The big data phenomenon is getting bigger by the minute, and no where is that more apparent than in the Masters in Financial Engineering program at UCLA’s Anderson School of Management. An increase in the big-data jobs has resulted in a surge of 470 applications to the program, up from 266 in 2012. So far, Anderson has accepted 75 applicants and expects 53 to enroll, 13 more than last year.
The one-year specialized course, now in its fifth year, is aimed at students who want jobs in risk management, investment banking, money management, derivative pricing, private equity, hedge funds, and technical operational areas of corporate finance. Increased federal regulation is making financial companies hungry for graduates with strong quantitative skills who can understand risk management, says Hanno Lustig, academic director of the program.
