​​​​A new postgraduate degree that addresses South Africa’s current demand for Quantitative Analysts and Risk Managers in the financial sector will be offered from 2015 at the the University of Johannesburg (UJ).

UJ’s Department of Finance and Investment Management’s (DFIM) BCom Honours in Quantitative Finance degree will equip students with the necessary skill set to tackle financial and risk management problems and solve them.

Prof Coenraad Labuschagne of the DFIM UJ says: “Quantitative Finance, which is a scarce skill, explores problems in Finance using Empirical, Mathematical and Statistical methods. Locally, there are not many universities that offer these programmes, yet there are many Quantitative Analysts and Risk Managers needed in the financial sector. With the development of financial markets in Africa there is a huge scope for Quantitative Analysts and Risk Managers to educate students in Africa and to assist with the development of financial markets, involvement of stock exchanges, banks and insurance companies.”

Prof Labuschagne pointed out that many banks have international offices and therefore many new graduates receive further training overseas by their new employers, adding that many of them will also find employment overseas.

The lecturers and moderators who are practitioners in the market, have years’ worth of experience in the fields of quantitative finance, investment and risk management, are in touch and up-to-date with the latest developments and thinking in the field.

Prospective students can apply for UJ’s BCom Honours in Quantitative Finance degree online by visiting www.uj.ac.za or contacting Ms Erna Zeelie at 011 559 4731 or email ezeelie@uj.ac.za. ​

The BCom Honours in Quantitative Finance degree will officially be launched at the Saxon Convention Lounge at the Saxon Hotel, 36 Saxon Road, Sandhust, Johannesburg on Thursday, 30 October 2014. The launch is scheduled to start at 8am.​