Finance and Risk

Entry requirements

Upper second class honours (2:1) degree or international equivalent in any discipline and good quantitative skills.

Successful applicants usually have a solid undergraduate background in one or more of the following areas: Economics, Finance, Mathematics, Statistics and Accounting. However, we also welcome applications from candidates with other backgrounds. If you do not have sufficient background in these areas, we may require you to take one or more LSE Summer School courses.

GMAT or GRE is required for all applicants without a UK undergraduate degree (GMAT strongly preferred). GMAT is recommended for applicants with UK undergraduate degrees, especially those whose quantitative skills are not demonstrated by their undergraduate studies.

Work experience (either through internships or full employment) is not a pre-requisite; however, applicants who have some professional experience should include this in their application, as it may strengthen their application.

Months of entry

September

Course content

About the MSc programme

The MSc Risk and Finance is an interdisciplinary master's programme designed to provide a comprehensive understanding of the various facets of risk, including risk perception, management, control and regulation as encountered in a wide variety of contexts.

The success of organisations depends upon their ability to operate in the face of risk, and risk management is increasingly recognised as requiring special skills central to the functioning of the organisation. This programme addresses such questions as: What types of risks exist in various settings? What are the appropriate ways to classify, measure and assess risk? How does the organisation of enterprises, governments and markets increase, decrease or change the nature of risk? What techniques can be used to transfer risk in markets, firms or societies? The design of the programme will enable you to acquire a broad knowledge of risk management and regulation, and to deepen your competency in a chosen area of specialisation.

The programme is supported by Deutsche Bank, which contributes a high level of involvement via a series of practitioner seminars which run throughout the programme.

Department of Finance

The LSE Department of Finance is devoted to excellence in teaching and research in the full range of the subfields of finance including corporate finance, asset pricing theory, risk management, empirical analysis of capital markets, behavioural finance, portfolio analysis, derivatives pricing, microstructure and financial econometrics.

The Department has grown in recent years to become one of the largest and most highly-regarded finance groups in the UK and Europe. It is closely associated with the LSE's Financial Markets Group and Systemic Risk Centre which regularly host a wide variety of seminars, conferences and public addresses by leading academics and practitioners. With over 200 post-graduate students selected from a pool of top applicants world-wide, a faculty recruited from the top departments internationally, and a steady flow of distinguished visitors, we have a stimulating environment for research and learning that is on par with the best in the world.

Information for international students

LSE is an international community, with over 140 nationalities represented amongst its student body. We celebrate this diversity through everything we do.

If you are applying to LSE from outside of the UK then take a look at our Information for International students

Fees and funding

Fees

Every graduate student is charged a fee for their programme. Visit the website for more information about the fees.

Funding

The School recognises that the cost of living in London may be higher than in your home town or country, and we provide generous scholarships each year to home and overseas students.

This programme is eligible for needs-based awards from LSE, including the Graduate Support Scheme, Master's Awards, and Anniversary Scholarships.

Selection for any funding opportunity is based on receipt of an application for a place – including all ancillary documents, before the funding deadline.

In addition to our needs-based awards, LSE also makes available scholarships for students from specific regions of the world and awards for students studying specific subject areas.

Find out more about financial support.