Here are three excellent reasons why a person would study finance:

• They desire a career in finance. (Career opportunities in finance are discussed in the next section.) A career in finance can be rewarding--both monetarily and emotionally--for individuals who are interested in analyzing and solving problems. As many, but not all, of these problems are quantitatively oriented, most finance majors have above-average mathematical skills.

• They are majoring in other fields, but are interested in understanding the firm (or other enterprise) as a whole. The finance department is typically charged with evaluating and approving large projects that originate in other departments within the firm. Many non-financial managers find that an understanding of the financial function is necessary in order to further their own careers, particularly as their own responsibilities become more general in nature.

• They are interested in learning about finance for personal reasons. Virtually all students can benefit from an understanding of how finance affects their personal lives. This concerns areas such as income and tax planning, insurance and risk management, personal investing and portfolio management, and estate planning.