MSc Finance
Cardiff, United Kingdom
MSc
DURATION
1 year
LANGUAGES
English
PACE
Full time
APPLICATION DEADLINE
EARLIEST START DATE
TUITION FEES
GBP 29,200 / per year *
STUDY FORMAT
On-Campus
* for overseas | for home: £13,200
Key Summary
About: The MSc Finance at Cardiff University covers asset pricing, investment management and corporate finance, plus fintech, electronic trading and ethics. You’ll train in a 56-seat Trading Room using Bloomberg, with optional Bloomberg Certification. The programme builds consultancy and research skills and lets you tailor modules for specialist careers in trading, investment management, corporate finance.
Career Outcomes: You’ll get support from the Career Enhancer Team, employer networks through case studies, guest lectures, workshops. Graduates secure roles in investment banks, hedge funds, stock exchanges, consultancies and corporate finance divisions, and may work as traders, portfolio managers, equity analysts or financial consultants.
Studying our MSc Finance programme will help you to succeed in an interconnected, diverse and ever-changing international environment by exposing you to current thinking in finance and real-world challenges.
We will provide you with an in-depth insight into strategic aspects of finance. You will explore the key topics of asset pricing, investment management and corporate finance, alongside developing your consultancy and research skills. The programme will enable you to pursue a specialist career in investment management or trading, working as a senior executive or consultant in corporate or financial institutions. A variety of module options will help you tailor your learning in specific aspects of finance to achieve your future career aspirations.
You will be exposed to cutting-edge trading simulations in our flagship Trading Room. The 56-seat capacity trading floor is one of the largest in the UK and provides you with the opportunity to gain the practical skills required for life at the stock exchange. An Optional Bloomberg Certification is also offered.
The programme examines a range of contemporary issues in finance, including the use of innovative financial technologies and instruments, electronic trading, ethical financial decision making and the corporate financial life cycle.
Why Study this Course
Challenge yourself on this practice-focused programme and develop the confidence, knowledge and skills for a successful career in finance.
Hone your Trading Skills
Our 56-seat capacity trading room is fully equipped with Global Investor Simulations, TRETS, Bloomberg and Refinitiv Datastream.
Skills for Career Success
Acquire tools and techniques to respond to a financial sector characterised by crises, regulation, globalisation and innovation.
Progress to PhD
Prepare for doctoral study or research-oriented careers with independent research under academic supervision.
Socially Responsible
As the world's first Public Value Business School, we're committed to delivering social improvement alongside economic development.
The MSc Finance is structured around four compulsory module blocks which will allow you to attain expert knowledge in finance. Two additional optional module blocks offer the opportunity to undertake specialised study in areas that may be particularly relevant for your future career. These modules explore the use of innovative aspects in finance such as derivatives, electronic trading, global finance, financial technology and behaviour.
The programme concludes with the completion of either an individual piece of in-depth research or a collaborative project on a live business problem. Both the Business Practice and Research Dissertation will enable you to integrate your learning from across different modules to address a real business or academic challenge.
You will develop and apply the key technical and soft skills required for an effective finance specialist in every module. You will see your expertise build cumulatively across the programme as you are given multiple opportunities to explore research and practice and respond to practical finance and trading challenges.
Core Modules for Year One
- Asset Pricing
- Investment Management
- Corporate Finance
- Quantitative Methods in Finance
- Research Dissertation
Optional Modules for Year One
- Market Structure and Electronic Trading
- Financial Derivatives
- Corporate Reporting and Global Markets
- Financial Technology and Behaviour
How will I be Assessed?
The block programme structure provides plenty of opportunities for you to reflect on your learning and development informally. Short knowledge/skill review activities are built into each module to help you check your progress and improve your approach to learning. This will build your confidence and enhance your approach to formal assessment tasks.
A variety of formal assessment tasks provide the opportunity to explore concepts and models in creative and practical ways. These include poster presentations, case studies, group presentations, reports, and videos. You will work individually and as part of a team, just as you would in the workplace.
All formal assessments are completed within each module block. This enables more in-depth consolidation and application required for successful performance in assessment tasks based on the complex work undertaken by finance professionals. For example, in-class tests and exams reflect realistic workplace timescales for the completion of tasks.
What Skills Will I Practise and Develop?
The Learning Outcomes for this Programme describe what you will be able to do as a result of your study at Cardiff University. They will help you to understand what is expected of you.
The Learning Outcomes for this Programme can be found below:
Knowledge & Understanding
On successful completion of the Programme you will be able to:
- Evaluate the links between theory, principles and practice of finance
- Critically evaluate contemporary issues in finance by drawing on current research and identifying the potential implications for future research and practice
- Discriminate between complementary analytical approaches, and statistical and econometric techniques for exploring a range of financial problems
- Critically evaluate the relevance of modern theoretical concepts in the context of the dynamic financial environment
- Apply finance research and professional knowledge to solve real-world business scenarios
Intellectual Skills
On successful completion of the Programme you will be able to:
- Define a business or research-based problem clearly
- Review and select an appropriate research approach
- Use appropriate tools to investigate business or research-based problems
- Critically analyse, synthesise and evaluate contrasting perspectives and supporting evidence
- Generate and communicate well-evidenced conclusions and recommendations for theory and practice
Professional Practical Skills
On successful completion of the Programme you will be able to:
- Analyse data, identify current situation and predict future trends
- Select and interrogate appropriate databases and relevant econometric software packages
- Apply relevant financial knowledge for effective day-to-day decision-making
- Develop effective working relationships with peers
- Respond to changes in financial information for effective decision-making
- Complete a task on time, briefly and with original insight
Transferable/Key Skills
On successful completion of the Programme you will be able to:
- Respond flexibly to different scenarios
- Communicate to diverse audiences through a range of media
- Challenge assumptions based on robust evidence
- Work independently/collaboratively
- Take the initiative and be proactive
- Use technology to solve problems
We are committed to investing up to a total of £500,000 in this high-value competitive scholarship scheme to support UK students who are planning to start an eligible Master’s programme in 2024/25.
Each Scholarship is worth £3,000 and will be awarded a tuition fee discount.
Eligibility
UK students are eligible to apply for the Scholarship. You normally need to have achieved at least a 2.1 or equivalent in your first degree to be eligible. You need to submit an application to study at Cardiff University and be made an offer to study before your fee status can be confirmed.
At Cardiff Business School, you’ll receive a career-changing education from world-leading academics who have different points of view. They’ll challenge your thinking as you consider the world of business from a range of alternative perspectives.
On our MSc in Finance, you’ll benefit from the knowledge and expertise of our Career Enhancer Team. They’re ready and waiting to identify events and opportunities to help you achieve your future aspirations.
We’ve developed relationships that range from the largest multinationals to the smallest micro-businesses, and include a wide variety of social enterprises and cooperatives. We use these networks to deliver value for our students through:
- Real-world case studies and insights
- Guest lectures
- Field trips and workshops.
This wide-ranging and varied learning experience will help enhance your career and demonstrate how you can make a difference along the way.
Graduates from the MSc in Finance attract job offers from a range of financial institutions including investment banks, hedge funds and stock exchanges.
Some of our graduates will also find roles within organisations and corporations with a strong interest in finance. These include consultancies, national and international regulators, and the finance divisions of multinational companies.
How will I be Taught?
An active learning approach is embedded in the MSc Finance. We believe that effective learning is founded on two things - your involvement in diverse experiences, and the way you make sense of those experiences, both individually and with others.
Each block of learning includes a variety of activities such as case studies, videos, mini-team challenges, role-play, and industry speakers, all designed to introduce new ideas and develop your understanding.
We will help you to enhance the technical and critical analysis skills that you were introduced to during your first degree to build your capability and profile as a finance expert. We will also support you to work with other students to reflect on your existing knowledge and skills and build new insights into the nature of finance in a variety of contexts. You will be encouraged to work collaboratively in diverse teams to consider a range of alternative understandings and practices.
Trying out new learning is important too. You will integrate and apply new understandings, together with new finance skills, in practical tasks embedded in each learning block, and in formal coursework activities.