Level up your skillset with the Undergraduate Certificate in Finance from Bendheim Center for Finance
Princeton undergraduates may earn a Certificate in Finance that recognizes their proficiency in the discipline of finance. Open to all majors, the program is one of the largest on campus, with over 2,000 certificates awarded since program inception. The application period for sophomore students opens in the Spring of each year. Students who fulfill all the requirements will receive a certificate from the university upon graduation.
Modern finance is remarkably diverse, drawing from many disciplines beyond economics including mathematics, operations research, engineering, computer science, psychology, and politics.
In addition to the obvious practical relevance of finance, the field contains both challenging intellectual problems and a distinctive conceptual framework.
The rapidly evolving field of finance encompasses myriad topics including:
In earning the certificate from BCF—an interdisciplinary center run by faculty from the Economics Department, the Department of Operations Research and Financial Engineering, and more—students explore the field’s most challenging questions.
We recognize outstanding student effort with our Undergraduate Certificate of Finance Annual Prizes. Each year two prizes are awarded to our top two students on Class Day:
Birch Family Prize: Established in 2004 by William D. Birch Jr. (’64) and William Marco Birch (’92). It is awarded to a graduating senior with the highest grade point average in course work related to the Undergraduate Certificate in Finance.
Kathleen Traynor Research Fund: Established in 2022 by Kathleen Traynor (’83), the Kathleen Traynor Research Fund Award is given to the graduating female senior with the highest GPA in coursework related to the Undergraduate Certificate in Finance.
Knowledge of modern finance is essential to the proper understanding of many other topics in economics and public policy, including:
By earning the Certificate, students enhance their resumes and strengthen their applications for graduate school and many competitive job markets.