Master of Science in International Financial Analysis

Etudiants des masters spécialisées inseec avec tuteur et intervenant
MSc
Bachelor degree or higher
September, February
Initial training, Apprenticeship
Bordeaux, Paris, Lyon
French
Home » Programs and Training » Master of Science in International Financial Analysis

The Financial Analyst must follow the changes in the markets

Fabien HESS

program director

The MSc International Financial Analysis course

The educational content of the program is designed to provide participants with the technical and professional skills necessary to practice financial analysis. An analyst is eager to collect and interpret the company’s data. For this reason, financial analysts are in great demand, whether they specialise in a particular sector of activity or a geographical area.

The students follow a technical training aimed at giving them the mastery of the collection and analysis of financial, social and economic data of the markets on which they will be specialized. They are trained to work mainly in banks or investment companies.

Students from the Lyon campus working in groups

A 1 or 2 year degree to become an expert in Financial Analysis

Holders of a 3-year bachelor degree can apply for the first year of the MSc, and holders of a 4-year bachelor degree can apply directly for the second year of the MSc.

The objective of this programme is to enable students to acquire a high level of expertise in the field of corporate finance in general and financial analysis in particular. The programme is based on an in-depth study of financial, accounting and legal techniques, enabling them to acquire the solid knowledge required for the following professions: credit analyst, financial analyst, asset manager, customer relations manager. The course also prepares students for a number of diplomas and/or professional certifications (AMF Certification, Bloomberg).

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The Courses

The courses presented below are given as an example, they may vary slightly depending on the teaching campus. The course content is adapted each year to market developments and updated before the start of each new school year.

1st year courses

PROFESSIONAL METHODS AND PRACTICES – 1ST YEAR

Business Game

The business game is played using a business simulator. Groups of students are responsible for running a business in real time. All major business functions are covered. Students will make decisions to maximize the profitability of the business.

Professional Technical Workshops and Personal Management

  • CV writing, recruitment interview techniques for the search for an internship, professional project management, team management and meeting management.
  • Negotiation techniques, transactional analysis and NLP, speaking and stage fright management, management and leadership techniques (PRADITUS).
  • Skills assessment, coaching, digitization of the CV and job search techniques at national and international level, preparation for the oral presentation of the applied research thesis.

Business Conferences

Presentation of the professions in the sector by professionals.

CORE AND FUNDAMENTAL COURSES

Budget management and dashboards

The objective is to acquire key skills in terms of budget management and reporting. The focus will be on budget architecture, with the implementation of summary documents, project management control and its link with budget management, and the creation and steering of performance indicators.

Business Plan and Business Creation

The objective of this module is to learn how to draw up a business plan: Designing a costed project for the creation or development of a company.

Several steps are covered: feasibility study, market targeting, opportunities and risks, strengths and weaknesses, communication, financing plan and profitability.

Business strategy

A precise methodology for analyzing customer needs, market structure and competitor dynamics to identify opportunities and threats in the environment is presented.

Negociation

This seminar focuses on a negotiation in a national and international context.

In particular, it will be necessary to take into account the cultural dimension and define its impact in an international negotiation. The national negotiation will focus on the sales process through role playing.

English

To perfect English language comprehension and communication skills in a wider context than just business English. Depending on the campus, students are required to take the TOEIC test.

Management Information Systems

This module aims to deepen students’ skills in IT to meet the needs of companies in terms of budgetary or commercial monitoring, project management, personnel management and communication: Excel, Word, Powerpoint, teamwork tools, business software.

It aims to be efficient with office automation tools, identify and correct errors quickly, customize existing tools or create your own tools.

Business game

The business game is played using a business simulator. Groups of students are responsible for running a business in real time. All major business functions are covered. Students will make decisions to maximize the profitability of the business.

Business Skills

What makes a successful business person?

Internal and external communication skill; managing your priorities and deadlines; organization and time management skills; how to be a great listener, writer and speaker; effective sales techniques; effective group dynamics and project management skills; understanding international business culture.

SPECIALIZED COURSES

Accounting Fundamentals

The knowledge acquired during this module will enable you to master the accounting system as well as the elements that make up the balance sheet and the income statement. The key concepts are the formation of the result, the fixed assets, the current operations (VAT), the reductions, the personnel expenses, the stocks or the loans. The course will be based on case studies to facilitate understanding through a mixed theory and practice approach.

Management control and activity piloting

The objective of this course is to know how to apply the fundamentals of management control in a professional context of activity management. The teaching will be based on practical cases of company creation in various structures (bank agency, profit center). A focus will be made on the implementation of performance management tools through management control. Students will be able to create and interpret a dashboard, financial indicators and understand strategic decision-making based on reporting tools.

Audit and statutory auditors

The objective of this module is to make learners aware of the importance of the opinion and the public interest mission of the auditors. The focus will be on the differentiation between internal control and internal audit. The learner will be able to complete a risk table from audit tests, understand the concept of materiality, measure the importance of evidence in conclusions, and distinguish between management and auditor responsibility. The module will favour an approach based on case studies, in particular by studying the diagnosis of risks (case of expense accounts).

In-depth accounting

The course covers a presentation of the accounting logic and its regulatory framework. It is structured around the main cycles of operations that affect the life of a company: incorporation, acquisition of assets and the creation of liabilities. At the end of this module, the learner will be able to understand the accounting entries related to the main events affecting the life of the company and interpret the accounting statements produced by the company.

Financial analysis

The final objective of this module is to introduce learners to the financial analysis of a company. The financial analysis will focus on the analysis of the activity (control of the intermediate balance of management (SIG), of the self-financing capacity (CAF)). But also in the analysis of the financial structure (top balance sheet operations, operations, cash flow, complements).

International Financial Statements

The objective is to understand the different types of management in order to manage one’s team efficiently. The management takes into account the management of commercial objectives while guaranteeing the motivation of the team and promoting cohesion. The identification of conflict risks within the team through an approach that takes into consideration the types of profiles and expectations of the collaborators is addressed in this module. This course integrates various positive management scenarios and emphasizes the notion of leadership in comparison to that of management.

Business law

Definition of business law. The concept of contract. The different types of obligation: obligation of means and obligation of result. The concept of legal personality, the functioning of the SARL, the SA and the SNC. Criteria for choosing a business form. The role and powers of the control and management bodies. The principles and the fields of application of the tax, the tax optimization in a group. International taxation. VAT: principles and mechanisms. Special VAT regimes. The territoriality of VAT: the rules of the territoriality of VAT, the deliveries of movable goods, the supply of services. The VAT due: the VAT base and its calculation.

Corporate Finance 

The objective of the course is to allow the student to acquire the first reflexes of a financial analysis by having a global vision of the company through the study and the analysis of the main existing financial documents (balance sheet and income statement). This work will be based on the analysis of the internal legal structure and its impact on the evolution of the company. Emphasis will also be placed on the ability to determine the profitability of an investment and on techniques for valuing a company.

Market Finance

The objective of this module is to better understand the organization and functioning of the different segments of the capital markets as well as the characteristics and functioning of the main financial assets issued and traded on the markets. It is also about knowing how to manage a portfolio of fictitious financial assets. Here are the points that will be studied in class: the organization of the markets (typology, actors, regulatory authorities), the debt markets (money market, bond market), the equity markets (characteristics and typology of equities, operation, management of an equity portfolio), and the derivative markets (futures, options, swaps).

Corporate taxation

The objective of the course is to know how to master the tax regulation by discovering the functioning of the main taxes and duties concerning companies. Concepts such as income tax, registration fees, real estate wealth tax, corporate tax and VAT will be covered during this module. At the end of the course, the learner should be able to calculate the various taxes and duties affecting companies.

2nd year courses

PROFESSIONAL METHODS AND PRACTICES – 2ND YEAR

Professional technical workshops and personal management

CV writing, recruitment interview techniques for the search for an internship, professional project management, team management and meeting management.

Negotiation techniques, transactional analysis and NLP, speaking and stage fright management, management and leadership techniques (PRADITUS)

Skills assessment, coaching, digitization of the CV and job search techniques at national and international level, preparation for the defence of the applied research thesis.

LinkedIn workshops.

Right

Company and structural law

Understanding the functioning of companies and the responsibility of the manager from a legal perspective will be the core of this module. The fundamentals of company law will be studied so that learners can identify the legal nature of a company (commercial, civil, personal, capital). From this point of view, the legal personality, the conditions of formation and constitution of a company and the company organization will be addressed in this module. Finally, the different responsibilities of the manager will be analyzed (civil, criminal) in order to understand the legal consequences of erroneous decisions.

Contract law & corporate legal environment

The mastery of the contractual standard and the related legal vocabulary will allow financial managers to evaluate and anticipate the legal risks related to the exercise of their activity. The module will address the modalities of contract formation (conclusion) and contract performance. Various forms of contracts will be analysed, such as contracts involving the transfer of ownership, contracts involving the transfer of use, and service contracts (business, mandate, deposit). Liability regimes will be discussed as well as contracts for dispute resolution.

Financing law

This course will develop the diversity of the sources of financing within a company (increase or reduction of capital, current accounts of associates, APE, etc.) as well as the legal and fiscal rules specific to each operation. The module will focus on the problems of restructuring (mergers, demergers, partial contributions of assets) as well as on the transfer of companies (transfer of shares and businesses). At the end of this course, the learner will know the different aspects of the law of financing by equity, debt, quasi-equity, receivables financing, etc.

Merger acquisition

Strategies for external growth, critical mass and synergies. The legitimacy and motivation for mergers. Strategic, financial and organizational analysis of mergers. The legal and fiscal framework of mergers, acquisitions and partial contributions of assets. The means of defence against hostile takeovers. The accounting and tax implications of mergers.

Governance, CSR and financial communications

Through the practical study of a few cases, this module addresses the issues of governance and corporate social responsibility (CSR) for companies of all sizes. In this context, mastering the company’s financial communication is of strategic importance. The finance department must develop reporting documents and visual elements to present financial data in a way that is adapted to the target audience (managers, shareholders, employees, customers, etc.). This lesson will show the existing interactions between CSR and financial communication with the implementation of internal financial reporting.

Accounting & Financial Analysis

Financial analysis of consolidated financial statements

The analysis of the consolidated financial statements allows for the diagnosis of the financial situation of a group based on the determination of its strengths and weaknesses: study of profitability, risks and quality of management. In this perspective, the learner will produce, from simple cases, the consolidated balance sheet and income statement of a company. It will be able to determine the method and scope of consolidation and the level of control. The mastery of IFRS standards within the financial statements will be particularly developed (balance sheet, income statement, cash flow statement, statement of changes in equity).

  

Valuation of intangible assets

Asset-based and goodwill methods. DCF-based methods. Analogical methods. Special case: the case of start-ups.

Business valuation and sale

This course will present the main methods of business valuation: asset-based method, mixed method (CPNE and discounted goodwill), analogical method, discounted free cash flow method. At the end of the course, the learner must be able, according to the circumstances of the company studied, to criticize the various possible methods of evaluation in order to implement the most relevant one. The particular case of the evaluation of a startup will be discussed.

International accounting standards

This module is designed to familiarize participants with international accounting standards by giving them a first approach to US GAAP and IFRS (international financial reporting standards). The objective of this course is to familiarize students with the main differences between Anglo-Saxon standards (US GAAP and IFRS) and French standards, as well as to identify the scope of application (legal and conventional criteria) and the practical applications of these standards in the daily activities of French companies.

Financing technique

Real estate finance and valuation of intangible assets

Intangible assets, as levers of a company’s performance, must be evaluated. The module will detail the classification and characteristics of assets (human capital, R&D, patents, software and organizational processes, etc.) and the different strategies (development policy or protection). The module will also deal with the different qualitative and quantitative approaches (WACC, CFE, etc.) and will address the concepts related to valuation.

Bank-company relations and financing techniques

In this course, participants will study how to understand a company’s financial structure and analyze its working capital requirements (WCR). The latter is an indicator that makes it possible to evaluate the financing needs of a company by taking into consideration the gap between current assets and liabilities. On this basis, students will be able to make the link between a company’s working capital and the various short-term financing solutions, but also to make the link between a financing plan and the various medium- and long-term bank loans (form, duration, guarantee, etc.).

Investment financing and private equity

The choice of financing method is of strategic importance for a company to ensure its development and to perpetuate its activity. To this end, this module will present the financing solutions available to the mature company and the start-up such as equity financing or fundraising. In order to facilitate this strategic decision, the speaker will detail the issues, characteristics and consequences of each financing. The following concepts will be covered: capital increase, dilution, DPS, etc.

Financial markets and corporate treasury

The knowledge of the different techniques of financing, investing and hedging the risks of companies on the markets will be a major element of this teaching. Participants will learn how to calculate the issue price of a marketable debt security, the market price of a bond and its sensitivity and rates of return on a bond investment. They will also have to understand the notice of a bond issue as well as the impact of the different techniques of hedging interest rate and exchange rate risk while knowing how to read a bond quote.

Financial engineering and leveraged buyouts (LBOs)

The aim of this course is to introduce students to a case of financial engineering through an LBO set-up involving cross-disciplinary skills (financial, legal and tax). The LBO, leveraged buy-out, is a financing of acquisition by debt.

At the end of this module, students should be able to master the constitution of a 5-year financial business plan in order to carry out an LBO via a holding company by proposing financing and validating it by calculating the financial covenants.

The challenge is to understand the role of financial engineering in the strategic operations of companies.

Collective management

This course focuses on capital management and will introduce the rules of collective portfolio management so that learners will be able to build an asset allocation and a diversified portfolio according to good asset management practices. They will also be required to interpret data, the composition of a fund and its integration into a portfolio. The sessions will include technical elements and concepts such as: financial markets, money and bond markets, equity markets, volatility/meta/var, mutual funds, discretionary management, derivatives, etc.

Projects, internships and career paths

Business project

Solving a company case or a professional application leading to a presentation in front of the company and the teaching team.

The course content is adapted each year and updated before the start of the new school year


2 start dates per year and various rhythms of studies

There are two openings per year,in February/March and September/October. To check the opening of each intake, contact the admissions department directly.

The rhythm of the courses may differ depending on the campus and whether the training is carried out under an internship agreement (initial) or a professionalization/apprenticeship contract (continuing).

The work-study contract must be signed for a period of 12 months (MSc 2), 24 months (MSc1 + MSc 2) or 18 months for the staggered start of March (continuation of studies in MSc2).

Students posing in the city

Career opportunities after an MSc in International Financial Analysis

  • Credit Analyst
  • Asset Manager
  • Financial Analyst
  • Fund Manager
  • Financial Expert
  • Investment Advisor
  • Expert in Risk Management
  • Head of Financial Communication
  • Compliance Manager
  • Financial Management

What business skills are developed?

The objectives in terms of skills are to be able to:

  • Analyze strategic company data
  • Control and manage the company’s activity
  • Ensure the sustainability of the company’s activity
  • Making financial recommendations and mastering communication

This program delivers the title of ” Expert in financial analysis ” level 7 (EU) registered in the RNCP (National Directory of Professional Certifications) under the code NSF 312.

The certification is obtained by capitalisation of all the blocks of skills.

For more details, please consult the online repository: https: //www.certificationprofessionnelle.fr/recherche/rncp/35007

Programme available on the Paris, Bordeaux, Chambéry and Lyon campuses.

What are the teaching methods?

Teaching methods

  • Lectures and interactive courses
  • Situational exercises through collective or individual case studies carried out by the students
  • Conferences, seminars and educational visits

Evaluation methods

  • Individual or group case studies
  • Individual and group oral presentations
  • Individual and group files

Methods and tools

  • The evaluation methods are face-to-face, in the form of continuous assessment or final exams in the form of mid-term exams.

What is the 2024/2025 tuition to enter the program?

Initial training:

  • MSc1 : 11 400 €  
  • MSc2 : 12 950 €  
  • MSc1 + MSc2 : 24 350 €

Continuing education (sandwich course) :

  • 24 months : 22 850 € HT  
  • MSc2 :  13 650 € HT 

VAE/VAP :

  • VAE : 4 200€ HT
  • VAP : 850 € HT

International Student Pack: Mandatory fee of 490€ for exclusive support services for international students.

What kind of financial aid is available?

INSEEC offers several financial aid schemes:

Key figures for the MSc International Financial Analysis course

90%

Overall satisfaction with training – Class of 2019

95%

Success rate – Class of 2019

87%

Employability rate – Class 2019

81%

CDI rate at 6 months – Class 2019

Disabilities

The OMNES Education Group pays particular attention to the societal environment, including the disability dimension. Indeed, we believe that students with disabilities should not have any problems in pursuing their studies and starting a professional career. We accompany them to facilitate their access to the premises, offer them personalized advice as well as adapted accommodations throughout their school career.

Accessibility of premises: all our campuses are accessible to people with disabilities.

To learn more about INSEEC’s disability policy, click here.


Contacts for disability referents by campus:
Bordeaux : Maxime DOUENS – mdouens@inseec.com
Lyon : Anissa GASMI – agasmi@inseec.com

Rennes : Laura LE CALVEZ – llecalvez@omneseducation.com
Paris : Farid HAMAD – fhamad@inseec.com
Chambéry : Clément BERTACCO – cbertacco@inseec.com


News

Updated 21 February 2024