• 7 million^[i] employees would like to undertake training to boost their financial service skills
• Positive economic outlook is boosting confidence in the job market^[ii]
• In response to the demand for finance training, Harvard Business School professor Marc Bertonèche and First Finance has launched a free online training course expected to enroll thousands

Over a fifth (23 per cent) of British employees plan to undertake training to boost their finance skills in 2014, according to new research^[iii] from First Finance, a leading financial training and consultancy firm.  To help employees boost their skills in the sector, First Finance has teamed up with an award-winning Harvard Business School professor to launch a range of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) which last four weeks and provide students with work-ready financial skills.

Dubbed a fast-growing trend for 2014 by Deloitte^[iv], MOOCs are free open online courses that can be accessed by anyone wanting to retrain or upskill. Designed by Harvard Business School professor Marc Bertonèche and ex-Lehman Brothers MD, Stephen Weiss, First Finance’s MOOCs launch on 24 February 2014. Available on firstbusinessmooc.org, the four-week courses in financial markets and corporate finance are free to undertake and students only pay if they choose to have their participation and completion of the course formally recognized. Those who successfully complete the course will also have taken an important step to receiving key certifications offered by First Finance Institute that are recognised by big industry players like BNP Paribas, HSBC and Societe Generale. Skills taught include an in-depth understanding of the technical components of markets and the ability to assess and evaluate the financial health of companies.

Eric Chardoillet, President and Founder of First Finance, commented: “British workers are looking at ways to boost their skill set and according to our research, training in financial services is high on their wish list.

“It is now incredibly easy to brush up your skills or learn more about an industry. Our MOOCs are free to take and allow participants the flexibility to undertake the course online and at their own convenience.

“They are already proving hugely successful; not only is our MOOC completion rate five times higher than the industry average^[v], but students and professionals who undertake our finance training are seven times more likely to elect to have their participation in the course recognized.^[vi].”

According to First Finance’s research, over a quarter (27 per cent) of British employees would like to work in finance. Top reasons for choosing a career in the sector are that it sets you up for life (29  per cent), is well paid (21 per cent) and offers good career progression (20 per cent).

Chardoillet added: “As well as finance professionals looking to boost their skill set, our research shows there are a growing number of people who want to pursue a career in finance. Our two new finance MOOCs have been specifically designed to provide aspiring city workers with the skills they need to succeed in the sector.”

Designed by expert practitioners, the First Finance MOOCs incorporate a range of educational tools specifically designed to help corporate and finance professionals, students, teachers and individuals boost their finance skills. These include weekly live sessions with Marc Bertonèche and Stephen Weiss, up to six ten-minute videos a week, case studies, weekly quizzes, interactive discussion forums and meet ups. The courses start on 24 February 2014 and are accessible via firstbusinessmooc.org, First Finance’s newly launched state-of-the-art, multi-expert, multi-lingual online learning portal.

To register for First Finance’s two new MOOCs, visit: firstbusinessmooc.org

[i] http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/lms/labour-market-statistics/january-2014/sty-employment.html

[ii] 24 per cent of Brits saying it is becoming a ‘job seekers’ market’

[iii] An online survey of 2,020 UK adults was conducted by Vision Critical on 24-27 January 2014

[iv] http://www2.deloitte.com/global/en/pages/technology-media-and-telecommunications/articles/2014prediction-massive-open-online-courses.html

[v] 20 per cent of registered participants complete the entire course compared with an average 4% on international MOOC platforms, according to a study from the Graduate school at the University of Pennsylvania: http://www.gse.upenn.edu/pdf/ahead/perna_ruby_boruch_moocs_dec2013.pdf.

[vi] 7 per cent of course participants pursued the online attestation track (compared to the estimated industry average of 1%).