The elite MSc. (cand.oecon.) degree in Advanced Economics and Finance consists of a structured first year with eight advanced courses in economics and finance; a third semester of electives that may be taken abroad, and a fourth semester that completes the programme through a master’s thesis or a combination of a business project and a shorter master thesis.

1st semester
During the first semester the courses taught are Contract, Agency and Game Theory; Asset Pricing; Corporate Finance; and Microeconometrics. All courses are 7.5 ECTS.

2nd semester
The second semester courses are Advanced Industrial Organization; Derivatives and Risk Management; Corporate Governance; and The Global Firm. All courses are 7.5 ECTS.

3rd semester - Electives
On the third semester, it is required that the students follow optional courses at CBS or good partner universities abroad.

During the third semester it is expected that the students take the equivalent of four 7.5 ECTS electives. All of the electives must fall within the programme’s area of quantitative economics or finance. Two of these electives must represent progression compared to the courses at the first structured year.

The team behind the programme will offer electives that feature an academic progression compared to the courses in the first year. Examples of optional progression courses that we will offer are “Energy Markets” and “Mergers and Acquisitions”.

4th semester – Master’s Thesis
The fourth semester completes the programme. The student may choose either to write a (traditional) master’s thesis or to write a business project and a (shorter) master’s thesis.

The (traditional) master’s thesis serves as a test of the student’s ability to engage in in-depth study and independently describe, analyse and process a complex issue within economics and finance at the master’s level. A traditional master’s thesis is supervised and the expected length is 80 pages.

The Business Project is a consultancy report supervised both by a corporate adviser and a faculty member and it aims to solve a concrete problem for a given company. The consultancy aspect will be part of the evaluation, including issues like relevance of the problem for the company, choice of methods, the ability to apply relevant economics and finance, and the actual solution proposed. The expected length is maximum 30 pages. The (shorter) master’s thesis should take the form of an academic, scientific article. The article should deal with a problem in a novel way and make a contribution to the literature of economics and finance. The shorter master’s thesis is supervised by a faculty member and the expected length is a maximum 25 pages.

The topic of the master’s thesis and/or the business project must fall within the academic profile of the MSc in Advanced Economics and Finance.