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Interested in learning how to leverage mathematical methods to solve financial problems? Maybe you’d like to implement techniques like financial modeling or quantitative analysis to develop new financial products or address financial challenges.
Consider a financial engineering course to boost your knowledge. You will also develop skills to help you work more efficiently.
Featured Courses:
Quick Look: Best Financial Engineering Courses
- Introduction to Financial Modeling for Beginners by Udemy
- Financial Modeling – Derivatives Concepts and Applications (Financial Engineering) by Udemy
- Financial Engineering and Risk Management Part I by Columbia University in the City of New York
- Financial Derivatives: A Quantitative Finance View by Udemy
- Machine Learning for Finance by Udemy
- Financial Engineering and Risk Management Part II by Columbia University in the City of New York
- Excel for Financial Engineering and Loss Reserving (CM2) by Udemy
- Financial Modeling for Business Analysts and Consultants by Udemy
- Building Excel-Based Integrated Financial Models by Udemy
What Makes a Financial Engineering Course Great?
A quick search for financial engineering courses yields many results. How do you know which are best? Keep the following considerations in mind as you review your options.
Concise Content
There are many facets to financial engineering. You want a course that’s structured in a way that’s easy to follow. It should begin with a primer, followed by in-depth lessons that build off one another. Review the syllabus and reviews from past students to get a feel for the flow of the class.
Knowledgeable Instructor
How’s the instructor perceived in the eyes of past and current students? Do the reviews indicate that the instructor has a solid grasp on the material? You want a class that’s led by a knowledgeable instructor that presents the material and demonstrates real-world application through scenarios.
Read the instructor’s bio and check out his or her LinkedIn profile. Does the instructor have credentials that are relevant to financial engineering or similar subjects? What type of experience does the instructor have? Is it in the classroom, in the financial sector or both? These are just a few questions to ponder when gauging instructors’ levels of expertise.
Affordability
Financial engineering courses are available for varying skill levels and price points. Be mindful of the enrollment fees as you evaluate your options. Only consider classes that coincide with your skill level and comfortably fit your budget.
If money’s tight, begin with a free course and work your way up to paid options as you familiarize yourself with the material.
Our Top Picks
We scoured the web for online financial engineering courses and selected our top picks from Coursera and Udemy. Below, you will find our selections categorized by skill level: beginners, intermediate students and advanced students.
We’ve included a description of each class and the price point to help you make an informed decision.
Financial Engineering Courses for Beginners
Start with these courses if you’re new to financial engineering.
1. Introduction to Financial Modeling for Beginners by Udemy
Interested in learning the essentials of financial modeling? Consider this course from Udemy to teach you the basics. You will learn how to develop financial forecast models, decision models and reporting models in Excel.
Introduction to Financial Modeling for Beginners is divided into 7 core components:
- Jumpstart
- Important Finance and Accounting Principles
- Important Excel Features and Techniques
- Building a Financial Forecast Model
- Building a Financial Reporting Model
- Building a Financial Decision-Making Model
- Back of the Envelope
Register today for $104.99. The fee includes full lifetime access to 6 hours of on-demand video, 3 articles and 18 downloadable resources.
The course is co-facilitated by Symon He and Brandon Young. Both are seasoned real estate and analytics professionals.
2. Financial Modeling – Derivatives Concepts and Applications (Financial Engineering) by Udemy
Learn the essentials of derivatives with this introductory course from Udemy. In just 3.5 hours, you will discover how derivatives are priced and built. Professor Matthew Fried, a full-time lecturer at Lander College and SUNY Farmingdale, also demonstrates the implementation of derivatives.
Financial Modeling – Derivatives Concepts and Applications includes 7 segments:
- Introduction to Derivatives, Markets and Market Structure
- Interest Rate Swaps
- Repurchase Agreements
- Currency Engineering
- Alternative Investments
- Options – In Depth
- Derivatives with Excel
A seat in this course is only $29.99. You’ll receive a certificate of completion when you reach the finish line.
3. Financial Engineering and Risk Management Part I by Columbia University in the City of New York
Who it's for: Beginners
Price: Free
Offered by Columbia University in the City of New York, this course is the first installment of the series on financial engineering and risk management. It gives students a behind-the-scenes look at financial engineering and its limitations. You will also learn why financial models should be approached with a level of skepticism.
Financial Engineering and Risk Management Part I is broken down into these sections:
- Introduction to Basic Fixed Income Securities
- Introduction to Derivative Securities
- Option Pricing in the Multi-Period Binomial Model
- Team Structure Models I
- Team Structure Models II and Introduction to Credit Derivatives
- Introduction to Mortgage Mathematics and Mortgage-Backed Securities
- Background Material
There’s no cost to enroll and you will have access to video lectures, readings and quizzes. Expect to spend 16 hours working through the course material.
The class is led by Martin Haugh, co-director of the Center for Financial Engineering and Garud Iyengar, a professor in the industrial engineering and operations research department.
Intermediate Financial Engineering Courses
If you have some experience with financial engineering, these courses may be a good fit.
4. Financial Derivatives: A Quantitative Finance View by Udemy
Led by Cameron Connell, mathematician, statistician and quantitative financier, this intermediate course explores financial derivatives from a quantitative finance perspective. It’s ideal for technical professionals who want to learn more about quantitative finance. Financial professionals who want to sharpen their quantitative finance skills or want to learn how to analyze derivatives will also find this course useful.
Instruction is delivered through 125 lectures segmented into the following categories:
- Fundamentals
- Arbitrage
- Forwards, Futures and Swaps
- Stochastic Processes and Asset Prices
- Options
The $129.99 enrollment fee includes full lifetime access to 25.5 hours of on-demand video, 5 articles and 29 downloadable resources. You’ll also receive a certificate of completion when you finish the course.
You can enroll with confidence knowing that the course is backed by a 30-day money-back guarantee if you’re unsatisfied.
5. Machine Learning for Finance by Udemy
Offered by Packt Publishing, Machine Learning for Finance caters to financial professionals who want to level up their machine learning skills. You will learn how to overcome common challenges with fintech and financial investments.
The course is facilitated by data scientist Aryan Singh and comprised of 7 modules:
- Financial Data Understanding, EDA and Feature Engineering
- Predicting the Forex Currencies by Building a Linear Model
- Tree-Based Machine Learning Techniques for Stock Prediction
- Artificial Neural Networks Basics and Intuition
- Stock Price Prediction by Using Artificial Neural Networks
- Modern Portfolio Theory and Techniques for Portfolio Management
- Predicting Fraud in Financial Transactions by Using ANN classification
Enroll today to unlock 49 lectures condensed into 4.5 hours of on-demand video. The course also comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee.
You should have basic knowledge of finance, machine learning and Python before you register.
6. Financial Engineering and Risk Management Part II by Columbia University in the City of New York
Who it's for: Intermediate students
Price: Free
This course is the second installment of the financial engineering and risk management series from Columbia University in the City of New York. Students learn how to use stochastic models to devise solutions to portfolio optimization problems, price derivatives and more.
Also instructed by Martin Haugh and Garud Iyengar, it entails these segments:
- Mean-Variance Analysis and CAPM
- Practical Issues in Implementing Mean Variance
- Equity Derivatives in Practice: Part I
- Equity Derivatives in Practice: Part II
- Credit Derivatives and Structured Products
- Other Applications of Financial Engineering
- Background Material
Register today to get instant access to 16 hours of online video instruction, readings and quizzes. It’s best to dedicate 16 hours to complete the course.
Advanced Financial Engineering Courses
Individuals with advanced knowledge of financial engineering will find these courses useful.
7. Excel for Financial Engineering and Loss Reserving (CM2) by Udemy
Excel for Financial Engineering and Loss Reserving (CM2) delves into the mechanics of actuarial modeling. You will also learn the essentials of financial market behavior theories, risk measures and how to determine reserves for non-life insurers and price options.
When you register today for $39.99, you will get full lifetime access to 7 lectures condensed into 3.5 hours of on-demand video on Merton Models, Options, Utility Functions, Options and Utility, Binomial Models and Forwards. You will also receive 13 downloadable resources to enhance your comprehension of the material.
Facilitator Michael Jordan is a highly-rated Udemy instructor that’s taught over 6,000 students.
8. Financial Modeling for Business Analysts and Consultants by Udemy
Financial Modeling for Business Analysts and Consultants caters to business analysts, controllers, consultants, business owners and researchers who possess basic economic and finance knowledge. It teaches the essentials of building financial models and overcoming primary challenges during the process.
Instructor Asen Gyczew, an expert in performance improvement, breaks the course down into several sections:
- Modeling of Profit and Loss Account
- Capex and Depreciation
- Working Capital
- Debt
- Equity
- Balance Sheet Modeling
- Cash Flow Modeling
- Analyses of the Financial Model
- Valuation
- Business Modeling
Get started with this course for only $94.99. This fee grants you full lifetime access to 3.5 hours of on-demand video, 1 article and 79 downloadable resources.
9. Building Excel-Based Integrated Financial Models by Udemy
Just $49.99 gets you a seat in this course that teaches the essentials of creating and linking related items in financial statements in Excel. It’s presented by Illumeo Learning, a leading provider of short and practical courses for busy professionals.
Building Excel-Based Integrated Financial Models includes video lectures on income statements and balance and flow statements. You will also receive detailed instructions on closing the loop and error checking.
Sign up today for instant access to 1 hour of on-demand video, 3 articles and 3 downloadable resources.
Choose the Right Financial Engineering Course for You
Whether you’re looking to level up your knowledge or land a promotion, financial engineering courses can lend a helping hand. Choose from several options at varying price points for a fraction of what you’d spend in a distance learning program from a college or university.
Our top recommendations are led by reputable instructors and presented in a format that’s easy to follow. They’re also offered at a price that won’t break the bank so you get the most from your online learning experience.
Southern New Hampshire University Online
SNHU Online Offers:
- Flexible schedules
- Affordable tuition
- Online tutoring
- Access to electronic research materials
- Specialized academic advising
- Supportive online community