Program Design
The MS in Fintech program includes one live online module and six in-person modules that take place at NYU Stern and in rotating global locations.
Blended Learning
Modules are divided into three phases: pre-module, module, and post-module.
Pre-module: Research Phase
This begins 4-6 weeks prior to the in-class teaching session. Students prepare for the module by completing qualitative and quantitative assignments that include readings and cases, tutorials and diagnostics, and exercises and written assessments. Completion of the pre-module material ensures a more rigorous and productive classroom experience. All learning materials will be posted to our online Learning Management System.
Module: Online or In-Person Class Sessions
This will be an intensive, full-time period of rigorous in-class learning to absorb the advanced material and actively collaborate with your peers and faculty. Each module may contain special events, guest speakers, and other opportunities to engage with your MSFT cohort and alumni community. Students are required to attend class during normal business hours each day with some additional evening engagements. Modules 1 and 3-7 will be held in person at NYU Stern and in rotating global locations. Module 2 will be held in a live online module.
Post-module: Application
The post-module is designed as the implementation phase of the module. Students are challenged to apply the material and concepts covered during the pre-module phase and residential period to solidify their learning. Deliverables are in the form of case studies, written assignments, projects, and group work.
Throughout the pre- and post-module phase, students will be part of study groups that encourage collaboration and peer-to-peer learning.
Capstone
The MSFT Capstone is an integrative team project that gives students the opportunity to demonstrate an understanding of the core competencies taught throughout the program and apply them to real business concerns. The result is a unified and practical case presentation on a topic of the group's choosing.
Capstone projects will tackle business problems related to key challenges in fintech. Students will use their understanding of fintech topics woven throughout the curriculum and apply them to projects focused on Ai, fraud detection, operations and payment systems, forecasting models, APIs, smart contracts, and more. Students will bring their diverse skill sets in finance, strategy, product development, and innovation to work on a substantive final capstone project that they present at the end of the year.
Project Framework
- Each group will consist of 4–5 participants from diverse backgrounds, encouraging a broader understanding of the fintech space.
- The project will span the course of the program, enabling participants to enrich their projects with learning from each module.
- The final deliverables for the project consist of a paper and final presentation.
Capstone work runs throughout the duration of the program, starting in Pre-Module 1. Capstone includes deliverables assigned from specific courses, as well as a charter, executive summary, first draft, and final draft. Students will practice presenting Capstone materials at various stages throughout the year leading up to the final presentation in Module 7.
Examples of Past Projects
Fraud Contagion
#FraudPrevention #BlockchainTechnology
The prevalence of fraud in digital banking has led to advances in technology aimed at preventative measures. This project addressed real time fraud detection and prevention, for which the student team prototyped a fraud contagion app using a private permission blockchain ledger to link financial payments across firms.
Banking as a Service
#DigitalBanking #RiskMitigation
With the banking industry becoming increasingly digitized, this project sought to revolutionize the fintech and traditional banking structure through creation of a joint venture between the bank and the fintech firm. BaaS (Banking as a Service) brought the regulators and FinTech’s together and outlined the areas for risk and mitigation.
Democratizing Private Equity
#PrivateEquity #Technology
This project aimed to democratize private equity through the creation of a viable secondary market. The proposed solution lay in the interaction between technology and traditional banking structures in order to bring more investors into private equity.
Data Monetization
#SmartContracts #DataUtilization
This student team focused on building a customer-to-business marketplace for data monetization. Using smart contracts, the project focused on providing consumers the opportunity to control and sell their data with transparency, trust, and verification.
Financial Wellness
#AI #LargeLanguageModeling #Wellness
With the recent trends toward incorporating wellness and AI in business practices, this project sought to develop a holistic wellness chatbot with a focus on financial, physical, and mental health. Underlying the chatbot was an AI framework supported by large language models to prompt, alert, and guide customers towards better wellness.