World of finance wants Quants: Master the skills with IIM Ahmedabad's Quantitative Finance and Risk Management Programme

Gain advanced knowledge of the main theoretical and applied quantitative finance and risk management concepts used by leading quant professionals globally.

What actuaries are to insurance and engineers to infrastructure, quants are to financial markets—architects of the sophisticated mathematical models that drive modern finance. From optimising trading algorithms to managing risk and predicting market shifts, quantitative professionals are the hidden force behind financial innovation.

Learn quantitative methods and risk analysis skills integral to modern financial engineering with IIM Ahmedabad's Advanced Programme designed for working professionals.

Over the past few decades, the quant revolution has transformed finance from an intuition-led industry into one powered by data, algorithms and computational rigor. Today, with the advent of Artificial Intelligence (AI), machine learning and the explosion of data, quantitative finance is more central than ever for pricing financial derivatives and risk management.

Why Quant skills are in demand

Take a glance at the numbers and it's clear why: According to the Bank of International Settlements, the outstanding positions for exchange-traded derivatives globally as of the fourth quarter of 2024 was US dollar 88 trillion, up by almost 20% from the year before. The outstanding positions for over-the-counter derivatives are even larger at nearly US dollar 600 trillion. Yes, that is in trillions!

While most of this market is concentrated in North America and Europe, many of the banks from those regions have their in-house research centers and KPOs in India and demand for Indian professionals trained in quantitative finance and risk management has been on the rise in the last decade. For example, the demand for data scientists and analytics professionals has surged by 45% in the past year.

However, with these opportunities come challenges: the competition for top quant talent is more intense than ever, making the search for skilled professionals incredibly competitive.

Master the core theories and practical tools of quantitative finance and risk management trusted by top professionals worldwide.

A launchpad for Quant excellence

To meet this growing need, IIM Ahmedabad's Advanced Programme in Quantitative Finance and Risk Management (APQFRM) offers an industry-relevant, application-driven curriculum designed to build high-impact professionals for today's data-centric financial ecosystem.

Participants in this 6-7 month-long course will be trained in cutting-edge techniques. The programme has four modules on mathematical foundations and programming, option pricing theory and computational finance, machine learning for financial applications and risk management.

Develop industry-relevant skills with IIMA's Advanced Programme in Quantitative Finance & Risk Management. Enquire Now

Such expertise can lead to new career opportunities across various sectors, including option trading and option pricing, quantitative trading and machine learning and risk management. The participants would be able to work in a variety of markets and settings requiring expertise in the pricing of equity derivatives, foreign currency derivatives and interest rate derivatives, as well as roles in market risk analytics, credit risk analytics and model validation.

Foundations of quantitative finance

When it comes to quantitative finance, starting with a solid foundation is essential. Participants begin with the core principles of financial markets and instruments, including no-arbitrage pricing, forwards, futures, and options. The programme also reinforces basic mathematical tools, including calculus, linear algebra, and probability theory. Also, it introduces relevant advanced topics in stochastic processes and stochastic calculus, including Brownian motion and Ito's Lemma.

 

Unlock advanced knowledge in global quantitative finance and risk management, just like the experts leading the field.

Mastering the Black-Scholes model and beyond

The publication of the famous Black-Scholes option pricing formula in the 1970s was the driving force unleashing the power of mathematics and quantitative techniques in the world of finance. After building the mathematical foundations in the first module, the second module will get into the nuts and bolts of the Black-Scholes option pricing model. This would include learning different ways to derive the Black-Scholes formula, the important Greeks and its extensions including the famous Dupire and Derman-Kani local volatility models and the popular Heston stochastic volatility model and its variants.

The second module ends with a discussion of the pricing of structured products in foreign exchange markets and an understanding of the Heath-Jarrow-Morton framework and the LIBOR market model.

Develop industry-relevant skills with IIMA's Advanced Programme in Quantitative Finance & Risk Management Enquire Now

Machine learning in finance

Machine learning is revolutionising the finance industry. Participants in this programme will gain hands-on exposure to tools that allow the use of machine learning techniques for applications in pattern recognition and trading. In this module, participants will learn about the PAC learning framework, support vector machines, neural network reinforcement learning and LASSO. These methods equip participants to build predictive models for a variety of applications in quantitative finance.

Advanced Risk Management

Risk management is a crucial aspect of quantitative finance and the programme covers the advanced topics that participants need to master in this field for roles in market risk analytics and credit risk analytics. After the Global Financial Crisis of 2008, today, all banks are required to meet the Basel norms for risk assessment agreed upon by all members of the G-20, including India.

In this module, the participants will learn the theory and implementation of tail risk measures for market risk, including Value at Risk (VaR) and Conditional Value at Risk (CvaR), as well as important measures for credit risk analytics, including the Merton model, the Moody’s-KMV approach as well as Expected Tail Loss. The fourth module ends with a discussion of the model risk management framework and the issues associated with backtesting, stress testing and estimation of CVA/DVA for derivatives.

Designed for working professionals

Delivered in a blended format—with live online sessions on Saturdays, facilitated by service provider VCNow, and two immersive campus modules at IIM Ahmedabad—the programme allows professionals to upskill without compromising their work commitments.

Why choose this programme?

This programme stands out due to its institutional pedigree as India's premier management institute, career relevance in quant trading, asset management, financial engineering and risk management, skill depth bridging theory and practice across finance, risk control and technology, and practical focus on real-world tools, techniques and frameworks used by leading quant professionals globally.

Build your edge in a competitive field

The world of quantitative finance is complex and the most successful quants understand that it requires a unique combination of skills. As Emanuel Derman, writer and author of ‘My Life as a Quant, puts it, "A good quant must be a mixture, too—part trader, part salesperson, part programmer, and part mathematician."

If you aspire to join the ranks of these multifaceted professionals, the Advanced Programme in Quantitative Finance and Risk Management at IIM Ahmedabad is the perfect place to start. Gain the skills, insights and network needed to lead in one of the most exciting and rewarding frontiers of modern finance.

To learn more about the programme, eligibility requirements and admission process, visit the programme's website.

Disclaimer: This article has been written in collaboration with VCNow.