Quantcast – a Risk.net Cutting Edge podcast Petter Kolm 27/11/25 Risk Quantcast_MS
Nov 28, 2025
Petter Kolm, Director of the Master's in Mathematics and Finance at NYU's Courant Institute, dives into the evolution of finance education inspired by real-world needs. He discusses the shift in curriculum focus post-2008 crisis and the vital role of internships in preparing students for industry. Petter also highlights the impact of generative AI on coding education and the importance of foundational skills. He shares insights from his research on order book data and the evolution of prediction models in high-frequency trading.
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Origin Story From Wall Street Auditors
- In the late 1990s Wall Street practitioners were auditing Courant classes wearing suits and asking to learn PDEs and stochastic calculus.
- That led Courant to found its Mathematics and Finance master's in 1999 to teach math used on Wall Street.
Domain Knowledge Matters As Much As Tech
- Quant masters combine domain expertise with math and computer science to prepare students for finance roles.
- Teaching finance terminology and products is as important as technical skills.
Curriculum Shifts After 2008
- Post-2008 regulation shifted markets toward exchange-traded, cleared products and away from exotic structured trades.
- Programs now emphasize simpler contracts, automation, execution and transaction-cost-aware algorithms.