MSc Finance and Global Trading

Program Overview

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Traders operate in global markets that are still feeling the after-effects of the 2008 financial meltdown and are now attempting to navigate the economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. With an increased focus on risk management and compliance, global traders need to be agile, analytic and adaptive in order to succeed. There is no doubt that successful traders earn the highest wages in the already well-salaried financial sector, so traders need to be ruthless in order to prove their worth to their bank, hedge-fund or utilities employer. A detailed knowledge of global markets, an ability to negotiate risk and an eye for trade are essential skills and talents for a trader. MSc Finance and Global Trading aims to develop future traders and prepare you for a successful career in the financial services sector. This specialist course will equip you with the skills to take on a trading floor by exposing you to financial modelling, risk management systems and big data analytics. You will be able to put your skills into practice by simulating what you learn in the classroom on our virtual trading floor, which feeds industry standard Bloomberg financial data, allowing you to execute commands to develop your understanding of financial trades before you start to build your own trading portfolio. You will master areas such as:

• trading strategies
• portfolio management
• trader analytics
• empirical methods in finance
• fixed income portfolio management and financial derivatives

MSc Finance and Global Trading is taught at Essex Business School . Our students and staff join us from all over the world and our teaching is grounded in contemporary issues and professional practice, supported by industry-standard facilities . Discover our trading floor: Why we're great.

• Our Bloomberg Terminals offer direct use of Bloomberg data, information and analytics.
• Put your skills into practice by simulating what you learn in the classroom on our virtual trading floor.
• This specialist course will equip you with the skills you need to take on a trading floor.

Our expert staff

Finance research at Essex Business School is world-leading in a number of areas, including:

• banking
• corporate finance
• behavioural finance
• financial econometrics
• forecasting
• commodities markets

Our expert finance researchers work alongside the financial industry, regulators and policy-makers both in the UK (for example at the Royal Bank of Scotland and the Bank of England) and internationally (such as the European Central Bank, the Federal Reserve and the Bank for International Settlements). This ensures their research is having a genuine impact on people’s everyday lives. You’ll be taught by this team of experts, including Professor Neil Kellard . Neil’s internationally acclaimed study of commodity markets has changed the way banks, governments and international and third sector organisations plan for future economic growth, directly impacting millions of people’s lives around the world. His extensive research shows that in the medium-term there can be large swings in commodity prices but in the long-term prices fall or remain unchanged, relative to manufactured goods. This makes diversifying exports, to include manufactured goods and services as well as commodities, crucial for the prosperity of a country and the health and wellbeing of its people. All our finance researchers are members of the Essex Finance Centre (EFiC) , our research centre that promotes internationally renowned, high-quality academic research in areas such as asset pricing, banking, behavioural finance and financial modelling. Finance academics are also members of the Essex Centre for Macro and Financial Econometrics , our interdisciplinary research centre established in partnership with the world-class Economics Department at Essex. The Centre aims to conduct and publish world-leading research in macro and financial econometrics. The Centres run regular seminars that are open to all postgraduate students and which offer an opportunity for you to hear the very latest research and developments in the finance sector.

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Specialist facilities

MSc Finance and Global Trading is based at our Colchester Campus . You’ll be studying at Essex Business School , home to the first zero carbon business school in the UK – demonstrating our sustainable approach to business first-hand. Set around a lush winter garden, with shared spaces to encourage collaborative working, you’ll find a wealth of inspiring teaching and study zones:

• a virtual trading floor with Bloomberg Financial Market Labs, where you’ll gain hands-on experience and learn how to model financial data in a practical setting
• learn in modern lecture theatres with ‘listen again’ recording to aid your study
• dynamic blended learning provision for uninterrupted study and engaging online lectures with virtual guest speakers
• utilise study booths in our winter garden and versatile break out areas for group working throughout the building
• study skills support provided by the Essex Business School Learning Team
• networking opportunities with visiting businesses and careers events
• Bonds café and adjacent foyer to enjoy on-site fresh food and drink

You'll also benefit from fantastic University facilities located close by, including our state-of-the-art Silberrad Student Centre, complete with an open-access 24-hour Learning Hub and a cutting-edge media centre. You benefit from access to a wide range of specialised banking and finance databases, textbooks and e-books and can book appointments with our subject librarian. Essex Business School students also have access to quantitative analysis software, such as MatLab, Stata and Eviews which can be accessed remotely and from all university computer labs. Our building is located on the Knowledge Gateway , home to some of the region’s most exciting enterprises in the science, technology and creative sectors. The Knowledge Gateway provides potential networking and career opportunities for students directly on campus.

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Your future

Essex Business School is helping to create the business leaders of the future; those who are creative, innovative and ethically aware. Many of our graduates enjoy careers in financial analysis, management, public administration and accountancy at some of the world’s most well-known organisations and exciting SMEs, including:

• Groupon, a global e-commerce marketplace
• KPMG Group, a multinational professional services network
• Right Freight Pvt Ltc, an Independent freight forwarder
• Copal Partners, a financial consultation agency
• Capital Markets Intelligence, a financial publisher
• Credit Data Research, a business funder

Our Student Support team work closely with the University’s Employability and Careers service to help you with careers information and advice and CV support. They will help you find work experience, internships, placements and voluntary opportunities and provide access to employer talks on campus. We also work closely with the Essex Startups team to support our budding entrepreneurs get their business ideas off the ground.

Program Outline

Course structure

We offer a flexible course structure with a mixture of core/compulsory modules, and optional modules chosen from lists. Please be aware that we are planning changes to our first year to make it more relevant to your chosen course. Our research-led teaching is continually evolving to address the latest challenges and breakthroughs in the field. The following modules are based on the current course structure and may change in response to new curriculum developments and innovation. We understand that deciding where and what to study is a very important decision for you. We’ll make all reasonable efforts to provide you with the courses, services and facilities as described on our website. However, if we need to make material changes, for example due to significant disruption, such as in response to COVID-19, we’ll let our applicants and students know as soon as possible.

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Components

Components are the blocks of study that make up your course. A component may have a set module which you must study, or a number of modules from which you can choose. Each component has a status and carries a certain number of credits towards your qualification.

Status	What this means
Core	You must take the set module for this component and you must pass. No failure can be permitted.
Core with Options	You can choose which module to study from the available options for this component but you must pass. No failure can be permitted.
Compulsory	You must take the set module for this component. There may be limited opportunities to continue on the course/be eligible for the qualification if you fail.
Compulsory with Options	You can choose which module to study from the available options for this component. There may be limited opportunities to continue on the course/be eligible for the qualification if you fail.
Optional	You can choose which module to study from the available options for this component. There may be limited opportunities to continue on the course/be eligible for the qualification if you fail.

The modules that are available for you to choose for each component will depend on several factors, including which modules you have chosen for other components, which modules you have completed in previous years of your course, and which term the module is taught in.

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Modules

Modules are the individual units of study for your course. Each module has its own set of learning outcomes and assessment criteria and also carries a certain number of credits. In most cases you will study one module per component, but in some cases you may need to study more than one module. For example, a 30-credit component may comprise of either one 30-credit module, or two 15-credit modules, depending on the options available. Modules may be taught at different times of the year and by a different department or school to the one your course is primarily based in. You can find this information from the module code . For example, the module code HR100-4-FY means:

HR	100	4	FY
The department or school the module will be taught by. In this example, the module would be taught by the Department of History.	The module number.	The UK academic level of the module. A standard undergraduate course will comprise of level 4, 5 and 6 modules - increasing as you progress through the course. A standard postgraduate taught course will comprise of level 7 modules. A postgraduate research degree is a level 8 qualification.	The term the module will be taught in. AU : Autumn term SP : Spring term SU : Summer term FY : Full year AP : Autumn and Spring terms PS: Spring and Summer terms AS: Autumn and Summer terms

Year 1 Your dissertation is the culmination of your Masters programme, where you apply the knowledge gained on your course to produce a 10,000 word independent piece of work. You generate an original idea, analyse literature and current knowledge and produce a coherent argument that shows your ability to relate theory to practice. Your dissertation will help you develop vital skills for the workplace, as well as the ability to analyse real problems through an academic lens. You're assigned a supervisor for the duration of your project. View Dissertation on our Module Directory This module equips you with the econometric tools and necessary experience to conduct empirical research in finance. You review statistical and basic econometric models and learn to apply econometric techniques in finance by considering topics such as (G)ARCH models, unit roots and cointegration. View Research Methods in Finance on our Module Directory Gain theoretical knowledge and a practical understanding of financial markets, trading strategies, risk and money management and trader analytics at the highest level. You study a mix of classroom-based instruction, case studies and practical trading exercises where you trade on real-time simulated global markets through the use of industry-strength proprietary trading software in the trading lab. View Trading Global Financial Markets on our Module Directory Master the pricing of financial derivatives and their use for hedging financial risks. You study the basics of futures and options, analyse the Black-Scholes and binomial option pricing models, and consider various numerical techniques for pricing financial derivatives. Futures and options are then utilised in the context of hedging financial risks, and you are introduced to the concept of volatility trading and the treatment of volatility as an asset class. View Derivative Securities on our Module Directory Understand the process of portfolio management. You cover the main concepts such as efficient diversification, managing risk exposures, and the valuation of financial assets that are at the core of managing investment portfolios, and pay special attention to the practicalities of the implementation of these concepts. View Portfolio Management on our Module Directory Discover the concepts and tools that are useful to asset managers who want to use fixed income securities for investing, market-making or speculating. You first study fixed income markets and instruments, before going on to explore basic concepts of bond portfolio management and investigating the quantitative tools used to value bonds and manage bonds' portfolios. View Fixed Income Securities on our Module Directory COMPONENT 07: OPTIOL Option from list (20 CREDITS) COMPONENT 08: OPTIOL Option from list (20 CREDITS) This module covers topics in mathematics that are required in Masters-level finance courses at the University of Essex. You focus on the basics of linear algebra, differential calculus including optimisation and dynamics. View Postgraduate Mathematics Preparation on our Module Directory

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Teaching

• Tailor the content of your course to more closely fit your interests and aspirations
• Optional modules will enable you to gain in-depth specialisation and understanding across several banking and finance topics
• Courses focus on practical applications and links with industry
• Our postgraduate students can attend conferences and seminars on campus and beyond

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Assessment

• Regular assessment is by coursework, presentations, case studies, group work, tests and examinations

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Dissertation

• You will undertake an individually supervised research project that involves the in-depth study of a specific finance problem or issue