ACTSC 372Investment Science and Corporate Finance
- Units
- 0.50
- Faculty
- Mathematics
- Subject
- Actuarial Science
When it runs
- F24
- W25
- S25
- F25
- W26
- S26
- F26
- W27
- S27
Ran in 7 of the last 7 terms. Winter 2027: scheduled, 2 lecture sections. Spring 2027: schedule not out yet.
Introduction to financial markets. Different return and risk measures. Investment rules and capital budgeting. Rigorous derivations of Markowitz portfolio optimization and its application in investment decisions. Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM) and Arbitrage Pricing Theory (APT). Weighted average cost of capital (WACC) and efficient market hypothesis (EMH). Long-term financing, capital structure (MM propositions), and dividend policies. Introduction to options, forwards, and swaps.
Prerequisites
- Complete all of the following
- Must have completed the following:
- ACTSC231 - Introductory Financial Mathematics (0.50)
- Must have completed at least 1 of the following:
- Must have completed at least 1 of the following:
- Must have completed the following:
Antirequisites
- Complete all of the following
- Not completed nor concurrently enrolled in any of the following:
- ACTSC291 - Global Capital Markets and Financial Analytics (0.50)
- ACTSC391 - Corporate Finance (0.50)
- AFM272 - Global Capital Markets and Financial Analytics (0.50)
- AFM273 - Financial Instruments and Capital Markets (0.50)
- AFM274 - Introduction to Corporate Finance (0.50)
- AFM275 - Corporate Finance (0.50)
- ECON371 - Business Finance 1 (0.50)
- MATBUS371 - Introduction to Corporate Finance (0.50)
- Not completed nor concurrently enrolled in the following:
- Not completed nor concurrently enrolled in any of the following:
Leads to
Fall 2026 sections
| Section | Class | Enrolled | Meets |
|---|---|---|---|
| LEC 001 | 6161 | 69 / 96 | MW 11:30–12:50 |
| LEC 002 | 6500 | 28 / 96 | MW 13:00–14:20 |
| TUT 101 | 6616 | 97 / 192 | F 12:30–13:20 |
Winter 2027 sections
| Section | Class | Enrolled | Meets |
|---|---|---|---|
| LEC 001 | 5710 | 0 / 150 | TTh 13:00–14:20 |
| LEC 701 | 2214 | 85 / 9999 | Online or by arrangement |
| TUT 101 | 6301 | 0 / 150 | F 09:30–10:20 |
Reviewed on UW Flow
72% liked it76% easy90% useful
From 87 ratings and 22 comments on UW Flow. The most helpful comments, quoted as written, without names. Read them all on UW Flow.
DO NOT TAKE THIS COURSE WITH PENGYU WEI. I took it because the UWFLOW easiness rating was high but he is not a nice prof. He will take a ton of time to respond to piazza posts, give you huge assignments that are only worth around 2% and take hours to do. What more is that even online the exams are worth around 80% of the final grade and he will intentionally make them very difficult.
Mar 2021 · didn’t like it · 2 found this helpfulOn UW FlowRemove this
Midterms are hard.
May 2026 · didn’t like it · 1 found this helpfulOn UW FlowRemove this
Not hard if you take ACTSC371 before.
Jun 2022 · didn’t like it · 1 found this helpfulOn UW FlowRemove this
ACTSC 372 Spring 2020 was offered online due to the pandemic. It started out with option pricing models, then NPVs, then CAPM, capital budgeting, and finally capital structure and market efficiency. This range of topics might seem a little all over the place but it is in fact well-suited for someone who is looking for a way into the financial industry. The real world is messy anyways.
Recorded lectures were posted each week with the prof doing derivations on a powerpoint slide deck, which is typical ACTSC courses. I selected "did not like" because being a math student at heart, I find the calculations of NPVs and options prices tedious... this in no way means that the course isn't useful.…Jun 2020 · didn’t like it · 1 found this helpfulOn UW FlowRemove this
Four core concepts to take away: CAPM, EMH, M-M propositions, and how to price an option. It is a very interesting and useful course overall. Surya Banerjee is the goat.
Aug 2026 · liked itOn UW FlowRemove this
Discussed on r/uwaterloo
152 posts and comments in 123 threads mention ACTSC 372, January 2012 to December 2024. Quoted word for word, newest first; each reply sits under the post and the comment that started its branch. Search r/uwaterloo for newer posts.
Fall 2024
Most academically difficult term so far? 25 points, 39 comments
“Wondering which year/term was the most challenging for you? Preferably students in engineering or more specifically mech eng.”
u/Unique-Doughnut9096: “3A (math) was the hardest for me. Pmath 451, Pmath 453, Pmath 940, Stat 433, Math 249, Actsci 372. Shit was not fun on top of coop search.”
Spring 2024
Is math finance worth pursuing if I have no background in finance? 5 points, 5 comments
“Title. But I'm interested in the degree because it is a combination of pure math and statistics. (For unrelated reasons I am unable to pursue a double major in pmath and stats.) But I have quite …”
u/Solid_Phrase: “just take actsc372 or read on your own. it's super easy to declare a major these days. also math fin is like a whole mix of pmath stats and finance and comp and tbh i doubt the program itself gets you far into either academia or job markets in the end. …”
actsc 372 5 points, 3 comments
u/johnnybravoshoe: “is it possible to do well in actsc 372 if i havent taken actsc232 yet or any of the other 300 level stat courses? I've done all the pre-reqs that are stated on the site, but I'd like to know if it would be easier having done the other courses. thanks!”
u/DarkEmperor7135: “definitely, actsc 372 basically has nothing to do with actsc 232 and the stat 33x courses”
Winter 2024
Course Load Advice 3 points, 0 comments
u/Soggy_Stomach111: “… Currently enrolled in ACTSC 232, ACTSC 363, ACTSC 372, CLAS 104, STAT 331, CS 330. Would it make more sense to replace STAT 331 and CS 330 with just STAT 333? …”
Fall 2023
Unable to Select courses for Winter 2024 1 point, 6 comments
“I was selecting Stat 371 and Matbus 470 for my Winter 2024 term, but the error message showed up saying I did not meet the requisites. …”
u/Pyr04K: “regarding matbus 470, have you done actsc 371/372 before?”
u/Pyr04K: “which prereq are you taking for matbus 470?”
u/Pyr04K: “icic, for me i had to do a course override for matbus470 cuz they have actsc 371 listed as a prereq but since that course is discontinued, they take actsc 372 has a prereq now but it doesn't seem like that change is reflected in quest”
I'm an exchange student and I really need some advices 1 point, 5 comments
u/Stunning_Turnip_5515: “… I'm doing ACTSC232, ACTSC372, STAT330 and AMATH251, so anyone has done this course before, can you guys give me some advice for efficient study. Also how can you guys make friends on campus? …”
Spring 2023
Actsci372 final 1 point, 2 comments
u/Forward-Sprinkles165: “I think I got a 30 lmao”
Dropping STAT 333 1 point, 11 comments
“I have not done well on both midterms so far and need more than 50% on the final to pass the course at this point. The final is 50%. I am considering dropping it since the drop with WD ends today. …”
u/Key-Ostrich9542: “Took the course F2022 and found it relatively okay, but have Surya for ACTSC 372. He’s just a pretty trash and disorganized prof in general—STAT 333 would probably be easier in a different term.”
Winter 2023
Take MATBUS471 1 point, 8 comments
“I want to take MATBUS471 and 472 next term but it is only open to some specific programs. I am currently in FARM which is allowed to take this course but I might drop FARM later to Mathfin which is …”
u/Particularly_Lost: “No you should be fine it should remain. For example a lot of Math students can get overridden into CS department for a single term just to be able to enroll in upper level CS major courses and then …”
u/Sufficient-Cry-1255: “See you next term then. Peter Wood is nice. I just took his ACTSC 372 which was taught pretty well.”
A course about understanding finance and why ppl don’t chase quant jobs 10 points, 7 comments
“I’ve seen a course called topics in mathematics with application in finance (from an unknown Waterloo of the south impostor school). …”
u/radicaldog1111: “Actsc 221/231 is somewhat similar to what you’ve mentioned. There are also many other actsc courses that are related to mathematical finance”
u/radicaldog1111: “Just looked, there is also actsc372 (corporate finance), actsc271 (intro to investments), actsc445 (quantitative risk management), actsc446 (math of financial markets), actsc454 (predictive analysis), stat374 (quantative foundations for finance) + a handful of other stats …”
Fall 2022
Is anybody taking the following courses this Winter 2023? 3 points, 1 comment
u/NetMiddle8797: “ACTSC 232 ACTSC 372 STAT 330 STAT 331 STAT 333 Please DM me if you're taking 1 or more above, so that we can chat and discuss.”
Spring 2022
Econ 371 vs ACTSC 372 1 point, 3 comments
u/PeteLoyd: “I have the option between Econ 371 or ACTSC 372 to fulfill my degree requirements, which do you recommend? For some background, I’m going into 3A of my BMath with a major in math Econ. …”
u/onlyinsurance-ca: “… I took actsci 372 some years ago. It was very math heavy and not really related to 371 (and I took 372 before 371). Very much an actuarial course. …”
u/Appearance_Forward: “I was in the same position, failed actsc 372 because of pass the final to pass the course requirement during online. I’m taking Econ 371 now and it’s one of the best courses I’ve done so far and the prof is AMAZING”
u/WaferRevolutionary63: “ACTSC372 is the very sole essence of finance: Black-Scholes and APT. That being said, the content itself is just absurd, PVCCATS formulas are a mess to memorize, not to mention the BS models. …”
Check it elsewhere for Fall 2026
- Undergraduate Calendar, 2026–27The official entry
- Requirements for Fall 2026Waterloo’s requisite checker
- Schedule of Classes, Fall 2026Instructors, rooms, live seats
- Quest Class SearchWhere you enrol
- Course outlinesSyllabi from past terms (UW login)
- UW FlowStudent ratings and reviews
- WClassesPast sections back to 2004, and who taught them