Veda Varun Ramireddy, MSc Finance and Financial Technology (FinTech) student shares his top tips for students interested in the programme. 

Coming to the course itself, it’s quite a challenging course, however, bear in mind, it is a Master’s after all! And you are certainly expected to put more effort and time for studying than at undergraduate level. Don’t let the challenging aspect put you off though, as several of your colleagues and friends will be in the same boat and you can help each other out. There is also help from the Teaching assistants for each module you do, just book an  appointment during office hours and they are more than willing to give you advice, study tips and explain concepts which you struggle with.

Here are my top study advice/tips for the modules you will study in semester 1:

• Quantitative Methods for Finance: Use Maths Tutor prior to your arrival to brush up on your math skills. Also, prepare for statistics, pick up a basic statistic book and understand concepts like correlation, regression, hypothesis testing, z-scores, etc.
• Securities, Futures and Options: The book you will most likely use is Investments by Bodie, Kane and Marcus. I would go through fundamentals by following this link prior to your arrival.
• Programming for FinTech (Python): Try to finish the introductory basic course on pythonprogramming.net
• Financial Markets and Digital Banking and Payment Systems: I would just stay up to date with current affairs in technology and the finance sector. So, just read the news regularly (once a day minimum).

One book which is super helpful is Mihir Desai’s How Finance Works. If you can, read the book prior to arrival. We don’t use it for lectures, but, if you have no finance background like me, read it!

Ok, in terms of your coding skills, NO, you do not need ANY coding/programming background. Just be enthusiastic and pick up the python language once you start the course in September! So even if your undergraduate degree was in Geography, you will be fine because the course starts from basic level and builds from there. Disclaimer: it will be challenging at times, but, do persevere (it’s like learning any other language).

In terms of your finance background, once again, no prior knowledge of finance or economics is required. I did not have a background in finance. However, with some extra effort, now I totally understand the fundamentals of markets and how stocks are priced. So, yes, do not worry. Just be willing and super excited to learn new content!

ICMA centre gives very generous scholarships for new students and there is a special Finance and financial technology scholarship too! So, once you receive your offer, do keep up to date with the ICMA Centre website as you will be bombarded with lots of information on it! Apply early, it looks good on your CV too, see all the scholarships here!

Find out more about the Master’s in Finance and Financial Technology (FinTech) programme here.