StudyQA — Master: Finance, Investments and Accounting, specialization: Quantitative Finance

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The graduate programme in Quantitative Finance at the Faculty of Economic Sciences at University of Warsaw is a four-semester programme on a full-time basis that provides students with outstanding knowledge of modern quantitative finance. The programme leads to magister degree and is compatible with the Bologna system.

The distinctive feature of this programme is that it combines the overall fundamentals of economic theory with specialised knowledge in finance. The basic aim of this specialisation is to provide students with theoretical knowledge from the field of quantitative finance combined with its practical applications in financial institutions, taking into account the latest trends in financial world.

Quantitative Finance programme was designed after the detailed analysis of many other similar programmes: Quantitative Finance, Financial Econometrics, Financial Engineering and Financial Economics, which are taught at the best universities worldwide.

The basic advantage of the new programme is the shift from the general idea to the details and focus on the theme of quantitative finance, which is essential in any advanced approach to modelling financial markets.

The additional advantage of this concept is their uniqueness on the Polish educational market, based on what the students have the upper hand from the start. There is no similar programme on any other Polish university in constrast to its predecessor (EF&B programme) which is taught at many other universities.
Quantitative Finance is prepared to connect the theoretical knowledge with its practical applications. However, most of the courses will include these two approaches simultaneously:

* Theoretical introduction (describing models and theories) and
* Practical applications of these theories in the world of finance, which help the students to gain practical insights into the process of implementation of specific models and techniques on the capital market.

The programme is designed for students who majored in economics, mathematics, business or social sciences and want to make quantitative finance their main field of study. Candidates should hold an undergraduate degree (Bachelor degree from an EU university or its equivalent from a university outside the EU).

The degree combines economic methods, quantitative techniques and state-of-the-art financial analyses to give students a strong background from which to pursue their careers. Students are encouraged to develop their abilities to use economic analysis in a variety of finance-related problems.

Significant course work is devoted to the development of mathematical and econometrical skills. These skills are necessary to evaluate the uncertain outcomes found in financial applications. The programme provides student with the opportunity to apply their knowledge and skills to projects that utilize financial tools and techniques.

Quantitative Finance programme is intended to prepare students who want to tie up their careers with Polish and world-wide financial institutions, who will be able to deal with complicated derivatives pricing models (Derivatives Markets, Quantitative Methods for Fixed Income Derivatives), who learn how to manage the various risks in financial institutions (Risk Analysis and Modelling I and II), who simultaneously gain the competence of managing the portfolio of assets considering the ongoing changes in financial environment (Asset Allocation and Investment Strategies I and II and Financial Statement Analysis and Security Valuation I and II), and possess the knowledge about the latest achievements in financial research (Empirics of Financial Markets).

Presented knowledge and skills will be enriched with the proper dose of economic theory (Advanced Microeconomics and Advanced Macroeconomics), courses in mathematics and econometrics (Mathematical Methods in Finance, Time Series Analysis, Financial Econometrics, High Frequency Data) and courses which present the architecture of the financial world (Theory of Finance and Central Banking and Monetary Policy), which help the students not only to understand the complicated world of financial models but to find a proper place for themselves in it as well.

This programme assumes that students will be equipped with theoretical knowledge and practical applications which enable them to take independent decision basing on the real-time financial data with use of tools and techniques dynamically developing in modern finance. 2007-2009 capital market turmoils were the best illustrations that there is lack of high-quality professionals who treat this subject as the main point of expertise.

Quantitative Finance programme is intended to prepare students for a wide range of careers inside and outside the financial industry including financial engineering and risk management, macroeconomic and financial forecasting, quantitative asset management, quantitative trading and applied research.

Additionally, the planned curriculum and the level of difficulty of courses assume solid background for students who wish to conduct independent research and continue their education on Ph.D. studies in the field of finance at Polish and foreign universities.

The detailed programme was designed in such a way as to provide prospective students the ability to prepare for taking highly recognised financial exams:

* CFA (Chartered Financial Analyst administered by CFA Institute, III parts) one of the best recognisable licences in the worldwide financial community, which represents the highest qualifications in this field. Currently, we have about 200 CFA chart holders in Poland. The students would have the ability to pass part 1 of the CFA exam in June session, after their first year of study.
* Securities Broker (administered by Polish Financial Supervision Authority, only one part) - the licence identifies professionals with a broad theoretical and practical knowledge of capital markets. The licence is mandatory in order to conduct specific brokerage activities (ACT on Trading in Financial Instruments dated July 29th 2005).
* Investment Adviser (administered by Polish Financial Supervision Authority, III parts). Almost every financial institution (pension fund, investment fund, asset management firm, etc.) in Poland has to recruit an Investment Adviser chart holder in order to perform specific brokerage activities related to asset management (currently, no more than 300 professionals have succeeded to obtain the investment adviser license).

The minimum requirement for entry into the Quantitative Finance program is generally a completed Bachelor's degree. However, some courses require the completion of specific lectures taught on undergraduate (Bachelor) level. Please see individual syllabuses for detailed information relating to specific courses included in the curriculum.Generally, to be eligible for Quantitative Finance programme, applicants are required to have passed the following courses called programme prerequisites or their equivalents on the Bachelor level: * Microeconomics, Macroeconomics, Finance, * Mathematical Analysis (Mathematical Calculus), Probability Calculus, * Mathematical Statistics, Econometrics.These courses indicate the academic background that it is assumed students entering the programme will have. Studying these subjects is highly desirable but is not a requirement of admission.Since this programme is taught entirely in English, candidates must be fluent in English. English Language Requirements IELTS band: 6 TOEFL paper-based test score : 510 TOEFL iBT® test: 64