Certificates in Computational Finance and Financial Risk Management
In addition to the MS degree (MS-CompFin), the Applied Mathematics Department in partnership with the University of Washington Professional and Continuing Education (PCE) program offers two related professional certificate programs, one in Computational Finance (CF-Certificate) and one in Financial Risk Management (FRM-Certificate). They start in autumn 2012 and consist of subsets of MS-CompFin curriculum courses as described below. These certificates are not awarded by the Graduate School; they are administered and awarded by PCE upon successful completion of the requirements. However, students may earn graduate credit when taking these courses by petitioning the Graduate School for graduate non-matriculated status as described in the section below titled "Applying an Online Certificate toward the MS-CompFin Degree".
Computational Finance Certificate (CF-Certificate)
A Computational Finance Certificate will be awarded to individuals who successfully complete the following three online four-credit courses from the MS degree curriculum for a total of 12 credits:
| Autumn | Winter | Spring |
|---|---|---|
| AMATH 541 (4) Investment Science | AMATH 542 (4) Financial Data Modeling and Analysis in R | AMATH 543 (4) Portfolio Construction and Risk Management. |
Financial Risk Management Certificate (FRM-Certificate)
A Risk Management Certificate will be awarded to individuals who successfully complete the following three four-credit courses from the MS degree curriculum for a total of 12 credits:
| Autumn | Winter | Spring |
|---|---|---|
| AMATH 541 (4) Investment Science | AMATH 545 (4) Introduction to Risk Management | AMATH 546 (4) Quantitative Risk Management |
Students who complete the FRM-Certificate may wish to increase their knowledge in risk management by optionally taking AMATH 547 Credit Risk Management, offered in the subsequent autumn quarter.
Background Knowledge Required for Certificate Programs
Information on background knowledge required for entrance and successful completion of certificate program courses will be added here subsequently. It will include similar knowledge as is included in AMATH 540 and basic use of the R programming language.
GARP FRM-Certificate Preparation
Students interested in the FRM-certificate should be aware of the following associated benefit: Upon completing the FRM-Certificate the student should be well prepared to obtain the Global Association of Risk Professionals (GARP) Financial Risk Manager (FRM) certificate with a modest amount of additional self-study. For information on the GARP FRM certificate see www.garp.org.
Applying an Online Certificate toward the MS-CompFin Degree
Students will often take one of the above certificate programs with the thought that they may subsequently want to enter the MS-CompFin degree program. Upon successful completion of one of the certificate programs and acceptance into the MS-CompFin program, such students will be able to apply up to 12 of their certificate credits toward the MS degree. It is very important that students who have this option in mind must apply for UW Graduate Non-Matriculated (GNM) status at the same time they apply for one of the certificate programs. Details are provided at Graduate Non-matriculated Application.
To Apply
For more information and to apply for the Computational Finance Certificate (CF-Certificate) visit the UW Professional and Continuing Education (PCE) page. To apply for the Financial Risk Management Certificate (FRM-Certificate) see the PCE page. For more information about the certificate programs, please send an email to eanastasio@pce.uw.edu. NOTE: The preceding PCE pages have not yet been updated to reflect the 2012 Certificate programs. Removal of this note will indicate that the PCE pages have been updated.
Satisfactory/Not Satisfactory (S/NS) Grading Option
Available Only for Students in a Certificate Program or a Single Course Enrollment
Finance industry professionals and other students taking a course in one of the Certificate programs, possibly on a single course enrollment (SCE) basis, may wish to take the course on a pass or fail basis. Such students may elect to have a course graded S/NS by paying a $20 fee at the time of registering for the course or until approximately the 8th week of the course. For details on this option please see http://www.washington.edu/students/gencat/front/Grading_Sys.html#NONGRADE.
NOTE: This option is not available for students with GNM status who intend to pursue the MS-CompFin degree. This is because numeric grades are required for courses whose credit is to be applied toward the MS degree.