Finance and Economics (MEF)

MEF
Finance and Economics (MEF)
Course sheet
A.Y. 2024/2025
Master programme
LM-16 - FINANZA
Master programme
120
ECTS
Access
Open with entry requirements examination
2
Years
Course location
Milano
Language
English
Graduates of this master course will receive advanced training in quantitative methodologies and tools suitable to interpret and analyze economic and financial phenomena and will be able to operate directly on financial markets or in international economic institutions. The study program is designed to provide students with a solid background through the development of topics of economic theory, analysis of financial markets and the theory of decision making. It includes study of financial markets from both the point of view of international law, history and economics.

The first year courses, common to both curricula, also provide capabilities in statistics, mathematics and computational techniques for the analysis of financial data and economic time series, also involving the use of latest generation software for Statistical Analysis and Calculus.
The second year of the master program is organized in two curricula.
The first curriculum, named Quantitative Finance, is aimed at preparing financial specialists capable of operating in the areas of pricing of derivatives, portfolio management, risk management and control in the financial sector intended in a broad sense.
The second one, named Quantitative Economics, is dedicated to the training of professional economists capable of operating at national/international, public/private institutions (including the academia) or at the level of central government in both the financial and economic spheres.
The master course in Finance and Economics aims at forming the following professional profiles:

Profile: Consultant and financial adviser.
Functions: the professionals included in this category make suggestions for investment and give technical advice to managers on whom they depend functionally; assist the management of financial investments through the economic and financial analysis of market data; propose predictive models of economics, financial times series and provide guidance for the calibration of theoretical models using market data.
Skills: baggage of theoretical knowledge and operational tools aimed at evaluating financial Investments, as well as financial and credit risks.
Career opportunities: They operate in the office of financial management of banks, investment firms, investment funds, commercial and investment banks, financial intermediaries, for research and financial statement purposes. They also work as private consultants.

Profile: Operator and analyst of financial markets.
Functions: the figures included in this category act directly on behalf of their company in the financial markets or as brokerage agents, also assist the company in the interaction with the regulatory authorities in the markets thanks to a thorough knowledge of the rules that govern them.
Skills: baggage of theoretical knowledge and legal advise for the management of financial investments, the execution and management of contracts; ability to operate on traditional and digital markets.
Career opportunities: They operate in the office of financial management of banks, investment firms, investment funds, commercial and investment banks, financial intermediaries, for research and financial statement purposes.

Profile: Academic researcher, or researcher in research-departments within economic and financial institutions, both national and international.
Functions: the occupations included in this category exercise active research-functions of high responsibility in the fields of finance and economics within institutions and firms (both private and public, national and international).
Skills: baggage of theoretical knowledge in the economic-legal-financial fields aimed at doing active research (both theoretical and applied) in economic institutions and private companies, or else in banking and financial institutions operating in national and international contexts.
Career opportunities: They operate in universities, research-centers, research-departments of public/private firms, research departments of banks and similar institutions, or research-departments of international and governmental institutions.

Employment statistics (Almalaurea)
One of the most effective policies adopted by the European Union in the last few years has been the internationalization of higher education. The various Erasmus programs that have been implemented since the nineties have greatly increased the mobility of European students.
Being a programme with an internationally-oriented educational core strategy, MEF promotes a wide internationalization of its students, and therefore strongly encourages them to spend part of their studies abroad in Erasmus+ Programmes.
Erasmus+ provides opportunities to study, train, gain work experience and skills. Students can go abroad from 3 up to 12 months (including a complementary traineeship period, if planned), and may receive additional grants for studying or training. At the end of their foreign stay, students get full recognition of completed activities in terms of credits for their degree. Student mobility is carried out in the framework of prior "inter-institutional agreements" between the sending and receiving institutions.
Students can also join the traineeship programme (Placement), by going abroad from 2 up to 12 months, starting their traineeship from the first year of study. For a traineeship which is an integral part of the curriculum, the sending institution must give full academic recognition for the period spent abroad. For a traineeship that is not part of the curriculum of the student, the sending institution shall provide recognition at least by recording this period in the Diploma Supplement or, in the case of recent graduates, by providing a traineeship certificate. Traineeship may also be established with private and public companies, educational or research centers other than the hosting institution, especially in the field of finance.
MEF academic staff has strong relations with some important European universities, in particular in Germany, France, Poland and Belgium, but also outside the EU, and is actively involved in research and education networks, so that students' activity abroad (including the development of the final dissertation) can be successfully supervised. Moreover, as already said, students attending the Curriculum in Quantitative Economics can apply to the double-degree program with the "Master en sciences économiques, orientation générale, à finalité approfondie - ECON2MA - (120 ECTS)", a master-program jointly organized by the Belgian Universities of UCL (Université catholique de Louvain) and Namur.
No obligation, strongly recommended.
Enrolment
To attend the Master program in Economics and Finance it is necessary to demonstrate to possess strong knowledge of mathematics, economics and statistics at the undergraduate level.

Admission to the Master programme in Finance and Economics requires:

1. Curricular requirements

A) Students with an Italian degree (ex. DM 270/04 and DM 509/99) of the following classes:

L-18 Scienze dell'economia e della gestione aziendale
L-33 Scienze economiche
L-35 Scienze matematiche
L-41 Statistica

can apply.

B) Candidates can also enroll to the programme from undergraduate classes other than those listed above after positive evaluation of the Collegio Didattico or its delegates (an Admission Committee or the President of the Collegio Didattico) if they substantively satisfy the access requirements as shown below.

Candidates lacking one or more of the following minimum entry requirements will not be assessed by the Admission Committee:

a) at least 6 ECTS in the area of mathematics (MAT/01 - MAT/05; MAT/07 - MAT/09; SECS-S/06).
b) at least 6 ECTS in the statistical area (MAT/06; SECS-S/01 - SECS-S/05; SECS-P/05).
c) at least 12 ECTS in the economic area (SECS-P/01 - SECS-P/03; SECS-P/06).

The requirements must be met by the date of effective submission of the application for admission.

2. Proficiency in English

The C1-level requirement will be ascertained by the University Language Centre (SLAM) upon admission as follows:
- Language certificate of C1 or higher level issued no more than three years before the date of admission application. You will find the list of language certificates recognized by the University at: https://www.unimi.it/en/node/39322. The certificate must be uploaded when submitting the online application;
- English level achieved during a University of Milan degree programme and certified by the University Language Centre (SLAM) no more than four years before the date of admission application, including levels based on language certificates submitted by the applicant during their Bachelor?s degree at the University of Milan. In this case the process is automatic, the applicant does not have to attach any certificates to the application;
- Placement test administrated by the University Language Centre (SLAM) according to the calendar published on the website: https://www.unimi.it/en/node/39267/
All those who fail to submit a valid certificate or do not meet the required proficiency level will be instructed during the admission procedure to take the placement test.
Applicants who do not take or pass the placement test will be required to obtain a language proficiency certificate recognized by the University (see: https://www.unimi.it/en/node/39322) and deliver it to the SLAM via the InformaStudenti service by the deadline fixed for the master's programme (https://www.unimi.it/en/node/39267/).
Applicants who do not meet the requirement by said deadline will not be admitted to the master's degree programme and may not sit any further tests.

3. Personal competencies and skills: assessment criteria

Minimum curricular requirements are necessary yet not sufficient conditions for admission. Candidates will be also evaluated on the basis of personal competencies and skills by an Admission Board appointed by the Faculty Board (Collegio Didattico).
Assessment of personal competencies and skills will be ascertained in two subsequent stages. First, candidates will take a written online admission test, held in English language. Detailed description of the test content, dates and organization will be provided on the website of the master program ''Application'' section. Candidate who do not sit or reach the minimum level required by the Admission Board in the admission test will not be further evaluated and cannot sit further tests.

For candidates who reach the minimum level in the admission test and meet the compulsory curricular requirements, the Admission Board will further evaluate their personal competencies and skills based on academic merit and choice coherence. Academic merit relates to the quality of the previous degree as well as the average grade obtained in the bachelor program. Grades obtained in Bachelor mathematics, statistics and economics courses could also be evaluated to assess candidates' academic merit. Choice coherence relates to coherence between the academic and professional curriculum of the candidates and the learning objectives of the Finance and Economics degree programme.

To allow the Admission Board to assess academic merit and choice coherence, each applicant must submit at time of application:
- a detailed curriculum vitae (it refers to study and work experience and any relevant achievements);
- a detailed study plan of the bachelor program, with the list of exams taken and relative grade, as well as average grade obtained and final degree.

Failing to provide the compulsory documentation will result in the exclusion from the selection procedure.
The Admission Board reserves the possibility to request the applicant an oral interview for admission, held in English language and exclusively done via electronic devices (eg.: via skype or other platforms). The interview is aimed at further verifying the skills as mentioned above.
Applicants must obtain the bachelor degree by 31st December 2024.

Admission

Application for admission: from 22/01/2024 to 30/06/2024

Application for matriculation: from 08/04/2024 to 15/01/2025


Attachments and documents

Admission notice


Please note

Non-EU students visa applicants are required to apply for admission no later than 30 April 2024. Applications submitted after the deadline will not be evaluated and it will in no case be possible to request the refund of the admission fee.

Learn more:
Programme description and courses list
First trimester
Courses or activities ECTS Total hours Language SSD
Compulsory
Financial Investments: Module I, Portfolio Theory; Module Ii, Portfolio Management 12 80 English SECS-P/09 SECS-P/11
Mathematical Methods for Finance 9 60 English SECS-S/06
Statistical Methods for Finance 6 40 English SECS-S/01
Second trimester
Courses or activities ECTS Total hours Language SSD
Compulsory
Advanced Microeconomics and Macroeconomics 12 80 English SECS-P/01
Econometrics 6 40 English SECS-P/05
Third trimester
Courses or activities ECTS Total hours Language SSD
Compulsory
Data Mining and Computational Statistics 9 60 English SECS-S/01
International Economic Law 6 40 English IUS/13
be activated by the A.Y. 2025/2026
First trimester
Courses or activities ECTS Total hours Language SSD
Compulsory
Financial Economics 6 40 English SECS-P/01 SECS-P/02
Risk Management 6 40 English SECS-S/06
Optional
Financial Report Lab 3 20 English SECS-P/11
Second trimester
Courses or activities ECTS Total hours Language SSD
Compulsory
Financial Markets and Financial Crises: a Historical Approach 6 40 English SECS-P/12
Numerical Methods for Finance and Portfolio Optimization 12 80 English SECS-S/01 SECS-S/06
Conclusive activities
There are no specific sessions for these activities (e.g. open online courses).
Courses or activities ECTS Total hours Language SSD
Compulsory
Final Exam 18 0 English
First trimester
Courses or activities ECTS Total hours Language SSD
Optional
Laboratory of Bank Loan Pricing 3 20 English SECS-P/01 SECS-P/02
Second trimester
Courses or activities ECTS Total hours Language SSD
Optional
Laboratory Introduction to Coding and Data Management for Economics and Political Science 3 20 English INF/01
Third trimester
Courses or activities ECTS Total hours Language SSD
Optional
Advanced Laboratory in Financial Risk Management 3 20 English SECS-P/05
Laboratory Public Policy in Government 3 20 English SECS-P/01
Open sessions
There are no specific sessions for these activities (e.g. open online courses).
Courses or activities ECTS Total hours Language SSD
Optional
Additional Language Skills: Italian (3 ECTS) 3 0 Italian
Optional activities and study plan rules
1 - Students must earn 9 credits for elective activities.
Foreign students with insufficient knowledge of the Italian language can obtain 3 ECTS for "Additional Language Skills: Italian" (please check: https://mef.cdl.unimi.it/en/courses/italian-language-foreigners-tests-and-courses)
Courses or activities ECTS Total hours Language Lesson period SSD
Additional Language Skills: Italian (3 ECTS) 3 0 Italian Open sessions
3 - Students must earn 3 credits by selecting an Internship/Stage (please check: https://mef.cdl.unimi.it/en/study/stage-and-internship)
First trimester
Courses or activities ECTS Total hours Language SSD
Compulsory
Financial Investments: Module I, Portfolio Theory; Module Ii, Portfolio Management 12 80 English SECS-P/09 SECS-P/11
Mathematical Methods for Finance 9 60 English SECS-S/06
Statistical Methods for Finance 6 40 English SECS-S/01
Second trimester
Courses or activities ECTS Total hours Language SSD
Compulsory
Advanced Microeconomics and Macroeconomics 12 80 English SECS-P/01
Econometrics 6 40 English SECS-P/05
Third trimester
Courses or activities ECTS Total hours Language SSD
Compulsory
Data Mining and Computational Statistics 9 60 English SECS-S/01
International Economic Law 6 40 English IUS/13
be activated by the A.Y. 2025/2026
First trimester
Courses or activities ECTS Total hours Language SSD
Compulsory
Financial Economics 6 40 English SECS-P/01 SECS-P/02
Optional
Financial Report Lab 3 20 English SECS-P/11
Second trimester
Courses or activities ECTS Total hours Language SSD
Compulsory
Financial Markets and Financial Crises: a Historical Approach 6 40 English SECS-P/12
Open sessions
There are no specific sessions for these activities (e.g. open online courses).
Courses or activities ECTS Total hours Language SSD
Compulsory
Macro and econometrics for finance 12 80 English SECS-P/01 SECS-P/05
Not specified period
Courses or activities ECTS Total hours Language SSD
Compulsory
Corporate Finance and Valuation 6 40 English SECS-P/11
Conclusive activities
There are no specific sessions for these activities (e.g. open online courses).
Courses or activities ECTS Total hours Language SSD
Compulsory
Final Exam 18 0 English
First trimester
Courses or activities ECTS Total hours Language SSD
Optional
Laboratory of Bank Loan Pricing 3 20 English SECS-P/01 SECS-P/02
Second trimester
Courses or activities ECTS Total hours Language SSD
Optional
Laboratory Introduction to Coding and Data Management for Economics and Political Science 3 20 English INF/01
Third trimester
Courses or activities ECTS Total hours Language SSD
Optional
Advanced Laboratory in Financial Risk Management 3 20 English SECS-P/05
Laboratory Public Policy in Government 3 20 English SECS-P/01
Open sessions
There are no specific sessions for these activities (e.g. open online courses).
Courses or activities ECTS Total hours Language SSD
Optional
Additional Language Skills: Italian (3 ECTS) 3 0 Italian
Optional activities and study plan rules
1 - Students must earn 9 credits for elective activities.
Foreign students with insufficient knowledge of the Italian language can obtain 3 ECTS for "Additional Language Skills: Italian" (please check: https://mef.cdl.unimi.it/en/courses/italian-language-foreigners-tests-and-courses)
Courses or activities ECTS Total hours Language Lesson period SSD
Additional Language Skills: Italian (3 ECTS) 3 0 Italian Open sessions
3 - Students must earn 3 credits by selecting an Internship/Stage (please check: https://mef.cdl.unimi.it/en/study/stage-and-internship)
Learn more
Location
Milano
Head of study programme
Academic guidance tutor
Erasmus and international mobility tutor 
Study plan tutor
Internship tutor
Quality Assurance Delegate
Contacts

The tuition fees for students enrolled in Bachelor's, Master's and single-cycle degree programmes are divided into two instalments with different calculation methods and payment schedules:

  • The amount of the first instalment is the same for all students
  • The amount of the second instalment varies according to the ISEE University value, the degree programme and the student status (on track / off track for one year or off track for more than a year) 
  • An additional fee is due for online programmes

The University also offers:

  • Concessions for students meeting high merit requirements
  • Diversified tuition fees according to the student's home country for international students with assets/income abroad
  • Concessions for international students with refugee status

Scholarships and benefits

The University provides a range of financial benefits to students meeting special requirements (merit, financial or personal conditions, international students).

Learn more