What is Finance?
Finance is essentially a study of Maths but with particular focus on investment and business operation, and students tend to break down this course into two dimensions: theoretical and practical. For the theoretical dimension, we study a myriad of formulae for financial modelling, pricing, and economics, whereas on the practical side, it focuses more on real world questions, such as doing accounting and financial reporting.
Why I chose Finance and Durham
I chose to study Finance mostly because of my family’s company. Growing up, I have seen my parents making business projections and doing presentations on financial reports to the public, and that got me curious about the theory and logistics behind it. During the application, Durham was of particular interest to me because not only does it offer good degrees, but the university is also often ranked as one of the best universities for sports, and I wanted to continue playing baseball competitively. Durham is the place for me the strike that balance between academics and sports, hence the decision.
My favourite part of the course
My favourite part of the course is the structure. Our course and modules are very well planned. Through lectures, professors will give a broad overview on different topics, and these lectures are supplemented by tutorials and seminars, in which the tutors will prepare specific questions on those topics to consolidate our knowledge. For modules that are more on the practical side such as accounting, there will be workshops to teach you how to build reports from scratch. I find that my studies have been going well simply by following the structure of the course and engaging with the materials. Even if you are stuck on some convoluted topics, lecturers and tutors are very approachable and have office hours to support your study.
Societies and socials
I am not part of any societies that are related to finance, mostly because playing baseball for the university has already taken up a huge chunk of my time. As I mentioned, Durham takes sports very seriously, and we have training regularly, as well as matches in different cities. Societies and sport teams are a good way to meet friends and find potential housemates – most of my friends are in fact from the baseball team. It also gives you a good opportunity to work on your time management skills, so I would definitely recommend you join some.
Discover more
For more information on the BSc in Finance, visit this webpage.
For more information on the BSc in Finance with Placement Year, visit this webpage.
You can also visit Durham University Business School page.
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