Postgraduate Course: Dissertation (MSc Finance and Investment) (CMSE11683)
Course Outline
| School | Business School |
College | College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate) |
| Course type | Dissertation |
Availability | Not available to visiting students |
| SCQF Credits | 50 |
ECTS Credits | 25 |
| Summary | The Business School MSc Dissertation is undertaken in the spring and summer period following Semester 2. Undertaking the Dissertation requires the student to develop a deep level of analysis and understanding of the theory and processes of organisations and the business environment through the completion of a piece of individual research. |
| Course description |
The Dissertation aims to make a study in depth of a topic in which the student is particularly interested in within the field of finance. It allows the student to gain experience of planning, designing, executing and reporting a significant piece of individual research. Experience is also gained in the processes involved in research, such as obtaining information from people, securing their co-operation, analysing and evaluating data, framing recommendations, and other methods of field study and data collection. Students learn how to communicate complex ideas and information in a coherent and structured manner.
Outline content
1. Choose a relevant and interested topic
2. Conduct thorough research
3. Develop and define a research question
4. Design research methodology
5. Conduct empirical analysis
6. Summarise and write a draft (post-lecture)
Student Learning Experience
The Dissertation provides the opportunity for students to engage in a research project and, in particular, the ability to study a specific topic and question, identify the issues and how they may be researched, collect and validate appropriate data, organise and discuss the findings, their reliability and validity and present results in a logical and clear manner.
The Dissertation integrates elements from the course of study and requires students to identify and define a research topic, conduct the research and write it up in a Dissertation format. This is all within a predetermined time frame, which from start to finish lasts approximately 3 months (May through August for 12-month students).
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
Course Delivery Information
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| Academic year 2025/26, Not available to visiting students (SS1)
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Quota: None |
| Course Start |
Block 5 (Sem 2) and beyond |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
500
(
Lecture Hours 16,
Seminar/Tutorial Hours 8,
Dissertation/Project Supervision Hours 3,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 10,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
463 )
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| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
0 %,
Coursework
100 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
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| Additional Information (Assessment) |
10000 word dissertation.
The grading of the Dissertation follows the University's Postgraduate Common Marking Scheme. The Dissertation should be able to demonstrate technical understanding and be able to integrate knowledge in order to apply it to a research question. |
| Feedback |
Formative: The Course Organiser (CO) will provide guidance throughout the entire dissertation process. While formative feedback is offered, the academic quality of the dissertation remains the students responsibility.
Feedback will be given during the teaching phase, where group activities facilitate discussions on individual research topics and proposals. During the writing stage, students must maintain regular contact with their advisor, who may be the Course Organiser or another assigned faculty member.
Advisors will offer approximately three hours of support through face-to-face meetings, phone or Skype calls, and email communication. Additionally, the advisor will provide written feedback on up to two chapters of the dissertation.
Summative: The final mark for the Dissertation will be available after the final Board of Examiners in October. Individual summative feedback on the Dissertation will be available usually by the end of October. |
| No Exam Information |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- Study in depth a topic within the field of business studies.
- Plan, design, execute and report a significant piece of individual research.
- Apply the processes involved in research, such as obtaining information from people, securing their co-operation, analysing and evaluating data, framing recommendations, and other methods of field study and data collection.
- Communicate, via a report, complex ideas and information in a coherent and structured manner.
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Reading List
Principles of Corporate finance by Brealey, Myers, Allen and Edmans, 14th edition.
Econometric Analysis of Cross Section and Panel Data, by Jeffery Wooldridge, MIT Press, 2nd edition.
Investments and portfolio management, by Bodie, Zvi, Kane, Alex, and Marcus, Alan J. (2017), McGraw-Hill.
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Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Practice: Applied Knowledge, Skills and Understanding
After completing this course, students should be able to:
Work with a variety of organisations, their stakeholders, and the communities they serve - learning from them, and aiding them to achieve responsible, sustainable and enterprising solutions to complex problems.
Communication, ICT, and Numeracy Skills
After completing this course, students should be able to:
Convey meaning and message through a wide range of communication tools, including digital technology and social media; to understand how to use these tools to communicate in ways that sustain positive and responsible relationships.
Critically evaluate and present digital and other sources, research methods, data and information; discern their limitations, accuracy, validity, reliability and suitability; and apply responsibly in a wide variety of organisational contexts.
Cognitive Skills
After completing this course, students should be able to:
Be self-motivated; curious; show initiative; set, achieve and surpass goals; as well as demonstrating adaptability, capable of handling complexity and ambiguity, with a willingness to learn; as well as being able to
demonstrate the use digital and other tools to carry out tasks effectively, productively, and with attention to quality.
Knowledge and Understanding
After completing this course, students should be able to:
Demonstrate a thorough knowledge and understanding of contemporary organisational disciplines; comprehend the role of business within the contemporary world; and critically evaluate and synthesise primary
and secondary research and sources of evidence in order to make, and present, well informed and transparent organisation-related decisions, which have a positive global impact.
Identify, define and analyse theoretical and applied business and management problems, and develop approaches, informed by an understanding of appropriate quantitative and/or qualitative techniques, to explore and solve them responsibly. |
| Keywords | Finance Dissertation |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Huacheng Zhang
Tel:
Email: hzhang6@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | |
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