The Master's

Providing up-to-date, sound and advanced financial, actuarial and statistical skills, the Master of Financial and Actuarial Engineering curriculum offers an intensive advanced one-year programme for university graduates interested in a career in the insurance sector. You will gain an understanding of current and future problems and solutions in insurance and banking. This discipline focuses on the application of quantitative methods to problems involving risk or uncertainty. You will be equipped with fundamental and conceptual knowledge of the mathematical and economic aspects of financial theory and insurance techniques. The programme provides advanced insights into the actuarial aspects of life insurance, general insurance, risk theory as well as into financial mathematics and the interrelationship and integration of actuarial sciences and finance. The programme draws on more than sixty years of experience and international recognition. The research team that focuses on risk theory, finance and statistics has a strong research profile and is ranked in the top ten worldwide in terms of research productivity. The programme is jointly offered by the Faculty of Business and Economics and the Faculty of Science from K.U.Leuven and in collaboration with Université Catholique de Louvain.

My profile

Prospective students should be interested in a career in the actuarial and financial sector. Given the quantitative nature of actuarial sciences, a sound mathematical background is indispensable. Candidates should have sufficient knowledge of probability theory, statistics and scientific computing. As a result of its interdisciplinary approach, the curriculum is designed for students with a background in either mathematics or economics.

Study programme

The programme starts mid-September. The academic year is divided into two semesters, each consisting of 13 teaching weeks, followed by exam revision and exams. In addition to the Master’s thesis, the programme consists of six core courses and five electives of which students have to choose two courses.

Career prospects

The programme addresses the rapidly changing needs resulting from the accelerating globalization of the banking and insurance sector. As such, it provides a sound basis for a career in various areas of financial management and insurance.

The main employers are insurance companies, whose financial stability depends on actuarial calculations (e.g. premiums, provisions, capital requirements, reinsurance policy). As an expert in the field of risk and uncertainty, you can also play an important role in banking and finance. The increasing convergence between the insurance and financial markets as well as the use of mathematically based instruments, such as options and futures, offers excellent career prospects. Graduates are well placed to find employment in banks, pension funds, reinsurance companies, or consulting and audit companies.

The government also provides diverse career opportunities, for instance in social security or economic affairs departments. Students having completed both the Master in Financial and Actuarial Engineering programme and the initial ‘Master in de verzekeringen’ at K.U.Leuven are eligible to become members of the professional body of actuaries in Belgium (KVBA-ARAB), and also of the international actuarial professional body (IAA).

Application and Admissions

Detailed information on application procedures and admission requirements depends on your preceding qualifications, etc.

• You will find more information on application matters here.

Financial and Actuarial Engineering - Impressionen vom Masterstudium

Übersicht der Masterstudiengänge - KU Leuven

• Adapted Physical Activity
• Advanced Business Studies
• Advanced Medical Imaging
• Advanced Studies in Economics
• Advanced Studies in Linguistics
• Advanced Studies in Theology and Religion
• American Studies
• Archeology
• Artificial Intelligence
• Astronomy and Astrophysics
• Bioethics
• Bioinformatics
• Biology
• Biomedical Engineering
• Biomedical Sciences
• Business Economics
• Canon Law
• Chemical Technology
• Chemical Technology (Engineering Rheology)
• Chemistry
• Conservation of Monuments and Sites
• Criminology
• Cultural Studies
• Cultures and Development Studies (CADES)
• Earth Observation
• Economics
• Economics and Management of Network Industries
• Educational Studies
• EIT-KIC Energy
• Electrical Engineering
• Endodontics
• Energy
• Estudios Ibéricos e Iberoamericanos
• European Social Security
• European Studies:Transnational and Global Perspectives
• Financial and Actuarial Engineering
• Financial Economics
• Food Technology
• Forensic Odontology
• Geography
• Geology
• Human Settlements
• Information Management
• Junior programmes in European Culture and Society (PECS)
• Langue et Littérature françaises
• Law
• Laws (LLM)
• Laws in Energy and Environmental Law (MEEL)
• Laws in European and International Taxation (MEIT)
• Linguistics and Literature: English
• Literary Studies
• Master of European Politics and Policies (MEPP)
• Materials Engineering
• Mathematics
• Medieval and Renaissance Studies
• Molecular and Cellular Biophysics
• Molecular Biology
• Nanoscience and Nanotechnology
• Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (Erasmus Mundus)
• Nuclear Engineering
• Oral Health Research
• Orthodontics
• Paediatric Dentistry and Special Dental Care
• Periodontology
• Pharmaceutical Research
• Philosophy
• Philosophy (MPhil)
• Physics
• Quantitative Analysis in the Social Sciences
• Rehabilitation Sciences and Physiotherapy
• Restorative Dentistry
• Safety Engineering
• Social and Cultural Anthropology
• Social Policy Analysis (IMPALLA)
• Society, Law and Religion
• Space Studies
• Statistics
• Sustainable Territorial Development
• Theology and Religious Studies
• Theoretical Chemistry and Computational Modelling
• Tropical Natural Resources Management
• Urbanism and Strategic Planning
• Water Resources Engineering
• Western Literature

Assets

The Leuven School of Business and Economics

As part of the Faculty of Business and Economics, the LSBE offers an extensive range of Master’s programmes and doctoral programmes.The mission of the LSBE is to develop participants’ critical, conceptual, problem-solving and decision-making skills. It equips students with fundamental and conceptual knowledge and with analytical tools to cope effectively with the problems of the current and constantly changing business and economic environment. Adopting a research-based approach, the school focuses on the disciplines that underlie business operations and economic decisions. This enables its graduates to acquire the necessary skills and tools for coping with current and future challenges.

A variety of teaching methods (lectures, case discussions, exercises, computer-assisted problem-solving and personal research) is used to enhance students’ educational experience. Students are expected to participate actively. The faculty evaluates its students on the basis of their classroom participation, reports written during the semester and final examinations. The workload is demanding, as is customary in high-quality graduate schools.

The faculty’s international credentials and academic reputation guarantee the quality of the programme offered to students of the Leuven School of Business and Economics.