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Welcome to BUS202CPrinciples of Finance
My name is Dr. Saheed Nurein, I’m one of the professors that helped develop this course. Managers who compile financial reports and stockbrokers working on Wall Street both claim to "work in finance." So, what exactly is it? Finance is the management of a company's money and scarce resources. It is distinct from accounting: while accounting aims to organize and compile past information, finance is geared toward deciding what to do with it. Firms keep detailed financial records to distribute organized reports to managers, shareholders, and government regulators. This introductory course focuses on what managers, investors, and government agencies do with this information. It serves several fields of finance and is comparable to courses some universities call "corporate finance" or "financial management.“ Here, we discuss several sub-fields of finance. We explore determining which projects have the best potential payoff and how to manage investments and value stocks. All finance boils down to one concept: return. It essentially asks: "If I give you money today, how much will I get back in the future?" Although the answer to this question varies widely from case to case, you will know how to find the answer after you finish this course. We explore financial concepts such as the time value of money, pro forma financial statements, financial ratio analysis, capital budgeting analysis, capital structure, and the cost of capital. We also introduce stocks and bonds. When you finish, you will understand financial statements, cash flow, time value of money, stocks and bonds, capital budgeting, ratio analysis, and long-term financing, as well as how to apply these these concepts and skills when making business decisions. You can start by reviewing the course learning outcomes and the syllabus, you can find both on the left navigation panel. Let’s get started!
To access the AI Summary of this page or to download the PDF transcript for the video, please click on the icons above.
AI Summary
Video Transcript
Source and License: This work is licensed by Saylor Academy under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-Sharealike 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0). This content was created using Genially and Synthesia. AI-generated avatars and voices in this video were created using Synthesia and remain subject to Synthesia’s Terms of Service; these elements are not covered by the Creative Commons license. Synthesia trademarks and services remain the property of Synthesia. All Genially proprietary elements such as templates, themes, built-in assets, stock media, and other “Genially Content” remain subject to Genially’s Terms of Service and are not covered by this Creative Commons license. These elements must remain embedded in the course and cannot be reused or redistributed independently.
Source and License: This work is licensed by Saylor Academy under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-Sharealike 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0). This content was created using Genially and Synthesia. AI-generated avatars and voices in this video were created using Synthesia and remain subject to Synthesia’s Terms of Service; these elements are not covered by the Creative Commons license. Synthesia trademarks and services remain the property of Synthesia. All Genially proprietary elements such as templates, themes, built-in assets, stock media, and other “Genially Content” remain subject to Genially’s Terms of Service and are not covered by this Creative Commons license. These elements must remain embedded in the course and cannot be reused or redistributed independently.
AI Summary
This course introduces the foundations of finance and explores how financial information is used to make effective business and investment decisions. You will learn how organizations manage money and resources, evaluate financial opportunities, and apply financial tools to guide strategic decision-making. Here are some key takeaways:
- Understand the role of finance in organizations and how financial managers work to maximize shareholder wealth.
- Examine how to interpret financial statements and evaluate a company’s financial performance using key financial analysis tools.
- Explore core financial concepts such as the time value of money, financial markets, stocks and bonds, and the relationship between risk and return.
- Recognize how financial managers evaluate investment opportunities, determine capital structure, and manage working capital to support business operations.
You can start by reviewing the course learning outcomes and the syllabus.
Course Introduction Video
Saylor Academy
Created on March 11, 2026
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Transcript
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Experiencing playback issues or need translation options?
Welcome to BUS202CPrinciples of Finance
My name is Dr. Saheed Nurein, I’m one of the professors that helped develop this course. Managers who compile financial reports and stockbrokers working on Wall Street both claim to "work in finance." So, what exactly is it? Finance is the management of a company's money and scarce resources. It is distinct from accounting: while accounting aims to organize and compile past information, finance is geared toward deciding what to do with it. Firms keep detailed financial records to distribute organized reports to managers, shareholders, and government regulators. This introductory course focuses on what managers, investors, and government agencies do with this information. It serves several fields of finance and is comparable to courses some universities call "corporate finance" or "financial management.“ Here, we discuss several sub-fields of finance. We explore determining which projects have the best potential payoff and how to manage investments and value stocks. All finance boils down to one concept: return. It essentially asks: "If I give you money today, how much will I get back in the future?" Although the answer to this question varies widely from case to case, you will know how to find the answer after you finish this course. We explore financial concepts such as the time value of money, pro forma financial statements, financial ratio analysis, capital budgeting analysis, capital structure, and the cost of capital. We also introduce stocks and bonds. When you finish, you will understand financial statements, cash flow, time value of money, stocks and bonds, capital budgeting, ratio analysis, and long-term financing, as well as how to apply these these concepts and skills when making business decisions. You can start by reviewing the course learning outcomes and the syllabus, you can find both on the left navigation panel. Let’s get started!
To access the AI Summary of this page or to download the PDF transcript for the video, please click on the icons above.
AI Summary
Video Transcript
Source and License: This work is licensed by Saylor Academy under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-Sharealike 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0). This content was created using Genially and Synthesia. AI-generated avatars and voices in this video were created using Synthesia and remain subject to Synthesia’s Terms of Service; these elements are not covered by the Creative Commons license. Synthesia trademarks and services remain the property of Synthesia. All Genially proprietary elements such as templates, themes, built-in assets, stock media, and other “Genially Content” remain subject to Genially’s Terms of Service and are not covered by this Creative Commons license. These elements must remain embedded in the course and cannot be reused or redistributed independently.
Source and License: This work is licensed by Saylor Academy under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-Sharealike 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0). This content was created using Genially and Synthesia. AI-generated avatars and voices in this video were created using Synthesia and remain subject to Synthesia’s Terms of Service; these elements are not covered by the Creative Commons license. Synthesia trademarks and services remain the property of Synthesia. All Genially proprietary elements such as templates, themes, built-in assets, stock media, and other “Genially Content” remain subject to Genially’s Terms of Service and are not covered by this Creative Commons license. These elements must remain embedded in the course and cannot be reused or redistributed independently.
AI Summary
This course introduces the foundations of finance and explores how financial information is used to make effective business and investment decisions. You will learn how organizations manage money and resources, evaluate financial opportunities, and apply financial tools to guide strategic decision-making. Here are some key takeaways:
- Understand the role of finance in organizations and how financial managers work to maximize shareholder wealth.
- Examine how to interpret financial statements and evaluate a company’s financial performance using key financial analysis tools.
- Explore core financial concepts such as the time value of money, financial markets, stocks and bonds, and the relationship between risk and return.
- Recognize how financial managers evaluate investment opportunities, determine capital structure, and manage working capital to support business operations.
You can start by reviewing the course learning outcomes and the syllabus.