Quant Guide 2020: WU: Vienna University of Economics and Business

Vienna, Austria

 

The Master Quantitative Finance degree at WU: Vienna University of Economics and Business is becoming more selective. The intake grew slightly last year – it reported a cohort of 54 students versus the previous year’s 48 – but the number of applications grew considerably: 426 last year, up from 305.

Taught in English, the four-semester programme is led by two academic directors: chair of WU's institute for statistics and mathematics Kurt Hornik, and professor of banking and finance Stefan Pichler. The programme is full-time only and takes two years to complete.

The first two semesters involve foundational classes in mathematics, financial markets and instruments, and computing as well as probability, optimisation and statistics. In the second year, students select one of two tracks: a science or an industry specialisation.

Mandatory modules come first, including financial econometrics and game theory. The science track requires statistical mathematics classes; for the industry track, the only mandatory course is a lab class.

But students are also free to choose electives in their second year, including advanced topics in computing, continuous time finance, dynamic credit risk models and quantitative risk management.

Another perk is the QFIN Club, named after the degree, which organises social events also attended by graduates, and company talks throughout the programme. Speakers discuss their work, how to find jobs in their field and the financial industry more generally. Previous gatherings have included lectures given by professionals from Nomura, PwC and UniCredit.

View this institution’s entry in the 2019 guide

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