MSc Finance and Investment

Pre-Masters programme for international students

The Graduate Diploma in Finance run by the INTO University of Exeter Centre is a pre-Masters programme designed to enhance your subject knowledge, study skills and English ability. Successful completion of the Diploma (subject to achieving the specific grades of entry) gives students from overseas the skills needed for acceptance onto this Masters programme.

Practical case study classes and workshops

Practical case study computer-based classes are an integral part of the programme built within many modules, where students are able to apply specialist knowledge and quantitative analytical skills to solve complex financial problems under the guidance from our industry-leading faculty.

Training workshops

You’ll attend an intensive financial database and technology training workshop covering most widely used databases such as Bloomberg, S&P capital IQ, Refinitiv Eikon, WRDS, with application in STATA, R, Matlab or Phyton

We also run a company analysis workshop run by an industry practitioner to help develop practical investment understanding, augment presentation skills and provide an insight into current real-world information

Research-led teaching

Our research is rated as world-leading or internationally excellent in the Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2021.

We are a research intensive faculty and cover a wide range of themes which inform our teaching. Our research is driven by the understanding that accounting and finance continues to play a fundamental role in organisations and society. As a result, many of our inspiring academics are regularly invited to advise policy-makers at institutions including H.M Revenue and Customs, International Accounting Standards Board, Financial Reporting Council, the Pensions Regulator, and the Bank of England.

Taught by leading experts

You will be taught by internationally respected academics who are at the forefront of their research. We draw upon disciplines across the social sciences and give emphasis to the dynamic nature of enterprise, global connectivity and the management and leadership of the global challenges that lie ahead.

Our interdisciplinary research addresses a wide range of challenging research questions, including areas of environmental, social and governance aspects of accounting and finance.

Conduct your own research

During the 12 month programme, you will be able to undertake an impactful research project as your dissertation under the supervision of our world-leading academics.

The Business School is home to the following research centres

• Centre for Entrepreneurship
• Centre for Innovation in Business Education
• Centre for Simulation, Analytics and Modelling (CSAM)
• Exeter Centre for Social Networks (ECSN)
• Exeter Centre for Leadership (ExCL)
• Exeter Sustainable Finance Centre (ESF)
• Initiative in the Digital Economy at Exeter (INDEX)
• Land, Environment, Economics and Policy Institute (LEEP)
• Research Methods Centre
• Tax Administration Research Centre (TARC)
• The Exeter Centre for Circular Economy (ECCE)

Career paths

Graduates can look forward to working in a diverse range of roles, two of the most popular being:

• Investment Analyst (market research, analysis of funds, trends for strategic planning)
• Investment/Portfolio Manager (dealing with client’s portfolio & completing transactions)

Choose modules to suit your future career

By carefully selecting the research topic for your dissertation and your optional modules such as corporate finance, corporate governance, derivatives, international financial management, mergers or financial economics, you can start to develop a specialisation to enhance your employability.

Developing applied quantitative analytical skills through using Bloomberg, S&P capital IQ, WRDS Datastream and other financial databases and software systems as part of your modules, you will also have the latest technical know-how to kick-start your career.

Potential employers

• Investment management companies where analysts provide information to in-house fund managers
• Stockbrokers and investment banks, where the analysts' research assists clients of their company, usually fund managers but sometimes also company executives and directors
• Wealth management divisions of investment banks
• Institutional investors, such as large charities, pension funds and life assurance companies
• Hedge funds
• Government or public organisations
• SMEs (small and medium-sized enterprises)

Graduate training routes

Multi-nationals such as Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Barclays, HSBC, Vanguard Asset Management, Credit Suisse, Citibank, Amundi and Deutsche Bank have graduate training routes in many countries in which they are based. Country-specific banks like China Construction Bank and Bank of China (Hong Kong) and smaller organisations across the world also offer graduate training routes and employment opportunities with specific recruitment cycles appropriate to their local employment market.

Previous graduates from this programme have secured roles as financial analysts with a range of organisations including Coutts (UK), KPMG (Vietnam), HSBC (Vietnam), J.P. Morgan First Capital, Ernst & Young (India), Bank of China and Ford Motor Company.

Further information can be found at:

• eFinancialCareers
• Prospects.ac.uk - Types of jobs: Accountancy, banking and finance
• TARGETjobs - Finance graduate careers advice

Developing your skills and career prospects

The University of Exeter Business School provides a range of support to help you develop skills attractive to employers. Visit our Business School careers service web page for more information.

For more information on QTEM and Double Degrees and other postgraduate study abroad opportunities, visit the Business School’s Study Abroad webpages.