Master of Science in Banking and Finance
The financial sector needs economists with a thorough micro- and macrofinancial training and who have mastered quantitative management techniques for modern financial services companies. The goal of this programme is to form experts who are able to perform analyses of financial problems and developments within a sound theoretical and quantitative framework.
What
The goal of this Master in Banking and Finance is to form experts who are able to perform analyses of financial problems and developments within a sound theoretical and quantitative framework. The MBF-programme should enable them to apply state-of-the-art techniques to problems in banks or other financial intermediaries and to formulate and implement innovative solutions. The banking and economic crisis after the fall of Lehman Brothers fundamentally altered the financial landscape. Regulators devised new rules, of which Basel III are the most influential. Supervisors are organised at the European level and various mechanisms have been enacted in order to maintain the integrity of the financial system. Risk management is more important than ever before. The MBF programme integrates all these elements in a coherent study programme covering all the major fields of banking and finance. Graduates of the MBF are well equipped to tackle all relevant banking, asset management and risk management challenges in modern financial services firms. The financial sector needs economists with a thorough microand macrofinancial training and who have mastered quantitative management techniques for modern financial services companies. Young people with this focus will be the leading executives of the future.
For whom
The admission requirements depend on previous degrees (type of degree, country of issue etc ...) or additonal experience.
Structure
Thorough understanding of the complex relationships and dynamics of financial markets and institutions requires insight in many disciplines. Knowledge about the organisation of financial markets and the mechanics of the assets traded is not sufficient, if it is not supplemented by awareness of macroeconomic and monetary concepts. Moreover, the quantitative nature of finance also requires a sound command of econometrics and data processing skills.
It is precisely the need of the financial community for people who are able to combine these economic, financial and quantitative skills that led the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration at Ghent University to organise advanced studies in Banking and Finance. This Master programme draws heavily upon the expertise of the young team of teachers and researchers from the Research Group Banking & Finance. This department groups subfields such as monetary economics, banking, microeconomics of financial markets, investment analysis, financial econometrics, and risk management.
The mission statement of the MBF is:
- Provide state-of-the-art advanced education in banking and finance to a selected group of master students with the necessary economic and quantitative background.
- Analyse the interactions of banking and finance with risk management and with macroeconomic conditions.
- Focus on the development of quantitative and econometric skills applied to banking, finance, risk and portfolio management.
- Stimulate intellectual and research competences by promoting independent thinking and creative problem-solving.
- Develop communication and presentation skills through interactive classes, group assignments and a real-world graduation project.
- Link theory and practice by organising cases, business games and frequent interaction with the financial industry.
Master's dissertation
Students will be given the opportunity to work in small teams on their dissertation in cooperation with a financial institution. This will allow them to demonstrate their capacity to analyse real-world situations in a scientifically accurate way using the modelling techniques covered in the master courses. Often, they will be required to offer solutions to actual problems and to assess potential policy implications of such solutions. The master’s dissertation subjects are usually suggested by financial institutions or other companies. A team consisting of faculty members and employees of the company will supervise the students while working on the thesis. The findings will be presented by the end of June to the supervising team.
Labour Market
The Master programme is intended for economists with a background in finance and who feel the need for a serious in-depth training in finance and banking. Students graduating from this programme will probably feel at ease in functions or departments such as:
- investment analysis
- risk management units of financial and corporate organisations
- asset and liability management units of financial intermediaries
- pension funds, hedge funds
- study department of a central bank or government agency
- financial consulting firms, rating agencies
- supervisory bodies for financial markets and institutions
- university or research departments
- ...
Kwaliteitszorg
People who dare to think about the challenges of tomorrow, that is what we aim for. That is why education at our university is firmly anchored in six major objectives.
- Think broadly. Thinking as broadly as possible and offering the opportunity to question oneself. Not only Dare to Think, but also dare to change the way of thinking.
- Keep researching. Research is the foundation of our education. Ghent University keeps linking its way of educating to the dynamics of science.
- Support Talent. Everyone starts with equal opportunities. Every students gets the opportunity to develop their talents, regardless of gender, cultural or social background.
- Build with us. Students, staff, the government and the corporate world all get the chance to contribute to the contents and form of our high quality education. Ghent University is known for its particularly active students in student participation, of which we are very proud.
- Push boundaries. We want to prepare our students internationally and interculturally. We give them the opportunity to gain experience across borders. We also open our doors for students from all over the world and welcome teachers and academic staff from abroad.
- Choose quality. Constant quality assurance and improvement is an integral part of our culture and we communicate about it openly. We are proud of the level of our university.
Ghent University sees the quality of education as an internal self-evaluation process, in which faculties and programs compare the goals they have set themselves to the achieved results and adjust the policy accordingly. The portfolios constitute an important link in this process. The achieved results are based on quantitative and qualitative information from relevant stakeholders (students, teachers, professional field, international experts, alumni, etc.).The ‘peer learning visits’, the yearly quality meeting and the Education Quality Office (‘OKB’) make sure the PDCA cycle is closed at various policy levels and help to keep the improvement policy sharp.
A detailed description of how Ghent University is constantly paying attention to quality assurance and quality culture can be found in the Ghent University Conduct of Educational Quality Assurance (ERGO).
Quality of this study programme
This quality assurance system provides information on the assets, the strengths and the points for improvement for every study programme. A summary for this study programme can be found below:
Outstanding aspects
- Acquire state-of-the-art advanced knowledge in banking and finance within a selected group of master students with the necessary economic and quantitative background.
- Analyze the interactions of banking and finance with risk management and with macroeconomic conditions.
- Focus on the development of quantitative and econometric skills applied to banking, finance, risk and portfolio management.
- Stimulate intellectual and research competences by promoting independent thinking and creative problem solving.
- Develop communication and presentation skills through interactive classes, group assignments and a real-world graduation project.
- Link theory and practice by organizing cases, business games and interaction with the financial industry.
Strengths
- The admission procedure makes sure that we have a homogenous group of students.
- The broad range of teaching and work formats creates a stimulating learning environment.
- The Master in Banking and Finance performs a bridge function between academic work and practical tools.
- The quality of the programme is proven by the challenging jobs the alumni land.
- The mission of the programme is clear and ambitious. Both the alumni and the financial sector testify that the goals of the programme are achieved.
To work on
- We should and will broaden the horizon for econometric and statistical software packages that become standard in the financial industry (i.e. next to Matlab, use R and Python).
- The relatively low number of international students remains a point of attention. Efforts are in place to increase this number
- The alumni network should be strengthened. In terms, of both quality and quantity, the network is impressive. It remains our task to link the different people in the network.