As financial markets become more electronic and more liquid, a higher degree of knowledge about systems and analytics is required in order to compete. Modern financial markets function as a network of systems and information flows. Understanding how these work is becoming increasingly important for careers in virtually all areas of finance including investment banking, sales and trading, asset management, and administration.  This specialization covers areas useful for careers in trading, hedge funds, risk management, information technology, and operations.

Courses in this specialization are of two types:

• Breadth courses describe how various financial markets work and the kinds of systems, processes, and people required for managing financial businesses.
• Depth courses provide tools and decision making skills geared towards trading, risk management, or the management of information technology and operations in a financial services company. Specifically, they provide skills that include building investment strategies, analyzing them, understanding how to compare different types of strategies or portfolio managers, how to calculate risk and know when to use various risk models, and how to use computers to exploit opportunities in financial markets.

The purpose of a specialization in financial systems and analytics is primarily to give students the ability to function effectively in the financial services industry by providing skills they need on the job from day one. Second, and more broadly, the purpose is to complement specializations in Finance by providing an understanding of how financial markets are continually disintermediated by information technologies, and the consequences of this phenomenon.

The specialization should be particularly useful to those seeking careers in any industry where information technologies and data play a key role in managing risk. Examples include trading, risk management, sales, analysts, management of information technology and operations, payment systems, etc. The specialization should also be useful to those interested in careers in the hedge fund industry and in consulting.

Academic Advisor: Yannis Bakos, bakos@stern.nyu.edu
 

Course List

Take 9 credits from the following list: 
 

* Not eligible to count towards this specialization if this course was taken as part of your core requirements (Full-Time two-year MBA students only).

For course descriptions, please see the Office of Records & Registration website.