Management of banking, finance and trade

Experts from the fields of banking, financing and trade research, improve and develop knowledge, theories and methods and apply knowledge from specific areas of economics such as: actuarial economics, econometrics, finance, banking, trade, management and other applied social sciences, and provide specialist vital services related to banking and financial affairs and all domains of commercial affairs to meet the needs of individuals, local communities and the economic system as a whole.

Economists in the field of banking, financing and trade also conduct research with the aim of improving and developing economic knowledge, theories and operational methods that are used to understand and describe movements on the international and domestic market of banking products and services, the financial market of capital, the market of money and money derivatives , the market of commercial goods and services, and advise on the application of knowledge for the preparation of investment projects and development projects of banking and financial organizations and institutions.

These jobs include:

• studying, consulting and dealing with various economic aspects in the field of banking and financing such as capital and securities placement, marketing methods, domestic and international trends in the financial and capital market, monetary and fiscal policy, price and consumption policy; 
• collecting, analyzing and interpreting economic data in the monetary and financial area using economic aggregates and various statistical and other methods; 
• consulting on economic policy and the direction of activities that need to be followed in the light of past, present and forecasted economic indicators and trends; 
• preparation of studies and reports; 
• related businesses; 
• supervision of other workers.

The most general generic competencies at the level of each cycle of education, which must be possessed by every graduated student, regardless of the study program or the institution where he completed his higher education, are defined as:

• Dublin descriptors (Dublin descriptors), which represent a set of criteria on the expected achievements and abilities of students to distinguish different cycles of education, which were proposed by the Joint Quality Initiative (JQI), and which are accepted as the basis of the description of each cycle of education on ministerial meeting in Bergen in May 2005.
• The general framework for qualifications in European higher education (Framework for Qualifications of the European Higher Education - EQF for HE), which was adopted at the ministerial meeting in Bergen in May 2005.

These competencies are categorized as instrumental, interpersonal and systemic:

• Instrumental competencies include:
• Cognitive abilities, understanding and manipulation of ideas and thoughts.
• Methodological abilities to communicate with the environment: organizing time and strategies for learning, making decisions or solving problems.
• Technological abilities related to the use of technological means, computers and the application of information management skills.
• Language skills such as written and oral communication or knowledge of foreign languages.
• Interpersonal competences: Individual abilities that include the ability to express one's feelings, social skills such as interpersonal skills, working in teams, or expressing social and ethical commitment. These competencies enable processes of social interaction and cooperation.
• System competencies are those skills and abilities that relate to the entire system. They represent a combination of understanding, sensibility and knowledge, with the help of which a person will be able to see the relationship between individual parts and how they make up the whole. These abilities include the ability to plan changes in order to improve existing systems and create new systems. Systemic competences require prior acquisition of instrumental and interpersonal competences

Qualifications representing the successful completion of the first cycle (180-240 ECTS points) are awarded to students who:

• demonstrate knowledge and understanding in the field of study, which builds on their secondary education and is common at first cycle level, supported by appropriate learning resources at higher education level (university textbooks, information and communication technologies), which includes aspects of knowledge of advanced achievements in a given field of study;
• can apply detailed knowledge and critical understanding of the principles related to a given field of study/discipline in a way that shows a professional approach to work or profession, and possess competencies that are usually expressed by the ability to form and support opinions and positions with arguments and the ability to solve problems within the given field of study;
• have the ability to collect and interpret relevant data (within a given field of study) on the basis of which they make judgments that may also include reflections on relevant social scientific or ethical issues;
• they can apply the basic methods of acquiring knowledge and applied research in a given discipline, and are able to decide which approach to use to solve a given problem, and are aware of the extent to which the chosen approach is appropriate for solving such a problem;
• can present and convey information, ideas, problems and solutions to an audience that is specialized in a given field of study, but also to an audience that is not specialized, using the appropriate language (and where appropriate, one or more foreign languages) and using communication tools technology;
• have built learning skills necessary for further study, with a high degree of autonomy and academic skills and properties necessary for research work, understanding and evaluating new information, concepts and evidence from different sources;
• possess the foundation for future self-direction and lifelong learning;
• have acquired interpersonal and teamwork skills, suitable for employment and/or further study.

Graduated students of banking, finance and commerce will be involved in specific banking, financial, retail and wholesale, and logistics aspects of their banking, commerce or. financial organizations, in planning and management of financial, business and human resources. Therefore, the banking, finance and trade curriculum is focused on building specific competencies that are necessary in different types of financial institutions, agencies and organizations as well as in different areas of investing, financing, import-export, franchising, merchandising and stock exchange affairs so that graduates are prepared for constant and accelerated changes in the investment, financial and business environment.

SPECIFIC COMPETENCES of the program are derived from teaching modules of the study core in the field of banking, finance and trade, which implies knowledge of the management and operations of all forms of banking and para-banking organizations in the areas of business, commercial, investment banking, microcredit and savings and credit operations. Students are also trained for narrowly specialized functions in the field of banking market analysis and business banking marketing. Students also possess significant competencies related to management, analysis, assessments and risk management, as well as competencies in the field of project and investment management. In the field of financing, students take on the competencies of stock market business, business of "portfolio" financial institutions, analysis and management of complex investment processes, business on the securities market, and financing of import-export business. In the field of trade, students acquire competencies related to business, logistics and organization in retail and wholesale, modern trade technologies of merchandising, franchising and network sales, import-export operations, forwarding, logistics and procurement management. In the elective course, students can acquire specific competencies related to team building, business partnerships, crisis management and conflict management, and international business negotiation. In the optional corpus in the field of trade, students can acquire additional competencies in the field of consumer and customer research and marketing-management of personal selling.

In the modular part of the teaching process, which is practically oriented, students acquire active and practical, narrowly specialized competences from innovative entrepreneurship in business incubation centers, which include: the process of birth and incubation of new ideas, technological predictions and innovative entrepreneurship, establishing and running a small business, business development plans and development and selection of team business projects.

Students possess competencies related to the recognition and management of business environment parameters in order to be able to use respective economic, financial and other instruments, understanding the impacts of the macro/micro-economic environment and identifying the impacts of these elements on financial and business infrastructure, organization and business functions. This implies the ability to identify important characteristics and functional areas of the business organization and the ability to define changes in the banking and business organization, with which the prerequisites for an elastic response to changes in the business macro-environment are acquired.

During their studies, students also acquire a suitable set of systemic competencies in the field of business economics so that they can successfully perform inter-departmental work tasks, and are able to see the whole organization or. to see the consequences of the influence of individual functions of the organization on the whole and on its business environment.

Students are trained to understand the details of banking, financial and trading functions, types of financial, banking and trading business and business operations, specifics of different types of banking, trading and other financial institutions or. business sectors and to connect these factors with basic knowledge. Competencies of analysis, synthesis and critical thinking in business and managerial areas enable successful management of banking and financial institutions and institutions, as well as trade organizations and companies (tools and concepts), planning, control and audit of business organization and development of consulting plans.

Students also acquire basic competencies in secondary areas that are indirectly related to the business process such as: business law and business contracts, technology and engineering - understanding the technological background of business processes and connections with market research, social and marketing psychology, mathematical and statistical methods and tools.

In the field of business logistics, students acquire competencies related to management accounting, securities management, various payment instruments, trading in stock exchanges, forwarding and distribution, modern sales strategies and sales promotion methods.

Graduating from the study program "Banking, Finance and Trade" implies acquiring a minimum of 180 ECTS (European Credit Transfer System) credit points, i.e. an optimum of 240 ECTS, mandatory passing of at least two foreign language exams, mandatory completion of at least six seminars or defense of at least four seminar papers in the chosen field of study and defense of a diploma/specialist thesis. 

The programs of the first cycle focus on the acquisition of basic knowledge to familiarize students with different business functions and with the business environment in which these functions take place in banks and other financial and commercial organizations and institutions and in various forms of their integration. Students also need to familiarize themselves with a set of basic financial instruments to support the business process, organizational and communication skills, along with the ability to analyze and structure the problems of banking and trade organization.

In order to achieve these educational goals in the study of the first cycle, students should experience different types of teaching methods such as traditional lectures and exercises, seminars, research seminars, project assignments, pedagogical workshops, problem-oriented workshops, demonstration classes, student practice and practical work in banking and other financial institutions, work-oriented exercises, modeling of banking processes, especially in the area of ​​risk assessment, research student work. In connection with that, students should undergo various knowledge assessment methods that document the achieved educational outcomes.

This means that the educational outcomes of the course should be achieved by appropriate teaching and examination methods, where students present not only the level of their basic knowledge, but also their ability to use instruments to support the business process, to organize their work, to communicate in the context of their work and to argue the results.

After the studies of the first cycle, students have the possibility of employment, mobility in further studies, or the possibility of later inclusion in the "learning for life" system.

The teaching of the second cycle is based on the core knowledge of the first cycle. According to the teaching direction, it can be vertical, horizontal or interdisciplinary, which depends on the knowledge acquired during the first cycle studies. In the second cycle, as in the first, different teaching and examination methods are used to stimulate not only the acquisition of knowledge in the subject areas of banking, finance and trade, but also the preparation of students to find relevant instruments for solving problems, as well as their ability to organize and communicate and be able to present a solution to a problem in a wider business context.

Learning outcomes should provide banking students with the general skills to formulate:

• Questions relating to the background of the problem; 
• Research questions; 
• Problem solving methodology 
• Problem analysis 
• Conclusions related to problem elaboration 
• Recommendations related to problem solving 
• Sources for further elaboration of the problem 
• Orchestrating and harmonizing problem solving teams 
• Problem presentation and problem communication 

Based on the educational profile of managers and managers specializing in banking, finance and trade, in the domain of graduate and postgraduate studies, the University has created a large number of operational and applied specializations/sub-specializations, which qualify students for professional and management jobs in small and medium-sized banks and other financial institutions and institutions, as well as different types of trade organizations in the field of retail and wholesale, for work in import-export trading companies, corporations and large business systems that perform part of their business in the field of financing, specialized marketing agencies, investment funds, consulting agencies, public institutions, stock exchanges and brokerage agencies.

Graduate students and graduate students-specialists in banking, finance and trade are qualified to perform the following jobs: managers in banking, managers for trade and export operations, managers of forwarding, logistics and insurance, managers of tourism and hotel management, managers-leaders at all levels of business, of financial, institutional and corporate organization, managers of revitalization and reengineering of financial institutions and companies in crisis, project development managers and investment managers, analysts and advisers for small entrepreneurship, trade and business incubators, managers of business information systems, accounting management experts and business finance managers, advisors for market operations, taxes and stock exchange operations, managers of new product development and development of expert teams, environmental protection managers, quality control managers, marketers, expert associates on research and planning, and advisors for control andaudit of market operations.

Within the studies, the foundations for lifelong professional mobility and permanent professional development were created.

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