Our Alumni

Francesco Damico (Italy), class of 2021 

The Mafinrisk program has been an engaging and fascinating path toward personal growth and advanced technical skillset, with challenge-based learning and cross-cultural collaboration at the basis of every course. It undoubtedly provided me with the financial expertise to join the demanding sell-side industry and to face the fast-paced work environment of an Equity trading floor.

Elena Costanzo (Italy), class of 2021 

Mafinrisk has been the most exciting experience I had in my academic career. Being graduated in Theoretical Physics I was looking for a program which could match the financial approach with the scientific one and Mafinrisk perfectly does it. I enjoyed studying financial concepts and mathematical models, both in theory and in practice, as well as participating in group projects which allowed me to deal with real job situations. The hard and soft skills developed during the master helped me to succeed in job interviews and in the first steps of my career. I’m quite sure that I wouldn’t get the internship in the Market and Financial Risk Management department at Intesa Sanpaolo and perform so well in it without my Mafinrisk experience. If I went back, I would certainly choose it again.

 Nicholas Cornici (Italy), class of 2021 

Primarly, Mafinrisk provided me with a highly-recognized technical knowledge and a tangible comparative advantage in the fields of Derivatives valuation and management, allowing to project my career towards the world of complex financial instruments. Furtherly, this master toughened my work ethic and allowed me to understand how to work in a real competitive environment.

   Emilio Pappalardo (Italy), class of 2019 / Mafinrisk was an incredible opportunity for me to deepen my understanding of financial markets. What I find unique about the program is its broad range of the topics, from Asset Management to Financial Econometrics, from Risk Management to Financial Statements Analysis. The different courses (Investments, Portfolio and Performance Evaluation, Derivatives, Fixed income, Credit Risk) introduced me to the most widely used asset allocation models and gave me the tools to evaluate a large variety of financial instruments. They also helped me understand how the main fixed income and derivatives instruments work and provided me with the basics to handle hybrid instruments. I am now a junior portfolio manager at Sella SGR in Milan; without Mafinrisk, many of the tasks that I complete each day would be much more difficult or even impossible to handle. Attending Mafinrisk means sharing your study experience with talented classmates from all over the world, learning to work under pressure, cooperate in teams and meet deadlines. The faculty includes very prepared professors and the Career Service arranges multiple networking events to meet employers. If I could go back I would definitely make the same choice.

 Artem Chernichin (Russia), class of 2019 / My year at Mafinrisk gave me a very unique life experience. Practice-oriented projects and team work with very different people helped me cultivate skills which are very important in a modern banking setting: the ability to manage your hours efficiently, divide tasks but help each other, present and defend your point of view. Comprehensive pricing, modeling and statistical courses introduced me to techniques and approaches that are widely used in the industry. I am currently working at Deutsche Bank’s e-trading division in London, dealing with bonds and swaps; the Fixed Income and Term Structure Modeling courses helped me become familiar with how these products are priced and how risk is managed. I’m convinced that Mafinrisk greatly contributed to my chances of getting this job.

  Corstian Ten Hoor (The Netherlands), class of 2019 / It has been one of the best decisions of my life to choose Mafinrisk. The program has provided me with the right tools in financial mathematics, derivatives pricing theory and risk management, and has optimally prepared me for my job as Quant Analyst in a derivatives trading firm. Mafinrisk approaches many of the industry's current challenges from both a scientific and a practical perspective. This leads to the deep insight and understanding you need to exceed in today's financial industry. It has been very exciting to work with both academics and experts from industry. The small class size allowed for a lot of student-teacher contact, providing a fertile learning environment. The intensity of the program is high, but the work is even so rewarding. I would recommend to apply for Mafinrisk to anyone who has a joint interest in mathematics and finance and is ready to excel.

   Chiara Inserra (Italy), class of 2018 / Mafinrisk provided me with a proper career profile to work in the Risk Management field. On one hand, technical courses helped me to improve my coding reporting skills and critical thinking, on the other hand, class presentations improved my public speaking and information synthesis skills. What has had the greatest influence on my professional growth has been the acquisition of a general technical framework that includes both market and credit risk techniques. This was especially important when I recently decided to move from the credit risk world to the evaluation of financial instruments. I’m now working in Unicredit as Risk Analyst for the Group Special Entities Risk and Evaluation unit, which is at the intersection of market and credit risk. The knowledge, methodologies and techniques acquired during Mafinrisk let me successfully overcome job interviews and grow faster from a professional point of view.

   Simon Taillefer (France) / Mafinrisk was a great place to learn more about Quantitative Finance. I keep fond memories of my Mathematical Model and Stochastic courses, which helped me understand the back-bone of banking: how is risk assessed, how is return computed, how to value options in a complex derivative instrument etc. Mafinrisk also tackles more high-level topics: credit risk, fixed income, derivatives which I use every day and gave me a solid base when I started in my current position. I interned in Fixed Income Proprietary Trading and Flow Sales in 2011 at Nomura right after Mafinrisk. I was then offered a position in Equity Trading in 2012. After six months in Equity Trading, I realised I preferred Sales position and therefore moved to a Solutions Sales role within Nomura. The Mafinrisk degree allows you to apply to very technical positions but at the same time you can leverage that background to apply in more commercial positions, in other words it opens plenty of doors.

Mafinrisk gave me a solid base for my internship at Intesa Sanpaolo. The program covers a wide range of topics, from more quantitative subjects to those that helped me understand financial instruments, their usage and mechanics. I developed the cause–effect way of thinking; I learned to connect different topics, to look at things from different angles. Professors with years of experience in industry gave us not only theoretical explanations but also practical examples. Although the master was intense and lot of topics were covered in short time period, I learned many useful things that later on helped me get an internship and perform on it.

The Mafinrisk program provided me with the necessary tools to face the trading floor environment, which requires deep knowledge of the financial markets, dynamism, precision and self-awareness. My daily schedule on the internship asked me to execute multiple tasks that required the general financial framework and technical skills I have acquired throughout the 16 courses I have attended during the Mafinrisk. Furthermore, what we define as “the Mafinrisk experience” has prepared me to face my job: early morning classes, hard studying, multiple financial subjects and good stress training are fundamental to a front-office experience.

The year of MAFINRISK studies was a really intense experience for me I can hardly forget the details. In short: highly motivating and absolutely challenging. The main strength of MAFINRISK in my view is the way it connects the studies to the job market. The knowledge acquired during the masters has been extremely useful during the interviews. Of course studying something that you most probably will use in your job may represent a goodsource of motivation and it did for me. Cutting-edge teaching methods, courses in touch with modern economy developments were absolutely part of MAFINRISK and my expectations were fully satisfied.Group projects are a real transition to the job reality.In my opinion they stimulate the sense of responsibility and the spirit of collaboration revealing leadership skills of the group members. During the studies I discovered a friendly international environment that allowed me to create lasting relationship with people of different cultures. This interaction broadened my outlook and improved my people skills by enhancing cultural sensitivity. So now, looking back, I feel fully satisfied with my choice of MAFINRISK. I feel proud when mentioning my academic background and the job market appreciates the program as well.

I attended MAFINRISK edition in 2009-2010. Before coming to Bocconi, I did my undergraduate education at University of Pennsylvania where I double majored in Electrical Engineering and Systems Engineering. As part of my systems engineering degree, I took a few introductory level finance courses and decided that I wanted to learn more about finance. From all the programs I applied, I chose MAFINRISK mainly because of the curriculum and the Bocconi name. The program entailed many quantitatively rigorous classes with distinguished teachers, and breadth of courses was also diverse. We took courses ranging from asset management to time-series analysis and risk-management. I chose my electives focusing more on risk management and eventually was able to find a job at Goldman Sachs Market Risk Management and Analysis group before graduation. What I learned during the program was very helpful in my day-to-day work as I was already familiar with many concepts in risk management when I started working. During the program, we analyzed risk management practices in detail learning about their pros and cons which also helped me in my interviews for my current job. Within three months of graduation from the program, most of the students had found a job, seven of them in London. Career services was also very helpful. Starting from the second semester, positions were advertised especially for MAFINRISK students and many students benefited from their services. In terms of student life at Milan, my experience was very unique. There were many clubs and bars to go to, great restaurants to enjoy Italian food and student clubs even organized trips to other cities. I went to Venice on one of those trips with friends from MAFINRISK which was a memorable day for me. I formed many friendships with Italian as well as non-Italian students and still keep in touch with them. It was a very rewarding experience both socially and academically.

After studying for five years at Paris-Dauphine University in Paris, my wish was to spend my final year as a student abroad but also to strengthen my profile in Financial Markets. Although I had always been aware that there were many other - sometimes flashier and more glittering - places where I could have studied Market Finance, going for the MAFINRISK in Bocconi was an easy choice. Talking to various students who had completed this master helped me realize how comprehensive and profound the master's scope of topics was and how much it would magnify my knowledge in markets and financial tools. Moreover, all those I talked to easily landed a good job in high-profile companies which was a testament to the MAFINRISK popularity in the financial corporate world. The master lived up to the expectations that I had throughout my year at Bocconi: I got to learn a lot about the most modern pricing techniques in quantitative finance and I also got a broader understanding of the financial markets. As a current Fixed Income Salesperson at The Royal Bank of Scotland, it is without a doubt that even the plainest concepts about debt markets that were passed on through the MAFINRISK classes have helped me coping with my job. Furthermore, the master has put a great emphasis on risk management which has been underscored as a paramount area in finance in the aftermath of the global economic crisis. As for the whole teaching staff, they were always available and approachable for any question that the students had, which was very reassuring and comforting. It also cannot be denied that having the master's name on my resume have made my profile more attractive as a strong evidence for excellence and openness. In that respect, studying at Bocconi University can also be a springboard for the learning of a new language - which is an invaluable asset in today's financial world - and an opportunity to meet people from a large spectrum of backgrounds and countries. I can honestly say today that my whole year in MAFINRISK at Bocconi has been a truly enriching and enthralling experience on all levels which I am utterly grateful for and that there could hardly have been any other master's degree to satisfy me that much.

After my 3-year Bachelor in HEC Lausanne, I didn't have any clear idea of what I was looking for. I knew I wanted to study finance and I had the feeling it would have been profitable to choose a Master with a high degree of quantitative content. Now I can clearly state MAFINRISK is the best choice I could do. This Master allows you to better understand some specific mechanisms which remain otherwise hidden to the masses. I was particularly impressed by the number of different topics we went into throughout the year. The courses on Derivatives and Fixed Income will allow you to learn what the main financial products are, be able to price them and study their main uses. Mathematical Models, Probability, Time Series Analysis, Theory of Valuation and Term Structure Modeling introduced me to the main quantitative models and pricing techniques such as calibrations and simulations, while the Risk Management courses made me possible to become familiar with the problem of risk measuring and analyze the main risk management techniques. You don't need to have such a strong mathematical background to succeed, even if for the most technical lectures you will be going into deep details. One of the strong points of this master is the quality of teaching and professors' commitment. You will be provided all necessary documentation as well as technical tools. Last but not least, the program is characterized by a good balance between theory and time spent implementing the theory on a numerical basis, which strongly helped me to become quickly operative in my professional environment. You'll see how quickly the time will pass, attending classes everyday and also enjoying the life and entertainment Milan can offer. I was positively surprised by the strong link Bocconi has with main financial institutions, a non negligible advantage you'll benefit from choosing Mafinrisk.

I decided to apply to MAFINRISK in winter 2008 - in the middle of the crisis but with a strong will to deepen my knowledge in finance and apply it further at work. Having spoken to Mafinrisk graduates I realized that such education will always meet demand (more than a half of MAFINRISK 2009/10 found job before graduation). The graduates have excellent reputation among the top employers and I can confirm that the professors support this with high qualification standards required from students. MAFINRISK at Bocconi is worth choosing for deep knowledge of finance, international environment and great career prospects. The program is only 10 months and it is highly concentrated in terms of knowledge - with the Economics Bachelor degree from Moscow most courses were new to me, the speed of studying stimulates and there is hardly any such Master in Europe focusing specifically on quantitative finance and risk management. The course is more practical rather than theoretical, all the projects cover the day-to-day job of quantitative analysts, research departments and trading floor employees. I recall the teaching staff with respect and gratitude for their professionalism and inspiration they gave as these people helped me to choose Fixed Income as specialty at Bloomberg. The director and the board of the Master always gave us a chance to express our opinion so as to improve the course.Bocconi University provides with great studying facilities, including the library and the auditorium with the Bloomberg terminal. It arranges multiple career and networking events for students to communicate to prospective employers. Studying at Mafinrisk means being surrounded by talented and ambitious guys from all around the world. I managed to learn a lot from my fellow students who subsequently became my good friends. Most of us found job in London, however there is no geographical limit for a Mafinrisker. Finally Bocconi University boasts being in the heart of Italian North capital which means great cultural spirit, beautiful places around, fantastic food and friendly people!

I found out about the MAFINRISK course whilst going through the Bocconi website about possible graduate education I could chase after finishing my undergraduate degree. Initially I was unsure about the choice: to take a MSc in management in another European university or to take MAFINRISK. I was fortunate enough however, to meet a 2006/2007 graduate from MAFINRISK, who gave me an excellent feedback (and at the same time warning me about the intense nature of the course). In the end, I chose MAFINRISK as I wanted to chase a more quantitative course and wanted my graduate course to be challenging experience. Currently, I am employed at RBS in Japan, in the Exotics and Hybrids Rates Structuring division, and I could not be more satisfied with my choice of taking MAFINRISK. It is a course offering an excellent mixture of knowledge in economic foundation of the financial instruments and quantitative methods that construct their pieces together. In one of, if not the, worst year for financial markets, I would like to thank MAFINRISK, the professors and staff, and the classmates who helped me get to where I am today with a smile on my face. After joining RBS Global Markets and Banking team in 2008, I have worked for two years under the Rates Structuring division. The main mandate then was to create tailor made interest rate and multi-asset solutions for corporates and financial institutions in Asia with a particular focus in Japan. After two years of experience in the team, I have then moved to the Hybrids Trading team, where my mandate is to trade multi-asset products for our clients and manage cross asset correlations and high order risk exposures of the bank. My experience in MAFINRISK has been essential for my career, as I strongly believe the balance between strong quantitative knowledge, underlying concepts of risk management, and the link to macro and micro economics which the course helped me obtain has been the key strength for my career progression.

   The Master in Quantitative Finance and Risk Management (MAFINRISK) was for me the conclusion of my education, started with a 5-year course in Finance at the University of Siena. My whole university path has been geared towards the study of financial markets and before enrolling in this master I felt the need to deepen some quantitative aspects that I had not approached in the previous years. Mafinrisk provides you not only the knowledge of the basic processes that regulate the dynamics of financial markets, but also the expertise to perform analysis on different derivatives products and asset classes. The teaching materials, the assignments, the knowledge and qualification of professors and colleagues allow you to praise your qualities. Extreme rhythms and daily challenges, not only academically but also personally, are essential for your professional growth. Thanks to this experience I was able to develop my competence and create a network of relationships around the globe. For all these reasons and for the opportunities that this course gives you, I think it was one of the best choices I ever made.