About Us

The mission of the Department of Finance is to educate our students, at the undergraduate and graduate levels, to serve their organizations and society in the Jesuit tradition.

We do that by teaching the concepts and tools necessary to understand the role of finance within organizations and society. We also do that by teaching our students to act in ways that enhance the value of the resources available to organizations and society.

We take pride in combining financial theory with financial practice. We contribute to the practice of finance in the US and abroad through our scholarship and work with practitioners and we share that knowledge with our students.

We nurture a unique relationship with Silicon Valley companies. Executives of Silicon Valley companies, as well venture capitalists and other members of the Silicon Valley community, participate regularly in our courses. We also offer an internship program that enables students to gain experience through work in Silicon Valley companies.

We have special expertise in behavioral finance, where we seek to improve the behavior of managers and investors who are subject to cognitive biases and emotions, in financial engineering, where we design financial structures and instruments, such as derivatives, that enhance the value of enterprises and the efficiency of markets, in new ventures, where we seek better ways to bring business ideas to life, and in corporate governance and valuation, where we seek to find structures that would direct managers to enhance the value of their enterprises.