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Finance courses

If a career in trading, investment, banking or finance appeals you may wish to look at the wide range of finance degrees on offer. Some courses are broad-based and include all aspects of finance, including accounting, while others specialise in areas such as investment banking. On some courses you may learn dealing skills in trading simulation rooms. Some courses are vocational and include taking professional banking and financial services exams, as a fast track to careers in these areas.

Studying finance at university

Example course modules

  • Financial accounting theory
  • Law of business
  • Information technology for business
  • Principles of operations management
  • Personal, professional and academic effectiveness
  • Business policy
  • Business, government and society
  • Financial management
  • Introduction to macroeconomics
  • Statistics and data management

Teaching hours / week

Average for this subject

13
Hours
5
14
Hours

Average for all subjects

The time you'll spend in lectures and seminars each week will vary from university to university, so use this as a guide.

More on studying and contact hours at uni

Who studies this subject

  • Female : 37%
    Male : 63%
  • Mature : 19%
    School leaver : 81%
  • Full-time : 97%
    Part-time : 3%

What students say about finance

What you need to get on a course

Subjects you need

A-levels (or equivalent) usually required

  • No Specific Requirements

Useful to have

  • Business studies
  • Economics
  • Mathematics

Application checklist

Here's a guide to what to expect from the application process - also check individual university entry requirements, as these may differ.

  • January application
  • October application
  • Personal statement
  • Portfolio
  • Interview
  • Entry test
  • Work experience
  • Audition

Personal statement advice

Your personal statement is a core part of your university application, and getting it just right takes time. Before you start work on yours, take a look at our five quick tips on writing a personal statement. We'll help you past that writer's block!

Career prospects

Sources: HECSU & KIS
More than 2,000 students graduated with a degree in finance in 2012, but recent times have been difficult for the finance industry. As things recover, however, we'd expect the statistics to improve, and as so many – over half of the employed graduates from 2012 - go into finance, it's not surprising that London is by far the most common location for graduates from the subject to go into work, although Scotland and the North West also take quite a few graduates. It's also common for finance graduates to go into jobs such as accountancy, which require you to take more training and gain professional qualifications – finance graduates who take further study are more likely to be studying accountancy than finance.
Professional and accrediting bodies:

Six months after graduating

Typical graduate job areas
  • Business, finance and related associate professionals

Longer term career paths

Jobs where this degree is useful

  • Financial analyst
  • Actuary
  • Chartered accountant

Other real-life job examples

  • Investment banker
  • Procurement officer
  • Auditor

What employers like about this subject

A finance degree will develop subject-specific skills in areas including financial theories and methods; in the use and preparation of financial information in decision-making and in the operation of financial markets. Useful transferable skills you can gain from a finance degree include numeracy, communication, problem-solving, decision-making, critical thinking and a business focus. Finance graduates are in demand from business across the finance industry, but as many flexible, numerate and business-focused graduates, they are employed all over the economy. Last year, industries that employed finance graduates included accounting, retail and investment banking, insurance, brokerages, fund managers, property development, marketing, IT and the law.