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Financial Mathematics MMath

Course code

GN1H

GN1J with placement

Start date

September

Placement available

Mode of study

4 years full-time

5 years full-time with placement

Fees

2024/25

UK £9,250

International £21,260

Entry requirements

2024/25

ABB - ABC (A-level)

DDM and A-level in Maths or Further Maths at grade A. (BTEC)

30 (IB)

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Overview

Ranked no.4 in London for student satisfaction in mathematics by The Complete University Guide 2024.

Mathematics is a fundamental subject that is critical to our understanding of the world. Through the study of mathematics you’ll advance your problem solving skills, develop your reasoning and increase your analytical thinking. This is why mathematics forms a basis to so many careers. Yes – it is a discipline in its own right, but it is also the thinking behind countless commercial, industrial and technological activities. Mathematical models underpin engineering, the applied sciences, computing and many aspects of management today.

With the Financial Mathematics MMath you’ll study for a further year and bring your BSc degree to master’s standard. This means you’ll be able to get that competitive edge when you apply for jobs without having to go through the application process again after Level 3.

Two-thirds of your course is shared with the MMath in Mathematics. This covers several application areas – finance, statistics, operational research (i.e. how maths can be applied to commercial and industrial problems) and numerical analysis. The remaining third covers the key principles of finance.

Follow the five-year ‘Professional Placement’ degree programme and you‘ll benefit from our extensive experience in helping students to find well-paid work placements with blue-chip companies. Our sandwich students find that their mathematical and transferable skills are in demand in many sectors, both in the UK and abroad.

Areas recently offering placements include: accountancy, aviation, banking, defence, finance, insurance, IT (software development, network management and design), management (public and private sector), marketing and telecommunications.

This programme will meet the educational requirements of the Chartered Mathematician designation, awarded by the Institute of Mathematics and its Applications, when it is followed by subsequent training and experience in employment to obtain equivalent competences to those specified by the Quality Assurance Agency (QAA) for taught master's degrees. 

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Course content

Two-thirds of this course is shared with the MMath in Mathematics. This covers several application areas – finance, statistics, operational research (i.e. how maths can be applied to commercial and industrial problems) and numerical analysis. The remaining third covers the key principles of finance. MMath students study a year further than BSc students, bringing their degree up to master’s level.

In Level 2 you’ll be learning through lectures, seminars and in computer labs, and an individual piece of course-work will account for one third of Level 3. You’ll be able to select from a large number of projects covering a wide range of mathematical areas and applications. Your project will be supervised by a staff member. You’ll emphasise real applications or abstract theories, using theoretical and/or computational tools. If you’ve completed a placement you will be able to choose a project associated with your work experience. Examples of project titles are:

  • The very famous 'travelling salesman problem' (also known as 'the lazy waiter'!)
  • The discovery and identification of clustering behaviour in financial markets
  • The mathematics of complex networks such as the web, or even Facebook
  • Applications of statistics to the Premier League, police complaints data and global warming
  • Investigating traffic flow (are traffic lights better than roundabouts?)

You’ll also have the opportunity to study modern theories in quantitative finance, with particular emphasis on the maths and computation underlying the powerful and influential financial derivatives (e.g. options) industry. Often termed the ‘Black-Scholes theory’, this is famous for winning its discoverers a Nobel prize, as well as for its misapplication often being blamed (rightly or wrongly) for the current worldwide financial crisis.

In your master’s year (this is your final year of the programme and called Level 5), you’ll have the chance to build upon your Level 3 project and to specialise in areas of mathematics that particularly interest you.

This course can be studied 4 years full-time or 5 years full-time with placement, starting in September.

Year 1

Year 2

Year 3

Year 4

This course has a placement option. Find out more about work placements available.

Please note that all modules are subject to change.

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Careers and your future

With the Financial Mathematics MMath you’ll be one step ahead of your peers when it comes to applying for jobs. There is massive demand within financial institutions for mathematically trained graduates with an awareness of markets and their workings. The recent combination of financial deregulation, increased globalisation and technological advance has led to a huge increase in the nature and volume of financial derivatives contracts traded around the world.

As a Brunel Financial Maths graduate you will enjoy excellent employment prospects. Our combination of work experience and up-to-date teaching means that you will be well-equipped to follow the career you want after graduation.

Our combination of work experience and up-to-date teaching means that you will be well-equipped to follow the career you want after graduation.

These are some of the type of careers you could pursue:

  • Finance: banking, accountancy, actuarial, tax, underwriter, pensions, insurance
  • Medicine: medical statistics, medical and epidemiological research, pharmaceutical research
  • Design: engineering design, computer games
  • Science: biotechnology, meteorology, oceanography, pure and applied research and development
  • Civil Service: scientists (‘Fast Stream’, DSTL, DESG), GCHQ, security service, statisticians
  • Business: logistics, financial analysis, marketing, market research, sales oil industry, management consultancy, operational research
  • IT: Systems analysis, research
  • Engineering: aerospace, building design, transport planning, telecommunications, surveying.
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UK entry requirements

2024/25 entry

  • GCE A-level ABB-ABC, including grade A in Mathematics or Further Mathematics.
  • BTEC Level 3 Extended Diploma DDM in any subject plus A-level Mathematics or Further Mathematics grade A.
  • BTEC Level 3 Diploma DM in any subject with an A-level Mathematics or Further Mathematics at grade A.
  • BTEC Level 3 Subsidiary Diploma D in any subject with A-levels grades AC including grade A in Mathematics or Further Mathematics.
  • International Baccalaureate Diploma 30 points, including 6 in Higher Level Mathematics.
  • Access to Higher Education Diploma Access courses are not accepted for MMaths entry. Access students are encouraged to apply for the BSc degree in this subject and if they achieve sufficient grades on year one of the course they can discuss transferring to the MMath.
  • T levels : not accepted.

Five GCSEs at grade C or grade 4 and above are also required, to include Maths and English Language.

Brunel University London is committed to raising the aspirations of our applicants and students. We will fully review your UCAS application and, where we’re able to offer a place, this will be personalised to you based on your application and education journey.

Please check our Admissions pages for more information on other factors we use to assess applicants as well as our full GCSE requirements and accepted equivalencies in place of GCSEs.

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EU and International entry requirements

If you require a Tier 4 visa to study in the UK, you must prove knowledge of the English language so that we can issue you a Certificate of Acceptance for Study (CAS). To do this, you will need an IELTS for UKVI or Trinity SELT test pass gained from a test centre approved by UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) and on the Secure English Language Testing (SELT) list. This must have been taken and passed within two years from the date the CAS is made.

English language requirements

  • IELTS: 6 (min 5.5 in all areas)
  • Pearson: 59 (59 in all sub scores)
  • BrunELT: 58% (min 55% in all areas)
  • TOEFL: 77 (min R18, L17, S20, W17) 

You can find out more about the qualifications we accept on our English Language Requirements page.

Should you wish to take a pre-sessional English course to improve your English prior to starting your degree course, you must sit the test at an approved SELT provider for the same reason. We offer our own BrunELT English test and have pre-sessional English language courses for students who do not meet requirements or who wish to improve their English. You can find out more information on English courses and test options through our Brunel Language Centre.

Please check our Admissions pages for more information on other factors we use to assess applicants. This information is for guidance only and each application is assessed on a case-by-case basis. Entry requirements are subject to review, and may change.

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Fees and funding

2024/25 entry

UK

£9,250 full-time

£1,385 placement year

£3,000 fee reduction in final year

International

£21,260 full-time

£1,385 placement year

£3,000 fee reduction in final year

Fees quoted are per year and may be subject to an annual increase. Home undergraduate student fees are regulated and are currently capped at £9,250 per year; any changes will be subject to changes in government policy. International fees will increase annually, by no more than 5% or RPI (Retail Price Index), whichever is the greater.

More information on any additional course-related costs.

See our fees and funding page for full details of undergraduate scholarships available to Brunel applicants.

Please refer to the scholarships pages to view discounts available to eligible EU undergraduate applicants.

Scholarships and bursaries

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Teaching and Learning

How the course will be delivered

Required equipment

How you'll learn on your course

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Assessment and feedback

The ‘exams to coursework’ ratio is around 50:50 in Level 1, increasing to 70:30 in Level 3.
Level 2 will count towards 20% of your degree. Level 3 and your master’s year will count for 40% each.

Read our guide on how to avoid plagiarism in your assessments at Brunel.

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