Corporate FA

I am seeking to become a corporate financial analyst. should study business economics or finance? I attend the University of Georgia.

 Is finance the preferred degree for <span class='keyword_link'><a href="/resources/careers/jobs/financial-analyst-job-description">corporate financial analyst jobs</a></span> or is a business economics and a finance degree held to the same level

Note: A finance degree would mean more time at the University of Georgia plus more debt.

4 Comments
 

Yes Finance is the preferred degree. You can maybe get away with Accounting. Way farther down the totem pole is Business Economics. It is doable but a lot harder, it is likely you need relevant internships to even be considered.

 

I take practically the same amount of finance related courses but I skip generic business courses such as career writing and such. Its also in the business school so I would have access to the career resources there. Plus I have looked at posts for recent job openings and a lot of employers are asking for finance, accounting, economics/related degrees.

Would it be a uphill battle to find employment as a corporate financial analyst ? I don't want to waste my time with a degree program that will not get me where I want to be.
 
Best Response

As Someone who majored in both Finance and Business Economics and works in corp fin, I can say that both are useful, with business economics being more interesting/intellectually stimulating imo. I think you could get by with being a Business Econ major with an accounting minor (to give you the debits/credits/cost accounting side of things) if possible. The reason being, If you can understand the models in business econ (Econometrics, game theory, etc.) then financial models will be a piece of cake, and the accounting minor would let companies know you understand that side of things.

 

Vel dolores voluptas accusantium sint. Et labore similique occaecati. Aut nulla recusandae voluptatem laboriosam. Deleniti nisi et voluptatem repudiandae necessitatibus quia. Molestiae pariatur consequatur ut sit.

Career Advancement Opportunities

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 98.9%
  • Evercore 01 98.3%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.7%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 98.3%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.7%
  • JPMorgan 01 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (15) $434
  • Associates (46) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (79) $150
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (73) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
3
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
4
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
5
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
6
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
7
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
8
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
9
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
10
bolo up's picture
bolo up
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”