Master of Financial Engineering Program

Curriculum Overview

March 22, 2010 - March 18, 2011

The full program consists of 28 required units including an Applied Finance Project (1 unit = 15 class hours).

Please note that not all electives will be offered every year. This schedule is tentative and will be updated every term.

Spring 2010: March 29 - May 21, 2010 (8 weeks)

Fundamentals of Financial Economics (2 units) - Mark Rubinstein
Empirical Methods in Finance (3 units) - TBA
Introduction to Stochastic Calculus(2 units) - Valkanov
Financial Institutions Seminar I

Summer 2010: June 7 - July 30, 2010 (8 weeks)

Derivatives: Economic Concepts (2 units) - TBA
Derivatives: Quantitative Methods (2 units) - Domingo Tavella
Fixed Income Markets (2 units) - Richard Stanton
Accounting and Taxation of Derivatives (1 unit) - Suneel Udpa
Financial Institutions Seminar II

Fall 2010: August 16, 2010 - October 8, 2010 (8 weeks)

Required Course:

Financial Risk Measurement and Management (2 units) - Yuqing (Jeff) Shen

Choose 5 units of electives:

Advanced Computational Finance (2 units) - Domingo Tavella
Success and Failure in Financial Innovation (1 unit) - John O'Brien
The Design of Securities for Corporate Financing (1 unit) - Mukesh Bajaj
Credit Risk Modeling (2 units) - Jeffrey Bohn
Equity & Currency Markets (2 units) - Michael Melvin and Ron Kahn
Independent Study (1 - 3 units) - Faculty

Internship Period 2010-2011:

October 12, 2010 - January 15, 2010 (11 weeks)

The Internship/Special Topics in Finance Project begins October 12, 2009 and ends on January 15, 2010. Students must enroll in MFE230N, the Internship/Special Topics in Finance course for the fall term.

Winter 2011: January 18 - March 11, 2011 (9 weeks)

Choose 7 units of coursework:

Asset-backed Security Markets (2 units) - Nancy Wallace and Dwight Jaffee
Dynamic Asset Management (2 units) - Hayne Leland
Behavioral Finance (2 units) - Terry Odean
Real Options (2 units)*
Applied Finance Project (Required) (1 - 3 units) - Eric Reiner

*The Real Options course is not offered each year.

The MFE program requires satisfactory completion of 28 units of coursework plus an internship or on-site project. In addition to coursework, the MFE educational experience includes the following:

Financial Practice Seminars: MFE students are encouraged to attend weekly discussions held by finance practitioners. In the first term speakers discuss jobs available to graduates of the MFE and the skills needed to contribute to a firm's mission. In the second term, speakers provide insights into the way the financial world is changing: new products and needs; evolving data and information systems; and similar topics.

Applied Finance Project: MFE students are required to complete an applied finance project that develops or uses quantitative finance tools and techniques learned in the program or internship.

Internship Program: The Internship/Special Topics in Finance project is a required condition for graduation. The internship or approved, on-site project takes place from mid-October to mid-January.