MSc in Finance - Hedge Funds and Private Equity - Specialization Courses

Some of the Specialization & elective courses offered in the Hedge Funds & Private Equity specialization

Please note that this list is not exhaustive and subject to change

FINANCIAL PROGRAMMING IN VBA

This is an introduction to programming in Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) applied to financial modeling. The students learn how to program functions and subroutines using different types of variables, conditional statements, loops, arrays, as well as to the procedure of debugging. The students also learn how to query an external database. Programming assignments are a central requirement of this course: all of these assignments deal with problems in financial modeling.

PRODUCT STRUCTURING

The course presents Structured Products, their construction, valuation and interest in portfolio construction. It begins by introducing structured products by way of a basic guide. Students will learn interests and limits of Structured Products for investors. They will be able to understand a payoff graphic, read a termsheet or assess a payoff formula, before moving on to the key asset classes and their particularities. Students will enable you to better comprehend the use of structured products in everyday banking, quickly analyzing a product, assessing which of your clients it suits, and recognizing its major pitfalls. They will be able to see the added value versus the cost of a product and if the payoff is compatible with the market expectations.

MANAGING FX EXPOSURE

Floating foreign exchange rates’ framework of the International Monetary System create high degree of uncertainty (market risk) for importers and exporters profitability. The purpose of this course is to learn how to identify and evaluate the foreign exchange market risk, and how to manage and choose hedging strategies using plain vanilla financial instruments such as foreign exchange forward outright and buying foreign exchange option.

PRIVATE EQUITY INVESTING

This course focuses on private equity financing of businesses that are not in an early or start-up phase, assigning particular emphasis to the leveraged buyout process. Students study private equity as an alternative investment class both from the point of view of a private equity analyst or private equity fund manager, and from the perspective of an investor willing to allocate a portion of a portfolio to this asset class. The course examines the different stages of the private equity cycle from fundraising to how funds are deployed by a private equity firm; from deal structure, due diligence, and negotiation to valuation approaches and exit strategies. Finally, the course also analyzes private equity returns and risks, and considers the future outlook for private equity markets.

REAL ESTATE INVESTING

This course seeks to impart an understanding of commercial real estate as an income producing investment. It explains real estate syndications as an ownership form, financing alternatives, and the use of financial leverage. Students will learn the techniques used to valuate commercial properties, how to prepare an investment analysis, and how to identify the risks of development projects. They will develop an in-depth understanding of the mortgage market with its several sources of financing.

HEDGE FUND AND FUND OF FUNDS MANAGEMENT

This course is designed to immerse students in the hedge fund business, and is meant to prepare students to a career in the hedge fund industry (as an investment analyst, researcher, strategist or portfolio manager) or who will work in financial institutions who invest in hedge funds (funds of funds, family offices, pensions funds and other institutional investors). While this is not a course on trading strategies, a comprehensive understanding of several hedge fund strategies is a significant component of the course and its assignments. Other aspects of the hedge fund business that will be covered are hedge funds’ objectives, performance evaluation, risks, due diligence, the historical evolution of the hedge fund industry, its outlook in relation to the current financial markets, operational and organizational structures, the regulatory and legal landscape, as well as ethical issues.

HEDGE FUND STRATEGIES

This master course explores trading techniques traditionally used by hedge funds. These include long-short equity investing, long-short equity investing, volatility trading, correlation and dispersion trading, and various arbitrage techniques (capital structure arbitrage, convertible arbitrage, merger arbitrage). The lectures will be interactive as much as possible, with great emphasis on practical trading projects.

Besides practicing hedge fund trading strategies, this finance course will increase your awareness and understanding of the main asset classes.

MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS

This MSc in Finance course covers the different phases of an acquisition process: screening of targets, valuation, bid tactics (and defense tactics), financing, negotiation, communications, and integration.

A particular emphasis is given to the valuation process and the quantitative tools used by practitioners (such as the cash flow models) in order to value a company.

VENTURE CAPITAL & ENTREPRENEURIAL FINANCE

This graduate course is designed to familiarize you with the issues and practices surrounding venture capital.

It covers everything from the seed funding of a start-up venture to the successful sale of a mature business. The main focus of this finance course is on raising venture capital. This involves learning about the dimensions of risks and expected returns, in a context, which is characterized by incomplete information and lack of liquidity while gaining practical insights into the interaction and relationship between the investor and management. What are their respective interests and strategies? How do they come to a deal? What is the process? How do they create value?

This master course integrates various managerial disciplines and covers the venture capital environment, financial modeling, business plan analysis, investment criteria, delivering pitches and teasers, understanding and negotiating terms and conditions, preparing for due diligence and closing.

FUND ANALYSIS

The course presents different types of funds (long only, actively managed, trackers, absolute return), their specificities and main characteristics. The course introduces students to the different steps for the analysis of funds from a qualitative and quantitative point of view, in order to select the investment universe of multi-management. The last part of the course concentrates on the construction of a portfolio of funds in order to optimize the risk-adjusted returns. Students learn the analysis and selection of funds, their use in everyday banking and the benefit of their introduction in portfolio management.

HEDGE FUNDS IN PRACTICE

This course addresses client relationship managers and also investment managers of institutional investors such as e.g. private banks and fund of hedge funds. The nature of hedge funds and their distinct performance characteristics as well as their organizational setups are explained in contrast to conventional asset classes. The value added of the integration of hedge funds into clients’ multi-asset class portfolios is analysed. The students are guided through the investment process starting with the selection of a list of target hedge funds, followed by their combination to optimized robust portfolios and finished by post-investment monitoring and reporting. Lastly, relevant legal and regulatory aspects are touched upon.

Alumni Testimonials

Thomas Ippoliti,
MSc in Finance (Hedge Funds and Private Equity 2014)
Portfolio Manager, NN Investment Partners, Netherland

I joined the MSc in Finance of IUM after gaining some experience in Private Banking in Monaco. I specialized in Hedge Funds & Private Equity track to reinforce my knowledge of different asset classes and to increase my understanding of the asset management industry as a whole.
The strong technical skills I acquired from the academic courses enhanced my credibility with investment professionals.
After my studies I was accepted into the Young Talent Program at ING Investment Management in the Netherlands. I am currently completing rotations in different departments within the company.
What I liked the most about IUM was the great working atmosphere and I am thankful to my professors and classmates for that. Overall, I feel lucky to have enjoyed such an enriching international experience that has truly prepared me for my professional endeavors.