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Banking and Finance with a Professional Placement Year

Study level:
Undergraduate
Awarded by:
Cardiff University (Prifysgol Caerdydd)

Course summary

From portfolio management to forecasting prices and assessing risk, lessons from economics permeate throughout the banking and financial services sectors. As student on BSc Banking and Finance, you will receive a rigorous training in economics, and will learn to apply its cutting-edge mathematical, statistical and computational tools to financial analyses. Simultaneously, you will develop a critical understanding of the legal, regulatory and ethical frameworks in which financial firms operate.

Formal analysis is, however, only one dimension of the skills you will develop on our programme. The world is a complicated place, and no analysis can hope to account for every eventuality. You will learn to make evidence-based decisions about how to simplify reality to make your analysis meaningful, and to defend your decisions convincingly. You will also learn how to communicate both the complexity and nuance of your analysis to a range of specialist and non-specialist audiences both verbally and in written form.

This programme incorporates a one-year professional placement. Supported by our Placements Team, you will gain real-world workplace experience, seeing first-hand how economics training provides unique, valuable insights to employers and how the skills you are developing equip you for life after university.

As a BSc Banking and Finance graduate, you will be highly sought after in many different occupations because of the uniquely diverse skillset you will develop. Not only do Cardiff graduates go on to have successful careers in leading firms in the financial sector, both in London and elsewhere, but also in a variety of roles across government, accountancy and consultancy. Many more continue their studies at postgraduate level.

Distinctive Features of the Programme

  • Learn from the best: benefit from the expertise of a large, diverse faculty bringing unique insights from their own research into the classroom.

  • State of the art facilities: you will be taught in our 65-terminal trading room throughout your degree, starting in first year.

  • Tailor your studies: all final-year modules are optional so you can choose the ones that best fit your interests and aspirations.

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How to apply

Apply by
29 January

This is the deadline for applications to be completed and sent for this course. If the university or college still has places available you can apply after this date, but your application is not guaranteed to be considered.

Application codes

Course code:
97K6
Institution code:
C15
Campus name:
Main Site - Cardiff
Campus Code:
-

Points of entry

The following entry points are available for this course:

  • Year 1

International applicants

Further information for International applicants can be found at http://www.cardiff.ac.uk/study/international

Open days

Entry requirements

Qualification requirements

UCAS Tariff - Not accepted

A level - AAB - BBB

including Maths.

Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)

DD-DM in a BTEC Diploma in Business and grade B in A-level Maths.

International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme - 34 - 31 points

34-31 overall or 666-665 in 3 HL subjects. Must include grade 6 in HL Maths.

Welsh Baccalaureate - Advanced Skills Challenge Certificate (last awarded Summer 2024)

The Welsh Baccalaureate Skills Challenge Certificate will be accepted in place of one A-level at the A-level grades specified, excluding any subject specific requirements.

Extended Project - A

For applicants taking the EPQ qualification, an A in the EPQ can be recognised to lower the entry requirements by a single grade. For example, an AAB offer would be “AAB from 3 A-levels or ABB from 3 A-levels and a grade A in the EPQ”. Please note that any subject specific requirements must be met.

GCSE/National 4/National 5

You must have or be working towards: - English language or Welsh language at GCSE grade C/4 or an equivalent (such as A-levels). If you require a Student visa, you must ensure your language qualification complies with UKVI requirements. - GCSE Maths grade B/6 or equivalent qualification (subject and grade). If you are taking A-level Maths (or equivalent), GCSE Maths is not required. Core Maths may also be accepted in place of GCSE Maths.

T Level - Not accepted

We do not accept Critical Thinking, General Studies, Citizenship Studies, or other similar equivalent subjects.

We will accept a combination of BTEC subjects, A-levels, and other qualifications, subject to the course specific grade and subject requirements.

Contextual admissions

Universities and colleges consider more than grades when assessing applications and may make offers based on a range of criteria. Learn more about contextual offers.

At Cardiff we welcome applications from people of all backgrounds, as part of this our contextual admissions policy aims to widen participation and improve access to Higher Education (HE).

For more information on Cardiff University contextual admissions, including how applications are scored and how we use that score, please see our website.

Learn more on the Cardiff University website

Historical entry grades data

This section shows the range of grades students were previously accepted with - learn more. It is designed to support your research but does not guarantee whether you will or won't get a place. Admissions teams consider various factors, including interviews, subject requirements, and entrance tests. Check all course entry requirements for eligibility.

Not enough data available

We are unable to show previous accepted grades for this course. This could be because the course is new, it's a postgraduate course, there isn't enough historical data, or the provider has opted out of sharing their entry grades data for this course - learn more.

Fees and funding

Tuition fees

LocationFeeYear
Republic of Ireland£9535Year 1
Channel Islands£9535Year 1
EU£23700Year 1
England£9535Year 1
Northern Ireland£9535Year 1
Scotland£9535Year 1
Wales£9535Year 1
International£23700Year 1

Tuition fee status depends on a number of criteria and varies according to where in the UK you will study. For further guidance on the criteria for home or overseas tuition fees, please refer to the UKCISA website.

Additional fee information

Students from the UK and Islands:

Fees stated are for the 2025/26 academic year. The University reserves the right to increase tuition fees in the second and subsequent years of a course as permitted by law or Welsh Government policy. Where applicable we will notify you of any change in tuition fee by the end of June in the academic year before the one in which the fee will increase.

Fees for entry in subsequent years are subject to increase and will be confirmed by the end of October in the year preceding your start date of your programme, or as soon as possible thereafter.

Tuition fees cover all reasonable costs required for you to complete to the degree programme stated. Please note that you may choose to participate in study trips, associated placements or purchase equipment while studying on your degree programme which will be at your own cost. Tuition fees do not include living costs such as accommodation, subsistence or travel.

Students from the EU, EEA, and Switzerland:

If you are an EU/EEA/Swiss national, unless you qualify for UK fee status, tuition fees for 2025/26 will be in line with the fees charged for international students. You can check whether you are eligible for UK (Home) fee status on the UKCISA website: https://www.ukcisa.org.uk/Information--Advice/Fees-and-Money/Wales-HE-fee-status#layer-6099

Students from the rest of the world (international):

Fees stated are for 2025/26 entry and are fixed for the duration of the programme, excluding Medicine and Dentistry programmes. Please note that during the pre-clinical element of Medicine and Dentistry programmes the fee rate will be fixed, after which the clinical fee rate will be charged. Further details are available on the university website at: http://www.cardiff.ac.uk/study/international/funding-and-fees

Fees for entry in subsequent years are subject to increase and will be confirmed by the end of October in the year preceding your start date of your programme, or as soon as possible thereafter.

Tuition fees cover all reasonable costs required for you to complete the degree programme stated. Please note that you may choose to participate in study trips, associated placements or purchase equipment while studying on your degree programme which will be at your own cost. Tuition fees do not include living costs such as accommodation, subsistence or travel.

Sponsorship information

Cardiff University has many scholarships on offer to our prospective students. Please see our website at http://www.cardiff.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/funding/scholarships for further information.

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