Accounting and Finance (Taught)

Succeed with a Masters designed around the needs of today's finance-driven organisations and gain a head start in a rewarding career.
Careers in accounting and finance are rewarding but extremely competitive. To succeed, you’ll need essential academic knowledge and the practical skills to apply it in a professional environment. This programme covers both, giving you a decisive advantage as you progress to the next step of your career.
You’ll build a dynamic blend of technical accounting expertise and advanced financial knowledge, focusing on essential skills such as financial reporting standards, performance evaluation, and capital management.
The MSc Accounting and Finance combines research-led teaching from our cutting-edge research centres. With a focus on practical quantitative skills, your learning is grounded in up-to-date industry insights and real-world data analysis.
You’ll enjoy a challenging, rewarding and rounded learning experience, covering fundamental topics such as corporate finance and corporate reporting while exploring emerging trends. Optional modules allow you to specialise in areas such as forensic accounting and Python programming for finance.
Our inspirational academics are influential thinkers with a real passion for their subject. Experts in their field, they have extensive teaching, research and internationally renowned consultancy experience, all of which feeds into the course.
Student Profile: Chongfang Yuan
“The comprehensive curriculum closely related to the industry has equipped me with in-depth knowledge and practical skills in the fields of accounting and finance. For example, through the corporate finance courses, I mastered some analytical methods, such as foreign exchange arbitrage, that are highly valued in the financial industry.”
Chongfang Yuan, MSc Accounting and Finance

Why study at Leeds

• Prestigious triple accreditation: Our Business School is triple-accredited, and this course is supported by a partnership with the CQF Institute, the awarding body for the Certificate in Quantitative Finance (CQF).

• Gain up-to-the-minute legal insight: Strong relationships with the accounting, finance and credit professions give you the latest practitioner and policy developments. Guest speakers have included a UBS non-executive board member and members of the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee.

• Practical teaching in cutting-edge facilities: Deepen your understanding of real-time financial analysis, data interpretation and investment decision-making through studies that develop your practical skills. Our financial markets lab provides access to tools & platforms including Bloomberg, WRDS, CSMAR, Refinitiv Eikon, and Datastream.

• Advanced specialist research units: We have strong links with leading institutions in the US, Europe, and Asia. These include the Centre for Advanced Study in Finance (CASIF), the International Banking Institute (IBI), the Centre for Financial Technology (Fintech), and the Credit Management Research Centre (CMRC).

Rankings and awards
Top 40 in the world for finance, QS Business Masters Rankings 2026
Top 100 in the world, QS World University Rankings 2026

Where this degree could take you
Career opportunities for graduates of this course are vast, with recent graduates working as:

• audit managers

• finance managers

• management consultants

• forensic accountants

Career support
10 most targeted for 10+ years by the UK's leading employers, The Graduate Market 2026, High Fliers Research
At Leeds, we help you to prepare for your future from day one.
Our Careers Service has the global expertise and sector-spanning industry partnerships that, combined, go way beyond simply helping you get a job. They provide you with the resources you need to upskill and achieve the future you aspire towards – even in the face of lightning-paced change.

Assessment methods emphasise not just knowledge, but essential skills development too. This may include formal exams, group projects, reports, computer simulation exercises, essays and written assignments, group and individual presentations and reflective logs.

This diversity enables you to develop a broad range of skills as preparation for professional life.