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Master of Science in Finance

SIAS

Manage a $22.1 million portfolio

Every fall, selected students from the Master of Science in Finance Program are invited to help manage the Student Investment Advisory Service (SIAS) Fund. SIAS is Canada's largest student-run investment fund and one of the largest such funds in North America.

It has a current market value of $22.1 million CAD (as of Dec. 31, 2022). This endowment portfolio is funded by generous donations from HSBC Canada and the Lohn Foundation.

To find out more about the SIAS fund, email mscfinprogram@sfu.ca.

The performance of the SIAS Fund is monitored closely against relevant benchmark indices. The results are presented quarterly to the Performance Review Committee, an esteemed collection of industry experts who are keen to lend their expertise to challenge and advise SIAS at these presentations.

The opportunity to manage the SIAS Fund rigorously tests and expands selected students’ qualitative, quantitative and analytical skills on a daily basis. If chosen, you’ll acquire invaluable real world investment, risk management and compliance experience, and be ready to hit the ground running from your first day in the finance industry.

In 2014, SFU became the second university in Canada to adopt a responsible investment policy, by becoming a signatory of the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment (UN PRI).

As a signatory, we’re committed to applying Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) criteria to our endowment investments, including our two student-managed investment funds. These ESG principles are integrated into the curriculum to help students develop specialized skills that are increasingly in demand at professional investment firms.

With the Treasurer of the Simon Fraser University Endowment Fund as the client, the SIAS Fund follows a balanced investment style, with four asset classes that are semi-actively managed: Canadian Equity, Global Equity, Fixed Income and Cash. Traders coordinate with brokers and ensure that approved transactions are executed in a timely and efficient manner.

Each non-cash asset class is led by a Portfolio Manager and supported by Associates and Analysts responsible for Sectors (Canadian and US) or Regions (Global)

  • The SIAS Economics team provides the Equity and Fixed Income teams' short-term and long-term Capital Market Expectations, so that the Portfolio Managers can develop an overall asset allocation strategy for the fund.
  • The Fixed Income team manages a portfolio of bonds that is allocated between Canadian Federal, Provincial, Municipal and Corporate bonds.
  • The Compliance team ensures that the portfolio is in compliance with the Investment Policy Statement, and that sufficient due diligence was performed prior to executing any transactions.
  • The Risk Metrics team identifies strategies that can be used to systematically manage the risk of the portfolio, and advises the equity teams about the impact of proposed transactions to the existing level of risk.
 

Connect with our team

Our admissions team is more than happy to answer your questions so you know what you can expect before, during, and beyond your program.

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The MSc Finance program gave me the technical foundation that I couldn’t function without. I work with clients in very senior roles, and it’s important to demonstrate your technical knowledge to gain their trust.

Christine Jakshoej, MScFin

VP of Customer Success - Capital Markets

FINCAD

The learners I work with are 95% Indigenous, and I find that they become more interested and retain information more, when we speak and learn from an Indigenous lens. The Indigenous content integrated into the program has been very beneficial to me in terms of how I can incorporate Indigenous information into the curriculum I currently teach.

Wanda Rockthunder, EMBA IBL

Business Instructor, Saskatchewan Indian Institute of Technologies

Cree, a citizen of the Muskowekwan First Nation, Saskatchewan

My key lessons from the program were learning how to effectively frame and structure a problem or situation, manage a tight schedule, know what to prioritize and how to prioritize it, and identify core problems quickly and addressing them.

Bobbie Dhillon, EMBA

Senior Vice President, Marketing & Planning

G&F Financial Group

The immediate impact of the GDBA has been a change in the way I approach my day professionally. I am equipped to make better decisions. My confidence level has been elevated significantly, and I am enjoying a new sense of optimism in my career.

Percival Chang, GDBA

Manager & Investment Funds Advisor

PH&N Investment Services

The i2I program is perfect for people like me who are deeply involved in science, and who want to look for opportunities in the business world. A program like this opens your mind and teaches you that there is another world of possibilities outside of the lab.

Elena Groppa, i2I

Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Faculty of Medicine

University of British Columbia Biomedical Research Centre

The comprehensive simulations provided the greatest learning for me. They helped change my mindset and connect the different areas of learning into a comprehensive view of how an organization runs.

Matthew Grunert, MOT MBA

Sr. Director, Digital Operations & IT

Motorola Solutions

I always saw myself working beyond clinical pharmacy. I felt that I could also shine on the business side of healthcare. I knew that with my strong clinical training an MBA would help open more doors and give me the mobility I was looking for in my career.

Morenike Akinyemi, FT MBA

Senior Project Manager, Transformation Delivery

Provincial Health Services Authority

The Part-Time MBA was excellent. It gave me exactly what I expected to receive, and I think that is the highest compliment you can pay a program. It met all my expectations and provided a solid grounding in business skills and strategies.

Oliver Zihlmann, PT MBA

Director of Development and Alumni Engagement

UBC Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences

MSc Fin: Christine

EMBA IBL: Wanda

EMBA: Bobbie

GDBA: Percival

i2I: Elena

MOT MBA: Matthew Grunnert

FT MBA: Morenike

PT MBA: Oliver