Finance (Financial Technology and Banking)

Entry requirements

Application Deadlines

The application process opens 1 October 2024 for Masters programmes commencing 2025

We aim to have a diverse student body and recognise that we can only offer places to a finite number of applicants. To help achieve our aim, we look to ensure we offer places to applicants from all nationalities and close applications when we receive the allocated numbers.

The University is under no obligation to make any offer of a place on the programme to any applicant, nor is the University obligated to fill all spaces available on the programme.

The Masters in Finance programme is designed for new or recent graduates. Certain routes within the Masters in Finance programme may also be of interest to those who already have practical experience in the field of finance. Prospective candidates must hold qualifications equivalent to a UK first or upper second-class honours degree in any discipline. Applicants are also expected to have strong quantitative skills for the programme, which includes fundamental concepts of calculus and statistics. Therefore, having studied a relevant mathematics/quantitative module at university level or a minimum of A level Mathematics (or its equivalent) is a prerequisite for prospective candidates.

For applicants whose first language is not English: a minimum score of 6.5 in IELTS, with no element below 6.0; or a minimum score of 92 in TOEFL, with no element below 23; or an equivalent qualification.

How do I apply

You will need to complete an online application form.

Please note you can only apply for one Masters in Finance programme.

>> Fill out the online application form

To support your online application form, you will need to provide the following documents.

• Official transcript of marks
• Copy of degree certificate (if available)
• Copy of English test results (if available).

You can either upload your supporting documents with your online application or email or fax them to the Postgraduate Admissions Office using the contact details below.

Note
Only files of type .doc, .docx, .gif, .jpg, .pdf, .png, .rtf are permitted to be uploaded.
The maximum file size is 5MB.

Application fee

Once we receive your online application form, you’ll get an automatic email within 48 hours asking you to pay the £60 application fee* which is required to progress your application.

You’ll need to follow the link in the email to the webpage where you can confirm your details and make the payment using a debit or credit card. This is a secure website operated by Secpay, which will send you an automatic receipt of payment.

Once we receive confirmation that your application fee has been paid, we’ll be able to progress your application. If you do not pay the application fee your application will be automatically withdrawn.

*Please note you will only be able to make a payment for one programme in each suite i.e. one MSc Finance programme, one MSc Management programme, one MSc Economics programme.

College membership

All students of Durham University will become a member of one of our Colleges. Here is more information about what college membership means to our students . Once you have accepted your postgraduate offer, the Accommodation and Allocations Office will contact you with further information regarding how to express college preferences. You can also apply for college accommodation, if you wish to.

Here are the steps in the admissions process:

1. We will let you know when we’ve received your application.
2. Once we’ve received all of your supporting documents, we will email you to let you know our decision.
3. If the decision is to make you an offer of a place on the programme we will let you know by email. Please note we do not issue hard copy offer letters as these are not required to obtain a student visa.
4. You should confirm acceptance of your offer as soon as possible. In order to secure your place, you are required to pay a deposit within six weeks of the date of your original offer (check your offer documents for details of payment methods).
5. International students requiring a student visa will receive a CAS (Certificate of Acceptance of Studies) via email once all offer conditions are met, acceptance and deposit have been received and you are within five months of the start date of your programme.

Months of entry

September

Course content

The MSc in Finance (Financial Technology and Banking) focuses on a highly specialised sector of finance that is involved every day in the lives of people and in the decisions and directions taken by businesses and organisations across the globe. It will equip you with the skills and knowledge to work successfully in this vitally important area of finance.

You will learn how to apply state-of-the art analytical skills, technical skills, and research techniques to financial scenarios in a teaching environment that is challenging and rewarding. Learning is designed to reflect our core values of fairness in how we experience the financial world and equality of access to financial services. Leading global financial institutions and businesses and prestigious PhD research programmes all look for such knowledge and experience.

The 12-month full-time course comprises a combination of core and optional modules, culminating in a practice-based business project or a research-based dissertation depending on the learning direction you choose.

Through a blend of lectures, seminars, and practical work, you will study an up-to-date range of modules including financial technologies, bank management, specialist finance software, banking and financial intermediation and econometric methods.

The course has partnership status with the Chartered Financial Analyst Institute (CFA), the leading global association for investment professionals and the accepted benchmark around the world for technical excellence in financial markets.

The School has made a significant investment in database resources, giving you access to live and historical data from providers including Bloomberg, Capital IQ, Thomson Reuters, DataStream and Orbis. These state-of-the-art databases give you the opportunity to interrogate the financial records of millions of companies worldwide and add valuable insight to your research.

By joining us, you will experience teaching by passionate and dedicated academics who are committed to the study of finance and how it interacts with the everyday lives of individuals and its role within global institutions. Having completed the course, you will be equipped to enjoy a successful career working or researching in finance, banking, or a related discipline.

World-class Business Education

11th (UK) 39th (Europe) 66th (Global) - QS World University Rankings: Masters in Finance 2024

Course structure

Core modules:

Financial Technologies features the software, hardware, and innovative algorithmic technologies typically employed by and in financial innovation and is a platform for you to develop further skills in this area. The module provides a comprehensive introduction to FinTech, it is created for management and deployment roles rather than software developers or engineers and you will complete it having gained technical, social and economic understandings of financial technologies with a comprehensive knowledge of key concepts and innovations.

Advanced Financial Technologies uses examples and case studies based on real financial innovation scenarios and is focused on how financial technologies are built and implemented in practice. This is a practical module that teaches skills related to financial technologies and infrastructures. You will develop a technical and practical understanding of financial technologies and will be able to analyse data from and implement simple designs of financial market infrastructure using programming languages such as Python or Solidity.

Bank Management develops your knowledge of key concepts and issues in banking related to the management of lending processes, bank funding structure, liquidity and risk management, and performance measurement. You will also develop a critical understanding and appreciation of current theoretical and empirical research in banking and its applications to professional practice in financial services.

Python for Finance explores general principles and specific techniques of programming in the Python software and its applications in finance, including portfolio management, algorithmic trading, risk management and asset pricing. You will learn to use Python packages for financial data analysis and solving problems in the above-mentioned fields in finance.

Banking and Financial Intermediation teaches the key concepts and issues in financial intermediation related to the specificities of banking firms, financial stability and regulation. By the end of the module you will have developed an understanding of current theoretical and empirical research in financial intermediation and banking and its relevance to contemporary banking issues.

Econometric Methods develops the econometric skills necessary for empirical research in economics and/or finance as well as the ability to understand more advanced econometric techniques that will be taught in the second term of the MSc.

The Dissertation , on a finance topic of your choice, develops your ability to plan and manage your own learning. It provides an opportunity to conduct an in-depth investigation at an advanced level and present your findings and conclusions. To add a further international dimension to the course you can apply for the international route where you undertake research abroad at a partner university. There is also the option to develop a more applied business project in conjunction with an appropriate organisation.

In recent years, optional modules have included:

• Advanced Financial Theory
• Behavioural and Neurofinance
• Climate Finance
• Corporate Finance
• Derivative Markets
• Financial Modelling and Business Forecasting
• Financial Risk Management
• Fintech Regulations
• International Financial Economics
• International Study Tour
• Islamic Banking and Finance
• Islamic Capital Markets
• Islamic Law and Financial Transactions
• Market Microstructure
• Mergers and Acquisitions and Corporate Restructuring
• Portfolio Management
• Security Analysis
• A language module

Information for international students

If you are an international student who does not meet the requirements for direct entry to this degree, you may be eligible to take a pre-Masters pathway programme at the Durham University International Study Centre.

Fees and funding

For further information see the course listing.