The finance and wealth management industry has become increasingly globalised, complex and reliant on information technology to create and manage financial asset portfolios, private equity, and hedge funds. This course provides you with the theoretical and practical knowledge of corporate and investment finance to prepare you for the practical requirements of your profession and increase your career opportunities.
This course allows you to explore the different financial markets and the various financial assets traded in each market. The course will demonstrate the valuation methods of these financial assets as well as portfolio theory, investment analysis and management. You will be enabled to create and manage your own investment portfolios as well as effectively manage clients’ portfolios or wealth funds.
There will also be an international focus on risk management, treasury, investment banking and you will gain advanced skills in financial modelling, econometrics, and quantitative risk management. The course will also demonstrate the prevailing theories in modern finance and the techniques to examine these theories.
*Please note this course is subject to review.
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Our modules are specifically structured to give you plenty of time to utilise large amounts of data and explore complex subjects to their fullest. The course will equip you with the theory and practice needed to communicate and evaluate empirical work, as well as giving you valuable training in specialist databases and software packages.
You will then move on to explore relevant theories on topics related corporate governance and sustainability, portfolio theory, capital structure, dividend policy, exchange rates, financial derivative products, interest rates, as well as how to apply them to practical situations in the financial sector.
The dissertation research project is a chance for you to extend your knowledge of a selected topic and to apply it to the formulation and design of a substantive investigation.
Upon completion of this course, you will have further developed your professional experience and have solid theoretical and practical knowledge and understanding of:
This module aims to provide a rigorous grounding in the theory of finance and equip you with knowledge and techniques that are required for arriving at investment and financing decisions.
You will be able to identify the sources of agency problems and their effect on firm value as well as apply various techniques used in capital budgeting and evaluate financial assets. You will also understand the theories on which asset pricing models are built with reference to arbitrage opportunities.
You will critically discuss the validity of modern theories that assess the impact of financing decision on the firm value and cost of capital and have the ability to evaluate the benefits and costs from both cash or share funded mergers and acquisitions.
This module will provide an overview of the nature and operation of international financial markets and their traded instruments. You are introduced to the organisation of the international financial system, the markets for foreign exchanges, stocks, bonds, commodities, and the risks and opportunities offered in these markets and systems. You will also gain essential knowledge for your future career in business, especially in the financial sector.
The module aims to equip you with the knowledge essential to critically engage with modern financial risk management theory and practice undertaken by both financial and non-financial institutions.
It offers advanced study of key issues, including categories of managed financial risk, the arbitrage-free theory of spot-forward price relations, valuing optionality in a financial risk environment, a comparison of over-the-counter and exchange-traded risk management arrangements, the limitations of risk management techniques and the evolving regulatory environment.
You will be able to develop risk modelling skills, analytical and quantitative skills through engagement with current market data on Bloomberg Financial Database and Capital IQ.
This module provides you with a sound grounding in the theory and practice of investment management. You will focus on and explore strategies of portfolio construction, generating investment ideas, estimating investment risk and returns, and the use of derivative instruments.
This module will provide you with a sound grounding in portfolio theory and equity analysis. You will be exposed to the key concepts and tools involved and be required to apply those tools to analyse real life financial assets.
The module provides you with the opportunity to select your own specialised research topic in the area of financial management. You will be expected to apply relevant theoretical frameworks, the existing seminal and the most up-to-date scholarly literature together with the relevant research methodologies and methods whilst conducting your research. You will be required to independently plan, organise, and coherently produce a limited but a well-researched work.
This module deals with basic statistical methods and explores the application of these methods to analytical models in finance. You will gain the analytical and programming skills necessary to pursue empirical studies in finance. You will also be encouraged to use previous knowledge in statistics and computer programming.
This module provides a critical understanding of management accounting techniques and practices and their relevance to contemporary business. The relevant concepts and theories, together with a range of emerging issues will be presented and critically evaluated.
This module deepens your knowledge of fixed income products. A practical understanding of the pricing mechanics of fixed income products will be developed. The module will also incorporate new developments in fixed-income derivatives such as mortgage-backed securities, collateralised debt obligations, and other structured fixed-income financial products. The module will incorporate the Bloomberg Financial Database in teaching the concepts, valuation principles and application of financial derivative products.
The quantity of data available to analysts is growing at an ever-increasing rate. This data has become a vital tool for decision-making in a competitive world. However the size which makes the data so valuable also makes it difficult to analyse using traditional statistical methods. This module introduces you to a variety of methodologies now employed to explore, analyse, categorise and visualise data from large data sets and multiple related data sets. You will also explore the issues with data sets that are too large even for established data mining methods (“big data”).
More information about this course
See the course specification for more information about typical course content outside of the coronavirus outbreak:
We are regularly reviewing and updating our programmes to ensure you have the best learning experience. We are taking what we have learnt during the pandemic and enhancing our teaching methods with new and innovative ways of learning.
We aim to model a wide range of teaching strategies and approaches on the course which you can adapt to your own setting.
As well as online lectures and seminars, the course will also entail individual and group presentations. You will also be shown how to collect data from resources such as Bloomberg, Datastream (Eikon) and Capital IQ and would be offered the chance to obtain certifications from the databases providers.
The course also includes several online workshops on the different aspects of writing a dissertation delivered by academics who have produced high-quality, internationally-recognised research.
Your knowledge and understanding is assessed by presentations, courseworks and written assignments, and through the research and writing undertaken to complete your dissertation. The course entails individual and group presentations. The assessments take place during term-time or at the end of a term. You will be receiving feedback on your drafted work from your tutor as well as feedback after submitting your work.
Your programme will require your active participation in learning activities and engagement with your fellow students both individually and collaboratively, working and learning with other students as part of a small group.
Teaching on the programme is delivered through lectures, seminars and workshops. We aim to combine the best of our in-person teaching and learning with access to online learning and digital resources which put you more in charge of when and how you study. Our use of technology aims to enhance all of your learning experience and give you access to online resources to use in your own time.
You will also be trained to collect data from resources such as Bloomberg, Datastream (Eikon) and Capital IQ and would be offered the chance to obtain certifications from the providers of the databases.
The course also includes several online workshops on the different aspects of writing a dissertation delivered by academics who have produced high-quality, internationally-recognised research.
The table below gives you an idea of what learning looks like across a typical week.
Outside of these hours, you’ll be expected to do independent study where you read, listen and reflect on other learning activities. This can include preparation for future classes. In a year, you’ll typically be expected to commit 1200 hours to your course across all styles of learning.
Learning structure: typical hourly breakdown in 2022/2023 | ||
Live in-person on-campus learning | Contact hours per week, per level: | 12 hours (4 x 3 hours) |
Definitions of terms
Support
You have a strong support network available to ensure you develop all the necessary academic skills you need to do well on your course.
Our support services will be delivered online and on campus and you have access to a range of different resources to get the help you need, whether you’re studying at home or have the opportunity to come to campus.
You have access to one-to-one and group sessions for personal learning and academic support from our library and IT teams, and our network of learning experts. Our teams will also be here to offer financial advice, personal wellbeing, mental health and disability support.
This MSc course has been designed to allow you to develop your analytical skills, acquire a body of knowledge, and be exposed to the frontiers of the subject.
Potential careers span across many sectors and can include:
Devisha Bheemuck
Investment and Finance MSc graduate and Financial Consultant at Deloitte
The MSc Investment and Finance was an ideal choice for me because I wanted to develop my career in the finance sector. I easily found a good job in Mauritius thanks to the course - I'm working as financial consultant at Kemp Chatteris Deloitte. Thanks to my masters I got job interviews in all the blue chip financial organisations in Mauritius.
The course has consolidated by financial knowledge through the diversity of its modules and now I feel more prepared to undertake courses like the CFA exams (which I'm about to embark on) and perhaps later on a PhD. I carry out all my job assignments with ease and confidence as I have a very good financial knowledge to back me up.
Staying in the UK for one whole year has been a very difficult though cherished experience. The lecturers and staff have been helpful in all possible ways.
We’ll carefully manage any future changes to courses, or the support and other services available to you, if these are necessary because of things like changes to government health and safety advice, or any changes to the law.
Any decisions will be taken in line with both external advice and the University’s Regulations which include information on this.
Our priority will always be to maintain academic standards and quality so that your learning outcomes are not affected by any adjustments that we may have to make.
At all times we’ll aim to keep you well informed of how we may need to respond to changing circumstances, and about support that we’ll provide to you.
Start: October 2023
Duration: 1 year full-time, 2 years part-time
Code: PGN399
Start: October 2023
Duration: 1 year full-time, 2 years part-time
Code: PGN302
