Master of Science - Quantitative Finance

Plan Description

The UNLV Lee Business School Master of Science in Quantitative Finance (MSQF) will be a 10-course (30-credit) program that may be finished in 12 months in Subplan 1.

The program will provide advanced education and training on core finance knowledge and skills at the graduate level, with special emphasis on quantitative methods in finance and new financial technologies. These quantitative methods include mathematical finance theories as well as statistical and computer-program-based techniques to manage and analyze large financial data sets. Examples of finance theories are those related to capital structure, capital budgeting, valuation, stocks, bonds, derivatives, and portfolio management. Examples of empirical quantitative methods are programming and modeling skills using SAS, Stata, Excel, Python etc. to manage and analyze large databases of financial and investment information.

Students will be able to choose from a menu of electives to prepare themselves for careers in corporate finance, investment management, and the application of technology to financial applications.

The purpose of the program is to prepare successful finance professionals who are capable of utilizing the latest technologies to perform sophisticated financial analysis and management.

For more information about your program, including your graduate program handbook and learning outcomes, please visit the Degrees Directory.

Plan Admission Requirements

Application deadlines

Applications available on the UNLV Graduate College website.

Students must:

1. Meet the general requirements for admission to graduate instruction at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, as described by the Graduate College.
2. Complete the prerequisite (or equivalent) courses listed below with at least a B grade (3.0 on 4.0 scale):
   • Principles of Finance (FIN 301/MBA 765)
   • Financial Accounting (ACC 201/MBA 761)
   • Microeconomics (ECON 102/ECON 302/MBA 769)
   • Statistics (ECON 261)
   • Calculus (ECON 440/640, or MATH 181).
3. Students who have not met the prerequisite requirements may be granted conditional admission at the discretion of the department.
4. Conform to regulations outlined by the Graduate College of UNLV regarding certifications of English proficiency. 
5. Satisfactory GMAT or GRE scores. Preference is given to applicants with GMAT scores above 550 (or the GRE equivalent).
6. Complete the Graduate College application online and submit a nonrefundable admission application fee.

Accelerated BS-MS Subplan Admission Requirements:
The Accelerated BS-MS degree program is designed to provide high-achieving UNLV Finance undergraduate students with the opportunity to be exposed to graduate courses.

Up to six credits of approved graduate-level coursework, with the grade of B or better, can be taken as 400-level electives in their senior year and those credits can be counted toward the graduate degree.  

Students must meet all of the following criteria to be eligible for the Accelerated Program subplan:

• Completion of FIN 303 and FIN 307 with a minimum grade of B for both courses.
• Submission of a completed UNLV Graduate College Approval for an Undergraduate to Enroll in a Graduate-Level Course form to the Graduate College, no less than two weeks before the beginning of the semester for which they would like to register for graduate courses.
• The MSQF program director’s approval.

Once a student has been admitted into the Accelerated Subplan, they must then submit an application for an MSQF. The student has to follow the normal application procedures found on the UNLV Graduate College website.

• Students must meet all departmental and Graduate College application deadlines.
• Students should indicate in their application materials that they are participating in the Accelerated Subplan.
• Students must choose the Accelerated Subplan.
• All domestic and international applicants must review and follow the Graduate College Admission and Registration Requirements.

The faculty and corresponding sub-disciplines and sub-plans within the described programs are subject to change at any time.

For information on Conditional Admission, please refer to the Graduate Student Handbook  

All domestic and international applicants must review and follow the Graduate College Admission and Registration Requirements. 

Students are accepted into a degree program as described in the Graduate Catalog. The faculty and corresponding sub-disciplines and sub-plans within the described programs are subject to change at any time.

Plan Requirements

See Subplan Requirements below:

Subplan 1: Post-Bachelor’s

Subplan 2: Accelerated BS-MS

Degree Requirements

• A maximum of 6 credits may be transferred into the program if taken recently from an accredited university. Students must complete the Transfer Credit Request form and be approved by the MSQF Director after the student is officially admitted. Transfers must comply with all Graduate College transfer credit requirements.
• The capstone project will be a group project of 4-5 students working on a company project or research project identified by faculty or the students.
• All proposed capstone projects will require approval from the program director to ensure that the learning objectives will be met. Groups will meet with the program director on a regular basis to report on the progress of the project and obtain timely feedback.
• An oral presentation and written report of the project are required.
• Individual grades will be determined primarily by the group grade. However, group peer evaluations will be conducted to assess individual contributions. In the event of a student not passing the course due to unsatisfactory contribution towards the group work, to satisfy the culminating experience, the student will work on an individual project supervised by the program director.
• For assessment purposes, a panel of 3-4 Finance faculty members will evaluate the written report and oral presentation of each project using the rubric provided in the assessment plan. 

Plan Graduation Requirements

A minimum of 30 credits of program course work (excluding prerequisites) is required with an overall GPA of at least 3.00 for the course work that is part of the M.S. Quantitative Finance program.

Students may apply for graduation up to two semesters prior to completing their degree requirements. All required forms must be submitted to the graduate college via the Grad Rebel Gateway.