Postgraduate MSc
FinTech with Industrial Placement
Are you numerical, data-driven and interested in new and innovative technology? Do you want to gain vital work experience as you study?
Are you numerical, data-driven and interested in new and innovative technology? Do you want to gain vital work experience as you study?
Fintech is changing the financial world - from Cryptocurrency, coding and artificial intelligence to smartphone use in banking and investments. Simply put, Fintech is the technology that works with financial exchanges. Employment roles in the field include being a cybersecurity analyst, an AI and Machine Learning Engineer or financial software and app developer.
Our brand-new MSc FinTech course has been developed jointly by industry leaders and academic experts and sets out to prepare graduates with a strong background in financial theory and an integral understanding of the latest innovative technologies imperative in the sector. Further, our Bloomberg Finance Lab allows students to apply their learnings to real business data.
Taking a 12-month industrial placement allows you to gain work experience in the UK or overseas as part of your Master's. While the placements are self-sought, the School offers support through extra-curricular engagement with our dedicated placements team. Opting for this course with a placement takes the length of your course to up to two years.
Watch our Postgraduate Placements video here.
You’ll gain knowledge and understanding of programming for Python, algorithmic trading, risk management and quantitative methods and optional modules covering areas such as machine learning, forecasting and big data. You will finish your master's with a detailed report with the support of a dedicated expert supervisor.
One of the best resources that the University of Kent has is the Bloomberg Lab. It’s something I used here as a Master’s student, and it’s also something I use day-to-day in my job now in the industry. Having the knowledge of how that works put me miles ahead of everyone else.
~ Alex Lancaster, Finance, PhD
A minimum of a second-class UK degree, or an equivalent internationally recognised qualification in areas such as the sciences, engineering, computing, maths, finance and/or business. Quants/programming based background is required.
All applicants are considered on an individual basis and additional qualifications, professional qualifications and relevant experience may also be taken into account when considering applications.
Please see our International Student website for entry requirements by country and other relevant information. Due to visa restrictions, students who require a student visa to study cannot study part-time unless undertaking a distance or blended-learning programme with no on-campus provision.
The University requires all non-native speakers of English to reach a minimum standard of proficiency in written and spoken English before beginning a postgraduate degree.
For detailed information see our English language requirements web pages.
Applicants who are required to meet an English language condition may be able to study a pre-sessional course in English for Academic Purposes through Kent International Pathways.
The following modules are indicative of those offered on this programme. This list is based on the current curriculum and may change year to year in response to new curriculum developments and innovation.
This module covers key concepts related to financial risk management, especially market risk in financial institutions. It broadly addresses the rationale for practising risk management, followed by approaches to measuring and managing risk.
The course will cover the following indicative topics: taxonomy of Risks, Essential Financial Products, Introduction to Regulation, Modelling Portfolio Risk, Market Risk and VAR, Credit Risk, Risk-Adjusted Performance Measures.
This module will provide students with a core understanding of Financial Technology applications, and specifically how a wide range of disruptive innovations are reshaping the financial system. Particular emphasis will be placed on understanding how banks and other financial institutions can benefit from using these technologies.
The module will cover the following indicative topics: Introduction to FinTech, Payments, cryptocurrencies and blockchain, Digital finance, New forms of lending and crowdfunding, Data and technology in financial services, The role of artificial intelligence and machine learning.
This module will cover the following topics: Investment appraisal techniques and decisions, Stock market efficiency – capital market behaviour, Portfolio theory, The Capital Asset Pricing Model, Sources of finance, Capital Structure.
This module provides a general introduction to the quantitative methods used in financial applications and topics may include: Statistical concepts, Probability distributions, Statistical inference, estimation and hypothesis testing, Correlation, spurious correlation and general dependence measures, Linear regression, Multiple linear regression, Logistic regression, Monte Carlo simulation, Modelling in Excel.
This module will introduce students to Python, a programming language that has become the industry standard. Students will learn how to use Python in order to conduct financial and econometric analysis. Particular emphasis will be placed on programming for specific financial applications such as portfolio optimization, asset valuation, and derivatives pricing.
This module will provide students with a core understanding of algorithmic trading, and specifically how to develop and implement quantitative trading strategies. The module will cover the following indicative topics: High-frequency trading and tick data, Backtesting and automated execution, Mean reversion strategies, Momentum strategies, Arbitrage strategies, Risk management, Performance evaluation.
In this module, students will learn about the fundamentals of machine learning and forecasting techniques and gain hands-on experience with analysing and solving a variety of problems encountered in business and management.
Three indicative areas of the module could include:
The data analysis packages such as R, SPSS, and Weka may be used in this module.
This module aims to introduce students to the power of big data analytics and data visualisation techniques in contributing to business value creation. The module will also enable students to solve a variety of complex data centred business problems using computer software tools like Apache Spark and Python.
The module covers two main themes as follows.
This module will allow students to apply the knowledge and skills gained throughout the course in order to produce an extended independent piece of work. Every student will be allocated a personal supervisor who will guide them through the process. As part of their project, students will generate an interesting and relevant research question in finance, analyse the related financial literature, and conduct their own independent research into their topic. More specifically, students will research topics in the fields of finance (MSc Finance); finance, investment and risk (MSc Finance, Investment and Risk); finance and financial management (MSc Finance and Management); banking and finance (MSc Banking and Finance); financial technology (MSc Financial Technology).
Duration: 1 year full-time
This programme is studied over one year full-time and consists of seven compulsory modules and a choice of optional modules in Stage 1 with Stage 2 finishing with a piece of research.
If you opt for the Industrial Placement, you will be required to complete the Industrial Placement Report.
We use a variety of teaching methods, including:
Classroom-based learning is supported by the latest online technologies and learning platforms.
Your progress on this course is assessed through a variety of means, including:
Students wishing to undertake the optional industrial placement will be required to successfully complete all stage 1 modules and the stage 2 Research project. The Industrial Placement is assessed by the completion of the Industrial Placement Report.
Industrial placements are the perfect way for you to enhance your career prospects and deepen your understanding of a specific area of expertise. This MSc programme is available with the option to take an in-company or self-employed industrial placement of up to 12 months (visa dependent), allowing you to gain work experience in the UK or overseas.
Our lively and active postgraduate community is brought about in part by our strong research culture and by the close community between our staff and students. Staff publish regularly and widely in journals, conference proceedings and books and embed their research in their teaching.
Students have regular contact with their course and module conveners with staff on hand to answer any questions and to provide helpful and constructive feedback on submitted work.
You can also get involved with extra-curricular academic and social activities with guest lectures, talks and workshops organised by our academic staff, research centres and the ASPIRE team. You can catch up with our most recent Open for Business Seminar Series.
Our Canterbury campus provides a welcoming environment and a close-knit student community. Kent Business School is based within the Sibson Building which opened in 2017 and its impressive design won the RIBA Regional and National Award. It houses well-equipped lecture and seminar spaces, as well as breakout spaces for group work, Bloomberg suite, computer labs, a dedicated MBA suite, and our ASPIRE Lab Space. There is also a café on site.
The School is conveniently located at the University of Kent’s campus, close to continental Europe and with easy access to London. World-famous Canterbury Cathedral is situated in the heart of the historic city centre, just a 25-minute walk or a short bus ride.
Kent Business School has close links with: ifs (Institute of Financial Services); dunnhumby, who partners the Consumer Insight Service in the Centre for Value Chain Research; Hong Kong Baptist University, with whom we offer a joint Master’s programme in Operational Research and Finance Business Statistics; University of Castellanza (Italy); Audencia Nantes Business School (France); Aarhus School of Business and Social Sciences (Denmark); Universiti Teknologi Malaysia; University of Ingolstadt, Bayern (Germany); City University of Hong Kong; Renmin University of China, School of Business.
All students registered for a taught Master's programme are eligible to apply for a place on our Global Skills Award Programme. The programme is designed to broaden your understanding of global issues and current affairs as well as to develop personal skills which will enhance your employability.
Kent Business School is a research-led business school. Our research strategy is developed around the core theme of sustainable innovation which cuts across the entire School. This theme can be seen as being divided into two sub-strands of research aimed at answering these main questions:
Kent Business School advances knowledge through constant promotion and support of innovative research. We have an impact on wider society through extensive collaborations with external partners which range from other academic institutions to a variety of local, national and international businesses as well as the NHS. Within this wider context, our main strategic aim has been geared towards establishing ourselves as a leading institution for research in sustainable innovation.
Kent Business School is a global leader in research and develops a wide portfolio of research related activities including workshops, conferences and research seminar series. This has led to a large number of international collaborations and to over 200 co-authored papers with international partners.
Specialising in public-sector critical accounting and accounting history.
Looking into a wide array of financial issues from derivatives pricing to real-estate modelling.
Innovating in wide-ranging topics such as operational research and systems thinking.
Studying issues surrounding consumer behaviours, product development and maintaining value supply chains among others.
People, Management and Organisation
Specialising in improving human resource management, organisational behaviour and leadership.
Strategy and International Business
Helping in the development of innovative business strategies for business all over the world.
Centre for Logistics and Heuristic Optimisation
Helping companies to solve complex strategic, tactical and operational problems.
Centre of Productivity and Workplace Performance
Contribute to the productivity debate and drive improvements at all levels; from the national economic output, to changes in the ways SME’s operate.
Centre for Quantitative Finance
Providing quantitative analysis of issues in the financial markets for businesses and policy makers.
Helping both academics and practitioners tackle the challenges emerging from the rapid development of new digital technologies
Staff publish regularly and widely in journals, conference proceedings and books. Among others, they have recently contributed to: Book chapters on FinTech, Critical Perspectives on Accounting; Quantitative Finance; Human Resource Management Journal; Journal of Product Innovation Management; European Journal of Operational Research; and Psychology & Marketing.
This specialist programme prepares students for a variety of competitive and exciting roles within financial institutions, hedge funds, technology companies and start-ups.
Students who studied similar courses at Kent Business School have gone on to work in a variety of companies including:
Many of our students also stay local and find job opportunities regionally in small and medium firms or even set-up their own businesses as well-equipped entrepreneurs.
You gain much more than an academic qualification when you graduate. We enhance your student experience and accelerate your career prospects to help you achieve your ambition.
From the moment you start with us, our efforts are focused on helping you gain the knowledge, skills and experience you need to thrive in an increasingly competitive workplace. As part of the course, undertake an Industrial Placement or opt for an In-Company Scheme to work on a real business case study. Go on our Business Start-up Journey and transform your idea into a business through ASPIRE. Our qualified careers practitioners provide support for up to three years after graduation.
Additionally, the Postgraduate Employability Edge programme, available to PGT students at Kent Business School takes place from Welcome Week through to the end of the academic year and is designed to enhance your career prospects further.
The 2024/25 annual tuition fees for this course are:
For details of when and how to pay fees and charges, please see our Student Finance Guide.
For students continuing on this programme fees will increase year on year by no more than RPI + 3% in each academic year of study except where regulated.* If you are uncertain about your fee status please contact information@kent.ac.uk.
The University will assess your fee status as part of the application process. If you are uncertain about your fee status you may wish to seek advice from UKCISA before applying.
For details of when and how to pay fees and charges, please see our Student Finance Guide.
For students continuing on this programme, fees will increase year on year by no more than RPI + 3% in each academic year of study except where regulated.*
The University will assess your fee status as part of the application process. If you are uncertain about your fee status you may wish to seek advice from UKCISA before applying.
Find out more about general additional costs that you may pay when studying at Kent.
We have a range of subject-specific awards and scholarships for academic, sporting and musical achievement.
Next steps
Learn more about the application process or begin your application by clicking on a link below.
You will be able to choose your preferred year of entry once you have started your application. You can also save and return to your application at any time.
Supporting your success
Kent ranked top 50 in The Complete University Guide 2024.
Fees and funding
Kent has risen 11 places in THE’s REF 2021 ranking, confirming us as a leading research university.
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