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Why study a fintech degree?
By Laura Lightfinch
Updated July 18, 2023 Updated July 18, 2023The financial technology industry is a rapidly expanding field that shows no signs of slowing down in its pursuit to revolutionise financial services around the world. While a financial technology (fintech) degree isn’t the only route into the industry, it can be a great way to learn specialist knowledge and skills that help you to stand out from the crowd when entering the field.
We spoke to three top ranked universities – the University of Sussex, POLIMI Graduate School of Management and Imperial College London – to find out why a fintech degree could help you take advantage of the numerous career opportunities in the field.
Why study a dedicated fintech degree?
Fintech is at the forefront of innovation and disruption in the financial sector as traditional financial institutions are adopting new technologies to improve efficiency, enhance customer experiences, and create new financial products and services.
By studying a dedicated degree in financial technology, you can gain insights into the latest technological advancements, how they are reshaping the financial industry and learn to adapt to the everchanging landscape of technology in finance.
Dr Lara Cathcart, academic director for the MSc Financial Technology at Imperial College London, said: “An increase in employers demanding digital and computing skills has led to a rising number of students who want to study a finance degree with a technology focus. The MSc Financial Technology programme at Imperial College offers technology-related subjects alongside more traditional finance topics.
“Our dedication to a specific Financial Technology programme provides our graduates with the in-demand quantitative and analytical skills necessary to embark on a successful and exciting career in fintech or in the financial services sector. We believe it’s essential that students learn how technological innovation is changing and shaping the future of businesses.”
Dr Panagiotis Tzouvanas, course director of the MSc Fintech, Risk and Investment Analysis (FRIA) at University of Sussex Business School, added: “FinTech has grown rapidly over the past few years, signifying the need for an increased understanding of financial risk among investment management professionals.
“At the same time, investment management is a huge market and financial crises have shown that a thorough understanding of financial risk is essential for this profession. The trend for increased employment in risk management is set to continue as recent changes in banking regulations and artificial intelligence put increased focus on improving risk management standards. Ultimately, the emergence of financial technology has transformed the traditional finance industry.”
A promising and appealing route for graduates
As new technologies emerge, they provide new opportunities in the finance industry. “The internet of things provides the possibility to build new integrated products, machine learning helps us to manage big data, and blockchain technologies allow us to develop decentralised finance solutions.” That’s according to Professor Emilio Barucci, director of the International Master in Fintech, Finance and Digital Innovation at POLIMI Graduate School of Management.
Dr Tzouvanas added: “As the sector evolves and new graduates become more in demand, those with a degree in fintech will be the first to hold a qualification in the specific knowledge and skills needed.
“They’ll gain a competitive advantage to progress into top positions. Plus, for those who constantly want to expand their knowledge, the fintech industry evolves so rapidly that it needs graduates who are ready for new challenges. In today’s competitive job market, specialised skills like those learned within a fintech degree are key to a successful career.”
For Dr Cathcart, it’s that flexibility and openness to trying new things that creates a “highly rewarding working atmosphere for those looking for a highly varied role. The innovative nature of fintech provides a huge opportunity for graduates to enjoy lifelong learning and challenge the norms and disrupt the traditional set up of the finance industry."
What valuable skills can a fintech degree provide?
At the University of Sussex Business School, the MSc Fintech, Risk and Investment Analysis offers hard skills including programming, analysing big data, understanding machine learning techniques and comprehending financial instruments like cryptocurrencies and financial derivatives. That’s alongside softer skills like critical thinking.
Dr Tzouvanas said: “As fintech is a complex field, students should be able to think critically and provide innovative solutions.”
Dr Lara Cathcart said of the MSc Financial Technology at Imperial College London, “We provide graduates with a huge breadth of skills that are highly sought after by leading employers. The immersive learning syllabus means that students learn how to code in Python and use software such as Bloomberg.
“Hands on experience with data analysis in the classroom is crucial to draw insightful conclusions from raw data, to forecast present and future trends.
“Technical skills are important for every fintech profession, but graduates must also have good communication skills to collaborate, and flexibility to navigate and solve un-precedented obstacles. A degree in Financial Technology provides students with a practical application of these skills, through group projects and class-room activities.”
The main thing, according to Professor Barucci, is that "students should be able to understand the main drivers of the technological revolution in finance. They should be able to manage the revolution both from a methodological and technological point of view, as well as commercially.”
Where are the most promising career opportunities in the industry?
Career opportunities in fintech continue to evolve. It’s likely new careers will emerge in the coming years that don’t exist now and it’s a field that’s well-suited to entrepreneurial ventures.
“Graduates who can read a balance sheet and understand how financial market work and at the same time can code and are quite technical are very much in demand by employers,” said Dr Cathcart.
When undertaking a job search on LinkedIn using ‘fintech’ as a key word, Dr Tzouvanas found over 25,000 roles in the UK alone. “New graduates can search for roles such as junior investment analysts, junior fintech associates, fraud analysts, junior business analysts, fintech consultants and fintech data scientists.
“More senior professionals can be recruited to top management positions such as AI investment director, financial director, head of finance, senior modelling analysts, senior fintech analysis, fintech manager, or a CFO in fintech firms.”
This article was originally published in July 2023 .
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As the former Senior Content Editor for TopUniversities.com and TopMBA.com, Laura published articles for our student audience around the world, working with ambassadors and alumni to provide helpful content to those looking for study options. Laura has six years' experience in Higher Education marketing and writing for a student audience.
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