Please note that students will have a limited opportunity to ask questions regarding the assignments should they need some clarifications. These questions should posted on the relevant discussion thread on ilearn as questions posted on other threads might be missed. The opportunity to post queries to the guest lecturers and other academic staff will close 5 days prior to the assignment due date. However, students will be able to continue posting on the thread but the questions will not be answered by any of the academic staff including the teaching assistant. You are free to discuss matters amongst yourselves.

Please read the assignment question carefully and start planning early.  Replies to online posts and emails will be responded to within 48hrs however we will only be respond to them during work hours and not on weekends. Repeated questions will not be answered so please read the previous postings carefully.

No extensions will be granted. Late tasks will be accepted up to 48 hours after the submission deadline.  There will be a deduction of 20% of the total available marks made from the total awarded mark for each 24 hour period or part thereof that the submission is late (for example, 25 hours late in submission – 40% penalty). This penalty does not apply for cases in which an application for special consideration is made and approved.

Any emails after the completion of the final exam might not be responded too if the student claims to have not faired well or if the student requests the outcome of the final grade prior to the official release of grades by the university.

Standardized Numerical Grade

“A Standardised Numerical Grade (SNG) gives you an indication of how you have performed within the band for your descriptive grade. The SNG is not a mark, and you may not be able to work it out based on your raw examination and other assessment marks. Nor are you able to determine you are “one mark away” from a different grade.”

Grade Book

It is the responsibility of students to view their marks for each within session assessment on iLearn within 20 working days of posting. If there are any discrepancies, students must contact the unit convenor immediately. Failure to do so will mean that queries received after the release of final results regarding assessment marks (not including the final exam mark) will not be addressed.

Classes 

Lecture: LOTUS Theatre (W6D) https://timetables.mq.edu.au/scientia/web/W6DLotus.html  on Monday's 6 – 9pm

The campus map can be downloaded from the following link http://www.ofm.mq.edu.au/maps_campus.html

The timetable for classes can be found on the University web site https://timetables.mq.edu.au/2015/

Classes in AFIN310 are composed of a three hour lecture. Unit materials are learnt by attending lectures and through independent learning. The lectures provide a general overview of the topics highlighting a number of concepts and techniques. Students are strongly advised to study any additional reading material provided by the unit convenor, the guest lecturers and further explore all relevant concepts and techniques.

Students should attend a three-hour lecture every week. Lecture slides will sometimes be available prior to the lecture on iLearn and in some instances after the lecture. The will be distributed at the discretion of the guest lecturer.

The lecture recording (audio and video) will also be available via ECHO360 (approximately 1 hr after the end of the lecture). Please see the ECHO360 link in your course iLearn page.

Prizes

The Financial Services Institute of Australasia, FINSIA, has kindly sponsored a prize of $500 for the most outstanding student in AFIN310.

Required and Recommended Texts and/or Materials

There are no required or recommended texts for AFIN310. Notes for each of the lectures will be made available in iLearn. If required, additional readings will also be provided either via iLearn and eReserve.

Please note that you will be required to complete the following module from the CFA website and upload the completion report to ilearn.

http://www.cfainstitute.org/learning/products/onlinelearning/Pages/61587.aspx?WPID=BrowseProducts 

Technology Used and Required

iLearn is an online program available at https://ilearn.mq.edu.au/login/MQ/ through which students will be able to access resources such as lecture notes and ilectures to assist them throughout the semester. The discussion forum environment will be extensively used to allow students to interact with each other.

Unit Web Page

Course material is available on the learning management system at http://ilearn.mq.edu.au

You are strongly encouraged to regularly visit the website and use it as a resource centre to assist with your learning.

If you are unable to access the website because you are not aware of or have forgotten your username and password, please contact the IT helpdesk. All information can be found at http://informatics.mq.edu.au/help/

With regards to assistance in using iLearn please visit the following link.

http://www.mq.edu.au/iLearn/student_info/index.htm

You can follow the tabs on the left, i.e., “Getting Started” and “Access iLearn”

Please remember to log out when you have finished using iLearn. Failure to do so could result in unauthorised access to your iLearn account.

Learning and Teaching Activities

The teaching strategy in AFIN310 recognises that students learn independently and assume responsibility for the learning process and with academic integrity.

Students are expected to participate in the unit by attending lectures, reading the provided material and thoroughly revising the lecture notes. You are also expected to use the full suite of research databases available from the library. This includes reference to journal articles and industry reports.

What we aim to achieve in AFIN310 is deep (as opposed to surface) learning. Thus, learning is interpreted as making sense or abstracting meaning. Learning involves relating parts of the subject matter to each other and to the real world. Further learning is understood as comprehending the world by understanding and re-interpreting knowledge.

This unit also gives you the opportunity to go beyond your discipline and exposes you to different areas of finance, including discussion of the latest financial regulation from ASIC and other bodies that will become essential when starting your career in the workforce.

There are no changes from previous offerings. The assessments structure is the same with 1 group and 2 individual tasks.  

This unit gives the students multiple group projects that require research from traditional journal type articles, industry reports published by third parties and also current government legislation supporting the finance and banking industry.  It also exposes students in identifying key data sources used by the industry in writing various stock/share recommendation and company valuation reports. This unit gives you opportunities to conduct your own research based on skills obtained from using MS Excel and from exposure to different financial products. Being at the forefront of the legal environment gives one the chance to remain vigilant when giving advice to clients. One can also apply valuations techniques in their personal investment decisions which might enhance the performance of their assets. Please note however that under no circumstances is neither Macquarie University nor the lecturer liable for any losses suffered from the application of investment techniques learnt in this subject.