GRA 6557 Internship for MSc in Quantitative Finance +1 model
GRA 6557 Internship for MSc in Quantitative Finance +1 model
This course, Internship for MSc in Quantitative Finance (18 ECTS), is part of the +1 Model for Msc in Quantitative Finance.
The internship is an opportunity to work at a company during your studies, gain professional experience, and develop further and apply the knowledge, methods and skills acquired during the programme, related to a specific topic. This is particularly important for a programme like quantitative finance, an area in which companies have developed state-of-the-art technology and analytical tools for many relevant finance problems. The internship will give you valuable insights into real-world challenges and should help you in applying your academic background toward increasing organizational effectiveness and growth.
At the end of the internship, the student should know the specific challenges faced by companies in using quantitative finance tools and methods to create value, both for the company and for its relevant stakeholders.
The overall goal of the internship is to increase the employability of the students, through gaining relevant experience and learning how to apply knowledge and methods acquired in the programme. More specifically, at the end of the internship, the student should have acquired an understanding of:
- relevant methods and knowledge in relation to the internship tasks and projects
- the practical issues and dilemmas faced by companies or departments operating in the quantitative finance industry
- the data value chain and how it can be used to develop a competitive advantage
- the implications of using data and models in decision-making for the company’s data infrastructure and organizational culture and structure, and
- the time and efficiency constraints imposed by competition
The student at the end of the internship is expected to acquire skills in relation to:
- employing knowledge and applying methods that are relevant to the internship tasks and projects
- career management and job seeking
- defining and executing tasks under conditions of uncertainty, change and time pressure
- supporting suggestions for practical solutions with sound argumentation and grounded in superior analytics and modelling
- applying theoretical and technical knowledge to specific tasks and problems, and
- collaborating and working in teams
The student should reflect on the complexity of the work environment, the market forces that drive businesses, and how companies create value based on analytics in view of new opportunities, innovation, and growth. Further, the student should understand the applicability of relevant theories, models, and methods in relation to the internship tasks and projects.
Students will work in groups from 1-2 either 100% for 12 weeks or 80% for 15 weeks (450-500 hours) in a selected company and the quantitative finance-related tasks are assigned by the company.
The internship position should:
- provide the students with real-world challenges in the area of quantitative finance and help them to put academic learning into practice and perspective
- expose the students to practices and problems in quantitative finance as well as how decisions are made
- give the students the opportunity for hands-on application of theoretical and technical knowledge to specific tasks and problems.
- give room for independent work, with supervision/mentoring available from the company
- give the students the opportunity to work on a couple of bigger projects, ideally one big project, rather than on a series of smaller tasks/projects.
The internship should be approved prior to the student registering for the course.
The company should be in business for at least 3 years, have 5 or more employees, and a turnover of NOK 5 million or more. Students must attend work as agreed upon with the company they are assigned to. Students are obliged to attend a compulsory CV/application/interview workshop before finding their internship. Each student is entitled to a maximum of 3 hours of supervision. Part of the supervision is a mandatory follow-up meeting with the academic supervisor (and other internship students) half-way through the semester.
As part of this course, it is compulsory to participate in an employability course.
The internship may be paid or unpaid.
Software tools: The required computer-based tools depend on the type of position the student will be working in. These requirements will be communicated by the employer in the position announcements.
Both parts of the examination must be passed in order to receive a final grade in the course.
All courses in the Masters programme will assume that students have fulfilled the admission requirements for the programme. In addition, courses in second, third and/or fourth semester can have spesific prerequisites and will assume that students have followed normal study progression. For double degree and exchange students, please note that equivalent courses are accepted.
Covid-19
Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, there may be deviations in teaching and learning activities as well as exams, compared with what is described in this course description.
Teaching
Information about what is taught on campus and other digital forms will be presented with the lecture plan before the start of the course each semester.
| Assessments |
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Exam category: Submission Form of assessment: Written submission Weight: 50 Grouping: Individual Duration: 2 Week(s) Exam code: GRA65571 Grading scale: Pass/fail Resit: Examination next semester, thereafter when next scheduled course |
Exam category: Activity Form of assessment: Oral examination Weight: 50 Grouping: Individual Duration: 45 Minute(s) Comment: Oral examination Exam code: GRA65572 Grading scale: Pass/fail Resit: Examination next semester, thereafter when next scheduled course |
All exams must be passed to get a grade in this course.
A course of 1 ECTS credit corresponds to a workload of 26-30 hours. Therefore acourse of 18 ECTS credit corresponds to a workload of at least 480 hours.
Students submit a company evaluation together with their paper.