Master's Degree Programme
| About the programme Language: English (See language requirements) | Place of study: Aarhus | Commencement: August / September (no winter intake) |
The master’s degree programme in Finance (FIN) is a research-based business education that provides students with a strong quantitative foundation in modern finance and develops analytical skills relevant for decision-making in the financial industry. FIN combines financial theory, empirical methods, and practical applications to prepare students to analyse financial markets, financial institutions, investment decisions, and corporate financial policies.
Students obtain a strong foundation in financial theory and learn how to apply theoretical and empirical models to analyse financial assets, investment opportunities, and corporate decisions. The objective is to equip students with the ability to evaluate the relation between risk and return, estimate and interpret risk premia, and assess how financial models can be used to understand prices, portfolio choices, and investment decisions.
Students also learn to analyse firms’ financial decisions and their implications for value creation. They develop competences in evaluating investment projects, financing choices, capital structure, payout decisions, incentives, and corporate transactions. A central part of the programme is to understand how financial constraints, agency conflicts, regulation, and market conditions affect corporate policies and business strategy.
Students acquire the tools to analyse, price, and interpret financial contracts used for hedging, speculation, and risk management. They learn to understand the economic logic behind derivative securities and to evaluate how such instruments can be used by firms, investors, and financial institutions. This part of the programme strengthens students’ ability to work with uncertainty, dynamic financial decisions, and risk exposure in a structured and rigorous way.
Students are introduced to the central role of financial institutions and intermediaries in modern financial markets. They learn how banks, asset managers, and other intermediaries allocate capital, provide liquidity, facilitate risk-sharing, manage risk, and respond to regulation, technological change, and financial crises. The programme also trains students to evaluate current developments in financial intermediation and critically assess evidence on financial institutions, markets, and new financial business models.
Students build strong analytical and quantitative skills with a clear focus on financial and business applications. They learn to work with financial market data, select suitable empirical methods, interpret results, and evaluate evidence.
Across the programme, students develop the ability to combine theory, data, and economic reasoning. They are trained to communicate financial analysis clearly to both specialist and non-specialist audiences and to use financial models and empirical evidence as a basis for informed decision-making.
In this section you can learn more about the admission requirements relevant to the master's degree programme in Finance. Depending on your educational background and your qualifications, there are different ways to meet the admission requirements:
This section is relevant for you, if you have:
The two sections listed below are relevant only for students with a bachelor's degree from a Danish institution:
Below these sections, you can learn more about the English language requirement. You can also find out which ranking criteria we use to assess your application when prioritizing among the submitted applications.
If you have an international educational background, you must meet both the general admission requirement and the specific admission requirements:
You must have a bachelor's degree or equivalent that is comparable to a Danish bachelor's degree in both level and duration (180 ECTS).
For more information about how your bachelor's degree is assessed, please see the national database.
If you meet the general admission requirement, the university will continue on to assess whether or not you meet the specific admission requirements.
You can be admitted to the master's programme if the university assesses that your education has a level, scope, and content that corresponds to the academic requirements specified below.
| Subject area | Number of ECTS |
Methods The following subject areas must be covered:
| 15 |
| Marketing | 7,5 |
| Finance | 7,5 |
| Accounting | 7,5 |
| Organisation and leadership theory | 7,5 |
| Microeconomics | 5 |
| Operations management | 5 |
| Additional ECTS points within the abovementioned areas | 20 |
| Bachelor’s project | 10 |
| Total | 85 |
| Applicants with a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and Commercial Law (HA (jur.)) with commencement of study September 2014 or later from Aarhus University must have passed a total of 10 ECTS within the business economics subjects below: |
|
Certain Professional Bachelor's degrees or similar covering specific subject areas from other Danish institutions have been determined to fullfill the admission requirements to this master's degree programme:
| Required subject areas – Professional Bachelor’s degree in Financial Management and Service from Business Academy Aarhus |
Industry specialisation in Accounting (“Programme specialisation subject A – external accounts” and “Study programme subject B – strategic accounting”) With the following electives:
|
Industry specialisation in Finansielle forretninger (this industry specialisation is only offered in Danish) With the following electives:
|
| Required subject areas - AP degree in Marketing Management in combination with a Professional Bachelor’s degree in International Sales and Marketing from Business Academy Aarhus | Number of ECTS |
| BSS module (including Methods 5 ECTS, Finance 5 ECTS, and Operations Management 5 ECTS) | 15 |
For applicants who hold one of the abovementioned professional bachelor's degrees from another business academy, it will be assessed whether the electives correspond to abovementioned electives.
For applicants who hold another professional bachelor's degree, the degree will be assessed according to the requirements described in the section “International and other qualifications”.
We cannot assess in advance whether your specific degree will meet the above requirements. Therefore, we recommend that you apply for the programme if you believe that you meet the academic requirements. In this regard, it is a good idea to compare your degree with the programmes that provide direct admission.
The following Bachelor's degree programme(s) from Aarhus University entitles you to an offer of admission to the Master's degree programme in Finance:
Bachelor's degree programme in Economics and Business Administration (HA)
Please note that you must apply for admission to the Master's degree programme within three years of completing your Bachelor's degree programme.
Learn more about Legal right of admission.
Certain Bachelor's degree programmes from Aarhus University and various other Danish Universities have been determined to meet the admission requirements to this Master's degree programme in Finance:
* With a diploma older than 2010, your Bachelor’s degree will be assessed according to the specific admission requirements described under the section: “International and other qualifications”.
If you hold a Bachelor’s degree from a non-Danish university, you must complete the appendix below and upload it to the application portal. The appendix helps the academic assessors with the assessment of your application.
Download appendix
All Master’s degree programmes at Aarhus University have limited intake. This means that you are not guaranteed admission even if you meet the entry requirements. When we prioritize among applicants, we assess your application based on a set of fixed ranking criteria, which you can see below.
If you have a legal right of admission, you are guaranteed a place in the programme and do not need to consider the ranking criteria.
Ranking criteria:
Grades from the qualifying degree
Grades achieved in relevant subject fields:
Finance
Methods
Relevant subject fields (measured in ECTS). In this assessment, ECTS credits that are a part of the admission requirements described under “International and other qualifications” are not included *.
Finance
Methods
* The relevant subject fields are evaluated based on the following point system: 1 point per additional ECTS within the relevant field. You can earn a maximum of 15 points in this criterion. Example: If you have 10 ECTS in a relevant field where the requirement is 7.5 ECTS, you will receive 2.5 points.
Please note that grades achieved after the application deadline are not included in the assessment.
In order to be admitted to this programme you must meet the university's English language requirements.
Students with bachelor's degree from Aarhus University with a so-called 'Legal right of admission' are exempt from the English language requirement.
Unfortunately, Aarhus University is not able to assess your qualifications beforehand. In order for your qualifications to be assessed you must apply for admission. To learn more, please go to Assessment of your qualifications.
Below is an outline of the courses:
The study programme consists of two semesters in the first year which cover the compulsory courses in the programme specialisation and two semesters in the last year which are reserved for the student's own specialisation.
In the first semester you follow the prerequisite courses that form the methodological and academic basis for the further study programme.
In the second semester you follow the specialisation courses of the programme.
In the third semester you can choose elective courses within your areas of interest. The courses can either be taken at Aarhus BSS during the semester, at the Summer University or at one of our more than 300 partner universities abroad. You can also participate in project-based internship programmes either in Denmark or abroad.
The fourth semester is devoted to the final thesis. You may choose the topic of the thesis freely and so get a chance to concentrate on and specialise in a specific field of interest. The thesis may be written in collaboration with another student or it may be the result of your individual effort.
Contact Jonas Nygaard Eriksen (jeriksen@econ.au.dk) if you have questions about the track or the individual courses.
Starting from 2028, it is planned that the MSc in Economics and Business Administration (cand. merc.) will be offered as both a 1-year and a 2-year Master's degree programme.
If you have a legal right of admission to this programme because you have a specific bachelor's degree from Aarhus University, we expect that your right of admission will apply to the 1-year programme.
When we know more about the new structure, we will provide updates on this page.
As a Finance student, you become part of an active academic and social community where students, alumni, faculty, and industry professionals meet to exchange ideas, share knowledge, and build networks.
Student life is supported by the Advanced Finance Association (AFA), the student organisation representing students in the Finance programme at Aarhus BSS. AFA works to create an engaging environment for Finance students and to build bridges between students and potential future employers. Its activities include academic events, company collaborations, workshops, social events, and networking opportunities. AFA also represents Finance students in course evaluation meetings with faculty and programme coordinators. This gives students a voice in the ongoing development of the programme and helps ensure high-quality teaching.
Through AFA, students can gain insight into different areas of finance and meet representatives from relevant companies and organisations. Previous activities have included events on life as a Finance student, master’s thesis inspiration, exam preparation workshops, company collaborations, and events with firms in areas such as equity research, asset management, energy trading, and risk management.
These activities give Finance students opportunities to connect their academic studies with professional practice, explore possible career paths, and strengthen both their professional network and social community during the programme.
At Aarhus BSS, we conduct research at the highest academic level.
All researchers employed are engaged in research projects covering a wide range of different subjects and focusing on knowledge and skills considered essential for professional business activities in the global marketplace. All faculty have both research and teaching responsibilities, which means that our teaching is continually based on the latest research results.
Aarhus BSS is very internationally oriented. The broad scope of our research activities and educational programmes enable us to attract researchers, teachers, and students from all over the world, and this creates an international environment for research and learning in which academic views are exchanged, experiences are gathered and friendships are formed.
Aarhus University is a leading university in Denmark in building student exchange opportunities. The university encourages all students to spend time studying abroad. Every year, more than 700 students from Aarhus BSS go abroad to participate in exchange programmes around the world at our more than 300 partner universities. About the same number of students from all over the world come to participate in the exchange programme in Aarhus, and this contributes to a truly international learning atmosphere.
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Graduates of the Finance programme (FIN) acquire strong analytical, quantitative, and business-oriented skills that are highly valued across the financial sector and beyond. The programme prepares students for careers in banks, asset management companies, pension funds, insurance companies, consulting firms, energy and commodity trading firms, corporate finance departments, and public institutions.
Our alumni pursue careers in both Danish and international organisations, typically in roles that combine financial analysis, quantitative reasoning, and financial decision-making. They work as analysts, portfolio managers, traders, M&A consultants, risk specialists, finance business partners, treasury specialists, controllers, and strategy consultants. Many graduates build careers in asset management, banking, pension funds, insurance, capital markets, corporate finance, financial advisory, energy trading, treasury, and business development.
After gaining experience in the labour market, many FIN graduates advance into senior specialist (e.g., senior analysts, quantitative analysts, senior risk officers) and leadership positions (e.g., finance directors, chief financial officers, or head of finance).
To further support these career opportunities, the programme is closely connected to the business community through its Advisory Board. The Board provides strategic insight and guidance to ensure the programme remains aligned with industry needs and future trends. It actively contributes to discussions on curriculum development, the design and content of core courses, and the integration of emerging technologies such as generative AI. The Board also advises on desired graduate competencies, employer practices, and the implications of forthcoming graduate reforms. Get inspired by the career paths of the current members of the Advisory Board for Finance and Finance and International Business.
These are the typical job categories that our graduates work in.
These are the typical industries that our graduates work in.
These analyses are based on Aarhus BSS graduates from 2015–2025 and were conducted in 2026. The information reflects the most recent job and industry identified at the time of the analysis. Data were gathered from publicly available sources and interpreted with the assistance of large language models. Although a sample of results was manually verified, the findings may involve incompleteness or classification uncertainty.
