In the first semester, the foundations are built for the subsequent specialization. All four courses in the first semester are mandatory and common across the two tracks (CF & IM). The courses are:
Period 1:
- 4317 - Portfolio Choice and Asset Pricing
- 3310 - Accounting and Financial Statements Analysis or
- 3301 - Financial Accounting
Note: The course 3310 is not open to students with a BSc specialization in Accounting and Financial Management from SSE or with equivalent background (minimum 30 ECTS in Accounting and Financial Management). These students will instead take the MSc course 3301 - Financial Accounting.
Period 2:
Having completed these courses, students choose to specialize in Investment Management (or Corporate Finance).
There are no mandatory courses in the second and third semesters. However, students who choose to specialize in Investment Management (IM) must select at least four courses from the list of Investment Management core electives.
Although the set of IM core electives has not yet been finalized, a tentative list of IM core electives is as follows:
In addition to the four core elective courses, students have the freedom to choose the remaining four courses according to their preferences. Some students may want to specialize further by taking more IM or CF core electives, others may prefer to broaden their perspectives by taking electives courses outside of finance.
Master's Thesis
The Master’s Thesis is viewed as an opportunity for the student to take the first step towards a future job by choosing a subject that will lead to further specialization within investment management. A thesis can either be written as an academic research paper, or as a case study or report that addresses a real-world financial problem faced by a firm or financial institution.