The
interdisciplinary nature of the program is present in the program's
curriculum, participating faculty, administrative structure, classroom and
laboratory resources, and student population. The academic units of the
Institute that are integrally connected to the program are the DuPree
College of Management, the School of Mathematics and the
School of Industrial and Systems Engineering.
Detailed planning and documentation for setting up and
implementing the program was carried out over a three-year
period by faculty of the three participating academic units,
with the assistance of Sloan Foundation funds and the input of
individuals from various parts of the financial sector.
This planning lead to a program that is highly focused,
with ten new courses in its curriculum, and yet a program that
offers students the flexibility for different emphases and specializations.
In
the program's opening class of Fall 2000 there are
18 officially participating students. This is a highly diverse
group of students with a very high level of mathematical talent
and with the desire to work on interesting problems in the financial
sector. It is planned that the program will have a cap of 20 new
students per year.
The
MS QCF Program is a dynamic new type of Master's degree that is shaped by many
factors that include the university's resources and traditions, the financial
community, and the growing array of foundational concepts and techniques in
quantitative and computational finance.
Important Features of the MS QCF Program include the following.
- Courses Structured for Learning Within the Area of Quantitative and
Computational Finance, with ten new focused courses
- Highly Interdisciplinary Program, using expertise and resources from
appropriate academic units across campus
- Inclusion of Fundamentals, with the Opportunity for Specialization, many
different variations, built upon a common strong foundation
- Combination of Laboratory Experimentation with Model Development in Coursework
- Top-Ranked Faculty from Three Academic Units of Study
- Advantages of a Great Location
The MS QCF program is a 36 semester hour degree program that can be completed in
an 18 month timeframe of Fall, Spring and Fall semesters. To complete the
program, the student takes six required core courses and takes six electives
from different categories.
There
is no financial assistance from within the program itself
at this time. However, there is the possibility of financial support
for some of the students officially participating in the program
from the academic units associated with the program.
