Professor Fostel is really engaging and passionate about the material! She actually brought this course to UVA and designed the format herself. The course is broken up into 5 Parts where she continuously expands the Financial model by adding in different elements so the structure of the course is uniform and easy to follow. You have 4 Problem Sets (20%), 3 Tests where she takes the top 2 highest scoring tests (40%), and a cumulative final (40%). The Problem Sets use Matlab, but if you haven't used Matlab before, don't worry! The TA's always have a Matlab class during class time to go over how to do pretty much everything on the Problem Sets which can be a little tedious after a while but is very helpful. The exams are very similar to the problems on the problem sets and have some True/False definition/theorem questions in there too but as long as you understand the lectures and prob sets, you should be good! Also, even though lectures were asynchronous recordings since Prof Fostel was in Uruguay, you could tell she really cares about her students and is a very friendly enthusiastic person.

If you have an interest in the theoretical framework of finance, this is an excellent and relatively straightforward elective that is well worth taking in the Econ department. Fostel is an enthusiastic and fast-paced lecturer, and the material she presents builds on itself and is engaging. The class is definitely calculus/linear algebra driven, so if math (but mainly calc) isn't really your strong suit it'd probably be best to avoid this course. This semester, there were four problem sets (worth 20% and take forever, but all pretty easy As), three midterm exams (worth 40% of your grade in total, but all carbon copies of the concepts covered in each problem set just with different numbers), and a final (worth 40%, but a pretty fair and easy review of all the midterms and problem sets). Overall would recommend this class to any Econ majors who are aspiring to enter finance as a field.

One of the most engaging and interesting courses that I have taken at UVA. Ana Fostel is extremely engaging and interesting to listen to, even if she occasionally loses the track when she gets a bit deep into the mathier portions of the material. Even then, it is amazing to see how things break down and once the penny drops, this course becomes immensely straightforward. She does provide a small curve, which you shouldn't need because the tests are pretty much taken directly from the problem sets you have to complete before the exams. As she said herself, "in this class I will torture you, but on exams I will be like Mother Theresa of Calcutta" and she doesn't lie. The lectures are a bit of a grind, but the payoff in the end is more than worth it. Like I said before, one of the courses I do not regret taking at all.

Easily the best course I've ever taken at UVA and the best teacher I've ever taken. Make no mistake - this is a very computation heavy class and you will work hard on the problem sets and exams. HOWEVER, with Ana Fostel as your professor, you have to be 100% apathetic and careless to not do well.

For one thing, she only takes your highest midterm grade out of three. So basically, if you can get an A on the first (easiest) midterm, you're pretty set until the final. Secondly, the problem sets and exam questions are pretty much carbon copies of the slides that she posts online, so there is really no such thing as getting stuck on a problem set or seeing something on the exam that looks like a foreign concept. Final grades have not been posted yet, but I will update this review when they are to comment on her curve (if there is one). Her final was definitely really easy and not meant to trick you.

Now about the class itself, it is so incredibly interesting and pertinent and Ana makes lectures fun and engaging. She is an incredibly high-energy and funny professor who does all she can to keep the class engaged and happy. In addition to that, she also does a good job of reading people and can tell when everyone starts dosing off or losing energy and she'll end class early.

Best Econ elective I have taken. Professor Fostel is fantastic and teaches the material in an engaging way. Great class.