• A
  • A
  • A
  • ABC
  • ABC
  • ABC
  • А
  • А
  • А
  • А
  • А
Regular version of the site

How to Manage Finance in a Crisis

Professor Elena Rogova, Dean of the HSE St. Petersburg School of Economics and Management, Academic Director of the ACCA-accredited Master in Finance programme shares her vision on modern education in the area of financial management and building a successfull career in the times of turbulent economy.

As Professor Rogova states, the programme looks forward to enrolling people who have their sights set on an international career, are interested in finance, and able to evaluate risks. These are the people who have the potential to become leading figures in the Russian economy.

The financial expert’s profession is unique in that it is always in demand. Investment experts are in demand during an upturn, and those who are able to find cheap funding and manage risks are also needed in a crisis. Moreover, finance is a truly international field, since, despite particular features of the Russian market, financial managers all over the world use the same tools and speak one language.

That’s why the master’s programme in Finance at HSE St. Petersburg is implemented as a programme aiming at people who will work internationally. Since 2016, the programme has been fully English-taught. It also has ACCA* accreditation, boasts international mobility programmes, and has been accepted onto the IMESS consortium (International Masters in Economy, State and Society) headed by University College London. From 2017 students under this consortium will have an opportunity to gain two degrees, and being part of IMESS means that our students are part of an international educational environment (for  application procedure to IMESS programme please click here).

So, what do we teach? Besides courses in corporate finance, theory of finance, investment and financial analysis that are common features of these programmes, and in addition to advanced courses in econometrics, our programmes focus on risk management, primarily for non-financial companies. Many of our graduates work in risk management departments today, since the tools they learn and the skills they master during internships and while working on their theses are in demand in this sector.

Risk management is not the only area of employment for our graduates. We are proud that they work on serious positions in banks (Central Bank of Russia, Sberbank, St. Petersburg Bank), leading Russian companies (Gazprom, MTS, VimpelCom, Megafon, AVTOVAZ), and international corporations (Nissan, JTI, Heineken, Maersk, DHL). They also start their own businesses.

International students can study in the Master's in Finance programme under regular admission (with tuition fee) or under the Russian State Scholarship (quota). Scholarship applications for 2016 are no longer accepted but it is possible to use this opportunity next year – applications will be accepted until June 30, 2017. Application deadline for tuition-based studies for the coming academic year is August 10, 2016.

The admission to this programme is quite selective and requires great motivation, advanced skills in Math and Economics and high proficiencey in English. In return, our graduates benefit from a widely recognized degree, high rates of employability and inernational student body of this programme that allows for establishing great network of professional contacts around the world for future business and professional career. 


*АССА (the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) is the world’s largest professional accountants’ association. Employment in the Big Four companies is impossible without ACCA certification.

See also:

The ICEF-CInSt Conference as a Platform for International Research Networking

On November 24–25, 2023, the 12th ICEF-CInSt International Finance Conference took place in Moscow. Researchers from Russia, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, the USA, Canada, Italy, and the United Kingdom contributed as speakers and discussants. The organisers and participants of the conference shared their impressions of the event with the HSE News Service.

‘You Can Proudly Call Yourself a Strategic Investor, Not a Speculator’

HSE University’s Online Campus is accepting applications for ‘Master of Finance’, an online programme taught in English at the HSE Banking Institute. The design of the online programme meets the needs not only of current students, but also of working professionals who want to expand their knowledge of financial strategies and learn how to increase their investments and diversify risks.

Researchers in St Petersburg Can Predict Weekly Stock Performance from Media News

Researchers from VTB and HSE University-St Petersburg have come up with an algorithm for predicting stock price fluctuations in the Russian market by analysing financial news. By making financial projections for next week (or month), the novel STTM (Stock Tonal Topic Modelling) algorithm can help investors build more effective financial strategies. The paper has been published in PeerJ Computer Science.

Stock Market Forces Shown to Drive Cryptocurrency Returns

Having examined the impact of various factors on cryptocurrency returns, HSE economists found that fluctuations in cryptocurrency prices can be better explained by equity market risks than by factors specific to the crypto market, suggesting greater linkages between cryptocurrency and equity markets than previously believed. The study is published in a special issue of International Finance Review.

'Conferences Publicly Push Important Research to New Levels'

During his visit to ICEF, Sergey Tsyplakov, a professor in finance at Moore School of Business of the University of South Carolina, delivered a lecture to students and contributed to ICEF-CInSt 11th International Moscow Finance Conference as a keynote speaker. In this interview, Sergey shares what surprised him about ICEF students, why scientific paper reviewing may not always be objective, and why people on Wall Street read academic research.

‘We Have Utilised the Strengths of Two Events’

On October 14, HSE University will host the 11th ICEF-CInSt International Moscow Finance Conference. This year’s event is the result of the joint organisational efforts of the International Laboratory of Financial Economics (LFE ICEF) and the Centre for Institutional Studies (CinSt). Vladimir Sokolov and Maria Semenova, members of the conference's organising committee, spoke to the HSE News Service about the programme and participants of the event.

‘Our Task Is to Preserve the Market Segment as Much as Possible’

What risks is the Russian financial system facing today? What is the Central Bank of Russia going to do to mitigate them? Why do we need a high key rate? Has the regulator changed its approach to the building of forex reserves? Will the regulator remain hawkish on cryptocurrencies? Ksenia Yudaeva, First Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Russia, answered these and other questions during a round table entitled ‘Russia’s Financial Sector under New Global Conditions’. The event was held as part of the XXIII Yasin (April) International Academic Conference.

The Cryptocurrency Market Works Like the Stock Market— Only Much Faster

After analysing the price fluctuations of almost 2,000 cryptocurrencies over seven years, Victoria Dobrynskaya, Associate Professor at the HSE University Faculty of Economic Sciences, found that there are no fundamental differences between their behaviour and that of conventional assets. Cryptocurrency follows the same principles, although its prices change much faster: processes that usually take years on traditional markets take only a month or so on the cryptocurrency market. An article on this research was reprinted by SSRN.

Toys Prove to Be Better Investment Than Gold, Art, and Financial Securities

Unusual ways of investment, such as collecting toys, can generate high returns. For example, secondary market prices of retired LEGO sets grow by 11% annually, which is faster than gold, stocks, and bonds, HSE University economists say. Their paper was published in the Research in International Business and Financejournal.

‘We Can Now Say That the Finance Conference Is Global’

The 10th International Moscow Finance Conference, organized by HSE ICEF, took place on October 29–30 online. Vladimir Sokolov, Head of the International Laboratory of Financial Economics, which hosted the conference, talks about the participants, the key presentation topics and how they will impact the global economy.