Financial Analytics

Overview
This course is for you if you have an interest in financial markets, institutions and financial decision making. You want a career in the financial services sector or in academia. You want to be taught and supervised by leading academics.

You will explore how company managers and investors make financial decisions, how they manage their risk and how financial markets function. Your background may not necessarily be in finance, so this is a great opportunity to gain in-depth knowledge and practical understanding of financial markets and financial decision making.

Course Structure
The MSc Finance is a full-time postgraduate programme aimed primarily at students with undergraduate degrees from the disciplines of finance, maths, statistics, or any other programme with a high quantitative content.

This programme offers a wide range of in-depth modules that provide students with core knowledge of financial markets, financial instruments, and financial decision making both from an institutional as well as corporate perspective. Eight taught modules aim to equip students with the necessary skillset to foster responsible decision making and to promote sustainable economic growth. These modules align with the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals and map directly to a selection of these goals.

Learning and Teaching
Learning opportunities available with this course are outlined below:
Teaching Methods
The programme will equip you with cutting-edge quantitative and computational techniques and strategies used by leading firms. It will prepare you for future careers in a quantitative finance, trading or the more general finance/FinTech environment. The course bridges the gap between quantitative models and financial decision-making with many modules focus on learning through simulation.

Finance Highlights
Queen's University is ranked first in the UK for Graduate Prospects in Accounting and Finance. (Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2023)/

Professional Accreditations
• The programme has been accepted into the CFA Institute University Recognition Program showing that the programme aligns with the Candidate Body of Knowledge (CBOK) - the core knowledge, skills, and abilities that are generally accepted and applied by investment professionals throughout the world.

Career Development
• Students may wish to join the Student Managed Fund, which seeks to achieve positive returns through superior stock selection using quantitative and qualitative fundamental analysis. This is a real money student managed investment fund. The goal is to achieve consistent long term positive returns by optimally managing downside risk. The Fund seeks to mitigate risk through sufficient diversification and through a series of strict rules and procedures.

World Class Facilities
• Certain classes are held in the Trading Room. Students have access to Bloomberg software, a market leader in financial news, data and analytics, which is used by many financial institutions. The Trading Room allows for an interactive and exciting learning environment which brings textbook theory to life.

Internationally Renowned Experts
• Students have the opportunity to hear from industry professionals who regularly deliver guest lectures. Students have the opportunity to network afterwards.

Student Experience
• Students will use and have access to software such as Stata, Excel, Matlab, RStudio, Oxyor and databases such as Thomson One Banker, DataStream, S&P Global Market Intelligence and Bloomberg.

Semester 1
Asset Pricing
Pricing assets via a modern investor perspective where markets are dynamic and biases are prevalent.

Corporate Finance (optional)
Insights into Investment Appraisal, Corporate Governance; Capital Structure; Dividend Policy; IPOs; Mergers and Acquisitions.

Market Microstructure (optional)
Provides an in-depth understanding of key participants, structures and trading processes that underpin capital markets.

Data Management
An exploration of the theory and practice of managing data, including identifying and extracting data, data pre-processing, data quality, data warehousing, relational databases, and big data solutions.

Financial Data Analytics
Introduction to applied econometric and data science techniques for contemporary financial data problems. Statistical application will be taught via the R programming language.

Semester 2
Advanced Analytics and Machine Learning
This module provides statistical and conceptual understanding for application of machine learning algorithms.

Computational Methods in Finance
This module combines Maths, Finance and Computing to understanding key quantitative finance problems using Python.

Advanced Financial Data Analytics
This module outlines the application and conceptual understanding of statistical modelling of financial data dynamics using R programming, GitHub and cloud computing tools.

AI & Trading
Introduction to the artificial intelligence techniques and algorithms to enable financial machine learning.

Semester 3
Academic Dissertation
A thesis-based research project motivated by contemporary quantitative academic research. Supervision is provided by an academic with expertise in the chosen area.
or
Applied Research Project
An industry-focused module which has a taught component at the start of the summer. The final report is an in-depth equity analyst report of a CFA standard.

Modules are subject to change.

Graduate
Normally a 2.1 Honours degree or equivalent qualification acceptable to the University in Finance, Mathematics, Economics, or other relevant quantitative subject. Science and Engineering disciplines will be considered where there is a significant mathematical component. Performance in relevant modules must be of the required standard.

International Students
Our country/region pages include information on entry requirements, tuition fees, scholarships, student profiles, upcoming events and contacts for your country/region. Use the dropdown list below for specific information for your country/region.

English Language Requirements
Evidence of an IELTS* score of 6.5, with not less than 5.5 in any component, or an equivalent qualification acceptable to the University is required. *Taken within the last 2 years.

International students wishing to apply to Queen's University Belfast (and for whom English is not their first language), must be able to demonstrate their proficiency in English in order to benefit fully from their course of study or research. Non-EEA nationals must also satisfy UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) immigration requirements for English language for visa purposes.

For more information on English Language requirements for EEA and non-EEA nationals see: www.qub.ac.uk/EnglishLanguageReqs.

If you need to improve your English language skills before you enter this degree programme, INTO Queen's University Belfast offers a range of English language courses. These intensive and flexible courses are designed to improve your English ability for admission to this degree.

• Academic English: an intensive English language and study skills course for successful university study at degree level

• Pre-sessional English: a short intensive academic English course for students starting a degree programme at Queen's University Belfast and who need to improve their English.

Applicants are advised to apply as early as possible and ideally no later than 11th August 2023 for courses which commence in late September. In the event that any programme receives a high number of applications, the University reserves the right to close the application portal. Notifications to this effect will appear on the Direct Application Portal against the programme application page.

Please note: international applicants will be required to pay a deposit to secure a place on this course.

How to Apply
Applications should be submitted online via the Postgraduate Applications Portal for admission to the vast majority of postgraduate programmes.

New applicants will need to register via the Portal to create an application account. If you are already a Queen's student with an active Qsis account, you can log in using your student number and Qsis password. Guidance on how to complete an application is provided within the Portal and it is possible to save application data and return to complete it at a later date, if you wish. After core details about yourself and your academic background have been provided, you can submit an application, or multiple applications, if required.

If you applied in a previous cycle through the Portal and are re-applying, you should use your previous log in details. Please review and update your personal and contact details, academic and professional qualifications before submitting a new application.

Important – please ensure that the email address you provide is correct and active, as this will be used by us to communicate the progress of your application to you.

1 year (Full Time)

Career Prospects
Introduction
This MSc will equip students with cutting-edge quantitative and computational techniques and strategies used by leading finance and financial technology (FinTech) firms.

Today, all full-service institutional finance firms employ Financial Analytics professionals in their operations as well as other boutique firms, such as hedge funds, ranging from 20 or fewer employees to several thousand, which specialise in quantitative trading alone.

Many IT software organisations also specialise in the interface between computing and finance and would be very attracted to graduates from this programme. After completion of this MSc there is a wide variety of roles available for graduates, some of which will suit those with strong data analysis skills who wish to use cutting-edge quantitative modelling techniques and work in collaboration with traders to develop bespoke financial products.

Queen's postgraduates reap exceptional benefits. Unique initiatives, such as Degree Plus and Researcher Plus bolster our commitment to employability, while innovative leadership and executive programmes alongside sterling integration with business experts helps our students gain key leadership positions both nationally and internationally.
http://www.qub.ac.uk/directorates/sgc/careers/

Employment after the Course
Graduate prospects from the MSc Financial Analytics are excellent, culminating in Queen's being ranked first in the UK for Graduate Prospects in Accounting and Finance (Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2023). Graduates have gone on to work at world-leading companies including Amazon, Citadel Securities, Citigroup, Deutsche Bank, First Derivative, FinTrU, Merrill Lynch and PwC.

Graduate Plus/Future Ready Award for extra-curricular skills
In addition to your degree programme, at Queen's you can have the opportunity to gain wider life, academic and employability skills. For example, placements, voluntary work, clubs, societies, sports and lots more. So not only do you graduate with a degree recognised from a world leading university, you'll have practical national and international experience plus a wider exposure to life overall. We call this Graduate Plus/Future Ready Award. It's what makes studying at Queen's University Belfast special.