Tomás was looking to acquire skills and insight for applying finance to real-world issues. He required an English-language framework, and he sought specialized instruction in advanced fields of finance. And that is exactly what he found at Waseda. He enrolled in the Master of Science in Finance program at WBS in 2023. Tomás earned his master’s degree in September 2025 and is now working at the Tokyo office of a global management consulting firm headquartered in Europe.

“Waseda is the only university in Tokyo where we can earn, in English, a master’s degree in pure finance. And the program spans a stimulating range of valuable subjects. The compulsory core includes such basic emphases as corporate finance and econometrics. And the electives include such specialized study as real estate management and time series analysis. Waseda would also have been an excellent place to pursue a master of business administration degree—MBA—but I wanted to focus on finance.”

The graduate program in finance that Tomás undertook is one of three graduate programs at WBS. Also on offer at the school are the International MBA program and a double MBA program conducted with Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University. Waseda’s International MBA program is a two-year program taught entirely in English. The Waseda-Nanyang Double MBA program is an accelerated, 14-month program, also taught entirely in English. Its participants begin their studies in Singapore and conclude them in Tokyo.

“I was extremely happy with the hands-on business experience that the professors at Waseda brought to our classes,” Tomás reports.

“I loved how the professor for our corporate finance class,” Tomás recalls, “shared case studies from his business experience. And I was excited to see how what we were learning in time series analysis would render service in analytics.”

Tomás becomes especially animated in relating his participation in three seminars, zemi in Japanese, during his two years at Waseda. Seminars are of smaller class size than the standard courses, and the participants act on their own initiative in choosing research themes and in undertaking the research under faculty supervision.

“The zemi were my favorite courses, by far. I participated in zemi for portfolio management, financial modeling, and ESG. We had great interaction with the professors because of the small class size. Especially in the second year, our interaction was more in the manner of colleagues than of teacher and students. We even had dinner together at the end. The substance, meanwhile, was really practical. What we learned in the zemi was exactly what we do at work.”

WBS’s hands-on courses included a project where Tomás and his classmates undertook market entry consulting for a manufacturer. The students examined the manufacturer’s plant thoroughly and drew up a proposal for market entry, which they presented to the CEO.

“The CEO,” smiles Tomás, “liked our proposal and considered implementing some of our suggestions. He even asked a couple of us about our career plans. I had already committed to a management consulting firm, though, and was not in a position to pursue the subject.”

“Waseda is the only university in Tokyo,” notes Tomás, “where we can earn, in English, a master’s degree in pure finance.”

That Tomás is working today at a management consulting firm is testimony to another practical aspect of WBS’s value-added. The WBS Career Management Center provides introductions to host companies for student interns. Tomás’s internship at the consultancy’s Tokyo office in his second year at Waseda led to a job offer, and Tomás went to work there after earning his degree in September 2025.

“The internships” Tomás explains, “are typically for about a month. However, if it goes well, companies may extend them. My internship was extended to about six months, during which I contributed to research and client presentations, among other things.”

Something else that Tomás liked at WBS was the opportunity to take courses outside the core finance curriculum. He cites an MBA course in consumer behavior that he took.

“That was completely outside the realm of finance but provided a lot of practical insights. Taking courses outside our core curriculum is valuable in occasioning interchange with students of diverse interests and backgrounds, as well as in complementing our core studies.”

Tomás emphasizes that students at WBS receive comprehensive support in securing work. That support unfolds through the aforementioned Career Management Center.

“The people in the Career Management Center show students how to write effective CVs. And the center brings in WBS alumni to discuss their work and highlight career possibilities. I attended alumni presentations and found them to be extremely informative.

“Let me add that Waseda’s name value is huge in seeking employment. The recruiters at companies in every industry have high regard for Waseda, and earning a degree there is a head start for any job applicant.”

Complementing WBS’s academic offerings is the diversity of extracurricular activities on offer at Waseda. That diversity ensures that students can find an activity suited to their interests. Tomás describes his participation in two contrasting pursuits.

“I’d done boxing at university in the United Kingdom,” Tomás relates, “and joined the boxing club at Waseda. The other members of the club didn’t speak much English, but they were friendly and accommodating, and I had a great time. The problem was the intensity of the training. They practiced daily. That began to interfere with my studies, and I needed to quit the club after about five months.”

Happily, Tomás discovered an extracurricular activity that meshed better with his studies. He joined the ballroom dancing club.

“The ballroom dancing club met just once a week, which was manageable. It was a lot of fun, too, and I stuck with it.”

“The recruiters at companies in every industry,” Tomás emphasizes, “have high regard for Waseda, and earning a degree there is a head start for any job applicant.”