M.Sc. in Finance

Course details

The M.Sc. in Finance is a one-year Masters program providing a leading European finance education, a high degree of flexibility in your learning experience and modern industry-relevant specialisms.

Our program is structured as a core learning first semester, followed by three specialist streams in the second semester, and a choice of applied research or a dissertation over the summer semester. The three streams are:

• Risk Management
• Capital Markets
• Energy Finance

Through these streams and excellent practical and research -informed core learning we allow you to specialize in a manner that reflects your interests and carer aspirations. We offer an ideal path for graduates of business and economics degrees, who wish to undertake a career in finance by obtaining a leading European postgraduate qualification.

The Risk Management stream of the MSc in Finance is also the only finance Masters in Ireland to be recognised by the Global Association of Risk Professionals (GARP)as an Academic Partner Program, in acknowledgement of the high standard achieved in finance and risk education. The partnership recognizes the quality of alumni of the program and their career progression, the market positioning of the program nationally and internationally, the curriculum content and delivery system, the balance between academic and professional dimensions, and the competence of the faculty who deliver the programme.

We are very happy to have Dublin City University as a member of GARP's Partnership for Risk Education. We've reviewed the curriculum of the Masters in Finance and Capital Markets Program and feel that it will successfully prepare students to understand and apply the skills and techniques required by the global risk management profession.

Head of Research and Educational Programs, GARP

This one-year Masters program is designed to produce the kind of professionals in greatest demand in the financial industry. It does so by fostering analytical and decision making skills and helping you build a set of rigorous competences in financial subjects. You will be exposed to first-class specialist education in financial subjects, develop your quantitative skills, and have the opportunity to learn the latest econometrics and data analysis techniques, which are becoming extremely important for a successful career in the financial industry.

More specifically:

The Capital Markets stream is designed to equip graduates for challenging but rewarding careers at the forefront of the financial industry, especially in investment banking, asset management and corporate finance. It does so by fostering analytical and decision making skills and helping students build a set of rigorous competences in financial subjects. Students opting for this stream of the program will be exposed to first-class specialist education in investment analysis and treasury and investment management;

The Risk Management stream is designed to produce graduates able to take on the demanding role of risk managers and to generate value for their firms by promoting and practising a culture of risk-awareness and efficient risk-taking. This is a type of professional in great and fast growing demand in the financial industry. Students opting for this stream of the program will be exposed to first-class specialist education in risk modelling and capital management, and to the latest thinking in enterprise-wide risk management. The structure and course content of this stream is designed to prepare graduates for the FRM (Financial Risk Manager) GARP examination.

The Energy Finance stream builds on our acknowledged expertise in this area, including through being the first university in Ireland to offer an MSc in Sustainable Energy Finance. Graduates will be able to demonstrate a wide range of expertise in the energy finance industry, a sector of rapid expansion internationally. Topics include modelling energy price risk, energy markets risk management, and sustainable energy finance.

The running of streams is subject to minimum numbers per stream.

Key aims of the overall program are to:

• Help you to understand the functioning of capital markets and financial choices made by firms by exploring the latest thinking in financial economics, with special emphasis on portfolio theory, asset pricing, corporate finance;
• Develop your mastery of techniques and methods of analysis useful to solve financial problems, with special emphasis on the challenges faced in the current economy.
• Ultimately, the objective is to prepare you to become effective decision makers in the financial industry, equipping you for high level rewarding careers across the spectrum of the financial sector.

Programme Structure:

The MSc in Finance is delivered on a one-year, full-time basis over two semesters and a summer term.

You start the year with an intensive first week concentrating on the core quantitative and research skills necessary to undertake the Masters. The first semester is common across all streams and provides a comprehensive foundation in finance through three modules which provide a blended learning approach of lectures, tutorials, laboratories, group work and individual projects.

Semester 1 Core Modules:

• Financial Theory & Markets
• Econometrics
• Financial Analysis

At the end of the first semester, with the help and advice of faculty, each student will decide which of the three streams to undertake. In addition, all students will take a core module of Advances Portfolio Theory.

The summer term consists of your choice of either undertaking an applied research module (taught) which will advance your practical knowledge and research skills for your chosen specialism or a dissertation.

Why DCU:

DCU is Ireland's University of Enterprise with an industry engagement strategy which benefits our students in many ways including:

• Excellent facilities, including a dedicated Bloomberg terminal, and access to Data stream and a wide range of cutting-edge "industry-grade" statistical and financial software.
• The competence of lecturers teaching on the program, all highly research-active and with a substantial track record of International publications and/or industry experience.
• Masters in Finance has been ranked in the Top 100 Best Masters in Financial Markets globally by Eduniversal Rankings 2012 and 2013.
• Close ties with the financial profession to ensure program relevancy, with guest lectures delivered by senior finance professionals as well as Alumni who have distinguished themselves in the industry and academia.
• Partnership with GARP (Global Association of Risk Professionals) and a specialism with a close alignment to the syllabus of their highly regarded Financial Risk Manager (FRM) examination.
• Very strong focus on developing your quantitative, research and project management skills to equip you to work in high-end consultancy, asset management and investment banking and/or pursue a Ph.D. in Finance.

The following are testimonials from recent graduates:

The MSc in Finance is the ideal platform for anyone looking to launch their career in the investments, capital markets and risk management industries, among others. The course built considerably on the knowledge I had gained from studying finance at an undergraduate level. I found that the curriculum greatly helped me to develop my understanding of financial theory, while also sparking my interest in the financial markets. My lecturers and thesis supervisor were always, and still are very approachable and helpful which made things much easier. I found the modules and classes to be broad, dynamic and engaging. We were often directed to present our work in front of our peers and lecturers, which was a part of the course I particularly enjoyed and found beneficial. The course had the ideal blend of analysis and theory while also keeping students up to date on the fast paced, ever changing finance industry. A number of industry professionals were brought in to discuss the marketplace from their firms' perspectives. The course is very challenging, however, I have managed to find my ideal job, and I would not be in my current position without the qualification. I am only now really starting to realize how holding the MSc definitely differentiates you in the industry, and that will make you stand out for your whole career.

Shane O'Doherty Brandes
Investment Partners (Europe) Ltd

I have been always interested in the field of Finance and got to work in the bank straight after my BA degree. However, after few years in the bank I realised that I lacked some of the technical knowledge required to advance my career further and to catch up on the recent. Since completing the course I saw advances in my career and also better remuneration package so overall the course delivered a lot of value for me. I enjoyed every minute of it, met a lot of interesting people and would highly recommend it to anyone pursuing career in Finance.

Vasily Ogievsky, Snr Treasury Risk Analyst, EBS Building Society