Rachana Jain relocated to EADA Business School in Spain to study a Master in Fintech and Business Analytics – a combination she couldn’t find in her native India. She spoke to MASTERGRADSCHOOLS and lifted the veil on one of the most cutting-edge areas of finance and business, her course at EADA, and the different learning experiences in India and Spain.
Fintech, or financial technology, is a revolutionary new sector that uses algorithms, artificial intelligence, and machine learning to streamline a huge array of financial services. It has applications in online banking, peer-to-peer transfers, and the world of cryptocurrency, offering ever-faster and more secure operations.
Fintech goes hand-in-hand with a vast range of existing industries, especially as digital markets continue to soar. One major example is cyber insurance, an entirely new field that is based on, but also protecting, fintech. Demand for cyber insurance premiums rose from $900 million to $1.6 billion from 2015 to 2020. The global cyber insurance market is estimated to hit around $20 billion by the year 2025.
But, as Rachana says, fintech also changes established industries. “I can help the agricultural sector, I can help some other sectors and not just the financial services or insurance sectors,” she says. “That changed the definition for me because fintech is more from the perspective of user experience.” (04:27)
Although fintech already has an endless amount of uses in the world of business, an MBA isn’t necessarily the right option if you want to specialize. With EADA’s Master in Fintech and Business Analytics, you can become an expert in the more technical skills, which you can then use in a wide range of roles, including management.
Rachana explains the difference from her perspective: “Obviously, an MBA has more strategic management, or more from the management perspective. But the leadership here is more from change management. This is very specific to fintech, which I generally like the master’s for.” (02:09)
While an MBA is focused almost exclusively on a wider view of business administration, the Master in Fintech and Business Analytics at EADA Business School gives you leadership training as well as more specialist skills and applications. Rachana tells us she learned “artificial intelligence and machine learning more from a business perspective.” (03:37)
This doesn’t make it a technical degree, which would focus more on coding languages like Python and UX/UI design. The Master in Fintech at EADA guides you on how to create businesses with a focus on financial technology. “We had different courses like a startup business plan, where they actually explained to us how we get into startups or how we get the funds,” she adds. (03:24)
Rachana chose to study at EADA because, in India, she couldn’t combine both fintech and business analytics.
Similarly, the teaching methods between the two countries are quite different. Rachana explains the traditional Indian model in the following way. “We just would do a class where they just teach us all the concepts and then we sit the exam,” she says. (05:24)
There is a general trend away from this style of teaching and towards classes with a more practical focus. Independent business schools are able to quickly adopt these new changes in teaching style. Rather than lectures, memorization, and exams, Rachana’s Master in Fintech and Business Analysis is “all case study-based. That is what I really like about EADA.” (05:37)
As you may expect, fintech plays a major role in businesses these days. This means there are attractive job prospects out there for master’s students. Barcelona has been a key player in the tech and startup sphere over the past 10 years, and Rachana has already taken advantage of that.
“I’m currently also working for Natanek Iberia, a startup here, and I’m doing the data analytics part for them, from a business perspective. So I’m using the knowledge (from the course),” she says. (07:01)
Fintech is still in its early stages, yet demand for experts is already very high. However, it’s only just getting started. We can expect to see continued growth in the sector of around 25% over the next five years.
The world of business is evolving fast, and educational institutions often have a tough time keeping up. However, forward-thinking business schools such as EADA are quick to react to changes in the professional world. The option to study Fintech and Business Analytics is a prime example of that.
By choosing EADA, Rachana had what she describes as “a complete package,” (01:33) – learning the technical applications of fintech and business analytics, but also getting those key leadership modules to be able to apply fintech to real businesses.
