BSc (Hons) Finance (Industry)

Finance is a challenging, exciting arena vital to the world economy. Do you aspire to be a future leader? A global influencer? Hungry for a career in investment and finance? This degree offers the perfect balance of academic theory and practical experience.There’s ample opportunity to tailor your studies. We begin with the bedrock of finance theory and methodology. You’ll then study programming for financial applications, portfolio management, international financial markets, and advanced corporate finance.Your first year includes Accounting and Finance, Quantitative Methods for Finance and Investment plus Principles of Economic B. Second year students learn about Corporate Finance, Financial Engineering, Econometrics and Programing for Finance Applications.A year spent on placement allows you to gain valuable practical experience, with previous students joining companies such as Airbus, GE Aviation, Samsung and The Walt Disney Company. When you return to Lancaster, you choose all your final year modules, from Investments to Corporate Finance. There is no dissertation.You can get a taste of real-time investing through our student investment fund and trading floor simulation system, complete with Bloomberg terminals. You’ll use a computerised investing strategy for competitive advantage, discovering more about automated trading and algorithms. You’ll also study Python, the programming language which is a key component of finance technology. The Department of Accounting and Finance will support you in finding internship opportunities in leading investment banks, asset management and insurance companies.You will be led by academics at the frontier of financial research. Our professors are working on major European projects including investigating how to apply artificial intelligence to banking. Our researchers are also working on the art, precision and effectiveness of factor investing and hedge fund strategies. The Department has developed strong links with the Bank of England, top asset management companies, financial regulators and economists across the world.Our graduates leave as independent thinkers, problem solvers and skilled communicators. Their ability to analyse information quickly and precisely, respond to challenges, and work with others make them highly attractive to employers.The University will use all reasonable effort to support you to find a suitable placement for your studies. While a placement role may not be available in a field or organisation that is directly related to your academic studies or career aspirations, all placement roles offer valuable experience of working at a graduate level and gaining a range of professional skills.If you are unsuccessful in securing a suitable placement for your third year, you will be able to transfer to the equivalent non-placement degree scheme and would continue with your studies at Lancaster, finishing your degree after your third year. The University offers a range of shorter placement and internship opportunities for which you would be welcome to apply.CareersAll our Accounting and Finance degrees prepare you for a wide variety of careers in business, with many of our graduates working with professional firms and financial institutions, as well as large commercial and local government organisations. Roles include trainee accountants, finance managers and banking advisors.Your degree will also equip you with highly desirable transferable skills which have helped recent graduates find work in the fields of financial customer service, IT support and marketing and communications. Several graduates have also continued their academic studies and embarked on Masters degrees.