Steve Pilloff

Steve Pilloff, Associate Professor, Finance, George Mason University

Instructional Professor, Finance

Contact Information

Email: spilloff@gmu.edu
Phone: (703) 993-5058
Office Location: Enterprise Hall 324
Office Hours: Monday 11:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m. and Thursday 11:00 a.m.- 12:00 p.m. on Zoom or by Appointment

Biography

Steve Pilloff is an instructional professor of finance with the Costello College of Business at George Mason University. He has taught courses on firm valuation, equity research, financial institutions, and corporate financial management. He is frequently quoted on personal finance issues by national outlets like Forbes, U.S. News, The Today Show, and Fox Business.

Dr. Pilloff earned a Ph.D. in finance from the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania in 1995. He subsequently worked at the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, where he conducted research on competition and consolidation in the banking industry. Before joining the faculty at George Mason University, Dr. Pilloff taught at Hood College and the Robert H. Smith School of Business at the University of Maryland.  

The strength of Dr. Pilloff’s teaching has been repeatedly recognized by students, colleagues, and the university. He received the School of Business Undergraduate Teaching Award in 2014 and has served as a Dean's Teaching Faculty Fellow since 2017.

Dr. Pilloff's work has been published in various journals including Journal of Money, Credit, and Banking, Journal of Banking and Finance, Journal of Competition Law and Economics, Multinational Finance Journal, Review of Industrial Organization, Journal of Financial Services Research, Antitrust Bulletin, Journal of Business Cases & Applications, and Journal of Financial Education. In addition, he has contributed chapters to Bank Mergers and Acquisitions and to three editions of The Structure of American Industry. 

Research Interests

  • Financial Education
  • Personal Finance
  • Financial Institutions

Education

  • PhD - Finance, Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA
  • MA - Finance, Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania
  • BA - Economics, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA

Research and Awards

Recent Awards:

  • Selected as Outstanding Professor in Major: Finance, School of Business, 2022
  • Selected as a Dean's Teaching Faculty Fellow, School of Business, 2017 & 2020. Dean’s Teaching Faculty Fellows were selected based on demonstrated and sustained contributions to the School across both primary domains of term faculty responsibility: teaching and service
  • Named by students as “someone who has made a significant difference in their lives” or "person on campus who has helped them the most in their college success” or similar designation according to student surveys and inquiries conducted by various offices at George Mason University (such as the Stearns Center for Teaching Excellence), 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2022. 
  • Nominated for University Teaching Excellence Award, Mason Center for Teaching Excellence, 2012, 2013, & 2018
  • Nominated by the Finance Area for School of Business Outstanding Contributions to Teaching Award, School of Business, 2017, 2018, 2020, 2021, and 2022
  • Identified by a recipient of the Provost-Scholar award as his or her favorite professor at Mason, 2014, 2015, 2017, & 2019
  • Winner of School of Business Undergraduate Teaching Award, School of Business, 2014. This award is given annually to one faculty member in the School of Business who has made significant contributions to teaching, pedagogical development, and assurance of learning. Recipient determined by a committee of teaching experts and past award winners.
  • Selected as a recipient of School of Business Faculty Service Award, School of Business, 2014 and 2021
  • Won a Gold Award, The Communicator Awards, 2012. The Finance Minute, which was produced with GMU-TV, won a Gold Communicator Award. GMU-TV had never won a gold award (the highest level) before. Watch the video at http://vimeo.com/36428406.

Recent Publications:

  • Pilloff, S. & Kling, D. (2017). How Select Student Characteristics Affect Performance in an Introductory Finance Course. Journal of Financial Education.
  • Pilloff, S. (2012). Corner Table Incorporated: establishing a frozen food division. Journal of Business Cases & Applications.

Recent Presentations:

  • Pilloff, S. (2021). Lessons Learned from On-Line Courses (Fall 2020 – Spring 2021), 2021 annual meeting of the Financial Education Association.
  • Pilloff, S. (2021). The Sweet Spot: Introductory Finance Problems That Are Not Too Hard and Not Too Easy, 2021, Academy of Economics and Finance Teacher Training Program.
  • Pilloff, S. (2020). A Grading System for an On-Line World. 2020 annual meeting of the Financial Education Association.
  • Pilloff, S. (2019).The Sweet Spot: Introductory Finance Problems That Are Not Too Hard and Not Too Easy. 2019 annual meeting of the Financial Education Association.
  • Pilloff, S. (2019). Lessons Learned: What Works and What Doesn't in an Introductory Finance Course. 2019 annual meeting of the Financial Education Association.
  • Pilloff, S. (2019). Student Preparedness Revisited. (with T. Michael). 2019 annual meeting of the Financial Education Association.
  • Pilloff, S. (2018). Student Preparedness and Student-Centered Learning. (with T. Michael). 2018 annual meeting of the Financial Education Association.
  • Pilloff, S. (2018). Presentation on behavioral finance to Higher Achievement, Fairfax, Virginia. Gave presentation (with valuable help from 3 students) on behavioral finance to a group of middle school scholars in the Higher Achievement program during the organization's annual visit to George Mason.
  • Pilloff, S. (2017). Presentation on behavioral finance to Higher Achievement, Fairfax, Virginia. Gave presentation (with valuable help from 2 recent graduates and former TAs) on behavioral finance to a group of middle school scholars in the Higher Achievement program during the organization's annual visit to George Mason.   
  • Pilloff, S. (2014). Money Management. Presentation to the Mason Student Body at the Student Government Financial Expo.

Media Clippings: