MSc in Mathematical and Computational Finance

Information for Current Students

The MSc in Mathematical & Computational Finance provides graduates with the foundations in applied mathematics, machine learning, and computer science necessary for a successful career in modern finance. It is one of the most popular MSc programmes at the University of Oxford.

The curriculum is highly interdisciplinary and is specifically designed to prepare students for a career in finance. Students will acquire the mathematical and computational ability to develop models and calibrate them to large-scale financial datasets. Topics covered include mathematical modeling (stochastic differential equations, stochastic control), computer science (C++ and Python), statistics, deep learning, numerical methods (Monte Carlo simulation, finite difference methods for PDEs, and optimisation), and financial applications (financial derivatives, fixed income, decentralized finance, and market microstructure).

The MSc programme is taught by the Mathematical & Computational Finance faculty at the Mathematical Institute (University of Oxford's Department of Mathematics). The Mathematical & Computational Finance Group is one of the largest mathematical finance research groups in the world and has extensive connections with the financial industry (including banks, hedge funds, central banks, and financial exchanges). This depth of experience of the faculty guides the design of the programme with the goal of preparing students for a career in modern quantitative finance. Our MSc students have won the Natixis Prize for best MSc Thesis in Quantitative Finance in Europe for five consecutive years.

In the 2023 Times Higher Education rankings for best universities in the world, the University of Oxford is ranked #1. In the REF evaluation, which is the UK’s official system for assessing the quality of research in UK higher education institutions, the University of Oxford was ranked #1 in Mathematical Sciences in the entire United Kingdom.

Information for Applicants

Please see the MSc in Mathematical and Computational Finance webpage at Graduate Admissions for application deadlines.

Course Components

The MSc starts two weeks before Michaelmas Term with four introductory courses. The first term (Michaelmas) and the second term (Hilary) are devoted to Core courses and Electives. Hilary term ends with a 3-week C++ project. Trinity Term is devoted to the MSc Dissertation. Students can also apply for internships with companies during this term and will be allowed to complete their dissertation project as part of the internship. Students can apply for an internship with a company and, if they receive an internship offer, can use the analysis/results from the internship for their dissertation which is submitted to the Univ. of Oxford. In previous years, some of our students have completed Trinity Term internships with companies such as: Nomura, UBS, Citi, Goldman Sachs, Mazars, Barclays, Qube-RT, MUFG Securities, Deutsche Bank, and Lloyds Banking Group.

Careers in Quantitative Finance Seminar Series

We have a weekly seminar series during Michaelmas Term where we invite speakers from the financial industry to give presentations to our MSc class. Examples of companies in 2022 include: Nomura, Citadel Securities, NatWest Markets, J.P. Morgan, Qube Research & Technologies, and Deutsche Bank. Many of the companies also hold networking events for our MSc class, which is a good opportunity for students to discuss job and internship opportunities in finance.

Alumni Profiles

Many of our alumni have had highly successful careers at banks, hedge funds, and investment funds, including in leadership positions. In a survey of early career alumni (approximately 1-4 years after completing the MSc programme), the average annual compensation (salary and bonus) was 100,950 GBP. (We emphasize this is an estimate based upon a relatively small sample of alumni who responded to a survey.) Our graduates have been recruited by prominent companies such as Barclays Capital, BNP Paribas, Citigroup, Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan, KCG, Man-Group, Morgan Stanley, Nomura, Royal Bank of Scotland, Société Géneral, Squarepoint Capital, Systematica, and UBS. Many of our past students have progressed to PhD-level studies at leading universities worldwide, including Stanford University, University of Oxford Mathematics, and Imperial College London.

Oxford Colleges

All graduate students are members of both a department or faculty and a college or hall. Colleges are a unique feature of the University of Oxford. In this section, you can find out more about Oxford's colleges, how to state a college preference in your application and the facilities that are available. A list of colleges that accept students on the MSc in Mathematical and Computational Finance programme is available on the MCF course admissions site.

Advisory Board

An Advisory Board from the financial industry helps guide the design of the MCF MSc programme. This board consists of previous alumni and senior leadership at banks and financial companies. The Advisory Board provides advice regarding the MSc curriculum and internship programme.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why should you consider this consider this course? How to apply? What background should applicants have? What preparations are required? What are the fees and other costs?

MCF Faculty

A list of faculty members in the Mathematical and Computational Finance group is available here.

Jane Street Scholarship

As part of the University of Oxford’s Black Academic Futures Scholarships the MSc in Mathematical and Computational Finance is one of the courses eligible for one of four fully funded postgraduate scholarships in 2023-2024. More information is available here.

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