Corporate finance is crucial
Corporate finance is about making sure that the financial structure of a corporation is consistent with its real operating strategies, or alternatively, to ensure that the operating strategies are consistent with the financial constraints and realities the firm faces. This, in turn, is necessary so that the firm is run in a value-maximizing way.
A thorough understanding of corporate finance is crucial for CFOs designing the financial structure of a firm and evaluating the valuation impact of corporate decisions; for bankers and underwriters who raise capital on behalf of firms; and for M&A advisors and management consultants who advise firms on important strategic decisions and their consequences for shareholder value.
Solid academic and analytical foundation
Building on the successful predecessor program, which has been ranked number 1 in Northern Europe by the Financial Times, the department of Finance at SSE offers a MSc finance education with a specialization in Corporate Finance (and Investment Management). The program provides students with a thorough understanding of corporate finance, while at the same time allowing flexibility to design a personal curriculum that broadens the perspective.
The overall ambition is to prepare you for taking an active part in strategic corporate discussions and in the development of new products and trading practices. It will provide you with a solid analytical foundation for practical decision making. The courses are designed to teach you how to apply theoretical tools to real life finance problems. This entails making you understand how the financial markets function, why different instruments and institutions exist as well as the basis and consequences of corporate financial decisions.
Leading finance department
The Department of Finance at SSE is a leading finance department in Europe with about 18 faculty and over 20 PhD students. A large fraction of the faculty and PhD students has an international background. Faculty members also take an active part in the SSE undergraduate programs, the PhD program and the executive education programs. The department’s research covers the whole range of financial economics, including corporate finance and contract theory, law and finance, corporate governance, asset pricing and financial econometrics, derivatives and risk management, mathematical finance, behavioral finance, market microstructure and real estate finance.