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1. Admissions/ Management Information
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Title of the programme – including any lower awards
Please provide the titles used for all awards relating to this programme. Note: all programmes are required to have at least a Postgraduate Certificate exit award.

See guidance on programme titles in:
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Masters MSc Finance
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Postgraduate Diploma N/APlease indicate if the Postgraduate Diploma is available as an entry point, ie. is a programme on which a student can register, is an exit award, ie. is only available to students exiting the masters programme early, or both.N/A
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Postgraduate Certificate PGCert FinancePlease indicate if the Postgraduate Certificate is available as an entry points, ie. is a programme on which a student can register, is an exit award, ie. is only available to students exiting the masters programme early, or both.Exit
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Level of qualificationLevel 7
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This document applies to students who commenced the programme(s) in:2020
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Awarding institutionTeaching institution
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Unviersity of York University of York
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Department(s):
Where more than one department is involved, indicate the lead department		Board of Studies
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Lead Department Economics and Related Studies GSB in Economics
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Other contributing Departments:
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Route code
(existing programmes only)		PMECNSFIN1
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Admissions criteria
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Minimum entry criterion is the equivalent of a recent upper-second class degree in economics, mathematics or one of the natural sciences. Competence in computing and experience in financial industry is advantageous and can compensate for a lack of formal training or recency. Overseas candidates need a good command of English, e.g. IELTS grade 6.5.
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Length and status of the programme(s) and mode(s) of study
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ProgrammeLength (years/ months) Status (full-time/ part-time)
Please select		Start dates/months
(if applicable – for programmes that have multiple intakes or start dates that differ from the usual academic year)		Mode
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Face-to-face, campus-basedDistance learningOther
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MSc Finance1 yearFull-timeN/APlease select Y/NYesPlease select Y/NNo
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Language(s) of study
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English
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Language(s) of assessment
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English
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2. Programme accreditation by Professional, Statutory or Regulatory Bodies (PSRB)
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2.a. Is the programme recognised or accredited by a PSRB
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Please Select Y/N: Yesif No move to section 3
if Yes complete the following questions
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2.b. Name of PSRB
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Institute of Chartered Financial analysts. The CFA is a global association of investment professionals that sets the standard for excellence in the industry. This accreditation has been obtained on the basis of compliance of large part of the MSc in PAFI syllabus with CFA curricula. The CFA should be notified about any major change in the MSc Finance program provision.
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2.c. Please provide details of any approval/ accrediation event needed, including: timecales, the nature of the event, central support / information required:
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None
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2.d. Are there any conditions on the approval/ accreditation of the programme(s)/ graduates (for example accreditation only for the full award and not any interim award)
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The CFA accreditation serves primarily informative purposes, signifying that large part of the MSc PAFI program is aligned with CFA curricula. The directors of MSc Finance can award three students (jointly) three CFA scholarships in the form of full reduction from the CFA examination fee.
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3. Additional Professional or Vocational Standards
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Are there any additional requirements of accrediting bodies or PSRB or pre-requisite professional experience needed to study this programme?
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Please Select Y/N: Noif Yes, provide details
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4. Programme leadership and programme team
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4.a. Please name the programme leader for the year to which the programme design applies and any key members of staff responsible for designing, maintaining and overseeing the programme.
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Professor Peter Spencer
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5. Purpose and learning outcomes of the programme
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5.a. Statement of purpose for applicants to the Masters programme
Please express succinctly the overall aims of the programme as an applicant facing statement for a prospectus or website. This should clarify to a prospective masters student why they should choose this programme, what it will provide to them and what benefits they will gain from completing it.
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The last half century has seen the rapid development of finance both as an industry and as an academic discipline. The MSc in Finance will expand on your prior knowledge of economics, mathematics, computing, engineering or the sciences to give you a thorough knowledge of modern finance. This MSc offers you the opportunity to advance your knowledge, bringing you close to the current research frontier. While the emphasis is on core knowledge and skills, it provides opportunities for you to specialize in particular areas of finance. It is designed to provide a firm technical foundation for research degrees in economics and finance and professional employment in financial industries. Modules are taught by academics who are doing research at the cutting edge of finance. Their research shapes not only the academic landscape, but government policy and society too. This programme is accredited by the CFA, which offers multiple benefits if you wish to gain further professional recognition, including the opportunity to compete for a number of scholarships.
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5.a.i Statement of purpose for applicants registering for the Postgraduate Diploma programme
Please express succinctly the overall aims of the programme as an applicant facing statement for a prospectus or website. This should clarify to a prospective diploma student why they should choose this programme, what it will provide to them and what benefits they will gain from completing it.
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5.b.i. Programme Learning Outcomes - Masters
Please provide six to eight statements of what a graduate of the Masters programme will be able to do.
If the document only covers a Postgraduate Certificate or Postgraduate Diploma please specify four to six PLO statements in the sections 5.b.ii and 5.b.iii as appropriate.
Taken together, these outcomes should capture the distinctive features of the programme. They should also be outcomes for which progressive achievement through the course of the programme can be articulated, and which will therefore be reflected in the design of the whole programme.
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PLOOn successful completion of the programme, graduates will be able to:
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1Understand, apply and explain the methods of logical and mathematical reasoning used by finance professionals and researchers to assess and manage risk, price financial assets, make financial decisions and undertake financial research. [Deductive reasoning: Finance Theory]
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2Identify in appropriate literature the research methods and models relevant to particular problems in finance and summarise and synthesise this body of knowledge to thoroughly understand the limitations of such models and the allowances that can be made in practice for these weaknesses. [Review research literature]
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3Understand and be able to confidently apply the techniques of mathematical finance to formulate and solve complex analytical problems. [Logical and mathematical reasoning]
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4Locate, compile and present complex economic and financial data and be able to critically evaluate their strengths and weaknesses. [Review research literature/ Communications]
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5Use statistical, econometric and computer-based techniques for analysing data in developing and testing financial models, and in economic & financial forecasting, and be able to exercise judgement in describing the results. [Econometric analysis]
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6Produce unambiguous and well-reasoned written communications based on analytical reasoning and supported, where necessary, by data-based evidence. [Communications]
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7Formulate a research proposal; identify a testable hypothesis; select the methodology appropriate to test it; use bibliographic databases to independently identify and locate relevant literature; carry out the proposed research efficiently and to deadline with minimal supervision, and effectively communicate persuasive results. [Apply all PLOs 1-6 skills to projects]
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5.c. Explanation of the choice of Programme Learning Outcomes
Please explain your rationale for choosing these PLOs in a statement that can be used for students (such as in a student handbook). Please include brief reference to:
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i) ... in what way will these PLOs result in an ambitious, challenging programme which stretches the students?
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The PLOs reflect the ambitious aim of the programme, which is to equip students with the best skills available for understanding the economic world and the operation of financial markets. The programme and modules offered present a high level standard of tuition which is competitive against the best competitor programmes in the UK and around the world.
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ii) ... in what way will these PLOs produce a programme which is distinctive and advantageous to the student?
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This programme that admits students with no background in economics. This is a distinctive feature of this programme compared with many competitor programmes. We are happy to take any students with good mathematical skills, which are essential. Thus we are open to students with first degrees in science, maths, computing engineering, etc. The structure of the programe is designed to accommodate them alongside the economics and business studies students by making The Theory of Finance module an ab initio course. Nevertheless we teach all of these modules using insights from financial economics rather than mathematical finance. The diverse make up of our staff means that they are exposed to a variety of different accents, as they would be in the modern workplace. The various skills that the students acquire are valued by the employers of our graduates.
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iii) ... how the design of the programme enables students from diverse entry routes to transition successfully into the programme? For example, how does the organisation of the programme ensure solid foundations in disciplinary knowledge and understanding of conventions, language skills, mathematics and statistics skills, writing skills, lab skills, academic integrity
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The student base for this programme is diverse by country as well as by first degree. All enter with the equivalent of an upper second class degree with a significant element of mathematics and statistics. Some have a significant background in economics or finance. The Summer Session provides for students who, in the opinion of the Graduate School, have the ability to successfully complete the one-year Masters programme, but whose background is not a first degree in economics or with a significant economics content. Such candidates may possess a relevant professional qualification, a degree in another social science, or a science or engineering degree with a high quantitative and analytical content. The Summer Session is also available as a free-standing course of instruction for any graduate interested in acquiring greater knowledge of economics and quantitative techniques. Some candidates have attending the Summer Session as a condition of their offer of a place on one of our MSc programmes.
All MSc students have access to a mathematics and statistics review taught over a week before the programme starts to help reduce the impact of heterogeneity of background. An innovative element of the statistics review is the inclusion of a test that students can take before coming to York to help them identify areas they need to brush up on, a formative examination at the end of the review to serve as a diagnostic tool, and additional tutorial support for the first few weeks of the Autumn Term for those students who are likely to need the help. In addition, students are directed to the excellent service provided by the Maths Skills Centre to fill gaps in their mathematics and statistics background which they can access throughout their programme.
We work with CELT to provide bespoke English language training. We provide an intensive pre-sessional language course followed up with lectures, concentrated in the first half of the term, and one-on-one drop-in sessions through the rest of the Autumn Term. In addition, we have in place a well-received provision in which each student receives a two hour session each week for eight weeks in the Summer Term to develop the language skills they need to write a dissertation.
The Theory of Finance and other core modules in the Autumn term deliver the key components of econometrics and finance theory ab initio which are then further developed in other modules. We cater for students with different aspirations and aptitudes by adopting a twin-track system based respectively on the core CT finance/or/ Market Microstructure modules in the Autumn term. The first pathway is designed for mathematically-inclined students that want to go into financial engineering and similar technical careers in finance industry. The second caters for students who may lack the strong mathematical background necessary for that pathway, or who are not inclined to go in that career direction. The students are also encouraged to construct study groups to work together on solving problems for seminars and for understanding the material taught. Given their different aptitudes, language skills and backgrounds, all students are in a position to make a valuable contribution to group discussions in seminars and private study groups.
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iv) ... how the programme is designed to enable students to progress successfully - in a limited time frame - through to the end of the award? For example, the development of higher level research skills; enabling students to complete an independent study module; developing competence and confidence in practical skills/ professional skills. See QAA masters characteristics doument http://www.qaa.ac.uk/en/Publications/Documents/Masters-Degree-Characteristics-15.pdf
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The core modules In the Autumn term deliver the key components of economic theory, econometrics and finance theory which are then further developed In other modules. Many modules offer preparation In the research skills that will be required in the dissertation at the end of the programme. These are bolstered by specific additional lectures which focus on the practical issues of data discovery and econometric methods as well as haw to approach writing the dissertation. For those who do not have English as their first language additional support is offered through a term-long English writing course. The dissertation cultivates the ability to arrive at carefully reasoned conclusions. Time management skills, including efficient search and assessment of relevant literature, are an essential component of this process. The Department provides a suite of extracurricular support for the module. There is a one hour “Introductory Lecture” delivered by the Dissertation Coordinator (or another senior member of academic staff) which provides guidance and a lot of detail, e.g. expectation of kind of output, looking for and choosing a topic, time line, bibliographic search, plagiarism, etc. In addition, a one hour lecture entitled “Data Resources and Econometric Software” is delivered in early February to each of three groups of students; these lectures provide information on data sources, econometric packages, mathematical packages, and word processing programmes---how to access them, search them, and use them---all of which are available through the University. There is also a one hour presentation by the Liaison Librarian for DERS later in February. The material for all three lectures is available on the module’s VLE site. Finally, there is a Dissertation Library on the VLE which is a useful source for dissertations submitted in the past which helps with topics and as a general guide.
A matching process under the direction of the Dissertation Coordinator is used and it is expected that by mid-March most students will have found a supervisor and settled on a topic. The role of the supervisor is to help define the research task more precisely, to advise on relevant reading, data, if relevant, and what sort of econometric technique to use, or what model to use and what questions to use it to analyse. Work on the dissertation starts in earnest after the examinations with the supervisor expected to read and comment on a preliminary draft of the dissertation but to refrain from a lot of detailed supervision since that would defeat the purpose of learning to work independently.
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v) ... how this programme (as outlined in these PLOs) will develop students’ digital literacy skills and how technology-enhanced learning will be used to support active student learning through peer/tutor interaction, collaboration and formative (self) assessment opportunities (reference could be made to such as blogging, flipped classroooms, response 'clickers' in lectures, simulations, etc).
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Students are taught a number of digital literacy skills through introduction to specific pieces of econometric statistical software and how to collect data suitable for study from a leading provider of research data in economics and finance (Datastream). Students are encouraged to interrogate the library-provided electronic collections of academic journal articles. Students are encouraged to construct work groups to work collaboratively on solving problems for seminars and to prepare for the summative examinations. Dedicated spring term presentations by library and our own staff that cover literature search, data sources and econometric software help prepare the student for research or finance industry.
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vi) ... how this programme (as outlined in these PLOs) will support and enhance the students’ employability (for example, opportunities for students to apply their learning in a real world setting)?
The programme's employablity objectives should be informed by the University's Employability Strategy:
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The students on this programme will leave with a training finance at a level which makes them very appealing for employers around the world. The skills that they have developed plus the subject knowledge that they have acquired puts them in a very strong position in the job market or to continue for further study.
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viii) ... how learning and teaching on the programme are informed and led by research in the department/ Centre/ University?
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All of the modules offered to students on this programme are informed by the current research of academic staff in the Department of Economics. Staff offer insights into their own published research in lectures as well as
providing advice in the dissertation process based on their own research experience and also specific research tools such as econometric methods or other modelling skills.
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5.d. Progression
For masters programmes where students do not incrementally 'progress' on the completion of a discrete Postgraduate Certificate and Postgraduate Diploma, please summarise students’ progressive development towards the achievement of the PLOs, in terms of the characteristics that you expect students to demonstrate at the end of the set of modules or part thereof. This summary may be particularly helpful to students and the programme team where there is a high proportion of option modules and in circumstances where students registered on a higher award will exit early with a lower one.

Note: it is not expected that a position statement is written for each masters PLO, but this can be done if preferred.
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To obtain the Postgraduate Certificate students need to complete at least 60 credits of taught modules. Any such combination of taught modules available as part of the MSc in Finance meets the PLOs for the Postgraduate Certificate. By the completion of the Certificate students will not have achieved PLO 7. They will have achieved the essential elements of PLO's 1 to 6, although their skills and depth of understanding of the material will be substantially lower as compared with students who complete the full MSc programme.
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On completion of modules sufficient to obtain a Postgraduate Diploma students will be able to:
If the PG Diploma is an exit award only please provide information about how students will have progressed towards the masters PLOs. Please include detail of the module diet that students will have to have completed to gain this qualification as an exit award.
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NA
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6. Reference points and programme regulations
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6.a. Relevant Quality Assurance Agency benchmark statement(s) and other relevant external reference points
Please state relevant reference points consulted (e.g. Framework for Higher Education Qualifications, National Occupational Standards, Subject Benchmark Statements or the requirements of PSRBs): See also Taught Postgraduate Modular Scheme: Framework for Programme Design:
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6.b. University award regulations
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The University’s award and assessment regulations apply to all programmes: any exceptions that relate to this programme are approved by University Teaching Committee and are recorded at the end of this document.
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7. Programme Structure
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7.a. Module Structure and Summative Assessment Map
Please complete the summary table below which shows the module structure and the pattern of summative assessment through the programme.

IMPORTANT NOTE:
If the structure of your programme does not fit the usual academic year (for instance students start at the beginning of September or in January) please contact your Academic Quality Team contact in the Academic Support Office for guidance on how to represent the structure in an alternative format.

To clearly present the overall programme structure, include the name and details of each invidual CORE module in the rows below. For OPTION modules, ‘Option module’ or 'Option from list x' should be used in place of specifically including all named options. If the programme requires students to select option modules from specific lists by term of delivery or subject theme these lists should be provided in the next section (7.b).

From the drop-down select 'S' to indicate the start of the module, 'A' to indicate the timing of each distinct summative assessment point (eg. essay submission/ exam), and 'E' to indicate the end of teaching delivery for the module (if the end of the module coincides with the summative assessment select 'EA'). It is not expected that each summative task will be listed where an overall module might be assessed cumulatively (for example weekly problem sheets).

Summative assessment by exams should normally be scheduled in the spring week 1 and summer Common Assessment period (weeks 5-7). Where the summer CAP is used, a single ‘A’ can be used within the shaded cells as it is understood that you will not know in which week of the CAP the examination will take place. (NB: An additional resit assessment week is provided in week 10 of the summer term for postgraduate students. See Guide to Assessment, 5.4.a)
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http://www.york.ac.uk/about/departments/support-and-admin/registry-services/guide/

Please note that under University rules you may not study more than six modules simultaneously. The credit weight of the module does not matter for the purposes of this rule.
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Full time structure
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CreditsModuleAutumn TermSpring Term Summer Term Summer Vacation
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CodeTitle12345678910123456789101234567891012345678910111213
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10ECO0007MContinuous Time FinanceSEA
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10ECO00008MCorporate FinanceSEA
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10ECO00020MFinancial MarketsSEA
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20ECO00047MEconometrics 1 & 2SEA
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20ECO00040MTheory of FinanceSEA
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20VariousOption Modules from LIST BSEA
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10VariousOption Modules from List B or LIST CSEA
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80ECO00012MDissertationSAAEA
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Please indicate when any Progression Board and Exam board will be held and when any reassessments will be submitted. NB: You are required to provide at least three weeks notice to students of the need for them to resubmit any required assessments, in accordance with the Guide to Assessment section 4.9
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Progression Board19/06/2021
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ReassessmentAugust 2021 CAP
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Exam Board20/11/2021
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7.b. Optional module lists

If the programme requires students to select option modules from specific lists these lists should be provided below. If you need more space, use the toggles on the left to reveal ten further hidden rows.
Options are based on staff research interests and the number and range of topics covered will vary from year to year depending on staff availability. Options for this cohort will be posted during the academic year for the following stage and can be viewed on the departmental websites listed below
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Core List A Core List B Option List C
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ECO00019M not running 2020/21 therefore no core list A. Students all tak ECO00007M
10c Fixed Income Securities AUT
10c Advanced Macroeconomics AUTn/a
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10c Investment and Portfolio Management AUT
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10c Time Series AUT
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10c Financial Engineering SPR & SUM WK 2
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10c Financial Risk Management SPR & SUM WK 2