1. Accounting, finance and financial management: As one of the most important branches of finance, almost every university with a business school or management department offers courses related to accounting, finance or financial management. Core courses generally include: management accounting and strategy, financial accounting, corporate finance, financial statement analysis, financial econometrics and so on. Accounting and financial statement analysis will account for a large proportion in the core curriculum, and management accounting and financial accounting will generally reach a relatively advanced stage; Therefore, although the university does not require students to have an accounting background, in fact, you'd better have a good accounting foundation.
Examples of schools and courses
London School of Economics and Political Science: Master of Accounting and Finance
Imperial College London: Master of Science in Finance and Accounting
University of Edinburgh: Master of Accounting and Finance, Master of Financial Management.
Lancaster University: Master of Science in Accounting and Financial Management
Durham University: Master of Finance (Accounting and Finance)
2. Investment management direction: investment is a very important branch of finance, which is beyond doubt; Common core courses include: investment and portfolio management, financial markets (securities, bonds, currency, foreign exchange, futures, etc. ), derivatives market, financial mathematics or statistics, financial econometrics, etc. In short, students should not only learn the basic knowledge of financial markets, financial instruments, investment theory and portfolio management, but also learn the basic quantitative analysis methods such as pricing and risk assessment.
Examples of schools and courses
Imperial College London, London: Master of Science in Investment and Wealth Management.
University of Edinburgh: Master of Science in Finance and Investment
Durham University: Master of Finance (Finance and Investment)
University of Birmingham: Master of Science in Investment
University of Reading: Master of Investment Management
3. Risk management direction: Risk management courses in different schools vary greatly. Some schools only add some pure risk-related courses on the basis of basic financial or investment management courses, while others combine risk management with financial mathematics and financial engineering. Therefore, the styles are very different, so we should carefully compare the courses when choosing. Basic core courses include: market risk, credit risk, risk management and evaluation, financial instruments, portfolio management, financial decision-making, mathematical finance, financial econometrics, etc.
Examples of schools and courses
London School of Economics: Master of Science in Finance and Risk
Imperial College London, London: Master of Science in Risk Management and Financial Engineering.
University of Manchester: Master of Science Quantitative Finance: Risk Management
University of Bath: Master of Finance in Risk Management
University of Reading: Master of Science in Financial Risk Management
4. Monetary banking and financial direction: This direction is obviously aimed at the banking industry. The main core courses include: monetary banking, international finance, financial foundation, financial market, financial economics, monetary economics, econometrics and so on. Other elective courses are basically the same as other financial courses. It is worth mentioning that some schools offer courses in this direction under finance, some under economics, and some have both, such as the University of Bath.
Examples of schools and courses
University of Edinburgh: Master of Science in Banking and Risk
Lancaster University: Master of Science in Money, Banking and Finance
University of Bath: Master of Science in Finance and Banking, Master of Science in International Monetary and Banking.
University of Birmingham: Master of Science in International Money and Banking, Master of Science in Money, Banking and Finance.
Durham University: Master of Finance (International Banking and Finance)
5. Financial mathematics/statistics direction: financial mathematics or mathematical finance direction, in short, is to use mathematical and statistical methods to analyze and solve financial problems and assist financial risk prediction and management. Because there are many courses involving mathematics, they are generally taught jointly by business schools and mathematics departments, and the proportion of courses varies according to different schools. Basic core courses include: stochastic process, option and derivative pricing, mathematical finance, risk management, computer analysis methods, financial statistics, time series analysis, etc. This major requires high mathematical ability, so it is recommended that students majoring in mathematics, statistics, etc. apply for the exam (but this major will also admit some students with business, science, engineering, computer and economics backgrounds, but they must prove their ability in related mathematical topics).
Examples of schools and courses
Imperial College London, London: Master of Science in Mathematics and Finance
London School of Economics and Political Science: Master of Science in Financial Mathematics and Master of Science in Statistics (Financial Statistics).
University College London: Master of Financial Mathematics
University of Warwick: Master of Financial Mathematics
University of Edinburgh: Master of Financial Mathematics
University of Manchester: Master of Financial Mathematics
6. Direction of financial engineering: Financial engineering is a combination of finance, mathematics, computer and other knowledge. At present, only a few universities in Britain offer this major. The main core courses include: securities, futures and options, fixed income securities, portfolio management, mathematical finance, financial engineering, econometrics, game theory, stochastic calculus and Black-Schultz model, C++ and MATLAB and other computer methods.
Examples of schools and courses
Imperial College London, London: Master of Science in Risk Management and Financial Engineering.
University of Manchester: Master of Science Quantitative Finance: Financial Engineering
York University: Master of Financial Engineering
University of Birmingham: Master of Financial Engineering
University of Reading: Master of Financial Engineering