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AFIN3052 – Applied Portfolio Management

2021 – Session 1, Special circumstances

Notice

As part of Phase 3 of our return to campus plan, most units will now run tutorials, seminars and other small group activities on campus, and most will keep an online version available to those students unable to return or those who choose to continue their studies online.

To check the availability of face-to-face and online activities for your unit, please go to timetable viewer. To check detailed information on unit assessments visit your unit's iLearn space or consult your unit convenor.

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit Convenor
Simon Wong
simon.wong@mq.edu.au
Credit points Credit points
10
Prerequisites Prerequisites
20cp at 2000 level including (AFIN252 or ((ACST201 or ACST2001 or ACST202 or ACST2002) and AFIN250 or AFIN2050))
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description

This unit provides students with the analytical skills and techniques required to effectively construct diversified portfolios of securities. The unit prepares students for asset allocation management and performance assessment of diversified portfolios. Issues relating to the management of portfolios containing options, futures and other derivatives will also be examined.

Important Academic Dates

Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://students.mq.edu.au/important-dates

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  • ULO1: Examine the investment decision making processes from the perspective of the portfolio manager.
  • ULO2: Define and critique various approaches to asset allocation.
  • ULO3: Compare and contrast the alternative asset allocation tools to construct portfolios and its role in industry practice.
  • ULO4: Source and analyse real financial data as applied to portfolio management and work in groups and individually to communicate the findings clearly and effectively in a professional environment.

General Assessment Information

Assessment criteria for all assessment tasks will be provided on the unit iLearn site.

It is the responsibility of students to view their marks for each within-session-assessment on iLearn within 20 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 tasks (not including the final exam mark) will not be addressed.

Late submissions and extensions

Tasks 10% or less – No extensions will be granted. Students who have not submitted the task prior to the deadline will be awarded a mark of 0 for the task, except for cases in which an application for special consideration is made and approved.

Tasks above 10% - No extensions will be granted. There will be a deduction of 10% 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 – 20% penalty). This penalty does not apply for cases in which an application for special consideration is made and approved. No submission will be accepted after solutions have been posted.

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due
Online Quiz 0% No Week 4
Mid Session Test 20% No Week 7
Group Assignment 25% No Week 10
Final Examination 55% No University Examination Period

Online Quiz

Assessment Type 1: Quiz/Test
Indicative Time on Task 2: 1 hours
Due: Week 4
Weighting: 0%

 

The online quiz will consist of 5 to 10 questions and will be available on iLearn. Please use the quiz result as an indicator of whether you are progressing satisfactorily in the unit.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Examine the investment decision making processes from the perspective of the portfolio manager.

Mid Session Test

Assessment Type 1: Quiz/Test
Indicative Time on Task 2: 12 hours
Due: Week 7
Weighting: 20%

 

An online open book mid session test of 60 minutes will be held to give students practice on a summative task and to provide feedback on their progress midway through the session.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Examine the investment decision making processes from the perspective of the portfolio manager.
  • Define and critique various approaches to asset allocation.
  • Compare and contrast the alternative asset allocation tools to construct portfolios and its role in industry practice.

Group Assignment

Assessment Type 1: Project
Indicative Time on Task 2: 20 hours
Due: Week 10
Weighting: 25%

 

Students will conduct research, and quantitative and qualitative analysis, to produce a group report (12.5%), and an individual report and individual presentation (12.5%).

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Examine the investment decision making processes from the perspective of the portfolio manager.
  • Define and critique various approaches to asset allocation.
  • Compare and contrast the alternative asset allocation tools to construct portfolios and its role in industry practice.
  • Source and analyse real financial data as applied to portfolio management and work in groups and individually to communicate the findings clearly and effectively in a professional environment.

Final Examination

Assessment Type 1: Examination
Indicative Time on Task 2: 20 hours
Due: University Examination Period
Weighting: 55%

 

A two hour online open book exam will be held during the University Examination Period.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Examine the investment decision making processes from the perspective of the portfolio manager.
  • Define and critique various approaches to asset allocation.
  • Compare and contrast the alternative asset allocation tools to construct portfolios and its role in industry practice.

1 If you need help with your assignment, please contact:

  • the academic teaching staff in your unit for guidance in understanding or completing this type of assessment
  • the Learning Skills Unit for academic skills support.

2 Indicative time-on-task is an estimate of the time required for completion of the assessment task and is subject to individual variation

Delivery and Resources

Learning and Teaching Activities

The content for each week will comprise of a lecture recording and a set of tutorial questions (Problem Sets). 

Lectures

A lecture recording will be uploaded each week. Lecture notes will be available on iLearn.

Tutorials

Students will need to register to either an on-campus tutorial or an online (Zoom) tutorial. Tutorials are considered compulsory but no marks are allocated. Tutorials will be available for most, but not all weeks of the semester. In weeks where there aren't any live (on-campus or online) tutorials, a recording will be provided to cover the relevant material.

The tutorial schedule will be made available on iLearn.

Tutorial enrolment or change of tutorial can be made through eStudent in the first two weeks of the semester. No tutorial changes are allowed after Week 2.  Students should attend their allocated tutorial, but exceptions may occur on a one-off basis. That is, where circumstances prevent you from attending your own tutorial in a given week, you may attend an alternative tutorial if room available.

Students are expected to complete the ‘Tutorial Questions’ as a self-directed study activity before attending a tutorial. Additional learning support will be available in tutor consultation times.

Timetable for classes can be found on the University web site at:  http://www.timetables.mq.edu.au/

Textbooks

There are no required textbooks that must be purchased. But the following textbooks are recommended.

  • 'Investments', Zvi Bodie, Alex Kean, Alan J. Marcus, McGraw-Hill Education, Latest Edition
  • 'Essentials of Investments", Zvi Bodie, Alex Kean, Alan J. Marcus, McGraw-Hill Education, Latest Edition. (Easier edition of the above.)
  • 'Investment Science", David Luenberger, Oxford University Press, Latest Edition
  • 'Fundamentals of Futures and Options Markets', John C. Hull, Pearson, Latest Edition
  • These books are available for purchase online from www.booktopia.com.au/coop and a copy will be available in the reserve section of the Macquarie Library.

Relevant resources will be provided.

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/strategy-planning-and-governance/university-policies-and-procedures/policy-central). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

Students seeking more policy resources can visit the Student Policy Gateway (https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/student-policy-gateway). It is your one-stop-shop for the key policies you need to know about throughout your undergraduate student journey.

If you would like to see all the policies relevant to Learning and Teaching visit Policy Central (https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/strategy-planning-and-governance/university-policies-and-procedures/policy-central).

Student Code of Conduct

Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/admin/other-resources/student-conduct

Results

Results published on platform other than eStudent, (eg. iLearn, Coursera etc.) or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit ask.mq.edu.au or if you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

Student Support

Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/

Learning Skills

Learning Skills (mq.edu.au/learningskills) provides academic writing resources and study strategies to help you improve your marks and take control of your study.

The Library provides online and face to face support to help you find and use relevant information resources. 

Student Enquiry Service

For all student enquiries, visit Student Connect at ask.mq.edu.au

If you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

Equity Support

Students with a disability are encouraged to contact the Disability Service who can provide appropriate help with any issues that arise during their studies.

IT Help

For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/. 

When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use of IT Resources Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.