Master of Science in Research Methods

at City, University of London United Kingdom

Our finance courses are for students who want to progress with the knowledge and skills required for a successful career in the increasingly competitive world of global finance and banking.

The BSc Finance is for someone who knows they are interested in finance, and at this point would like to keep their eventual finance career options open. The skills you gain during your studies will equip you both for a career in finance or further, postgraduate study.

Our three degrees in finance (Finance, Banking and International Finance, and Investment and Financial Risk Management) provide detailed knowledge of how financial markets work, how companies make investment, financing and acquisition decisions and how modern banks operate. If you are looking for a career in finance and weighing up which aspects of the field excite you the most, this course if for you.

This course will sharpen your understanding of the broad disciplines involved, from corporate finance to asset pricing, international finance to corporate governance. Throughout your studies, you’ll focus on quantitative methods, enabling you to understand the cutting-edge techniques in use today. In the second half of the finance degree, core modules allow you to create a bespoke degree that matches your own interests. As a result, you will gain a good understanding of financial markets, its activities, and its products.

The jobs in this field are both exciting and well paid. They demand intellectual rigour and commercial acumen, and by selecting this course, you too can prepare yourself with the skills and competencies these jobs require.

This degree has a strong focus on the practical link between theory and real-world application. You'll learn the mathematics and statistics that underpin economics and develop professional accountancy skills and techniques.

On successful completion of this degree, you will gain multiple exemptions from professional licensing examinations with several prestigious accountancy bodies, including CIMA, ACCA and ICAEW. This means you'll be a step closer to professional qualification as an accountant.

• Learn with leading experts in the field from our Department of Economics and our Business School
• Develop a wide range of economic and quantitative skills and knowledge
• Stand out from the crowd with a professional placement year - past students have undertaken placements with organisations like PriceWaterhouseCoopers, GlaxoSmithKline, RBS and HM Treasury
• Follow in the footsteps of recent graduates who now work for major global corporations, such as KPMG, Bloomberg, RBS, Deloitte, Lombard, PwC and Ernst & Young
• Lay the foundations for further study in economics, business, finance and management - past graduates have progressed to LSE, UCL, Oxford and Cambridge.

Develop a critical appreciation of public international law (the law between and about states), its principles, rules and the ever-changing context in which it operates. Our specialist master’s LLM is truly international, enabling you to learn about global governance, humanitarian law and human rights.

We aim to give you a full understanding of public international law. That is, the law governing the interaction of states and their impact on domestic law.

Your learning will cover how public international law affects subjects spanning from global governance and human rights, to transnational finance and investment, climate change, war and peace.

You can also choose from our International Politics modules to achieve a politically rounded view of law in our transnational world.

This three-year degree focuses on sociology and complements the subject with modules in psychology. You’ll learn about how the social relations between people emerge and change, and explore structural inequalities that define our lives. You’ll also study cognition, development and behaviour.

You’ll develop critical thinking studying topics including:

• Gender
• Class
• Race
• Migration
• Family life
• Work and popular culture.

You’ll also develop the methodological expertise to analyse social and psychological data.

• Develop highly sought-after data literacy and quantitative skills, thanks to our strong links with City’s Q-Step Centre
• Become a critical thinker with an in-depth understanding of the complex interplay of local and global forces
• Opt onto a Q-Step quantitative methods pathway: benefit from a heightened focus on data skills, a workplace Data Placement in Year 2, and an optional international work placement
• Boost your employability with an optional placement year
• Take advantage of excellent internship opportunities thanks to our central London location, including access to organisations in media and, crime and justice, human rights, and mental health.

Mathematics is the universal language of today’s global economy. Data Science is increasingly the tool for analysing real world complexity and decision-making.

Whether you are managing an investment portfolio, encrypting financial transactions or constructing a machine-learning algorithm to identify hidden patterns in your customer database you will likely be doing it through a combination of Mathematics and Data Science methods.

The Mathematics with Data Science BSc opens doors to the widest range of careers, because virtually all industries need graduates with skills in these disciplines. The confidence and knowledge you gain at City will open doors to a rewarding and satisfying career.

• Understand the universal nature of mathematics as a discipline that knows no borders or language barriers
• Master a wide range of mathematical and data science topics and techniques, such as calculus, probability and machine learning
• Learn to implement sophisticated algorithms, data mining techniques artificial intelligence with real world applications
• Boost your employability with an optional paid one-year work placement – past students have secured placements at organisations such as Axa, Barclays, Bloomberg, Disney, Microsoft, Toyota and Warner Music
• Take special career development modules to understand mathematics’ essential role across all industries and the opportunities available to you.

Explore your interests through a research project chosen from a wide variety of mathematical topics – past projects have included everything from life-saving mathematics in medical imaging, to wallpaper patterns.

This degree provides the first stage of professional training for aspiring barristers and solicitors, laying the foundations for a rewarding legal career.

It is also suitable for anyone who wants to develop in-demand transferable skills such as critical thinking, commercial awareness, reasoning and research.

You’ll be trained to deal with challenging situations, excel under pressure, and demonstrate professionalism in your work environment.

• Access 250,000 books and 25,000 online journals with City’s library service, including our brand-new dedicated Law Library (opening 2020)
• Choose to specialise in Commercial Law, International Law, Human Rights and Law with Professional Practice
• Develop your commercial awareness and professional network with an intensive five-week micro-placement with a legal employer
• Practise your skills with our popular Pro Bono Unit, which provides legal advice to real clients
• Volunteer for the Start Ed Commercial Law Clinic - a free walk-in centre offering assistance for small businesses and start-ups
• Master important legal skills, such as research and analysis, public speaking and argument with regular mooting.

Get quick and easy access to the latest research materials and legislative updates with Lawbore, our acclaimed legal resource portal.

Learn skills used for quantitative modelling positions, from structuring to pricing complex derivatives and fixed income securities on our Financial Mathematics master's course.

To successfully complete the Financial Mathematics postgraduate course, you must have a very good understanding of mathematics. You may well have studied maths, physics or engineering degrees as an undergraduate.

Or you might have a bachelor’s degree in economics or science and in particular computer science, which, coupled with your interest in stochastics, could also qualify you for this programme.

You should have a general interest in learning the more technical and mathematical techniques used in financial markets; but you don’t need to have a background in finance.

The master's in Financial Mathematics focuses on stochastics and simulation techniques, but also covers some econometrics. You’ll study core modules covering asset pricing, risk management and an introduction to key financial securities such as equities, fixed income and derivatives.

You’ll cover a wide range of elementary and advanced topics in stochastics, including Levy processes and different simulation techniques.

You’ll be taught Python during terms 1 and 2 and you have the opportunity to learn other programming languages as part of our electives offering, such as Matlab or VBA.

There are three ways to complete the third term. Either you’ll choose five electives from around 40 optional modules in your final term. Or you can choose to complete a traditional dissertation, known as a ‘business research project’, which counts for four electives, or a shorter ‘applied research project’, which is the equivalent of two elective modules.

Your learning will bridge three research and clinical disciplines.

Clinical neuroscience will give you an understanding of mental health and neurological, psychological or psychiatric illness via their neural and cognitive antecedents.

Social neuroscience will let you investigate brain processes that help us communicate, feel, learn, and interact with others.

Cognitive neuroscience will enable you to explore human cognitive functions such as memory, perception and language in healthy and clinical states.

Who is this course for?

You will be well suited to our programme if you have an undergraduate degree in psychology or a related discipline and want to advance your knowledge and gain skills that are highly valued in research and clinical professions.

We give you a strong preparation for further professional training in clinical psychology. You will also be well equipped for progression to PhD studies in fields such as cognitive neuroscience or social neuroscience, and to research positions outside academia.

The History and Politics joint degree will appeal to ambitious students interested in developing a deep understanding of politics and political processes rooted in both the past and the present.

Through a selection of modules from the City History and Politics programmes, and core seminars designed exclusively for the joint degree, you will examine key historical and political developments in a range of nations, societies and cultures.

• Work closely with world class academics to develop the tools and techniques of historical research
• Acquire an international and global perspective on politics and power
• Develop skills in independent research, critical analysis, communication, public speaking and policy writing
• Apply your skills to the real-world – work with digital information, engage in independent research projects of your own design, and practice developing policy positions on current events
• Prepare for your future career with an optional work placement and professional development opportunities embedded in the course
• Engage with contemporary politics and policymakers

Gain a strong grounding in modern history, political theory, the history of ideas and the study of politics.

A one-year post-graduate programme deepening your knowledge of the theory and practice of investment and risk management.

You are an ambitious recent graduate looking to develop a full range of skills to help launch your career in finance or accounting. This is a highly practical master's course in Investment Management so you’ll need to possess a high level of quantitative skills.

Your coursework will involve you in examining accounting and finance from the perspective of those who use financial reports to evaluate company and managerial performance.

This one-year, full-time, expertly structured Investment Management postgraduate programme will provide you with the real-world accounting and finance expertise that leads to a wide range of rewarding international roles.

You will acquire a sound knowledge of the theoretical foundations that underpin modern investment and risk management techniques.

These principles are applied in practice via case studies and the use of online databases such as Bloomberg and simulators.

The practical aspect is delivered with extensive input from City of London institutions. Many leading practitioners teach on the course, providing a vital link between theory and practice.

The MSc in Investment Management is a demanding course. During the course you will cover the traditional syllabus of a general master's degree in finance and develop extensive expertise in a range of specialised areas such as:

• The management of equity and bond portfolios
• Trading techniques
• Asset-liability management
• Risk management
• Alternative investments
• Structured products
• Portfolio optimisation.

An advisory panel of senior practitioners ensures that the course remains at the forefront of developments within financial markets and reflects topical and technical developments in the marketplace.