Best Places to Study a Master's in Finance in the US & Canada

Heading to Canada, the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto is ranked 18^th for its Master of Financial Risk Management degree, earning a very high score for the ‘thought leadership’ category, which takes into account staff with a PhD, research impact, and a global survey of academics. Rotman’s master’s degree offers strong connections to the finance industry and a two-month applied Risk Management Project, giving students the chance to with risk management professionals.

McGill University's Desaultes Faculty of Management is ranked just behind the Rotman School of Management in 19^th place, earning a high score for its alumni outcomes. The Master of Management in Finance can be completed in either 12 or 16 months and offers students the unique opportunity to run Desautels Capital Management Inc. (DCM), Canada’s first university-owned, student-run registered multi-million dollar investment firm.

The University of Southern California’s Marshall School of Business is ranked 29^th, and achieves a very strong score for the alumni outcomes category. Its MSc in Finance degree includes a range of elective courses on topics such as real estate and mergers and acquisitions. No minimum years of work experience required to apply, and the programme is open to those who didn’t study business for their undergraduate degree.

Next in our look at the best places in the US and Canada to study a masters in finance, the University of Texas at Austin’s McCombs School of Business is just one place behind the Marshall School of Business in 30^th place again earning an impressive score for its alumni outcomes. Its Master of Science in Finance degree gives students a fast-paced introduction to finance theory combined with excel modelling and a range of other quantitative skills. The class size is only 50 students, which enables good quality student-professor interaction.

Ranked 31^st for its Master of Science in Finance degree, the University of Florida's Warrington College of Business receives high scores for value for money and alumni outcomes. One of the programme's major features is the Finance Professional Speaker Series which brings finance professionals to discuss their area of expertise. Speakers demonstrate how professionals approach specific problems, give insight into particular industries, discuss major trends in the various markets and industries in which they operate, and talk about career strategies.

Next is Boston University’s Questrom School of Business which is ranked 33^rd for its Master of Science in Mathematical Finance (MSMF), a 17-month programme in which students gain an indispensable knowledge of the complex relations between the numerous components of the modern financial system, specialising in Asset Management, Quantitative Analytics or Risk Management. The school achieves a very high score for its ‘alumni outcomes’, with the Class of 2016 earning an average salary of US$84,000.

Concluding our list is the Master of Science in Finance at the McDonough School of Business in 40^th place. The programme's flexibility enables students to attend MSFLive sessions online or in-person. There are two residencies provided in the programme (Financial Markets Residency and the Global Consulting Project), which provides students an opportunity to analyse a complex, real-world project for an international firm. 

In addition to the University of Toronto, three more top Canadian universities are ranked among the world’s best for master’s in finance degrees. These are HEC Montreal, ranked joint 89^th for its MSc in Finance degree, the Alberta School of Business, ranked 101-110^th for its Master of Financial Management degree, and McMaster University's DeGroote School of Business, ranked in the 121+ range.