How to apply?
For questions regarding the recognition of diplomas for admission to the Master programs: immat.Master@unil.ch
For other questions regarding admissions: HECmasterAdmission@unil.ch
FAQ_Admissions_ENG.pdf (187 Ko)
Admissions to the MScF
Deadlines
Submission of the application
- April 30
- February 28 for candidates needing a study visa
Semester cancellation
Cancellation of the Fall semester is authorized until October 15 only and the one of the Spring semester until March 15 only. Passed these dates, every student will be obliged to register and sit his/her examinations.
Fees
CHF 580.- per semester
For non Swiss diplomas: CHF 200.- administrative fee in addition
Admission requirements
A Bachelor’s degree from a Swiss university in Economics, Management, Finance or Information Systems. Another degree or university qualification may be judged equivalent and give access to the Master’s program, with or without conditions.
Prior knowledge
Proficiency in English
Experience has shown that for applicants whose native tongue is not English or whose Bachelor’s degree was not taught in English a solid command of English is essential for succeeding this program. Upon starting the program, you should have attained a level of proficiency in English as a foreign language corresponding to one of the following minimum levels:
- TOEFL CBT: 250 points
- TOEFL IBT: 100 points
- TOEFL PBT: 600 points;
- Aademic IELTS: 7 points
- Cambridge English Advanced (CAE): Grade B
- Cambridge English Proficiency (CPE): Grade C
- TOEIC: 850 points
Knowledge requirements
Financial accounting
For accounting courses at the Master level a working knowledge of financial accounting concepts and techniques is assumed. This should normally be obtained by graduating with a Bachelor degree in management or a comparable education. These knowledge and skills are a prerequisite and will not be taught at the Master level. At this level the focus will be on International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS).
An introductory financial accounting course at the Bachelor level normally encompasses:
- Nature and objectives of financial accounting
- Bookkeeping
- Fundamental accounting principles, concepts and policies
- Preparing final accounts
- Elements of financial statements
- Basic group accounting
Students who do not qualify for these prerequisites or who wish to refresh their knowledge and skills are advised to appropriately prepare themselves in advance!
Most of these basic concepts and techniques are independent from legal/national backgrounds. Hence, in general any introductory financial accounting textbook, and/or online financial accounting course might be suitable insofar as it deals with the content as described above.
For online courses students could consult Harvard Business Online: Financial Accounting Online Course - Introductory Section (Paul M. Healy, David F. Hawkins).
For accounting textbooks students could consult e.g Libby R., Libby P.A., Short D.G., 2010, Financial Accounting, 6th edition, McGraw-Hill International Edition (Chapters 1-3). However, students could check their local university library for relevant textbooks.
Mathematics for Economics and Finance
Modern economics and finance rely profoundly on mathematics. It is therefore essential for incoming Master students to be familiar with some basic concepts of mathematics used in economics and finance applications. When starting their graduate studies, students should have a working knowledge of the material covered in the following basic textbook:
- Simon, C. P. and L. Blume, 1994, Mathematics for Economists, Norton, New York.
There are numerous advanced textbooks available on mathematics for economics and finance. No single book is comprehensive. The advanced textbooks recommended for the course are as follows:
- Sydsaeter, K. , P. Hammond, A. Seierstad, and A. Strom, 2005, Further Mathematics for Economic Analysis, Prentice Hall.
- Casella, G. and R. L. Berger, 2001, Statistical Inference, 2nd edition, Brooks Cole
In order to refresh and broaden your knowledge, working through some exercises before the semester is a useful preparation. We strongly encourage all incoming MScF students to prepare written solutions to the following set of exercises (at varying levels of difficulty).
Econometrics
Knowledge of the following basic concepts is necessary:
- Expectation, variance, covariance
- Usual distributions, normal, t, gamma, exponential. Know how to obtain densities of functions of random variables, convolution
- Testing hypothesis, error of first and second type, power of test
- Linear univariate and multivariate regression model, asymptotic standard errors, sandwich (White) standard errors, awareness of problems with regression such as multicolinearity or omitted variable bias
- 2SLS, 3SLS, method of moment estimation
- Basic notions of time series analysis: ARMA
- Integrated processes, testing for integration, co-integration
A textbook dealing with all those issues is for instance: Greene "Econometric Analysis", latest issue. See the Appendix to that book.
Advanced Programming
- Basic Python
Advanced Data Analytics
- Basic Python (including operational know-how of Python libraries numpy, scipy, pandas)
- Good working knowledge of linear algebra, probability theory, and (constrained) optimization
Transfer credits
Equivalences (transfer credits) can be granted by the scientific Committee for previous university studies if the student already owns a Master degree in a closely-related field of study. For Master studies the number of transfer credits granted cannot exceed 30 ECTS. Students wishing to obtain equivalences for their previous Master university studies should address a written request to Sylvie Grin van Hamel no later than 20 days before the start of the academic year.
Application to several programs / Transfer to another Master program
If you are accepted to several programs you will have to make your final choice during the first week of September the latest. No Master transfer will be authorized after the beginning of the Fall classes. Only students who have applied on due time to several programs can be transferred to a program of their inital choice until September 30. To ask for a transfer, please write an e-mail to Sylvie.GrinvanHamel@unil.ch.
