Duisenberg school of finance

Duisenberg School of finance
Motto	For leaders in finance
Established	September, 2008
Type	Private, Public partnership
Dean	Dirk Schoenmaker
Location	Amsterdam, Netherlands
Campus	Urban
Website	www.dsf.nl

Duisenberg School of Finance was established in 2008 with the assistance of notable Dutch Universities, Holland Financial Center and a number of financial Industry Leaders. The aim of DSF is to create perfect synergistic network between industry and academia and to encourage new thinking in finance to train the responsible leaders in finance.^[1]

Duisenberg school of finance adopted its name from the distinguished Dutch economist, financier and politician, the so-called ‘father of the Euro’ and first president of the European Central Bank, Willem Frederik Duisenberg, more commonly known as Wim Duisenberg (1935–2005).

Duisenberg’s vision for Europe clearly prevailed in the end. The Euro currency is one of the world’s strongest and most stable, and the Euro area is one of the world’s leading economies. Duisenberg has been acclaimed for his tireless force and conviction with regard to the Euro. Yet, his dedication, progressive thinking, and success in all arenas – academic, industry and government alike – together comprise the core principles upon which Duisenberg school of finance was founded.

History

DSF is a private institute set up in a reaction to the recent financial crisis by leaders within the finance industry ING Bank, ABN Amro, RBS, NYSE Euronext, Aegon, Deloitte, APG, De Nederlandsche Bank, SNS Reaal, Houthoff Buruma etc.) and top Dutch Universities RSM Erasmus University, University of Amsterdam, Tilburg University, VU University Amsterdam and Tinbergen Institute. The specialized DSF Master's in Finance (and Law) programmes are considered to be more comprehensive and provides rigorous understanding of finance compared to any other traditional Master's degree.^[2]

As the aim of DSF programmes’ is to prepare students for the future as leaders in the world of finance, graduates should have no trouble in finding attractive employment opportunities. Duisenberg school of finance has some features. Being a joint initiative of academia and the financial sector, students benefit from both the academic knowledge base as well from the professional expertise. The Duisenberg school of finance top quality programmes signal the strong commitment to stimulate the production of fundamental and applied research, thereby creating an environment for innovation and the dissemination of financial ideas.

The Duisenberg school of finance attracts students who seek to achieve financial knowledge. The programmes are taught in English by an faculty selected from Dutch and foreign institutions. Financial support will be offered to talented applicants.

September 2008 saw the start of the first three programmes:

• Master of Science (MSc) in Risk Management
• Master of Science (MSc) in Finance and Law
• PhD in Finance, in cooperation with the Tinbergen Institute

In September 2009 DSF added two new Master programmes to the existing ones:

• Master of Science (MSc) in Corporate Finance & Banking
• Master of Law (LLM) in Finance and Law

Perfect Synergy

As evidenced by Wim Duisenberg himself, academia and industry each play important roles in the world of finance. Through education, one can enhance knowledge and understanding of financial theory and principles. In industry, these theories can be applied to impact the financial markets and people’s lives. Furthermore, regulatory agencies ensure that the financial players and system – banks, corporations, pension funds, etc. – are regulated and safeguarded. This synergy is pervasive in Duisenberg school of finance’s educational philosophy.

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Location

Duisenberg School of Finance is positioned in the city, with access to the centre of Amsterdam and to the financial and corporate heart of the city. As a city offering resources and events, the city is the University campus. Most students choose to live in the centre and Duisenberg school of finance helps to arrange foreign students’ housing. In addition to the school’s facilities, you can access the Amsterdam Public Library (OBA), and the University of Amsterdam library and facilities.

Administration/ Organisation

Organisation

Duisenberg school of finance’s Management Team is responsible for directing the school and realising the school’s ambitions. In determining the school’s strategy they are strengthened by the Duisenberg school of finance Board, consisting of high profile representatives from the financial sector and academic institutions.

The Programme Directors are responsible for the top level educational programmes.

Duisenberg school of finance MSc and LLM programmes In the wake of the recent global financial crisis, the financial industry began signalling the need for new knowledge in the industry and for a new class of financial leaders with a fresh approach to the demands of the financial market. Duisenberg school of finance easily responded to this call by developing a selection of exclusive programmes at the MSc, LLM, MPhil and PhD levels.

Because Duisenberg school of finance collaborates with international banks, corporations, businesses and regulatory agencies, Duisenberg attracts professors and guest speakers with industry expertise and is therefore able to offer financial programmes. These programmes are pragmatic, but also provide students with an unconventional and forward-looking approach to finance. Students will have the opportunity to become involved in research and will profit from the exposure to the school’s faculty, experts and fellow students.

DSF is a faculty of approximately 60 professors as of school year 2010-2011

- MSc in Finance and Law - LLM in Finance and Law - MSc in Risk Management - MSc in Corporate Finance and Banking

Administration

The entry fee for the Duisenberg school of finance MSc programmes for the academic year 2011-2012 is € 26.000. The fee includes tuition and supervision, but does not include course materials or living expenses, which vary according to a students’ circumstances and lifestyle.

Academics

DSF’s academic programs operate on a semester calendar beginning in August/ early September and ending in July. DSF offers 4 specialized Master’s programmes and 1 PhD/ Mphil programme in Finance.

Academia

Together, the Dutch government, the city of Amsterdam and five notable Dutch universities, specifically the University of Amsterdam, Tilburg University, Erasmus University Rotterdam, VU University Amsterdam, and Tinbergen Institute, established Duisenberg school of finance. Professors from these Dutch Universities have joined together with other professors from universities around the globe to form a faculty. Many faculty members share similar experiences as to Duisenberg himself, having worked as academics, worked in banks or financial institutions, or served in a regulatory function.

Industry

Duisenberg school of finance was established also with the support of Dutch and international financial companies. These include: the Dutch Central Bank, ING Group, insurance giant AEGON, Fortis Bank Nederland, SNS Reaal, NYSE Euronext, the world’s largest stock market, and APG, a Dutch pension group. Given the close cooperation with industry, Duisenberg school of finance is positioned to bring global financial leaders from these companies and other international companies to the classroom, so bridging the gap between theory and practice, which Wim Duisenberg strongly valued. Students at Duisenberg school of finance may also benefit from this collaboration when they conduct their internships.

Research

Research Director: Enrico Perotti ^[4]

Duisenberg school of finance’s priority research goal is to work at an integrated view of the financial system, breaking down traditional distinctions between corporate finance, banking, risk management and asset pricing.

The financial crisis has revealed our limited understanding of interrelations among financial markets, individual biases and collective strategic choices of intermediaries. At present, finance subfields are compartmentalized, separated by inconsistent assumptions. While a simplifying framework is appropriate to treat very specific issues, an integrated view to capture the interaction of markets and incentives is essential to understand modern financial markets and guide regulatory reforms, a critical issue in future years.

The goal is to learn to model dysfunctional financial markets, whether dysfunctional behaviour emerges from behavioural distortions or incentive problems in the intermediation process. This will offer tools to understand mispricing and excess risk creation, to incorporate them into valuation and risk choices, and ultimately to inform the debate on financial regulatory reform. While all relevant financial themes belong to the scope of the agenda, priority research areas identified are behavioural finance, broadly defined, and financial regulation.

The aim of the Duisenberg school of finance research programme is to expand the depth and range of financial expertise in the Netherlands, by building an international network and a strong associated faculty. DSF Programme Directors and appointments are outstanding researchers in specific areas:

Corporate Governance
• Florencio López de Silanes
• Joseph McCahery
• Enrico Perotti
• Jaap Winter

Financial Regulation
• Joseph McCahery
• Enrico Perotti
• Dirk Schoenmaker
• Casper de Vries

Risk management
• André Lucas
• Casper de Vries

Empirical Asset Pricing
• André Lucas
• Bas Werker

Corporate Finance and Banking
• Enrico Perotti
• Zacharias Sautner
• Dirk Schoenmaker

Corporate Responsibilities and Sustainability
• Noreena Hertz

Note: This is not an exhaustive list of professors who taught in DSF.

Affiliated Institutions

Sponsors

• ING Bank
• NYSE Euronext
• Houthoff Buruma
• ABN Amro
• De Nederlandsche Bank
• Aegon
• Deloitte
• APG
• SNS Reaal
• RBS

Academic partners

• University of Amsterdam
• RSM Erasmus University
• Tilburg University
• VU University Amsterdam
• Tinbergen Institute

Duisenberg school of finance is linked to the Holland Financial Center ^[5], a joint initiative of organizations throughout the financial sector aimed at strengthening the Dutch financial sector.

Senior Leadership Series

Duisenberg school of finance(DSF), Cambridge Judge Business School and Rotterdam School of Management joined hands to organise the Senior Leadership Series ^[6]. The Series will host small group meetings, designed for international senior business leaders and experts to share experiences, exchange insights from the latest in current research, and discuss the key issues for their organizations. The Series will also host related seminars that are open to the public. Seminars and small group sessions will alternate between Cambridge and DSF.

External links

• http://www.dsf.nl

References

1. ^ "'Dean's Message'". . http://www.dsf.nl/home/about_us/. 
2. ^ "An article about DSF in www.asset-econometrics.nl". . http://www.asset-econometrics.nl/en/career/company-profiles/262.html/. 
3. ^ Duisenberg Sponsors List "Duisenberg Sponsors List". . http://www.dsf.nl/home/about_us/founding_partners. 
4. ^ "Enrico Perotti". . http://www1.fee.uva.nl/pp/ecperotti/. 
5. ^ Holland Financial Center "Holland Financial Center". . http://www.hollandfinancialcenter.com/. 
6. ^ "Senior Leadership Series". . http://www.jbs.cam.ac.uk/news/items/2010/100602_series.html.