financial analysts.” The program has trained more than 450 graduates, many who have gone on to become worldwide leaders in money management and are employed at investment firms, banks and pension funds throughout the world. Its students have the unique educational experience of learning the investment business through hand-on management of multi-million dollar real portfolios. Students work with an advisory board composed of investment professionals who serve as the client for students. Students formally present their portfolio performance, investment strategy and economic forecasts to the client three times each year. All investing decisions are in the hands of the students as portfolio managers. 

The Nicholas Center for Applied Corporate Finance was endowed in 2003 with more than $8.4 million in gifts. It is the first and only applied program that focuses exclusively on practical training in the field of corporate finance ( see related story). Its MBA students work on real-world projects for consulting firms, investment banks, public corporations and private companies. The advisory board for the program includes executives from leading investment firms and other major corporations, including Lehman Brothers, Citigroup, 3M, Qualcomm, Medtronic and Procter & Gamble.

Tom Tefft, vice president of finance, Cardiac Rhythm Management, Medtronic, Inc., sponsored a project with applied corporate finance students. “I was very impressed with the comprehensive nature of the research and analysis performed and the professionalism of the students’ presentation at the end of the project.”