Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin - Finance Group

Studying Finance @ Humboldt

Finance is a subfield of economics which examines the "financial system" as a system which affects the allocation of economic resources in uncertain environments. Core research questions concern the financial decision making of individuals, firms, and financial intermediaries, the functioning of financial markets, and the pricing of assets such as bonds, stocks, currencies, commodities, and derivative securities. Financial decisions include investment, financing, and risk management decisions. Finance also studies the governance structures of firms and how managers are or should be compensated.

The School of Business and Economics offers a broad spectrum of finance and finance-related courses at the Bachelor, Master, and Ph.D. levels. By taking these courses, students can receive a broad and in-depth education in finance, which prepares them for careers in banking, asset management, corporate treasury, and business consulting.

Finance is the most quantitative of business majors. Students specializing in finance will benefit from sound knowledge of mathematics, statistics, and econometrics. For students interested in writing a Bachelor or Master thesis in Finance, it is important to know how to handle and analyze financial data.

The following list shows all finance and finance-related courses offered by the Finance Group and other chairs at the School of Business and Economics. In addition to the courses stated on this list, there are seminars for students who want to write bachelor or master theses.
Bachelor  

Introductory courses:

  • Grundlagen der Finanzwirtschaft I
  • Grundlagen der Finanzwirtschaft II
  • Financial Economics for Citizens
  • Valuation (Accounting)

Advanced courses:

  • Financial Intermediation
  • Financial Markets
  • Behavioral Finance and Asset Pricing
  • Financial Derivatives

Empirical & quantitative courses:
  • Empirical Research in Finance
  • Angewandte Kausalanalyse (Empirical Labor Economics)
  • Datenanalyse I & II (Statistics)
  • Tabellenkalkulation mit MS Excel (Career Center)
  • Datenanalyse mit STATA - Erlernen und Anwenden
Master  

Introductory courses:

  • Finance Theory
  • Financial Accounting and Analysis (Accounting)
  • Theory of Incentives (Micro)

Advanced courses:

  • Advanced Corporate Finance
  • Case Seminar Advanced Corporate Finance
  • Corporate Restructuring
  • Financial Derivatives
  • Entrepreneurial Finance and Venture Capital
Ph.D.  
  • Advanced Financial Economics
  • Research Topics in Finance I
  • Research Topics in Finance II
  • Finance Research Seminar
  • Finance Reading Group
  • Finance Brownbag Seminar
  • Empirical Accounting Reading Group (Accounting)
  • Empirical Methods in Accounting and Finance (Accounting)
   

To collect credits for the "Überfachlicher Wahlpflichtbereich (ÜWP)" we recommend the Portfolio Management Programm (PMP).


Expected Future Course Offerings

The following table lists the expected course offerings of the Finance Group over the next three semesters. There is no guarantee that these courses will be offered as expected. To obtain information about actual course offerings, please turn to the most recent "Vorlesungsverzeichnis".

 

 

Summer Term 2025

Winter Term 2025/2026

Summer Term 2026
       
Bachelor      
Grundlagen der Finanzwirtschaft I X    
Grundlagen der Finanzwirtschaft II      
Financial Economics for Citizens      
Financial Markets      
Financial Derivatives      
Financial Intermediation X    
Behavioral Finance and Asset Pricing X    
Empirical Research in Finance X    
Bachelor Thesis Seminar dt. X    
Bachelor Thesis Seminar engl. X    
       
Master      
Finance Theory      
Advanced Corporate Finance X    
Case Seminar Advanced Corporate Finance      
Corporate Restructurings X    
Financial Derivatives      
Entrepreneurial Finance and Venture Capital      
Master Thesis Seminar in
Financial Economics		      
Master Thesis Seminar in
Corporate Finance		      
Master Thesis Seminar in
Finance		 X    
       
PhD      
Advanced Financial Economics X    
Research Topics in Finance I      
Research Topics in Finance II X    
Finance Brownbag Seminar X    
Finance Research Seminar X    
Finance Reading Group      
       

° to be determined

For more detailed information on course sequencing and course contents, students of the School of Business and Economics should visit the following pages: Bachelor, Master, and Ph.D.

 

Visiting Students

In courses without space constraints, we accept a limited number of visiting students (Nebenhörer) from other universities. Decisions on places are made at the beginning of the semester in question, once we can judge demand for the course. Interested students should submit an application to Miriam Petzold (miriam.petzold@hu-berlin.de).

The application must contain the registration form, matriculation certificate and proofs that prerequisite requirements (if any) are satisfied. For more information, please visit the Guest students HU website.