MSc Economics of International Finance and Trade

Key details

MSC ECONOMICS OF INTERNATIONAL FINANCE AND TRADE

Start Year

2023

Attendance

Full Time

Award

Degree of Master of Science

Duration (years)

Take a global perspective as you develop your knowledge and understanding of international finance and trade.

On this course you'll enhance your understanding of the broader economic context of the international economy as you study the global flow of goods, services and finance from both an investor’s and corporate perspectives.

You’ll gain a firm foundation in your subject through core modules, including ones that cover economic concepts and econometrics. You'll also have the opportunity to choose from a range of optional modules and will finish your course by writing a dissertation on a topic of your own choice – giving you the freedom to pursue your particular interests and career goals.

This course lays the foundations for a career in a wide range of financial professions, including international finance and risk management.

About

Our MSc Economics of International Finance and Trade is part of our Applied Training Programme, which is designed to provide key skills in economics. It’s ideal if you’re a graduate without an economics background, wishing to develop the analytical skills of an economist. It’s also suitable if you're an economics graduate wishing to develop specialist expertise in this area without committing to full research training.

Throughout the course, you'll develop a range of transferable skills, including data analysis (especially financial data), as well as investigating the motivation, financial practices, and the consequences of international trade.

You’ll take compulsory modules in Economic Concepts, Financial Econometrics, International Trade, and International Finance. As this programme has a particular focus on the international economy, there are modules specifically designed to give you expert knowledge in this area. These include International Trade, which introduces models of international trade explaining patterns in global flows of goods, and International Finance, which examines finance from both an investor’s and corporate perspective.

Towards the end of your 12 months with us, you'll write a dissertation on an area of the discipline that supports your own interests and future goals. Throughout the dissertation process, you'll have support and supervision from a member of the School of Economics.

We also offer additional support to help you get the most from your Master’s. This includes an optional, intensive pre-sessional course in the fortnight before your programme begins in September. This course includes an introduction to the specialist econometric software that you will use in your MSc programme. While not compulsory, we strongly recommend you take advantage of this fantastic opportunity.

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Important Information

Whilst the University will make every effort to offer the courses listed, changes may sometimes be made arising from the regular review of course programmes. Where this activity leads to significant (but not minor) changes to programmes, there will normally be prior consultation of students and others. Changes may for example consist of variations to the content and method of delivery of programmes, courses and other services, to discontinue programmes, courses and other services and to merge or combine programmes or courses. The University will endeavour to keep such changes to a minimum, and will inform students.

Assessment for Year 1

Your coursework will be in a variety of forms – including take-home assignments, seminar presentations, written tests, computer tests and your dissertation (which you'll submit at the end of August).

Throughout your course, you'll be given guidance on your work and constructive feedback to help you improve. You will receive written feedback for all pieces of coursework and further guidance will be available from your module organisers.

If you have additional needs due to disabilities such as sensory impairment, or learning difficulties such as dyslexia, please talk to our Student Support Service about how we can help.

Structure

The MSc Economics of International Finance and Trade is a one-year course. In each semester, you'll take three modules, followed by writing your dissertation in the period between June and August.

In the autumn semester, you'll take Economic Concepts, Financial Econometrics and either Finance or Financial Markets. In the spring semester, you'll take International Finance, and International Trade and an optional module from a selection that includes modules like Multinational Firms and Money and Banking.

Although you'll actually write your dissertation between June and August, you'll begin your dissertation module with a sequence of dissertation training lectures and workshops in spring. Here you will discover how to choose a topic, how to access data and search literature, how to reference, and how to analyse quantitative data.

You will be able to take advantage of further dissertation training workshops in late June and early July.

Teaching and Learning

UEA’s School of Economics is lively, friendly, research-orientated and committed to excellence in teaching. We’ve an international reputation in many key areas, including theoretical and applied economics. Our research interests include behavioural and experimental economics, competition economics, environmental policy, conflict, contests and corporate behaviour, finance and financial markets.

Teaching of each of your modules will be spread over two semesters. In a typical module, you'll have lectures and seminars. Your seminars are more interactive than lectures and provide you with an opportunity to raise questions arising from lectures.

In your econometric modules, you'll learn how to conduct econometric analysis using specialist econometric software.

You will also become practiced in independent study, spending time working on coursework assignments, preparing for seminars, and doing your own wider reading.

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Open Days

Assessment for Year 1

If you have additional needs due to disabilities such as sensory impairment, or learning difficulties such as dyslexia, please talk to our Student Support Service about how we can help.

Compulsory Modules

ECONOMIC CONCEPTS

Code ECO-7011A

Credits 20

Introducing micro and macro economic analysis, this module will familiarise you with a wide range of economic tools which can be applied to issues relating to your Applied Training Programme. It covers, in particular, consumer and producer choice, market equilibrium, market structure, externalities and public goods, the macroeconomics of inflation, unemployment and growth and macroeconomic policy.

ECONOMICS DISSERTATION (60 CREDITS)

Code ECO-7023X

Credits 60

Economics Dissertation is the “icing on the cake” of an Economics MSc. It is a module that brings together the skills that you have learnt throughout your degree programme and applies these skills to study a particular topic of your interest. This module gives you an opportunity to spend a period of 2 or 3 months working exclusively on a topic of your own choice, at your own pace, with guidance from a supervisor. The module commences with a sequence of “dissertation training” lectures during the Spring Semester, including such themes as choosing a topic, accessing data, searching the literature, referencing, and qualitative data analysis. There are further dissertation training lectures during late June and early July, held in computer labs, with the objective of providing the types of econometric skills often required in dissertation research. The Econometric software STATA is used, the same as used in taught modules in Econometrics. At the end of the Spring semester, you will submit a research proposal stating the research question you would like to address and proposing a suitable methodology. You can also select to work on a dissertation topic either with a business, charity, or other organization. In all cases, it is your responsibility to come up with a research proposal although you are encouraged to speak with instructors and the PG Course Director for advice and guidance. On the basis of your proposal, a suitable supervisor will be allocated to you. At least three meetings with the supervisor should take place between May - July. The total contact time over these meetings should be at least three hours. At the first meeting, the research proposal is discussed. By the time of the third and final meeting, you should ideally have supplied a first draft of the dissertation for your supervisor to provide feedback on. The deadline for the dissertation is at the end of August and the word limit for dissertations is either 8,000 or 12,000, depending on which MSc you are taking. If you want to work on a dissertation topic with a business, charity, or other organization you must get your dissertation topic pre-approved by the PG Course Director.

INTERNATIONAL FINANCE

Code ECO-7015B

Credits 20

Are foreign exchange rates predictable? How can a firm hedge foreign exchange risk? What effect do interest rates have on currency values? Why are exchange rates so volatile? Are exchange rates based on macroeconomic fundamentals, or determined by speculative activity? These are the types of questions you will explore on this module. International Finance lies at the intersection of finance and macroeconomics. You’ll begin by learning the general finance tools of option pricing and risk management, before focusing on how to apply these tools to look, in particular, at exchange rates. This will involve understanding the structure of the foreign exchange market, examining theories of exchange rate determination, and looking at the foreign exchange futures and options markets. You’ll learn through a mixture of lectures, which have regular intervals for team or individual work, as well as seminars and self-study. Assessment comprises of technical and essay questions. By the end of the module you’ll be equipped for further study in financial economics or a career in the finance industry, particularly in roles related to foreign exchange.

FINANCIAL ECONOMETRICS

Code ECO-7009A

Credits 20

Are you interested in working with financial data? Would you like to be able to forecast future movements of stock prices or test the efficiency of financial markets? If so, this module will introduce to you the empirical techniques you need to satisfy these interests. The module is divided into two parts. The first part covers basic econometric techniques. You’ll be shown how to estimate a regression model in a variety of contexts, interpret your findings, and test the relationships between variables. As you progress, you’ll learn how to identify problems with the models (such as multicollinearity and heteroscedasticity) and how to address these problems. In lectures you’ll learn about the techniques, and in seminars you’ll apply these techniques to a variety of economic problems and estimate models with real data. In the second part of the module you’ll apply the techniques learnt in the first part to problems in financial economics. These applications include estimation of the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM), testing the Efficient Markets Hypothesis (EMH), and using stock price data to in the valuation of options. Throughout the module, seminars take place in computer labs and you will gain skills in analysing data using the widely used econometric computer package STATA. By the end of the module, you’ll be able to estimate appropriate regression models, identify problems which may arise and know how to address them. In particular, you’ll know how to apply these methods in financial contexts. In addition, you’ll be able use STATA and will have acquired a range of skills that are currently highly marketable in the financial industry.

INTERNATIONAL TRADE

Code ECO-7016B

Credits 20

In this module you will develop your understanding of the international economy, specifically international trade. You’ll examine patterns in the global flows of goods using models of international trade theory and ask who benefits from trade and who it can harm, relating your insights to the current debate about globalisation. This module also deals with controversial issues like the effect of trade on the environment and strategic trade policy.

Optional A Modules

(20 credits)

FINANCE

Code ECO-7008A

Credits 20

Have you ever wondered why firms buy other firms, or why that trendy technology firm recently issued some shares? Why stock prices go up (and down)? What do we know about financial markets and, importantly, what don’t we understand? This module introduces a range of concepts related to the financial decisions firms have to make, and how these decisions lead to the existence of the stock markets that feature in the daily news. The early part of the module introduces the subject area by considering a range a fundamental concepts. From this foundation, you’ll learn how firms make financial decisions and how these decisions are interrelated. The later part of the module investigates how stock markets work, the risks involved, and the extent to which these risks can be avoided. On successful completion of the module, you’ll have gained the knowledge and skills for setting out on a career in finance, or for further study of corporate finance and financial markets. You’ll better understand financial news and be better-placed to discuss it, drawing on discussion from academic literature. You’ll be able to discuss and answer the sorts of questions prospective employers, friends and family might reasonably ask a finance postgraduate.

FINANCIAL MARKETS

Code ECO-7012A

Credits 20

This module explores modern portfolio theory and asset pricing, behavioural finance, and the efficient markets hypothesis. You’ll examine modern equilibrium asset pricing models, which in turn build upon the concepts of portfolio theory. You’ll be introduced to the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM) and discuss approximations and extensions, including the Single Index model and various factor models such as the recent Fama-French (2015) 5-factor model. Key concepts will be illustrated through lectures and seminars, using numerous real-world examples in Excel.

PROGRAMMING AND ANALYTICS FOR BEHAVIOURAL ECONOMISTS

Code ECO-7026A

Credits 20

This Autumn Semester module is intended to provide students with a grounding in the programming and data-analytic techniques that will be used in later modules and also in the dissertation. The main part of the module introduces students to programming methods in Python, including use of loops and lists, data cleaning and manipulation, methods of exploratory data analysis, data visualisation, web scraping, and methods for working with multiple data sets. Ethical issues faced when working with individual data will also be covered. The programming methods will then be applied to problems in policy evaluation, including applications of D-in-D and regression discontinuity methodology to naturally occurring data. The module ends with the use of web-search data in Economic Analysis.

Optional B Modules

(20 credits)

MULTINATIONAL FIRMS

Code ECO-7010B

Credits 20

This module is structured around three main questions: Why do multi-nationals exist? What are their beneficial effects? Why might they sometimes be a cause for concern? In answering these questions we confront a variety of theoretical and empirical methodologies (e.g, oligopoly theory, transactions costs, econometric methods, case studies in corporate strategy) and draw upon various branches of Economics ( e.g. International Economics, Industrial Economics, Labour Economics, Financial Economics and Political Economy).

FINANCIAL MATHEMATICS

Code ECO-7013B

Credits 20

This technical finance module is suited to students who wish to pursue a career in the financial sector. The focus is on valuation and risk analysis of financial products, and the module is highly analytical, with weekly exercise sessions in computer labs. Topics covered include: continuous-time stochastic processes, stochastic models for security prices, bonds, term structure of interest rates, futures and forwards, options, swaps, hedging and credit risk.

RISK MANAGEMENT AND TRADING

Code ECO-7017B

Credits 20

The first part of the module begins by introducing concepts such as risk in financial markets, and discusses the stylised facts of financial returns. With the aid of the econometric computer package STATA and using real data, we test models in empirical finance. Students will learn how to calculate risk using daily and high-frequency data, and how to calculate realised volatility. The second part of the module introduces algorithmic trading using Excel VBA, as well as the role of behavioural finance in financial markets.

ENVIRONMENTAL AND NATURAL RESOURCE ECONOMICS

Code ECO-7020B

Credits 20

Gain a thorough grounding in the key issues in environmental and resource economics. This module provides an overview of the economic and econometric principles that serve as pivotal tools in ensuring that natural resources are sustainably valued and managed in a global economic environment. The applied nature of the module is complemented by technical papers that form the subject of the discussions in seminar sessions. Open to postgraduate students enrolled on both ATP and APP programmes, this module will enhance the econometric principles taught in the Autumn Semester by applying analytical and statistical methods to the field of environmental economics so as to emphasise the empirical relevance of these theories.

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Open Days

Important Information

Whilst the University will make every effort to offer the modules listed, changes may sometimes be made arising from the annual monitoring and review of modules. Where this activity leads to significant change to a programme and modules, the University will endeavour to consult with affected students. The University may not be able to offer a module for reasons outside of its control, such as the illness of a member of staff. Availability of optional modules may be restricted owing to timetabling, lack of demand, or limited places. Where this is the case, you will be asked to make alternative module choices and you will be supported during this process.

Entry Requirements

Degree classification

Bachelors degree (minimum 2.2 or equivalent)

Degree subject

Any Subject

Additional entry requirements

Applicants should normally have a good undergraduate degree from a recognised higher education institution. The University will also take into account the employment experience of applicants where relevant.

If you do not meet the academic requirements for this course, you may be able to study one of the International Graduate Diploma programmes offered by our partner INTO UEA. These programmes guarantee progression to selected Master's degrees if students achieve the appropriate grade. For more details please click here: International Graduate Diploma in Economics.

Students for whom english is a foreign language

We welcome applications from students whose first language is not English. To ensure such students benefit from postgraduate study, we require evidence of proficiency in English. Our usual entry requirements are as follows:

IELTS: 6.0 (minimum 5.5 in only two components with 6.0 in the others)
PTE (Pearson): 64 (minimum 59 in two components only with 64 in the other two)

Test dates should be within two years of the course start date.

Other tests, including Cambridge English exams and the Trinity Integrated Skills in English are also accepted by the university. The full list of accepted tests can be found here: Accepted English Language Tests

INTO University of East Anglia

If you do not meet the English requirements for this course, our partner INTO UEA run pre-sessional English courses which can be taken prior to the start of your course. For further information and to see if you qualify please contact intopre-sessional@uea.ac.uk

Intakes

This course is open to UK, EU and International applicants. The annual intake for this course is in September each year.

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Course Reference Number: 6884250

MSc ECONOMICS OF INTERNATIONAL FINANCE AND TRADE