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Mathematics with Finance and Investment Banking with a Placement Year

Entry requirements


A level

A,B,B

including Mathematics at grade A. If you place us as your Firm choice we will accept you with one grade lower than this, including accepting a B in Maths at A level. (e.g. ABC with Maths at B).

Access to HE Diploma

D:30,M:15

including at least 12 level 3 credits in Mathematics. If you place us as your Firm choice we will accept you with 18 level 3 units at Distinction and 27 level 3 units at Merit, including at least 12 level 3 credits in Maths.

Cambridge International Pre-U Certificate - Principal

D3,M2,M2

including Mathematics at Grade D3. If you place us as your Firm choice we will accept you with one grade lower than this, including accepting a grade M2 in Maths. (e.g. D3, M2, M3 with Maths at M2).

Extended Project

B

In recognition of the excellent preparation that the Extended Project Qualification provides to students for University study, we now include achievement in the EPQ as part of a formal offer.  Eligible applicants would receive two offers,  our usual offer plus an alternative offer of a B in the EPQ and one grade lower in their A level subjects.

GCSE/National 4/National 5

GCSE Maths C (or 4), English Language or English Literature C (or 4).

International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme

32

including Mathematics at grade 6 at Higher Level. If you place us as your Firm choice we will accept you with 30 points overall, including accepting Maths at grade 5 at Higher Level.

Scottish Higher

A,A,B,B,B

including Mathematics at grade A. If you place us as your Firm choice we will accept you with one grade lower than this, including accepting a B in Maths (e.g. ABBBB with Maths at B).

UCAS Tariff

128-147

We've calculated how many Ucas points you'll need for this course.

About this course


Course option

4years

Full-time | 2024

Subjects

Finance

Mathematics

Investment

**Expand your mathematical knowledge, gain practical experience, and help prepare yourself for a professional career on our BSc Mathematics with Finance and Investment Banking with Placement Year course.**

Study a wide range of topics from statistics to foreign exchange, and experience the thrill of live markets. This flexible degree will help you to develop your skills - including how to code.

**Choose mathematics at Reading**

You will study mathematics for approximately two thirds of the course.

Join the Department of Mathematics and Statistics, and become a part of a supportive, interactive and accomplished learning community.

Taught by expert staff with extensive teaching and research experience, you'll work collaboratively across a range of topics in pure and applied mathematics. Modules are informed by our world-leading research, and include areas such as:

- calculus

- numerical analysis

- linear algebra

- differential equations

- statistics.

Your second year will feature a skills module, designed to improve your transferrable skills and enhance your employability. In your final year, you will produce a report and do a presentation on a mathematical project.

This course meets the educational requirements of the Chartered Mathematician designation when followed by subsequent training and experience.

**Finance and investment banking**

Finance and investment banking will make up the remaining third of your degree.

Guided by the triple-accredited Henley Business School, you will have access to the latest investment management technology, including our three dealing rooms, equipped with Bloomberg and Thomsen Reuters Eikon terminals.

You will have the opportunity to manage the risk of a $50-100 million trading book, quote two-way prices, take positions, and immerse yourself in the financial industry.

We pride ourselves in our high-quality teaching, which will be delivered through a wide range of approaches, such as:

- lectures

- group tutorials

- group presentations

- open debate.

- placement Year

This degree includes an integrated, year-long, paid industrial placement between your second and your final year.

You could undertake a placement in the finance, logistics or technology sectors, at a range of national and international organisations such as Microsoft, IBM, SAP, and the NHS.

Our dedicated placements officer can provide advice and support to help you find your ideal placement, as well as developing your CV and interview skills.

You can also undertake summer placements throughout your degree if you wish to.

Visit the Important Information page for more details on securing and completing a placement year.

Modules

The following modules have been approved in principle for delivery in 2024/25. Please note that as part of our current curriculum improvement process, all modules require final University approval and may be subject to change.

Core modules:
- Calculus
- Foundations of Mathematics
- Linear Algebra
- Probability and Statistics
- Introductory Finance / Trading Simulation I
- Introductory Securities and Markets
- Financial Modelling
- Mathematical Modelling and Professional Skills
- Differential Equations
- Numerical Analysis I
- Placement Year
- Derivative Securities
- Portfolio of Projects

The University cannot guarantee that all optional modules will be available to all students who may wish to take them. Further information about the content of final approved modules will be available between May and July 2023. We suggest that you regularly revisit this webpage during this time to ensure you have the most up-to-date information regarding the modules offered on this programme.

Tuition fees

Select where you currently live to see what you'll pay:

Channel Islands
£9,250
per year
England
£9,250
per year
EU
£27,650
per year
International
£27,650
per year
Northern Ireland
£9,250
per year
Republic of Ireland
£9,250
per year
Scotland
£9,250
per year
Wales
£9,250
per year

The Uni


Course location:

University of Reading

Department:

School of Mathematical, Physical and Computational Sciences

Read full university profile

What students say


We've crunched the numbers to see if overall student satisfaction here is high, medium or low compared to students studying this subject(s) at other universities.

90%
Finance
77%
Mathematics
90%
Investment

How do students rate their degree experience?

The stats below relate to the general subject area/s at this university, not this specific course. We show this where there isn’t enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

Finance

Teaching and learning

67%
Staff make the subject interesting
85%
Staff are good at explaining things
86%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
82%
Opportunities to apply what I've learned

Assessment and feedback

Feedback on work has been timely
Feedback on work has been helpful
Staff are contactable when needed
Good advice available when making study choices

Resources and organisation

85%
Library resources
89%
IT resources
91%
Course specific equipment and facilities
82%
Course is well organised and has run smoothly

Student voice

Staff value students' opinions
Feel part of a community on my course

Who studies this subject and how do they get on?

45%
UK students
55%
International students
73%
Male students
27%
Female students
77%
2:1 or above
8%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

B
B
B

Mathematics

Teaching and learning

66%
Staff make the subject interesting
89%
Staff are good at explaining things
76%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
68%
Opportunities to apply what I've learned

Assessment and feedback

Feedback on work has been timely
Feedback on work has been helpful
Staff are contactable when needed
Good advice available when making study choices

Resources and organisation

69%
Library resources
71%
IT resources
81%
Course specific equipment and facilities
72%
Course is well organised and has run smoothly

Student voice

Staff value students' opinions
Feel part of a community on my course

Who studies this subject and how do they get on?

85%
UK students
15%
International students
70%
Male students
30%
Female students
67%
2:1 or above
25%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

A
C
C

After graduation


The stats in this section relate to the general subject area/s at this university – not this specific course. We show this where there isn't enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

Finance

What are graduates doing after six months?

This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.

£25,000
med
Average annual salary
99%
high
Employed or in further education
93%
high
Employed in a role where degree was essential or beneficial

Top job areas of graduates

37%
Business, finance and related associate professionals
24%
Architects, town planners and surveyors
20%
Business, research and administrative professionals

Over 2,000 students graduated with a degree in finance in 2015, and a sign of the strength of the finance industry, numbers are on the up. Over half of finance graduates go into the finance industry, with accountancy and financial advice roles particularly popular. It's also quite common for finance graduates to go into jobs which require you to take more training and gain professional qualifications — finance graduates who take further study are more likely to be studying accountancy than finance. About a third of graduates start their careers in London - but Glasgow, Manchester and Birmingham are other popular locations for finance graduates to work.

Mathematics

What are graduates doing after six months?

This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.

£25,000
med
Average annual salary
96%
med
Employed or in further education
74%
med
Employed in a role where degree was essential or beneficial

Top job areas of graduates

36%
Business, research and administrative professionals
16%
Business, finance and related associate professionals
10%
Information technology and telecommunications professionals

Want to feel needed? This is one of the most flexible degrees of all and with so much of modern work being based on data, there are options everywhere for maths graduates. With all that training in handling figures, it's hardly surprising that a lot of maths graduates go into well-paid jobs in the IT or finance industries, and last year, a maths graduate in London could expect a very respectable average starting salary of £27k. And we're always short of teachers in maths, so that is an excellent option for anyone wanting to help the next generation. And if you want a research job, you'll want a doctorate — and a really good maths doctorate will get you all sorts of interest from academia and finance — and might secure some of the highest salaries going for new leavers from university.

What about your long term prospects?

Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.

Finance

The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.

£26k

£26k

£35k

£35k

£44k

£44k

Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.

Mathematics

The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.

£25k

£25k

£34k

£34k

£35k

£35k

Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.

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This information comes from the National Student Survey, an annual student survey of final-year students. You can use this to see how satisfied students studying this subject area at this university, are (not the individual course).

This is the percentage of final-year students at this university who were "definitely" or "mostly" satisfied with their course. We've analysed this figure against other universities so you can see whether this is high, medium or low.

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This information is from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), for undergraduate students only.

You can use this to get an idea of who you might share a lecture with and how they progressed in this subject, here. It's also worth comparing typical A-level subjects and grades students achieved with the current course entry requirements; similarities or differences here could indicate how flexible (or not) a university might be.

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Post-six month graduation stats:

This is from the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education Survey, based on responses from graduates who studied the same subject area here.

It offers a snapshot of what grads went on to do six months later, what they were earning on average, and whether they felt their degree helped them obtain a 'graduate role'. We calculate a mean rating to indicate if this is high, medium or low compared to other universities.

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Graduate field commentary:

The Higher Education Careers Services Unit have provided some further context for all graduates in this subject area, including details that numbers alone might not show

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The Longitudinal Educational Outcomes dataset combines HRMC earnings data with student records from the Higher Education Statistics Agency.

While there are lots of factors at play when it comes to your future earnings, use this as a rough timeline of what graduates in this subject area were earning on average one, three and five years later. Can you see a steady increase in salary, or did grads need some experience under their belt before seeing a nice bump up in their pay packet?

Have a question about this info? Learn more here