business finance courses in Singapore

[madcap]

After having secured my PEP i will be entering singapore by the end of this month. I searched the job sites and figured most of the IT jobs(atleast the good ones) are in the banking domain which require knowledge in banking or business finance. Can anybody suggest a good diploma course(part time/evening) which would equip me with those credentials. That would be a welcome addition to my existing skill sets. I am looking for a max of 6 months to 1 year courses only.

[BillyB]

I'd forget about doing a diploma of some sort - it will add very little value and will be expensive, and you could pick up the gist of things yourself just as easily and at a greater pace.

Try looking into some of the online tutorials - I can't remember the names now but google should do it - that provide an overview on the full spectrum of finance and banking.

Also, perhaps consider more specific vendor / product training such as Fidessa, Murex etc. - Skills that are in short supply in Asia.

[madcap]

BillyB,
Thanks for the suggestions. But will a diploma or some sort of finance degree be a requirement for these kind of jobs ... I'm seeing a lot of mundane software development/analyst jobs garnished with "knowledge in finance/banking a must"

[BillyB]

If your first degree isn't finance related then you will need to brush up on your knowledge, but I don't think a second degree / diploma is the best option particularly as you are on an PEP so you have 6 months to find something?

Or do you plan on this as a career transition into banking IT?

What's your background and also plan of action with regard to employment when you arrive in SG?

[madcap]

I am a Sr Developer/Analyst with development skills in microsoft technologies(C#, ASP.NET, SQL, etc) and analytical skills in SAS(BI and predictive modelling). My plan is to find something irrespective of the domain initially and then transition into banking(financial risk management to be specific). I have been working in the tourism/travel domain(IT) and see that even though singapore is a tourist destination not many IT jobs matching my skill set can be found here. The best matches are in the finance sector.

[BillyB]

Okies, so you have the technical skills, you just need to get up to speed on the business side of things.

Maybe a masters would be a good option, but I still believe you could find benefit in some of the online learning packages. It's not a distance degree or deiploma - it's an organised collection of modules that help to develop your understanding and would include risk management - market, credit, counter-party, ops risk etc.

If you are specifically interested in risk, look to understand the systems the banks use and then tweak your learning accordingly - murex, algo, quic are vendor risk systems and from what i hear, skills are always in high demand especially murex.

Good luck!

[madcap]

A masters in business finance would definitely help. But doing one in a good university is time and money consuming. Will have to think long and hard about it. Will look into the e-learning packages available online. Any suggestions on good ones would be appreciated ... Thanks for the wishes again!