Graduate Studies Online Course Services Mini-grant

FIN 500: Culminating Experience Project in Finance and Ethics

Course Description

“Each student conducts an individual project to fulfill the culminating experience graduation requirement of the MS in Finance program as required in Title V of the CA Educational Code. The course also covers the ethical conducts and professional standards as outlined in CFA institute standards.” – Catalog

FIN 500 is the required culminating experience course for the MS Finance program, an intensive 12-month program offered at the College of Business. The course focuses on two key learning objectives: (1) a project that demonstrates students’ mastery of core subject knowledge aligned with the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) curriculum, and (2) a case study that applies CFA Institute’s ethical decision-making framework to real-world scenarios. Like all courses in the program, FIN 500 follows a condensed four-week format. The course is largely self-directed with one required in-person session for students to showcase their work. Enrollment varies by cohort, growing from eight students in the inaugural cohort to nineteen in the most recent fourth cohort.

Motivation for Graduate Studies Online Course Services Mini-grant Participation

This course was originally designed as a thesis-based, co-taught class in which students received individualized faculty guidance as part of their research apprenticeship. In alignment with our college’s recent initiative to convert all culminating experience courses into single-instructor seminar formats, this course will transition to a single-instructor model beginning with the Fall 2025 cohort (offered in Summer 2026). As the program’s faculty director and the original designer of the co-teaching format, I am responsible for overseeing this transition.

With the shift to a single-instructor model and an anticipated increase in cohort size, one of my main challenges is to create a well-structured and thoughtfully guided online learning portal. This portal will supplement the reduced faculty-student interaction and provide consistent support for students throughout the culminating experience, which is a demanding process condensed into just four weeks. The Graduate Studies Online Course Services Mini-Grant presents a timely and valuable opportunity to redesign the course using proven best practices and to ensure that students continue to receive meaningful guidance and support during this critical stage of their program.

Alignment or Engagement Changes Addressed in Course

I implemented several revisions based on the Quality Matters (QM) standards. The three major changes are as follows:

Improved Course Introduction and Navigation (General Standard 1)

To make the course structure and expectations clear from the outset, I enhanced the course homepage with essential course information. I added both written text and an introductory video to guide students on how to get started and where to locate key course components (SRS 1.1). I also included course learning outcomes and a clear outline of the course structure (SRS 1.2).

Enhanced Learning Objectives and Alignment (General Standard 2)

Most of my redesign focused on strengthening the alignment of learning objectives. In accordance with GS 2, which states that “Learning objectives describe what learners will be able to do upon completion of the course”, I reviewed the course-level objectives (SRS 2.1) and developed new module and unit-level learning objectives (SRS 2.2). I ensured that these objectives are consistent with the course-level objectives, clearly stated, learner-centered, and prominently displayed (SRS 2.3), and that the relationship between learning objectives, learning activities, and assessments is transparent (SRS 2.4). I also verified that the learning objectives appropriately reflect the rigor and expectations of a graduate level course (SRS 2.5).

Increased Opportunities for Active Learning (SRS 5.2)

To promote engagement and deeper learning, I designed a series of unit-based reflective discussion activities. These discussions encourage both individual reflection and group interaction, supporting active learning in alignment with SRS 5.2 “Learning activities provide opportunities for interactions that support active learning.”

Evidence of Redesign

Examples of Redesign
Course homepage	Module with overview, learning objectives and To-Do list	Assignment and activities

Plan for Pathway toward QM Certification

The first offer of this redesigned online course is scheduled for Summer 2026. I plan to implement and refine the course over two iterations before submitting it for QM certification, which I anticipate will occur sometime after Summer 2028.

Throughout this process, General Standard 2 will remain a primary focus, as I continue to strengthen the alignment among unit-level activities, assessments, and course-level learning outcomes. Another ongoing area of improvement is SRS 4.1, which emphasizes that “instructional materials contribute to the achievement of the stated learning objectives”. I plan to use student feedback to evaluate and enhance the effectiveness of the online instructional materials.

In addition, under General Standard 5, particularly SRS 5.2 (providing opportunities for interactions that support active learning) and SRS 5.3 (ensuring regular, substantive interaction with learners), I have identified a need for greater variety in reflective learning activities. Currently, most activities rely on discussion board posts, with only one involving video. Moving forward, I intend to explore, develop and integrate more diverse, graduate-appropriate interactive activities to foster engagement and better support students in this culminating experience class.

Faculty Bio
	My name is Lan Liu, and I am a Full Professor of Finance at the College of Business, where I also serve as the Faculty Director of our MS Finance program. My primary teaching area is corporate finance, and I have also taught investment portfolio management, derivatives, and financial reporting and analysis. My passion lies in helping students form a lifelong curiosity for learning and a commitment to developing practical financial skills to advance their careers, and to enhance their personal financial wellbeing.