Capstone projects for Master’s of financial engineering help students synthesize and demonstrate their deep competency of:
- core topics
- skills
- models
- practices
These final projects may be related to a business class, such as:
- economics
- econometrics
- risk management
They may also be related to:
- financial tools
- analysis
- markets
- trading
- technology
- modeling
Here are five common projects for graduate financial engineering students.
Economics
Some students may choose to study the economic foundations of finance. They may research the theoretical roots of the fundamental economic concepts that drive the modern business world. Economic research topics may include:
- utility theory
- consumer behavior
- cost analysis
- production valuations
- competitive markets
For example, they may analyze how online competitive markets react to online consumer behaviors. Students may write a paper on the subtle similarities between monopolistic and monopsonistic labor markets. Economic projects may be related to:
- market efficiency factors
- the time value of money
- game theoretic analysis
- calculus-based economic models
Risk and Financial Management
These projects may be related to the elements and techniques of risk engineering. This could include:
- data analysis
- risk models
- probability distributions
Students may present a paper on how these techniques are demonstrated through real world cases and problems. For example, a student may identify and analyze the pros and cons of financial management tools and concepts for resolving risk factors. This means that the student will delve into:
- risk engineering
- decision making uncertainty
- financial pricing management
Students may choose to complete a project using computational risk or statistical software in financial laboratory environments.
Related Resource: 25 Great Master of Financial Engineering Programs
Risk Assessment Pricing
A risk assessment pricing project may cover the techniques used to understand and resolve asset pricing and financial risk management problems. Students may focus on:
- risk finance
- attitudes
- values and measurements
They may also explore the most preferred risk measurement principles employed by business leaders while making decisions during uncertain situations. Students may complete an internship at a local investment firm in order to understand how a business establishes:
- valuation relevance
- expected utility
- insurance risks
- pricing models of financial investments
Students may choose to complete a project on the fundamental applications of Binomial models in option pricing or Arrow-Debreu risk pricing frameworks.
Finance Tools and Instruments
Some students may choose to research specific financial tools or instruments. For example, a student may choose to analyze what tools a modern corporation uses when issuing end-user financial securities and financial risk management products. This may involve an in-depth analysis of investor financial markets and the associated economic counterparts and financial intermediaries. Another student may choose to analyze the mechanisms of specific financial markets and the valuation instruments used for investment trading and financial economics. One possible project may involve corporate financial decision-making tools for things like:
- dividend policies
- long-term financing
- capital budgeting
- international risk
- mergers and acquisitions
Financial Technology
Financial firms spend billions of dollars researching and implementing the latest information technology developments every year. These projects may introduce readers to the frameworks needed to understand and leverage the power of new IT solutions. A student’s project may cover specific technology components like:
- groupware
- telecommunications
- document imaging
- artificial intelligence
- object-oriented design
Another project may focus on the complete technological planning process utilized by most financial institutions. These processes usually involve derivative, futures, forward, option and swap contracts.
Other projects may involve:
- electronic market design
- operational metrics
- financial optimization
- financial transactions
Capstone projects for Master’s of financial engineering allow graduating students to demonstrate their mastery of:
- key concepts
- important skills
- advanced knowledge.
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