The launch of the Asness and Liew Master in Finance Program is among the latest advancements in Chicago Booth’s robust history in the field of finance. The school’s world-renowned faculty have shaped financial theory and markets for more than 100 years. Since 1982, 10 of Chicago Booth’s faculty members have won Nobel Prizes for their groundbreaking research—from Merton H. Miller in 1990, for his contributions to the field of corporate finance; to Eugene F. Fama, MBA’64, PhD’64, for his research on efficient markets; and Lars Peter Hansen in 2013, for their work on the empirical analysis of asset prices; to Douglas W. Diamond in 2022, for his work on banks and financial crises. Booth is leading a new generation of finance scholars, and the school’s finance faculty continue to generate ideas and scholarship with enduring global impact.
“Thanks to Cliff and John’s extraordinary generosity and leadership, the Asness and Liew Master in Finance Program will ensure that talented college graduates quickly reach the frontiers of modern finance,” said Madhav Rajan, dean of Chicago Booth and the George Pratt Shultz Professor of Accounting. “By providing broad support for faculty, students, and other areas of the program, this investment will enable the school to successfully carry out its mission to influence and educate this promising new group of leaders.”
Asness and Liew are the co-founders of AQR, a global investment management firm established in New York City in 1998. Asness serves as managing principal and chief investment officer, and Liew oversees research and portfolio management and is a member of the firm’s executive committee.
Their previous giving to the school has included investments in junior faculty fellowships, support for the naming of the Kent A. Clark Center for Global Markets, and the establishment of the AQR Capital Management Professorship, currently held by distinguished service professor Ralph S.J. Koijen.
Upon reflecting on his reasons for making their gift, Cliff Asness said: “When I think about the difficulties of professional and intellectual success, I think: ‘There but for the grace of Chicago go I!’ Everyone needs some luck in life, and my great luck was being there when I was. This chance to give something back—helping make Chicago for others what it was for me—is beyond gratifying. Thank you, Chicago.”
John Liew added: “It’s hard to overstate the impact that our time at Booth had on us professionally. We literally built our careers and our business around what we learned. This really is the least we can do.”
Taught by Booth’s renowned faculty, the Asness and Liew Master in Finance program offers a rigorous, discipline-based course of study that is rooted in advanced quantitative methods in finance. Students have the opportunity to take classes about the technologies and advances that are disrupting the financial industry—from artificial intelligence to machine learning to blockchain technology. The program also offers students opportunities focused on career exploration and advising, such as the Leaders in Finance Speaker Series, as well as the option to specialize in an area that will help them stand out in the job market.
Learn more about the Asness and Liew Master in Finance Program at the Chicago Booth website.
—Prof. Jacqueline Stewart
