Belfast, United Kingdom
30 Jun 2025
EARLIEST START DATE
GBP 25,800 *
* international fee
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 a practical understanding of financial markets and financial decision making.
MSc Finance at Queen's Management School is CFA affiliated.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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 that 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.
- 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.
Successful students will have the necessary skills to have career opportunities in finance, including investment banking, commercial banking, investment management, or other financial intermediaries.
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.
Asset Pricing - FIN7026
This module offers an introduction to the field of financial economics and provides an understanding of the development of advanced pricing theory. The module starts by examining rational investor behaviour; how investors allocate resources both in certain and uncertain environments, building towards an understanding of how prices are rationally determined in asset markets. Apparent violations of rational behaviour and pricing are then examined to understand better how traders and markets function. Students will also explore portfolio allocation and examine a range of anomalies including the equity premium puzzle. The course concludes with an examination of the efficient market hypothesis and throughout, we shall critique key financial models and economic theory.
Corporate Finance - FIN9005
The purpose of this course is to analyse how corporations make major financial decisions. The theory of corporate behaviour is discussed and the relevance of each theoretical model is examined by an empirical analysis of actual corporate decision making. The aims of this module are to familiarise students with the issues of confronting corporations when making investments and financing decisions and to develop the ability of students to obtain corporate information from the Bloomberg database.
Financial Data Analytics - FIN9008
The purpose of this course is to provide a comprehensive introduction to econometric techniques used in finance. It contains a treatment of classical regression and an introduction to time series techniques. There will be an emphasis on applied work using econometric packages. The course is designed to give students both theoretical and practical experience of statistical and econometric techniques. A wide range of topics is typically covered including the basic regression model, which includes a discussion of the classical violations of this model and methods for their correction. Students will learn a computer statistical software package (R).
Choose 1 from:
- Market Microstructure - FIN7027
- Financial Regulation and Risk Management - FIN7021
Derivatives - FIN9007
The aim of this course is to develop in students a theoretical and practical knowledge of derivative instruments. The learning outcomes include understanding the mechanisms of futures and forward markets, pricing futures and forward instruments, constructing hedges using futures, and understanding the mechanisms of option markets. Additionally, the concepts of stochastic processes and its applications in financial modelling is addressed.
International Finance - FIN9004
The main goal of this course is to understand the complexities involved in conducting finance across more than one country. It aims to provide students with both practical skills for working in this area and a broader understanding of the role of finance within the international economy. The majority of the course will involve the description of key analytical concepts and theories involved in international finance. These theories are then used to help understand the international elements of important economic and financial phenomena.
Advanced Financial Data Analytics - FIN7028
Statistics is the science of uncertainty and variation. Econometrics is the application of statistics to economic and finance problems. The aim of this course is to teach students to apply time series financial econometrics techniques sensibly in the context of real-world empirical problems. Use R statistical programming software and RStudio, students will be taught statistical techniques which underpin quantitative investigation in the finance
Money and Banking - FIN9003
This module examines the theory of money and banking. The course considers the main banking and monetary institutions and monetary policy. The overall aim is to provide students with an understanding of monetary and banking institutions and promote a good appreciation of the economic functions and workings of financial those institutions.
The aim of the dissertation is to provide students with the skills needed for conducting theoretical and/or empirical research in finance.
Applied Research Project
Learning and Teaching
The program will equip you with cutting-edge quantitative and computational analytical skills demanded by leading firms worldwide. It prepares you for future careers in quantitative finance, trading, general finance, FinTech, and business consulting environments. Bridging the gap between quantitative models and financial decision-making, many modules emphasize learning through simulation. This approach ensures that you gain practical, hands-on experience, aligning theoretical knowledge with real-world applications, and making you adept at navigating the complexities of the global financial landscape.
Your degree, your way
Our MSc Finance programme offers an extensive selection of optional modules, allowing you to tailor your education to your interests and career goals. Dive into specialized areas such as Asset Pricing, Corporate Finance, Financial Data Analytics, and more. With opportunities to explore Market Microstructure, Financial Regulation, Derivatives, International Finance, and Advanced Financial Data Analytics, you can shape a curriculum that aligns with your aspirations. Choose a final project or dissertation to conclude your studies, ensuring a comprehensive and personalized academic experience.
Assessments associated with the course are outlined below:
Assessment is by a variety of methods, including individual coursework, group work, presentations, simulations, case studies, class tests, examinations and dissertation or applied research project.
Program Tuition Fee
Scholarships and Funding
How do I fund my study?
The Department for the Economy will provide a tuition fee loan of up to £5,500 per NI / EU student for postgraduate study.
A postgraduate loans system in the UK offers government-backed student loans of up to £10,609 for taught and research Master's courses in all subject areas. Criteria, eligibility, repayment and application information are available on the UK government website.
Program Admission Requirements
Show your commitment and readiness for Grad school by taking the GRE - the most broadly accepted exam for graduate programs internationally.