Master's Programme in Mathematics – Financial Mathematics

The programme combines courses from the mathematical background of finance with courses on computational finance and modern aspects of machine learning and data science with economical theory.

In the first semester, you start by taking a course on probability theory and martingales together with an economics course on financial theory. Afterwards, you take a specialised course on financial derivatives in parallel to a course on statistical machine learning. In the second and third semesters, you have the freedom to choose courses within the programme, but also take some courses from other areas of science and technology.

Possible courses within the programme cover the mathematical and computational aspects of partial differential equations and their applications to finance, time series and Monte Carlo methods and courses on macro- and microeconomic theory, and an introduction to data science. The final semester of the programme consists of a degree project, in which you write an independent thesis on a topic within financial mathematics. The topic is chosen by you together with an advisor.

Courses within the programme

See the programme outline for courses within the programme.

Instruction is conducted mainly in the form of lectures, tutorials and seminars, and the language is English. The programme takes place in Uppsala.

The tutors belong to the various research groups at the Department of Mathematics. These groups are very active and hold regular seminars that Master's students are welcome to attend.

Faculty and research

The mathematical research in Uppsala has traditionally been dominated by analysis. You may have heard of Lennart Carleson who was awarded the Abel Prize or Arne Beurling who cracked the coding machine Geheimfernschreiber during World War II. They were both very prominent in harmonic analysis. Another strong area of research in Uppsala at the time was differential geometry.

During the 1990s internationalisation took place and our research has grown since, both in terms of the number of researchers and research areas. Financial mathematics came to Uppsala right after the internationalisation process began, and today we have both education and research in financial mathematics.

If you want to pursue a career in finance, this specialisation is the right way to go. Many of our alumni work as different types of analysts, mainly in the banking sector. Another title that is becoming more common among our former students is data scientist.

Although most graduates in financial mathematics work outside academia, several of our alumni have continued to PhD studies, both in Sweden and abroad.

Our alumni work at companies such as Combient, Swedbank, Qliro, Max Matthiessen, Zettle (PayPal), Nordea and many more.

Career support

The Department of Mathematics arranges a career day for mathematicians once a year. There, math students meet professional mathematicians who tell about their career paths. The department is also helpful with other types of contacts with professional life. Learn more about career support for mathematics students.

During your time as a student, UU Careers offers support and guidance. You have the opportunity to take part in a variety of activities and events that will prepare you for your future career. Learn more about UU Careers.