The Saïd Business School and the University of Oxford’s Law Faculty today announced the launch of a new specialty master’s degree program in law and finance. Coming immediately on the heels of a Wall Street Journal article about the rise of specialty master’s degrees programs at top business schools, Oxford’s new degree provides a case in point of sorts. Though geared more toward those with a bakground in law looking to develop a specialty in finance, the trend toward shorter, more focused master’s degree programs is the same.
Called the “Oxford Master’s in Law and Finance,” the new program will begin in October 2010. A full-time nine-month course, the program is designed for students with a background in law who would like to develop an advanced understanding of financial transactions and stay current in the swiftly evolving economic and regulatory landscape.
‘The Oxford Master’s in Law and Finance will act as a launch-pad for a successful career in law, regulation or academic finance,’ Armour explained in a statement. Given the explosive growth in the financial services sector in recent decades, and the ensuing regulation and transactions, understanding corporate finance has become vital to the success of lawyers in the field, he added.
Legal practitioners, financial experts, economists and academics will all take part in the new program, as both students and teachers. Partners in industry will help develop practical case studies for use as part of the course.
“This is a course whose time has arrived,” Professor Tim Jenkinson, head of the finance faculty at Saïd, said in a statement. “The financial crisis showed that understanding of financial products, decisions and their associated risks is required throughout organizations. Those who can combine legal and financial skills will be particularly valuable to businesses, professional practices and regulatory bodies.”
There are 30 places available for the program’s start next October. Admission is open to both new and experienced lawyers as well as to undergraduate and graduate students in related fields. To learn more, click here.
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