Margolis Market Information Lab

Hands-on exposure so you can take on the world of finance

Master the same state-of-the-art finance and business tools that global firms use. Launched in 2009 by a landmark gift from the Chicago Mercantile Exchange Trust, the Margolis Market Information Lab is one of the most highly utilized university finance labs in the US. The lab provides a cutting-edge learning environment where students immerse themselves in the latest financial and technology trends so they are best equipped to succeed in the vast world of finance.

Real-World Experience

The Margolis Market Information Lab is a dynamic open space that fosters innovation in finance and technology. The lab provides exposure to real-time financial and alternative data as well as live coverage of financial news networks such as Bloomberg TV, CNBC and Yahoo Finance. Each workstation is equipped with cutting-edge hardware and software providing a unique hands-on experience for researchers, faculty, and students.

The lab has access to a Data Science and Deep Learning workstation, which advances and promotes FinTech research, and includes three separate spaces: a 48-seat primary instruction room equipped with 24 high-end workstations with dual screens, a secondary lab equipped with 20 workstations and live financial data, and a walk-up area with 8 dual screen workstations that are monitored by instructional aides.

Skills Training and Professional Development

Firms increasingly rely on access to databases, a programming-literate workforce, sophisticated software, and information services to manage a wide variety of challenges and risks and to promote innovation in their enterprise. We want our students to be fully prepared to meet this challenge. The Market Lab teaches more than 200 instructional workshops each year to University of Illinois students, giving them hands-on exposure to a number of industry-leading software options and programming languages. Market Lab members can also take advantage of the lab’s software partners’ certifications to further advance their careers.

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Market Lab Fellowship Program

One of the landmarks of the lab is the fellowship program in which undergraduate and graduate students specialize in the lab’s data and software offerings. After a competitive recruiting process and training period, lab fellows serve as instructors and resources within the lab.

Professional and classroom integration is crucial to our mission, and as such, the lab partners work with the Golder Academies in the Department of Finance. The Golder Academies prepare students for a variety of careers in corporate finance through enhanced academic and career opportunities and by providing hands-on experience with the latest industry software, which they can apply in solving real-world finance problems.

Sponsors and Partnerships

A gift from Jeffrey and Deborah Margolis in 2008 created the Margolis Market Information Laboratory. Jeff Margolis, a 1984 Gies graduate, earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration with a concentration in management information systems. A healthcare IT innovator and entrepreneur, he is currently the chairman and CEO of Welltok, Inc., a data-driven enterprise Software as a Service company that delivers the healthcare industry’s leading consumer activation platform.

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