# Business Finance and Data Analysis Fundamentals Specialization

**Source**: https://business.rice.edu/executive-education/online-programs/business-finance-and-data-analysis-fundamentals-specialization
**Parent**: https://business.rice.edu/

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##### Have a Question?

### [Michael Koenig](https://business.rice.edu/person/michael-koenig)

Associate Dean for Innovation Initiatives & Executive Director of Executive Education

[713-348-5876](tel:713-348-5876)
[Email](#)

## Prepare for Your MBA with Our Comprehensive Quantitative Courses

Build a solid foundation in Business Finance, Accounting, and Data Analysis to confidently pursue an MBA program.

[Learn More](https://www.coursera.org/specializations/pre-mba-quantitative-skills)

### Upcoming Start Date

Enrollment is always open, begin anytime.

### Length

Approximately 3 months

### Effort

Approximately 5 hours/week

### Tuition

Audit for free, or pay $49 per course, or pay $59/month subscription to access more practice and earn a certificate.

Learn more about [Coursera subscription options](https://www.coursera.support/s/article/216348103-Coursera-subscriptions?language=en_US).

### Overview

This Specialization is designed to equip you with a basic understanding of business finance, accounting, and data analysis. We've put together these three courses with the explicit intent of helping people prepare for the rigors of a prestigious MBA program, as well as introducing and refreshing basic knowledge and skills for aspiring business leaders. Having taught at Rice for nearly a combined 40 years, professors James Weston and Brian Rountree have found that entering students often lack confidence in some fundamental quantitative skills, as well as struggling with accounting and finance mechanics and terminology. As a result we have put together a series of lectures, plenty of practice opportunities and video walk-throughs that will allow you to confidently take a seat at the leadership table.

### Who Should Attend

- Individuals who are considering pursuing an MBA program and would like to brush up on their quantitative skills before beginning.
- Small business owners who want to better manage their finances and understand their financial statements.
- Individuals who want to improve their personal financial management skills, such as budgeting and investing.
- Non-finance professionals who want to enhance their understanding of financial concepts and terminology to communicate more effectively with finance teams or make better business decisions.
- Students in other disciplines, such as engineering or science, who may need to understand financial and accounting principles in their future careers.
- Anyone who wants to gain a better understanding of the financial world and how it impacts our daily lives.

### Program Takeaways

- Demonstrate an understanding of the major conceptual levers that push and pull on financial decision making and how they relate to other areas of business
- Describe the basic differences and similarities of the four financial statements
- Develop a basic facility for using spreadsheets to solve quantitative business problems
- Apply top level math and statistics concepts that will be used throughout the MBA curriculum at any school.

### Course Curriculum

[Accounting for Non-Finance Professionals](https://www.coursera.org/learn/pre-mba-quant-skills-accounting/?utm_medium=institutions&utm_source=rice&utm_campaign=rolsiteenrollcta)

- Basic Principles of Financial Valuation Discounting
- How to Spend Money
- Measuring Cash Creation and Flow
- How Much Does Money Cost?
- Capstone: Putting it all together From Main Street to Wall Street

[Finance for Non-Finance Professionals](https://www.coursera.org/learn/finance-for-non-finance?specialization=pre-mba-quantitative-skills)

- Introduction to Accounting
- Double entry accounting, debits and credits, journal entries, and T accounts
- Cash flow statements
- Statements of stockholders’ equity

[Data Analysis for Managerial Decision-Making](https://www.coursera.org/learn/pre-mba-quant-skills-data-analysis/?utm_medium=institutions&utm_source=rice&utm_campaign=rolsiteenrollcta)

- Getting started with basic math
- A little more math and getting started with data
- Getting started with basic statistics
- Putting it all together with some practical examples

### Hear From Our Faculty

Before you start the program, get to know some of our faculty on the award-winning Rice Business podcast, [Owl Have You Know](https://business.rice.edu/podcast).

## Meet Your Professor

### [Brian Rountree](https://business.rice.edu/person/brian-rountree)

Associate Professor of Accounting\
Accounting Area Coordinator

Department
[Faculty](https://business.rice.edu/directory?field_departments_target_id=1926)

Office

McNair Hall 340

Contact
[713-348-5328](tel:713-348-5328)
[Email](#)

### [James P. Weston](https://business.rice.edu/person/james-p-weston)

Senior Associate Dean for Degree Programs\
Harmon Whittington Professor of Finance

Departments
[Leadership](https://business.rice.edu/directory?field_departments_target_id=2846), [Faculty](https://business.rice.edu/directory?field_departments_target_id=1926), [Dean's Suite](https://business.rice.edu/directory?field_departments_target_id=2886)

Office

McNair Hall 339

Contact
[713-348-4480](tel:713-348-4480)
[Email](#)

### Rice Business Wisdom

Rice Business Wisdom is our online ideas magazine that features faculty research.

Workplace Culture | Peer-Reviewed Research

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Why Fighting Workplace Discrimination Of Gay, Lesbian And Bisexual Employees Boosts Business

Based on research by Michelle "Mikki" Hebl, Eden B. King and Charles L. Law

Discrimination | Peer-Reviewed Research

### [Deep Dive](https://business.rice.edu/wisdom/peer-reviewed-research/why-shallow-efforts-against-discrimination-fail)

Why Shallow Efforts Against Discrimination Don’t Work

Based on research by Michelle "Mikki" Hebl, Katharine R. O’Brien, Samuel T. McAbee and John R. Rodgers

Workplace Psychology | Peer-Reviewed Research

### [Letter of the Law](https://business.rice.edu/wisdom/peer-reviewed-research/does-legislating-fairness-work)

Does Legislating Fairness Work?

Based on research by Michelle "Mikki" Hebl, Laura Barron, Cody Bren Cox and Abigail R. Corrington

[See All](https://business.rice.edu/wisdom)

##### Have a Question?

### [Michael Koenig](https://business.rice.edu/person/michael-koenig)

Associate Dean for Innovation Initiatives & Executive Director of Executive Education

[713-348-5876](tel:713-348-5876)
[Email](#)