MSc Finance and Management

A 2.1 undergraduate Honours degree in a quantitative subject such as economics, finance, mathematics, etc. from the UK or the equivalent international qualification. Business/management graduates whose studies included quantitative subjects, as well as applicants from other disciplines may also be considered. Applicants with relevant work experience are welcome, and the University may take this into account when evaluating applications.

The qualifications listed are indicative minimum requirements for entry. Some academic Schools will ask applicants to achieve significantly higher marks than the minimum. Obtaining the listed entry requirements will not guarantee you a place, as the University considers all aspects of every application including, where applicable, the writing sample, personal statement, and supporting documents.

Application requirements

• CV 
• personal statement explaining why you have chosen the programme, why this subject is important to you and why you have applied to study at the University of St Andrews in particular (500 words) 
• one original signed academic reference 
• academic transcripts and degree certificates

For more guidance, see supporting documents and references for postgraduate taught programmes.

For fees and funding options, please visit website to find out more

Alumni from the Finance and Management programme, and more generally from other Masters programmes in the Business School, have secured employment in the fields of management consultancy, accountancy, investment analysis, investment banking, commercial banking, fund administration and other aspects of the financial services industry. 

Graduates from the Masters in Finance and Management have taken up roles in a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sector including: 

• Bain and Company 
• Barclay's Capital 
• Blackrock Global Investment Management 
• Bloomberg 
• Credit Suisse Group 
• HSBC 
• IBM 
• Morgan Stanley 
• Nomura Bank 
• Procter and Gamble

The Careers Centre offers one-to-one advice to all students as well as a programme of events to assist students in building their employability skills.

Compulsory

• Corporate Financial Management: provides an introduction to modern theories of financial management and shows how to apply the theory to realistic financial decision problems. 
• Applied Financial Econometrics: develops students' ability to undertake quantitative research by equipping them with econometric tools and techniques to analyse and interpret financial data.  
• Advanced Corporate Finance: focuses on empirical and theoretical issues that arise in modern corporate finance. 
• Portfolio Management: covers concepts such as valuation, efficient diversification and predictability of asset returns. The module contains a balance between theoretical models and their practical applications.
• Financial Data Analysis with Bloomberg: is designed to empower students  to navigate the dynamic landscape of finance using Bloomberg as a powerful analytical tool, and will balance key finance concepts with practical application.

Exciting new developments to this programme are under consideration. This page will be updated as soon as the approvals are in place.

Optional

Students choose two optional modules, taking one in each semester. 

Here is a sample of optional modules that may be offered: 

• Behavioural Finance 
• Financial Systems (required for the accelerated route to Chartered Banker Status) 
• Financial Technology (FinTech) 
• Risk Management
• Entrepreneurship and Business Development 
• Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Creativity 
• International Financial Management
• Corporate Governance
• International Marketing 
• Leadership in Organisations  
• Managing People in Global Markets 
• Marketing and Society 
• Managing Non-governmental Organisations
• Scenario Thinking and Strategy

Optional modules are subject to change each year and require a minimum number of participants to be offered; some may only allow limited numbers of students (see the University's position on curriculum development). 

Dissertation

Students attend lectures throughout Semesters 1 and 2 to prepare them for conducting the research portion of the dissertation. The dissertation is normally on a specific area of finance and management; however you will have the freedom to develop a topic of your own, which is of interest to you and will contribute towards career development or further study goals. 

Students are assigned a supervisor based on a research proposal submitted in the second semester. They will then research and write a 15,000-word dissertation over the summer to be submitted on a date specified in August. 

If students choose not to complete the dissertation requirement for their Masters degree (MSc), there are exit awards available that allow suitably qualified candidates to receive a Postgraduate Diploma. By choosing an exit award, you will finish your degree at the end of the second semester of study and receive a PGDip instead of a MSc.