Quant Guide 2022: ETH Zurich/University of Zurich

Zurich, Switzerland

© University of Zurich; Frank brothers

 

 

The University of Zurich and ETH Zurich’s collaborative Master of Science in Quantitative Finance remains one of the consistently strongest-performing European programmes featured in the Quant Guide, ranking third among programmes outside the US and 13^th overall.

The programme, which continues to be directed by associate professor of quantitative finance Erich Walter Farkas, has grown this year, with the number of full-time students in its latest intake rising from 23 to 40. Core courses can also be taken by students from other programmes, resulting in an average class size of 70 students.

The number of applications received has gone from 294 in 2021 to 346, with 68 offers being made this year, in contrast to 43 in the previous year. 48 students accepted offers this year, with eight postponing their entry into the programme until next autumn.

Beatrice Acciaio and Dylan Possamaï have recently joined the department, with the number of teaching staff increasing from 32 to 40. Markus Mocha and Dominik Hammer, both of UBS, and Björn Assmann, of Credit Suisse, have also joined the department as new instructors.

Only 10% of modules will be delivered remotely this year, with 90% of classes in person, alongside online options for students unable to physically attend. This means that, in theory, students can opt to do lectures online, either in podcast or live Zoom session format. To attend classes in person, the University of Zurich is requiring a Covid pass that proves a student has been vaccinated, tested or has recovered from the virus.

Several new elective courses have been added to the programme over the past year, including classes in stress-testing, finance and machine learning, rough path theory, and financial crises. All courses incorporate aspects of programming in Python, R and Matlab.

The mean average of first-job salaries is given as at $109,661, unchanged significantly from the previous year. The programme has a 100% employment rate, and offers specific career support in the form of organised internships from alumni and further information events with industry partners hosted twice a year.

View this institution’s entry in the 2021 guide

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