Finance and Banking MSc

Intro

With the banking industry undergoing major changes, there has never been a more exciting or challenging time to join the profession.

Our Finance and Banking MSc programme will prepare you for a wide range of careers in finance, designed to equip you with the knowledge and skills to help organisations understand complex financial issues and develop practical solutions.

The course explores the changing environment within which financial institutions operate, the globalisation of finance, changes in technology, and the regulatory environment. You will also gain an appreciation of the evolution of finance and banking theory, as well as contemporary debates and controversies.

This course is part of our Finance MSc programme. All students complete the same core finance modules, then from the end of the first term you will be able to tailor the course to your individual strengths and career aspirations through option modules and the option to specialise in one of five areas.

The other specialisms offered are:

Key facts

Location Brighton: Moulsecoomb

Full-time 1 year

Apply online

Please review the entry requirements carefully and if you have any questions do get in touch with us.

Apply now for your place

Course content

Course structure

The course is composed of three phases:

Phase 1 teaches the core subjects of finance, economics and research methods

Phase 2 introduces specialist modules in finance and banking

Phase 3 is the dissertation that draws together the learning from the whole of the programme, allowing you to develop your research skills and capacity for critical analysis while creating a specialisation in a particular field of finance and banking

All modules on the course involve both taught sessions and guided independent study. For a typical module, approximately 30% of the total hours comprise taught activity, 10% is guided study and supervision, and the remainder is independent study.

Syllabus

Core modules will give you practical background knowledge in key finance subjects. From term 3 you will be able to tailor your course through a choice of specialisms and option modules. The specialisms currently offered are banking, accounting, investment, economics and risk management.

Core modules

Economics of Financial Markets
Financial Theory and Practice
Research Methods for Finance and Economics
Dissertation

Mandatory specialism module (Term 2)

Banking and Financial Institutions
Money, Interest Rates and Banking

Option modules (choose one)

Advanced Financial Mathematics
Applied Econometrics and Financial Time Series Analysis
Banking and Financial Institutions
Emerging Financial Markets
Financial Derivatives
Financial Regulation: Economic Principles and Institutional Frameworks
Financial Risk Management
International Portfolio Management
Issues in Financial Accounting
Issues in Management Accounting
Market-making and Investment Strategies

Completion of your final project (dissertation) takes place throughout the summer after teaching finishes. You submit your project in October and receive your MSc award in December.

Modules in focus

Banking and Financial Institutions

This module provides a theoretical background and practical knowledge of the way that banks operate and the problems that they face in the modern financial system. It combines economic theory with historical context to consider issues such as: banking competition; efficiency; the role of domestic, international and shadow banking as well as the interaction between commercial banks; investment banks; and fund managers. The effect of changing technology and new financial regulations are also considered.

The theory of financial intermediation
The structure of the financial system
The internationalisation of banking
Bank failures
Banking regulation
Mergers and acquisitions in banking
Shadow banking
Small business finance
Insurance
Fund management
Financial innovation
Islamic finance

Money, Interest Rates and Banking

The aim of this module is to develop your knowledge of money interest rates and banking. You learn about macro and microeconomic models of money and banking, the limitations of such models, and the policy implications of these models in a dynamic world where the regulatory, technological and macroeconomic background is changing.

The function and history of money and banking
Information, expectations and confidence
Macroeconomic and microeconomic models
Goals, targets, instruments and strategies of monetary policy
The monetary transmission mechanism
Financial intermediation
Monetary policy and the open economy

Dissertation

In the final phase of the course, you will complete a dissertation relating to finance and banking.

The dissertation will be 10,000–15,000 words long. It will address an accounting problem that requires you to undertake research leading to practicable recommendations based on sound analysis and judgement. You will finalise the topic in consultation with the course leader and other specialists in banking research.

You will receive help from your dissertation supervisor, who will monitor and support your progress. The dissertation is submitted in October.

Real-time trading room

As part of your course you will have access to modern computing facilities and specialist computing packages, for students on the Market-making and Investment Strategies module this includes access to our real-time trading room, fed by up-to-the-minute data from Reuters.

One of a handful of such facilities across the UK, our trading room sessions are supervised by guest traders and provide you with the opportunity to apply your skills to real markets and real data, and make use of simulation software to recreate the pressure of a trading floor.

We also invite guest traders to discuss curriculum topics, pass on their trading experience and supervise trading sessions.

Student trading society

We highly recommend students join our thriving Student Investment and Trading Society, which is established and run by students for the purpose of organising social and networking events, arranging talks by visiting industry experts and facilitating annual trading competitions against other universities.

Learning support

Experienced, professionally qualified lecturers and small class sizes will ensure your learning needs are supported. Online learning tools and libraries also ensure academic journals, e-books, business articles and other resources are available to you 24/7, both for use at the university and at home.

You will also have access to our Careers Service, including CV checking, mock interviews and advice on setting up your own business.

Staff profile

Robert Hayward, Course Leader
Robert has 15 years' experience of working in the financial services sector, with responsibility for producing economic forecasts and capital market strategies for traders and bank customers.

He has an MSc in Economics and a PhD on Speculation in the Foreign Exchange Market. He joined the University of Brighton in 2011 and his main interests are capital markets, foreign exchange and behavioural finance.

Meet the rest of our finance team on our blog.

Robert Hayward, course leader

Our latest news

Watch graduation 2019 live

It’s nearly time for the final University of Brighton graduation ceremony for our amazing Brighton Business School graduates, the hall is bustling with activity and there are some incredibly proud family and friends in the audience.

Black and in Business is BACK!!!

Brighton Business School alumni, Marvin Okai and Denzil Lawrence, are back at university to talk about their journey to becoming Chartered Accountants and why they developed their blog Black and in Business to share their experience.

The influences on the increase of upper degrees

A research report on grade inflation authored by economist Dr Ray Bachan from Brighton Business School and commissioned by Universities UK on behalf of the UK Standing Committee for Quality Assessment (UKSCQA) has been published on the Universities UK website along-side a UK-wide consultation document.

OSTC Brighton v Sussex Trading Challenge 2018

For the second year in a row, Brighton brought the OSTC Trading Challenge cup home.

Careers

Career prospects

A postgraduate qualification from Brighton Business School will help you to specialise and stand out in today's highly competitive job market.

Banking is a profession that offers a huge variety of opportunities, the possibility of rapid career progression, and good pay and benefits.

The course prepares you for a range of careers in central banks, finance departments of industrial and service companies, regulatory bodies, government agencies, financial consultancies and auditors. Such companies are actively looking to recruit postgraduate-level professionals.

There is a particularly strong demand for banking graduates in developing economies where financial organisations are seeking postgraduate-level professionals with a sophisticated understanding of banking.

The course is also ideal preparation for continuing your studies at MPhil or PhD level, or working as a professional researcher in finance.

Brighton_Uni_IBM_Students_high_res-8

Skills development

Alongside traditional lectures you will gain practical experience by working on case studies and in our real-time trading room, all helping to prepare you for your career by putting strategies into practice. You will also benefit from talks from visiting alumni and industry partners such as American Express and Legal & General.

Careers advice

Our dedicated Placements and Employability team provide a huge portfolio of employers offering business-related placement opportunities. They support all students find a placement.

They offer several services to improve your employability including CV and cover letter reviews, mock assessment centres, fast-track interviews and interview practice sessions.

They will also support you throughout your placement and act as referees if you are offered a permanent role.

JobTeaser
We are one of the first UK universities to use JobTeaser, a new online placements system presenting placement options in the UK and Europe. It gathers together all the job opportunities, events and resources you need to help you with your professional development.

Placement and recruitment events
Placement fairs are held twice a year involving companies from well-known names such as Sainsbury’s, Marks & Spencer, Enterprise-Rent-a-Car and IBM, through to smaller and more local businesses.

Our regular Employability Weeks offer activities designed to enhance your employability, including LinkedIn workshops, sessions on working abroad, advice from the university’s volunteering service and support from the Careers team.

Starting your own business

Beepurple is the university’s entrepreneurship support network. They offer free support for any student or graduate with their business ideas, freelance plan or social enterprise project.

Beepurple run events throughout the academic year, designed to equip you with skills that will improve your employability and help you grow a successful business.

By taking part in beepurple activities, you will meet like-minded people, hear how other recent graduates have set up their own businesses and gain key enterprise skills that will help you stand out from the crowd.

For more information visit beepurple.

Entry criteria

Entry requirements

The entry requirements listed here are our typical offer for this course if you wish to begin studying with us in 2020. They should be used as a general guide.

Degree and experience
Normally a good honours degree or equivalent in a relevant subject is required. Work experience is useful but not essential. Applicants with non-standard entry qualifications may be considered. If you are unsure whether you meet the entry requirements then please contact us.

International students who need help meeting the academic entry requirements should contact our International College.

Applicants who hold an HND or foundation equivalent can take our nine-month Business BSc top-up degree and then progress onto this masters degree.

For non-native speakers of English
In order to benefit from, contribute to and enjoy the course, a good command of spoken and written English language is required. If English is not your first language, you will need English language proficiency equivalent to an overall IELTS score of at least 6.5, with 6.0 in the written test and a minimum of 5.5 in the other elements.

International students whose language skills do not match the IELTS scores set out here should consider applying for this course through the Extended Masters programme at the university's Language Institute.

International requirements and visas

International requirements by country
Country name
Albania
Algeria
Argentina
Australia
Austria
Bahrain
Bangladesh
Belarus
Belgium
Bermuda
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Botswana
Brazil
Bulgaria
Burma (Myanmar)
Cameroon
Canada
Chile
China
Colombia
Croatia
Cyprus
Czech Republic
Denmark
Ecuador
Egypt
Estonia
Finland
France
Germany
Ghana
Greece
Guyana
Hong Kong
Hungary
Iceland
India
Indonesia
Iran
Iraq
Ireland
Israel
Italy
Jamaica
Japan
Jordan
Kazakhstan
Kenya
Kosovo
Kuwait
Latvia
Lebanon
Liechtenstein
Libya
Lithuania
Luxembourg
Macedonia
Malaysia
Malawi
Malta
Mexico
Moldova
Montenegro
Morocco
Namibia
Nepal
Netherlands
New Zealand
Nigeria
Norway
Oman
Pakistan
Palestinian National Authority
Philippines
Poland
Portugal
Qatar
Romania
Russian Federation
Saudi Arabia
Serbia
Sierra Leone
Singapore
Slovakia
Slovenia
South Africa
South Korea
Spain
Sri Lanka
Syria
Sweden
Switzerland
Taiwan
Tanzania
Thailand
Tunisia
Turkey
Uganda
Ukraine
United Arab Emirates
United States
Uzbekistan
Venezuela
Vietnam
Yemen
Zambia
Zimbabwe

We can help you meet our English language or academic entry requirements.

Visit our language institute

For English language preparation courses.

Visit our International College

For degree preparation courses.

Visas and immigration advice

Applying for a student visa

Check out our step-by-step guidance.

Fees

Course fees

UK/EU (full-time) 10,926 GBP

International (full-time) 15,156 GBP

Scholarships, bursaries and loans

We offer a range of scholarships for postgraduate students. Bursaries and loans may also be available to you.

Find out more about postgraduate fees and funding.

What's included

You may have to pay additional costs during your studies. The cost of optional activities is not included in your tuition fee and you will need to meet this cost in addition to your fees. A summary of the costs that you may be expected to pay, and what is included, while studying a course in Brighton Business School are listed here.

Students who choose to take an optional placement will have travel and living expenses. The cost of this depends on where and how long your placement is.
Some courses include optional field trips for which the school pays – you may incur minimal costs such as for food and drink and should budget up to £15.
You will be required to buy textbooks and should budget up to £150.

You can chat with our enquiries team through the Stay in touch panel at the end of this page if you require further information. Or check our finance pages for advice about funding and scholarships as well as more information about fees and advice on international and island fee-paying status.

Info

The fees listed here are for full-time courses beginning in the academic year 2020–21.

Further tuition fees are payable for each subsequent year of study and are subject to an annual increase of no more than 5% or RPI (whichever is the greater). The annual increase for UK/EU students, who are subject to regulated fees, will increase no more than the statutory maximum fee.

You can find out more about our fees in the university's student contract and tuition fee policy (pdf).

The tuition fee you have to pay depends on a number of factors including the kind of course you take, and whether you study full-time or part-time. If you are studying part-time you will normally be charged on a pro rata basis depending on the number of modules you take.

Location

Local area

About Brighton

The city of Brighton & Hove is a forward-thinking place which leads the way in the arts, technology, sustainability and creativity. You'll find living here plays a key role in your learning experience.

Brighton is a leading centre for creative media technology, recently named the startup capital of the UK.

The city is home to a national 5G testbed and over 1,000 tech businesses. The digital sector is worth over £1bn a year to the local economy - as much as tourism.

All of our full-time undergraduate courses involve work-based learning - this could be through placements, live briefs and guest lectures. Many of these opportunities are provided by local businesses and organisations.

It's only 50 minutes by train from Brighton to central London and less than 40 minutes to Eastbourne. There are also daily direct trains to Bristol, Bedford, Cambridge, Gatwick Airport, Portsmouth and Southampton.

Map showing distance to London from Brighton

Campus where this course is taught

Moulsecoomb campus

Two miles north of Brighton seafront, Moulsecoomb is our largest campus. Subjects taught here include architecture, business, computing, construction, engineering, geography, product design, law and pharmacy.

On campus you will find professional-standard facilities including a flight simulator, trading room, design and digital media suites and specialist research laboratories, alongside the library, student centre, a nursery, fitness facilities and Students’ Union. There are excellent public transport links.

The Big Build
A major transformation of our Moulsecoomb campus began in summer 2018. By the time the Big Build is complete, there’ll be new halls of residence, academic building, and Students’ Union and fitness facilities – all created with sustainability, inclusivity and community in mind.

As the development grows it will provide many exciting learning opportunities for our students, ranging from live projects, placements and internships with the companies involved to guest lectures and site visits. Find out more...

Accommodation

Brighton: Moulsecoomb

Looking for clearing accommodation? Accommodation is available, we can help you find your home from home.

All eligible students applying for 2020 are guaranteed an offer of university-managed accommodation.

Halls of residence
We have halls of residence across Brighton in the city centre, Moulsecoomb, Varley Park and Falmer.

You'll be prioritised for accommodation in the halls that are linked to your teaching base, subject to availability.
Moulsecoomb campus is linked to Varley Park and Moulsecoomb Place halls
- Varley Park offers a mix of room and catering options. Varley Park is around two miles from Moulsecoomb campus and four miles from the city centre. Public transport in the city is excellent, and there’s a shuttle bus between our Brighton campuses during term time.
- Moulsecoomb Place halls are all catered and are located right on campus.

Unihomes and unilets
Unihomes and unilets are student houses that we let to our students on behalf of private landlords. This option can work particularly well when you’re balancing learning with placements and other commitments. We have unihomes and unilet properties at locations across the city.

Starting in 2019 and looking for accommodation advice? Find out more about our accommodation options.

Private renting
There's plenty of support if you opt for private rented accommodation. This is an option which offers choice and flexibility – enabling you to choose where you live and who with. We manage our own studenthomes database of properties. This lists accommodation offered by landlords who have signed up to our code of standards. Every summer we provide online events and resources, as well as other advice services, for students looking for a place to live and people to share with.