Applied Finance – The Golden Ticket to a Career in Finance
Posted by: Dr. S Vinoth | Applied Finance
In India, the employability index showed a minor improvement from last year, rising to 38.12% from 37.22%. Specifically look about Finance roles in India increasing more in various sectors. Secondary Sector in India wants more efficient finance person to manage the money of their enterprise. Finance is an area consists of Economics, Management, Consulting, Advising, Mathematics etc. The need for a person with Finance skill is increasing tremendous in various Indian industries. But the same time, there will be scarcity in skilled finance professionals. The scarcity numbers also increasing year by year because of less practical knowledge among the professionals. Indian MBA institutions mostly complied their curriculum on the base of concepts (textbook based). Less amount of practical aspects covered in the curriculum is the major reason for unavailability of the skilled professionals. In 2015, India had 4500 B-Schools was come down to 3900 in 2017. The decline numbers indicating that the B-Schools have to innovate some other approach in curriculum development and teaching. The one of the innovative content development focused on finance to replace the traditional finance is applied finance.
What is Applied Finance?
Applied Finance is a field of study in business-related models with the quality structure of methods and applications of identifying and solving issues in finances. Under applied finance students learning and practicing in the industrial aspects of the practical approach. Applied finance is an area student will understand more about Sectors, Industry financial aspects, and financial statements, Financial Markets, Capital Markets, Regulators and other stakeholders. Providing practical knowledge is the primary objective of Applied Finance. Under applied finance, the courses were designed based on the current industry requirement. Instead of teaching concepts alone, the real world scenarios, application, analysis and decision-making aspects are the major add-on. Students can learn perfectly industry/company analysis, how to do it, where it is suitable, how it can be the exhibit and why he/she was using that.
Difference between Traditional Finance and Applied Finance
Traditional finance is a board area of study with more conceptual aspects. Traditional finance cover theoretically based finance courses on subjects like corporate finance, financial accounting, and financial markets. With this conceptual knowledge alone the takeover or to meet the industry requirement by the students was so difficult. But applied finance provide more avenues for students to practically apply the financial theory in conjunction with the industry so that students gain real-world experience. An applied finance graduate’s quantitative problem solving and critical thinking abilities, combined with interpersonal skills, make them an intelligent choice for many employers. Applied Finance programs generally provide more paths for students to practically learn and apply the financial theory.
Applied Finance is both a science and an art
Applied Finance discusses finance and its linkage with other functions as applied to corporate and financial institutions. Applied Finance aims to provide cutting-edge knowledge in the frontiers of finance using the latest pedagogy to develop brilliant finance minds. The Program is designed to provide training in the techniques and nuances in finance expected of a successful professional in the corporate sector, banks, and financial institutions. The Program would be equally relevant for professionals working (or planning to work) as broking/security analyst, consultants, and chartered/cost accountants.
Concentration Areas in Applied Finance
The popular concentration areas within applied finance degree programs are Corporates, financial institutions, investments, capital markets, commodity market, bond market, banking, insurance and financial management. Under applied finance, the various practical programs offered by various b-schools: Financial Accounting, Financial reporting and analysis, Economics, Quantitative Techniques, MS Excel, Financial Management, Corporate Finance, Equity Valuation, Financial Modeling, and Fixed Income Analysis.
Jobs in Applied Finance
Employment options for applied finance students were more considerable. The employers also prefer to take to skilled professionals to work with them and to give immediate solutions. The courses are extensive enough that students can gain expertise in a variety of finance areas which widens their employment options considerably. Also, the practical application of the financial subjects are often done in conjunction with industry so that students gain real world experience and feedback that can shape their career interests and help narrow down their choices for future employment.
There are plenty of job options available for a MBA Applied finance student. Lot of entry level jobs available for Finance graduates and also student also have good career in the field of finance. The following are the list of few options: (i). KPO’s – All the KPO’s have several opening roles for Finance graduates in Accounts Reconciliation department, F & A Department, Audit, Tax and Other departments too. (ii). Broking Firms – Share broking firms have several openings like Advisor, Analyst, Consultant etc. (iii). Other Industry – The Industries like Automobile, Aviation, Pharma, and Infrastructure etc. also need Financial Analysts, Equity Valuation Analyst and professional to manage the organization.
Applied Finance graduates are in demand across a range of industries such as consulting, corporate finance, financial planning, financial risk management, funds management, insurance, and investment banking. Major employers include firms such as Deloitte, Ernst & Young, KPMG and PricewaterhouseCoopers, J. P. Morgan Chase & Co., Hewlett Packard, Citibank and General Electric investment banks such UBS and Macquarie Group, private equity firms, and superannuation fund managers. In India, an MBA in Applied Finance professionals can start their career as an Analyst in KPO with command packages starting from Rs.3 lakh a year, Financial analysts earn about Rs. 4 lakh a year at the start, credit analysts Rs. 5-6 lakh at the start to Rs. 20-30 lakh in senior-level posts, and management consultants Rs. 5-8 lakh and, in a few years, Rs. 10-15 lakh.