Branch programme/details

Study program Financial and insurance mathematics provides education concerning the theoretical and practical knowledge of financial and insurance mathematics. On the solid mathematical background one develops mathematical modeling in insurance, banking and other financial institutions. The graduate is capable to construct financial and insurance products and analyze them from the point of view of profit and risk. The graduates of Financial and Insurance Mathematics have education which is necessary to obtain certificate of competence to execute the actuarial practice in the international context.

**Conditions for Admission**

The goal of the admissions review process is to select from the pool of applicants those individuals who have shown the capability and diligence expected of Charles University students. To apply for our Computer Science, Mathematics or Physics Master's programmes given in English you must
• hold or be working towards a Bachelor’s or Master’s diploma and provide a certified copy thereof;
• have sufficient academic background in the relevant fields;
• have sufficient command of the English language; this can be demonstrated by providing your results in one of the standardized English tests that we recognize (see below for details).

**Bachelor’s or Master’s Diploma**

Each applicant into a Master’s programme must deliver an officially authorized copy of a Bachelor’s or Master’s diploma, or a confirmation of a faculty or university concerning a successful completion of Bachelor’s or Master’s studies. This requirement does not apply to students and graduates of Bachelor’s or Master’s studies at the Faculty of Mathematics and Physics of the Charles University.
The applicants who graduated from a higher education institution abroad, must deliver one of the following documents in order to prove their previous education:
• a document about a general recognition of foreign higher education in the Czech Republic obtained according to § 89 and 90 of the higher education law of the Czech Republic (so called "nostrification"), or
• a foreign document about a foreign higher education if it is automatically recognized in the Czech Republic, according to its international agreements, without further official processing (diploma and diploma supplements from Slovakia, Poland, Hungary, Slovenia), or
• a foreign document about completing higher education which will be assessed by the faculty itself (no fee is being charged).
• Detailed information on how the condition of obtaining previous Bachelor’s or Master’s degree should be proven by the alumni of foreign higher education institutions, as well as additional information, may be found on faculty webpages, here: (https://www.mff.cuni.cz/en/students/general-rules/assessment-of-university-degrees-and-studies-for-applicants-to-master-s-and-doctoral-studies). The officially authorized documents must be physically sent to the Study Office of the Faculty of Mathematics and Physics preferably by June 30, 2023, and by September 30, 2023 at the latest. If you do not deliver the document about a completed education, you will be neither accepted nor enrolled for Master’s studies.

In addition to this, depending on the programme for which you are applying, you also must

• have sufficient academic background in the relevant fields (see below for details); this can be demonstrated by providing transcripts (academic records) of your previous education accompanied by syllabi of the completed courses.

**You are also welcome to accompany your application by:**

• a statement of purpose in which you describe your reasons for applying to the proposed programme, your study, and possibly also research interests and future career plans;

• letters of recommendation from professors and employers who can comment on your recent professional accomplishments and your qualifications for pursuing a master’s degree in mathematics, computer science or physics. You should arrange for letters of recommendation to be sent directly by your referees to the email address admission@mff.cuni.cz by May 31, 2023 at latest.

Please ask your referees to state “Recommendation letter for [your name], CS/Math/Physics programme” in the Subject of the email.

**Academic background**

In this paragraph we summarize the minimum knowledge required for applicants in the various study programmes and study branches offered at our faculty.

**Master’s Degree in Mathematics**

You must have sufficient academic background in the relevant fields (see below for details); this can be demonstrated by providing transcripts (academic records) of your previous education accompanied by syllabi of the completed courses.

**Common requirements:** a sound background in linear algebra, real and complex analysis, measure theory, and probability theory.

Study programme **Mathematical Structures:** common requirements + group theory, mathematical logic.

Study programme **Mathematical Analysis:** common requirements + general topology, functional analysis, ordinary and partial differential equations.

Study programme **Computational Mathematics:** common requirements + numerical mathematics, functional analysis, ordinary and partial differential equations.

Study programme **Mathematical Modelling in Physics and Technology:** common requirements + classical mechanics, functional analysis, ordinary and partial differential equations.

Study programme **Probability, Mathematical Statistics and Econometrics:** common requirements + mathematical statistics, Markov chains.

Study programme **Financial and Insurance Mathematics:** common requirements + mathematical statistics, Markov chains, financial mathematics.

Study programme **Mathematics for Information Technologies:** common requirements + commutative and computer algebra, theoretical and applied cryptography.

Academic records demonstrating the necessary background must show the dates of enrolment and the subjects or courses taken, together with the units of credit or time allotted to each subject. These records must also include a complete description of the institution’s grading scale or other standard of evaluation. Unless academic records and diplomas are routinely issued in English by the institution concerned, the official records in their original language must be submitted with an authorized, complete, and exact English translation.

**English Language Proficiency**

An applicant must have an adequate command of English in order to enroll on an English-taught programme at Charles University. Proficiency in English may be demonstrated by one of the standard language tests listed below; any language test results should not be older than two years. Students who have completed at least two years of their previous education with English as the sole language of instruction in Australia, Canada, India, Ireland, Malta, New Zealand, UK, Republic of South Africa or USA are exempt from this requirement. Applicants who provide us with comparable qualifications demonstrating proficiency in English also meet our requirements.

The table below lists the various tests of English that we recognize, and gives the minimum score that should be obtained.

**Test: Minimum Score:**
TOEFL iBT: 85
TOEFL Essentials 9: Pass
TOEIC Listening and Reading: 750
The International English Language Testing System (IELTS): 6.5
Cambridge B2 First (formerly FCE): 180 (Grade A)
Cambridge C1 Advanced (formerly CAE): Pass
Cambridge C2 Proficiency (formerly CPE): Pass
The European Language Certificates (TELC) English C1: Pass
UNIcert English for Mathematicians Level C1: Pass
Duolingo: 105
Michigan English Test (MET): 64
Examination for the Certificate of Proficiency in English (ECPE): Pass
General State Language Examination in English in the Czech Republic: Pass

Admission to Master's studies is conditioned by completed secondary education confirmed by a school-leaving certificate. Admission to Post-Bachelor studies (Master's programme) is likewise conditioned by completed education in any type of study programme.

Verification method:	other form
Confirmation date (of entrance exam) from:		Until:
Alternative date (of entrance exam):

The graduate of study program Financial and Insurance Mathematics has a deep knowledge of basic mathematical disciplines and a special knowledge of probability and mathematical statistics, stochastic processes, mathematical methods in finance, life and nonlife insurance, advanced parts of financial management, risk theory, accounting (including accounting of insurance companies) and modeling of progressive software systems. The graduate is capable to model financial and insurance products and perform their analysis from the point of view of profit and other characteristics which are necessary for effective financial management. The graduates of Financial and Insurance Mathematics have education which is necessary to obtain certificate of competence to execute the actuarial practice in the international context.