Final Project Instructions

Review and reflect on the major topics in this course that address the various aspects of finance.

Below are a few suggestions to get you started.

You may choose a topic not listed here that was discussed during the course.

1. Short-term management of working capital

2. Long-term planning of capital structure

3. International finance issues

4. Capital structure

5. Analytical models for improving decision-making

Write a research paper based upon a topic that is of personal interest to you. It can be from the list above or can be from a different aspect of finance that was discussed in the course.

Conduct thorough research to make judgments, recommendations, etc.

What are your proposed solutions to this topic or issue?

Assess why this particular topic is of interest to you and why organizations should also share this same concern as you.

Your submission should incorporate your interaction with the finance profession.

A rough draft of the research paper should be submitted in Week Four.

Your final version of the research paper will be submitted in Week Eight.

Support your paper with a minimum of seven (7) external resources. In addition to these specified resources, other appropriate scholarly resources, including older articles, may be included.

Length: 5-7 pages not including title and reference pages

Your paper should demonstrate thoughtful consideration of the ideas and concepts presented in the course and provide new thoughts and insights relating directly to this topic. Your response should reflect scholarly writing and current APA standards.

CRITERIA:

The requirements below must be met for your paper to be accepted and graded:

Write between 1,250 – 1,750 words (approximately 5 – 7 pages) using Microsoft Word in APA style, see example below.

Use font size 12 and 1” margins.

Include cover page and reference page.

At least 80% of your paper must be original content/writing.

No more than 20% of your content/information may come from references.

Use at least three references from outside the course material; one reference must be from EBSCOhost. Text book, lectures, and other materials in the course may be used, but are not counted toward the three reference requirement.

Cite all reference material (data, dates, graphs, quotes, paraphrased words, values, etc.) in the paper and list on a reference page in APA style.

References must come from sources such as scholarly journals found in EBSCOhost or on Google Scholar, government websites and publications, reputable news media (e.g. CNN , The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times) websites and publications, etc. Sources such as Wikis, Yahoo Answers, eHow, blogs, etc. are not acceptable for academic writing.

• Cite all reference material (data, dates, graphs, quotes, paraphrased statements, information, etc.) in the paper and list each source on a reference page using APA style. An overview of APA 6th edition in-text citations, formatting, reference list, and style is provided here.

Download an APA sample paper from the Purdue OWL here.