Students may enter this program from a variety of undergraduate backgrounds, including finance, mathematics, economics, computer science, actuarial science, statistics, information systems and engineering. As a result, many students admitted will not have the required background to immediately begin taking advanced courses from each of three areas of study. In such cases, the student may be required to take prerequisite courses prior to enrolling in advanced courses in specific fields. These prerequisites would be in addition to the advanced 30  semester hours required for the degree. In general students must have the following background in each field before taking advanced courses in that field:

• Finance: Have earned an acceptable grade in an introductory course in finance from an AACSB-accredited business school at either the undergraduate or MBA level.
   

• Economics: Have earned an acceptable grade in microeconomics and macroeconomics courses at either the undergraduate or MBA level.
   

• Mathematics: Have earned acceptable grades in the equivalent of a three course sequence in calculus (differential and integral calculus), a course in linear algebra, and a course in probability and statistics.
   

• Programming: Students should be familiar with at least one programming language, most preferably C or C++.

Again, students may be admitted to the program without meeting all of these requirements. The Program Director, in conjunction with the Departmental Graduate Coordinators, will evaluate each incoming student's academic background to determine in which prerequisite courses the student will be required to enroll. A student that meets the prerequisites in a field may begin taking advanced courses in that field while still taking prerequisite courses in another field. A student must, however, be making satisfactory progress toward fulfilling their prerequisites in all fields to remain enrolled in the program.