CFA® Program: Finance majors
Advising one-pager · BBA in Finance, 2026-27 catalog · Gatton College, September 2026
Download the printable PDF Updated 2026-09-29
What it is
The professional credential for investment management, the work of research analysts and portfolio managers at funds, pensions, and other institutions: three sequential exams (Level I tools and ethics, II asset valuation, III portfolio management), roughly 300 hours of study each, plus 4,000 hours of work experience. Pass rates are typically below half at each level. It is a strong credential for careers in equity and credit research, portfolio and asset management, and institutional investing. For students headed to wealth management or financial planning, the CFP certificate is the better fit.
Timing
Undergraduates can sit for Level I in an exam window up to 23 months before their graduation month. For a Finance major the realistic window is senior year, once most of the courses below are done.
How the Finance plan maps
The CFA has no required coursework, so every course here is a recommendation. The major already covers MGT 340 (ethics), ECO 391 and FIN 300 (quantitative methods), FIN 300 and FIN 405 (corporate issuers), and FIN 410 (equity).
| CFA topic | Recommended course | How it counts |
|---|---|---|
| Fixed income | FIN 475 ✓ Fixed Income Securities | FIN 400-level slot |
| Derivatives | FIN 452 ✓ Options and Futures | FIN 400-level slot |
| Portfolio management | FIN 485 ✓ Applied Investment Analysis and Portfolio Management | FIN 400-level slot (department consent) |
| Financial statement analysis | ACC 475 ✓ Financial Statement Analysis | the major’s choose-one |
| Corporate issuers, equity | FIN 440 Business Valuation | free elective |
| Valuation and modeling | FIN 430 Financial Modeling | free elective |
| Alternative investments | FIN 464 Real Estate Finance | free elective |
| Economics | ECO 312 Monetary Economics | free elective |
A student can take all eight. Four fill major requirements (the three FIN 400-level slots and the choose-one) and four use free electives, leaving six of the plan’s ten electives open. A student also finishing the CFP certificate needs the choose-one for FIN 359 instead, so ACC 475 moves to an elective.
The posted four-year plan, with the CFA courses on top
| Year | Fall | Spring |
|---|---|---|
| Freshman | CIS 110, MA 109, UK Core ×3 | CIS 111, MA 123, UK Core ×3 |
| Sophomore | ECO 201, ACC 200, MKT 300, STA 296, elective | ECO 202, ACC 201, MGT 301, MA 162, AN 105, elective |
| Junior | ACC 301, FIN 300, ECO 391, CIS 300, elective | FIN 405, FIN 410, ECO 312, elective ×2 |
| Senior | FIN 452 ✓, FIN 475 ✓, MGT 340, ACC 475 ✓, FIN 440 | FIN 485 ✓, AN 300, FIN 464, FIN 430, elective |
Roadmap course Counts for roadmap and major ✓ Major requirement UK Core, electives Italic = recommended One term only
What Gatton offers
- CFA Institute University Affiliation for the BBA in Finance and the MS in Finance: each program covers at least 70% of the CFA candidate body of knowledge.
- Three undergraduate scholarships a year, each waiving the enrollment fee and cutting exam registration to $600, roughly half price. Students apply through the principal contact.
- Real-money portfolio class (FIN 485): students manage part of Gatton’s Student Managed Investment Fund, now over $6 million, drawn from the University endowment, earn Bloomberg certification, and present to the endowment committee.
- The CFA Institute Research Challenge, the Stock Pitch Competition, and the Finance Society.
Terms. FIN 400-level slot: one of the three upper-level finance courses the major requires. Choose-one: the major’s single choice among ACC 302, ACC 475, FIN 359, or
another FIN 400-level course. Free elective: any course the student chooses that counts toward graduation hours.
Principal contact: Will Gerken, CFA, will.gerken@uky.edu ⋅ Mappings follow Gatton’s filed CFA course map; plan from the posted 2026-27 Finance curriculum; the catalog
year a student entered under governs.
A general guide, not official advising. Compiled from publicly posted UK catalog and curriculum pages; requirements change and no warranty is given. Confirm your plan with your academic advisor and your myUK GPS degree audit.
Which sheet? Wealth management or financial planning: CFP. Investment research or portfolio management: CFA. Investment banking or private equity: Investment Banking. Real estate lending, investment, or development: Real Estate. Students can combine them. All sheets: willgerken.com/roadmaps