About this course
Our MSc Finance master's has a unique emphasis on quantitative and analytical techniques. You’ll develop and use real industry skills and gain a competitive edge with employers. There’s a strong focus on the latest practices and research that you’ll learn with essential theory. Prepare to succeed in rapidly changing and complex financial environments.
Through this course, you'll learn insights into the future of finance from our academics who have extensive professional experience. They are also leading and active researchers. This will help you develop skills that employers want, and will advance your career in industry, government, or research.
You'll cover:
- complex financial products
- assessing and managing financial risk
- management decisions and value creation
- econometric modelling
- forecasting
- leading econometric and statistical software
On our master of finance UK we’ll teach you advanced stock market analysis, corporate finance, and portfolio management. You'll also have an unusual opportunity to study behavioural finance. This will let you explore the behavioural biases that can affect financial decision making in uncertain environments.
You’ll also use your skills and have real industry experience through:
- trade simulation workshops
- access to industry software
- using live company data
- weekly research update seminars
Course lead
The course leader, Dr Arben Kita, is an expert in fields including empirical asset pricing, behavioural asset pricing, and market microstructure. Find out more on Dr Kita’s staff profile.
Accreditations
MSc Finance Taster Lecture
Course location
This course is based at Highfield.
Awarding body
This qualification is awarded by the University of Southampton.
Download the Course Description Document
The Course Description Document details your course overview, your course structure and how your course is taught and assessed.
Changes due to COVID-19
Although the COVID-19 situation is improving, any future restrictions could mean we might have to change the way parts of our teaching and learning take place in 2021 to 2022. We're working hard to plan for a number of possible scenarios. This means that some of the information on this course page may be subject to change.
Find out more on our COVID advice page.
Entry requirements
You’ll need a 2:1 degree or equivalent qualification in one of the following subjects:
- finance
- economics
- maths
- engineering
- a scientific discipline
Find the equivalent international qualifications for your country.
We do not accept the following subjects:
- Language Studies – degrees that focus on learning a language or how to translate, such as 'Business English', 'Applied English', or 'Translation', are not acceptable. However, this restriction does not apply to ‘English’ and ‘English literature’ degrees of the kind taught in the UK.
- Art/Design/Vocational Studies – degrees that focus on learning a particular form of art, craft or vocation. These include degrees in art, graphic design, photography, television broadcasting, script writing, or performance/dance.
English language requirements
If English isn't your first language, you'll need to complete an International English Language Testing System (IELTS) to demonstrate your competence in English. You'll need all of the following scores as a minimum:
IELTS score requirements
- overall score
- 6.5
- reading
- 6.5
- writing
- 6.5
- speaking
- 6.0
- listening
- 6.0
We accept other English language tests. Find out which English language tests we accept.
Recognition of professional experience
If you don't have the exact entry requirements, but you have significant work experience in this sector we’ll assess your relevant professional experience, your subject knowledge and your aptitude for learning.
Your application will be considered on individual merit and you may be asked to attend an interview.
Got a question?
Please contact us if you're not sure you have the right experience or qualifications to get onto this course.
Email: enquiries@southampton.ac.uk
Tel: +44(0)23 8059 5000
Course structure
This is a full-time 1 year course, running from October to October. The first 9 months involves taught study, divided into 2 semesters.
In semester 3 (final 3 months) you’ll complete an individual research project as part of your dissertation.
Want more detail? See all the modules in the course.
Modules
Changes due to COVID-19
Although the COVID-19 situation is improving, any future restrictions could mean we might have to change the way parts of our teaching and learning take place in 2021 to 2022. We're working hard to plan for a number of possible scenarios. This means that some of the information on this course page may be subject to change.
Find out more on our COVID advice page.
For entry in Academic Year 2021-22
Year 1 modules
You must study the following modules:
Introduce concepts of Advanced Corporate Finance, which combines aspects of corporate finance and value-based management. The focus is on understanding the relationships between investments and financing decisions on shareholder value. Analysing these rel...
The module offers a comprehensive introduction to Advanced Time Series Modelling. You will learn various analytical tools to enable you to analyse financial data. The module expects prior skills in data analysis covered by the module Quantitative Finance ...
The dissertation stage of your Postgraduate programme involves an extended, independent investigation of a topic of your own choosing and the preparation of a 15,000 word dissertation describing your work. Essentially, the dissertation is a test of your a...
The “Introduction to Finance” module aims to offer a comprehensive introduction to Finance. You will learn various analytical tools to analyse the theory of choice, capital budgeting, asset pricing models, financial risk management, etc. You will also lea...
The aim of this module is to provide a broad introduction to portfolio selection and derivatives from a theoretical and practical viewpoint. The course will show the interaction between asset management and derivatives.
The purpose of this module is to provide you with the necessary skills to undertake quantitative research in finance. In particular, we focus on analysing financial markets and firms’ investment and financing decisions. Lectures will introduce a broad ran...
You must also choose from the following modules:
Mainstream finance assumes that people are rational and is mainly concerned with how they should behave when making financial decisions. In this module, instead, we focus on how individuals make financial decisions in practice, and we use insights from ps...
This module explores the key concepts and theories of financial derivatives. The focus is mainly on futures and options whose underlying asset is a financial asset (e.g., stock index options). Students will learn how to price these derivatives with the us...
This module aims to provide you with a thorough knowledge of the fixed income securities and techniques available for fixed income securities analysis, together with an understanding of investment data and performance measurement. Emphasis will be placed ...
This module deals with the finance in an international context. This includes spot and the forward exchange rates, the operation of common currency systems and also international cultural differences which affect the way business is governed.
In this module, the aim is to integrate risk management as part of financial theory and practice. The three main risk concepts in the investment and corporate risk management field are: market risk (times series), credit risk (financial ratings) and opera...
This module provides an introduction to the modern finance theory and its applications to equity investing. It will start by giving a short preamble of the asset classes and stock markets, security analysis, and equity evaluation models. The course will t...
Learning and assessment
Learning
You’ll develop and enhance your knowledge through:
- seminars, lectures and workshops
- individual and group assignments
- practical exercises
- case studies and reading (textbooks or academic journals)
- databases such as Bloomberg, Reuters/Datastream
- statistical software such as E-views, STATA and Matlab
Assessment
Assessment methods involve:
- exams
- in-class tests
- group assignments
- independent research
Dissertation
You'll need to write a 15,000-word dissertation as part of this finance master's. This will involve an extended, independent investigation of a topic of your own choice.
Academic Support
We offer plenty of support to help you succeed. You'll be allocated a personal academic tutor who will be your first point of contact for any course-related matters. They can also direct you to other sources of support and advice within the Business School and the University if you need them.
Careers
The MSc Finance degree offers you a deep knowledge in finance and skills which are essential in today’s competitive environment.
You could develop a specialist role or carry out research in:
- the business sector
- banks and other financial institutions
- the public sector
- universities or research-related institutions
Careers services at Southampton
We're a top 20 UK university for employability (QS Graduate Employability Rankings 2020). Our Careers and Employability Service will support you throughout your time as a student and for up to 5 years after graduation. This support includes:
- work experience schemes
- CV/resume and interview skills workshops
- networking events
- careers fairs attended by top employers
- a wealth of volunteering opportunities
- study abroad and summer school opportunities
We have a thriving entrepreneurship culture. You'll be able to take advantage of:
- our dedicated start-up incubator, Futureworlds
- a wide variety of enterprise events run throughout the year
- our partnership in the world’s number 1 business incubator, SETsquared
Fees, costs and funding
Tuition fees
Fees for a year's study:
- UK students pay £15,000.
- EU and international students pay £28,000.
What your fees pay for
Your tuition fee covers the full cost of tuition and any exams.
Find out how to pay your tuition fees.
Accommodation and living costs, such as travel and food, are not included in your tuition fees. Explore:
10% alumni discount
If you’re a graduate of the University of Southampton you get a 10% discount on your postgraduate tuition fees.
Postgraduate Master’s Loans (UK nationals only)
This can help with course fees and living costs while you study a postgraduate master's course. Find out if you're eligible.
Funding your postgraduate studies
A variety of additional scholarships, grants and bursaries may be available to help you fund your master’s study, both from the University and from other organisations.
Funding for EU and international students
Find out about funding you could get as an international student.
How to apply
- Use the 'apply for this course' button on this page to take you to our online application form.
- Search for the course you want to apply for.
- Complete the application form and upload any supporting documents.
- Submit your application.
Application deadlines
UK students
Applications must be received no later than 4 weeks before the start of the course. You must supply all supporting documentation at least 2 weeks before starting your course.
International students
We recommend you apply at least 6 weeks before the start of the course to ensure you're able to meet our requirements and apply for a visa in time.
We cannot guarantee students who do not meet these deadlines will be able to begin their course.
Application assessment fee
We’ll ask you to pay a £50 application assessment fee if you’re applying for any postgraduate taught course that starts in or after September 2021.
This is an extra one-off charge which is separate to your tuition fees. It covers the work and time it takes us to assess your application. You’ll be prompted to pay when you submit your application which won’t progress until you've paid.
If you're a current or former University of Southampton student, if you're applying for a Master of Research (MRes) degree, or if you're applying for a PGCE course via UCAS, you will not need to pay the fee. Find out if you’re exempt on our terms and conditions page.
Supporting information
When you apply you’ll need to submit a personal statement explaining why you want to take the course.
You’ll need to include information about:
- your knowledge of the subject area
- why you want to study a postgraduate qualification in this course
- how you intend to use your qualification
You'll also need to send 2 academic references.
Please include the required paperwork showing your first degree and your IELTS English language test score (if you are a non-native English speaker) with your application. Without these, your application may be delayed.
Learn more about how to apply with our postgraduate application guide.
What happens after you apply
You'll be able to track your application through our online Applicant Record System.
We'll assess your application on the strength of your:
- academic achievements
- relevant professional experience
- personal statement
- academic references
We'll get back to you within 6 weeks with a decision about your application.
Equality and diversity
We treat and select everyone in line with our Equality and Diversity Statement.
Got a question?
Please contact us if you're not sure you have the right experience or qualifications to get onto this course.
Email: enquiries@southampton.ac.uk
Tel: +44(0)23 8059 5000
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