Finance

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Welcome to the web pages of the Master in Finance! We offer a two-year program that blends finance and mathematics. It is quantitative yet practical.

Ulm is an excellent place for studying finance: In a research ranking published in the German Economic Review Ulm's finance group came out second among all universities in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.

* Start: winter semester
* Duration: 4 semesters
* Degree: Master of Science
* Language of Instruction: English
* Application: online application from January, 1 until April, 30

Aims of the Program

The Master in Finance program provides a unique interdisciplinary education in mathematical finance to students from around the world. The program, which is taught in English, includes courses from mathematics, applied mathematics, finance and insurance.

Special attention will be given to foundations from various branches of applied mathematics (stochastics, statistics, applied and numerical analysis), which are necessary for modeling complex financial processes and products. With the help of such knowledge, students will be able to use advanced mathematical methods in order to solve practical problems. Example applications are portfolio optimization, the pricing and risk analysis of credit derivatives, asset-backed securities and insurance products, or bankruptcy prediction. Many of the offered courses focus on such applications. Students will also gain familiarity with the information system Bloomberg, which is available in the facultys trading room.

Professional Perspectives

Through the program, students will gain a sound understanding of cutting-edge techniques used by financial institutions, consultants, regulators and many other economic institutions. Topics of the program include valuation and hedging of derivatives, portfolio and risk management, regulatory aspects, and insurance. Graduates with a sound training in these areas are sought after on the job market.

Structure of the Program
The program is spread over four semesters (two years), with three semesters of course work and one semester to write the master thesis. Besides the courses from the three areas described above, students are also requested to attend language or cultural courses.

After the first term, students can decide whether to specialize in financial mathematics, in financial economics or in actuarial science. Depending on the chosen specialization, the focus of the optional courses to be taken in the second and third term will be on mathematical finance, finance or actuarial science, respectively.

The study plans show typical courses of study, seperately for the three possible specializations. Note that the credit points stated per semester are not binding. You do not need to achieve exactly the stated number of points per semester.

The course schedule is preliminary. There might be changes in the schedule.

Financial Mathematics

* Financial Mathematics II, 9 CP

Numerical Finance, 9 CP

* Methods of Monte Carlo Simulation 2, 4 CP

Risk Theory, 9 CP

Stochastic Optimization with Applications, 4 CP

Mathematics

* Financial Mathematics II, 9 CP



Numerical Finance, 9 CP

Mathematics of Games, 9 CP

* Asymptotic Methods in Insurance, 4 CP


* Methods of Monte Carlo Simulation 2, 4 CP



Risk Theory, 9 CP

* Extreme Value Theory, 9 CP



Stochastic Optimization with Applications, 4 CP

* Stochastic Simulation of Processes, Fields and Structures, 9 CP


* Survival and Event History Analysis, 9 CP



Financial Economics

* Credit Analysis, 7 CP


* Financial Modeling, 3 CP


* Financial Intermediation, 7 CP


* Corporate Strategy, 7 CP



Empirical Industrial Organization & Consumer Choice, 7 CP

* Issues in Emerging Market Finance, 4 CP



Insurance Economics, 6 CP

* Asymptotic Methods in Insurance, 4 CP


* Topics in Life and Pension Insurance, 7 CP



Actuarial Science

Insurance Economics, 6 CP

* Asymptotic Methods in Insurance, 4 CP


* Topics in Life and Pension Insurance, 7 CP



Other

Seminars

* Practical Financial



Engineering, 5 CP

* Additional Key



Qualifications

Applicants for this program must have completed a Bachelors degree (or an equivalent thereof) in mathematics or in another quantitative and mathematically-orientated discipline from a recognized university. A degree in economics, for example, can be sufficient provided that you have successfully taken a significant number of courses in mathematics and statistics. Applicants with a degree in physics or engineering are usually eligible.Note that courses in financial mathematics and mathematics, which are an integral part of the MSc Finance, are on the level of mathematics programs. Applicants should therefore have a genuine interest in mathematics. If you are in doubt whether you meet the requirements you can send us an email with only your transcript of records for a preliminary check. Please try not to send attachments larger than 2 MB.Furthermore, an above-average performance in the completed degree and good knowledge of the English language is required. For the latter, you can use a TOEFL (score of at least 570 for the paper-based test, 230 for the computer-based test, or 88 for the internet-based test) or an IELTS (score of 6.5 or better). A test is not needed by applicants whose mother tongue is English or who have completed a Bachelor taught in English.You do not need prior knowledge in finance. The compulsory courses of the first semester are structured such that they can serve us an introduction to finance. Successful applicants will display the willingness to work in a challenging, multi-cultural environment, a strong mathematical ability and good communication skills. English Language Requirements TOEFL paper-based test score : 570 TOEFL iBT® test: 88

For information on scholarship programs consult the DAAD (German Academic Exchange Service). Make sure that you tick "postgraduate" in the status filed when searching the DAAD database. Several of our students have DAAD scholarships, in particular Study Scholarships for Graduates of All Disciplines. Unfortunately, these scholarships are availabe only for specific countries. The DAAD database will inform you whether you can apply for such a scholarship.

For many scholarships awarded by German institutions, application is usually only possible once you study in Germany. For others, e.g. DAAD sholarships, you need to apply early. A large scholarship database is maintained by Scholarshipportal.

The University of Ulm also awards scholarships. For the Deutschlandstipendium, a national scholarship program, application is possible only once you study in Ulm. For another, more limited program, candidates cannot apply themselves but are suggested based on their application for the MSc Finance.