Banking and Finance

Banking and finance examines the institutions, markets, and instruments through which money is allocated, invested, and managed. It encompasses the theory and practice of how banks operate, how capital markets function, how financial risk is assessed and managed, and how the global financial system has evolved and sometimes failed. The discipline draws on economics, mathematics, and accounting to develop both the theoretical understanding and the quantitative skills that financial careers require.

At the University of Essex, you will study banking and finance over three years full-time, exploring how banks and financial markets have become increasingly globalised over the past two decades through deregulation and technological change. You will study corporate finance, investment theory, financial markets, banking regulation, derivatives, and the analytical methods used to understand financial data and behaviour. Essex's economics and finance departments have a strong research reputation, and the programme benefits from that intellectual environment.

The typical entry tariff is 104 UCAS points.

Graduates work in banking, financial analysis, investment management, risk management, financial regulation, insurance, and the growing fintech sector. Many also work in corporate treasury, financial consulting, and public sector finance roles. The analytical and quantitative skills the degree develops are valued across a wide range of organisations wherever financial decisions are being made with rigour.

Many graduates also continue to professional qualifications such as the CFA or to postgraduate study in finance, financial economics, or banking, building the specialist expertise needed for more senior or technical financial roles.