University of Leicester - School of Management - Distance Learning

MSc in Finance

Course Structure

Stage 1

• Foundations of Professional Knowledge and Skills: provides requisite quantitative awareness, analysis of the production of “knowledge” within finance, encourages students to begin developing personal skills necessary for academic and business environments.
• Foundations of Financial Analysis and Investment: This course sets down the fundamental conceptual framework for financial analysis focusing on intertemporal choice; the determination of interest rates; investment and savings decisions and capital budgeting.
• Financial Statement: reporting; balance sheets; profit and loss; cash flow statements management; financial forecasting and budgeting.
• Strategic Finance Management: The application of strategic thinking in the context of financial management; growth/share matrices; shareholder value analysis; corporate restructuring; mergers and acquisition; management buyouts; and corporate governance.
• Financial Modelling: Using quantitative techniques to analysis financial information and to assist decision-making through the use of: descriptive statistics; probability and probability distributions; statistical inference; regression analysis; and time series analysis.

Stage 2

• Financial Risk Management: Overview of risk management, forward and future markets, swaps, options and corporate finance, warrants and convertibles, risk management strategy, interest rate risk and security design.
• Corporate Finance: The firm; equity; issuing shares; cost of issue; rights issues etc.; debt; warrants; convertibles; leasing and quasi-debt; valuation of a company; mergers; growth and failure and disinvestment.

Stage 3

Two electives will normally be undertaken. The following list provides examples of Electives currently offered to candidates:

• Public Finance
• Investment and Portfolio Analysis
• International Finance and Globalisation
• Fixing Futures: Trading and Other Narratives
• Accounting Representations: Public and Private Sector
• Developments in Business Finance
• Project Management for IT
• Managing Information: Technology and Systems
• International Organization Behaviour
• Branding and Communication
• Business-to-Business Marketing and Supply Chain Management
• Knowledge Management
• Managing Diversity
• A Critical Inquiry into Consultancy
• Critical Perspectives on Corporations and Consumers
• Critical Approaches to HRM
• Alternatives Economics
• The Future of Work
• Marketing of Services
• Consumption, Society and Culture
• Total Quality Management
• Information Technology in Marketing
• International Marketing
• Retail Marketing
• Employee Relations
• Strategic Human Resource Management
• Benchmarking
• Shakespeare and Management
• Performance Measurement: Quantitative Approaches

Note: the availability of Electives may change from year to year.

Stage 4

After reviewing a range of alternative research methods candidates will undertake a research project which will provide them with an opportunity to examine, in depth, a topic of particular relevance to their own interests.

During the course of the dissertation process you will independently identify an appropriate management issue and apply theoretical knowledge to this area in order to produce realistic, critically informed analysis. This stage of the MSc in Management provides an opportunity for you to integrate and inter-relate concepts, techniques and competencies acquired in the course of the programme.

The dissertation will be of 15,000 words in length. Students completing dissertations will be expected to demonstrate:

• Initiative and capacity for setting up the problem in a tractable form;
• An understanding of research methods;
• Application of relevant analytical and problem solving skills;
• Logical argument and clear written communication skills.