This course allows students to acquire and apply the skills needed to design investment portfolios. It covers duties to clients, types of investment products, explores links between investment risk and return, introduces tools for use in portfolio construction, brings in analysis of fixed income products and introduces techniques to evaluate past investment performance.

Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:

1. Demonstrate a detailed understanding of core investments theory;
2. Demonstrate a thorough knowledge of the issues associated with the application of investments theory in a practical setting;
3. Work effectively in group environments; and
4. Effectively communicate the results of empirical research.

Research-Led Teaching

Some topics driven by the lecturer’s research experience. Sharing with students the latest research findings or methods in relevant research area.

Required Resources

Textbook: Bodie, Z. Kane, A. and Marcus, A., 2021, Investments, 12^th Edition, Mc-Graw Hill/Irwin, New York;

The book can be purchased from the on campus bookshop, with a small number of copies also available for 2 hour loan in the reserve loan section of the ANU Library. E-book is available in the ANU library electronic resource https://library.anu.edu.au/record=b6460999.

Staff Feedback

Students will be given feedback in the following forms in this course:

• written comments
• verbal comments
• feedback to whole class, groups, individuals, focus group etc

Student Feedback

ANU is committed to the demonstration of educational excellence and regularly seeks feedback from students. Students are encouraged to offer feedback directly to their Course Convener or through their College and Course representatives (if applicable). The feedback given in these surveys is anonymous and provides the Colleges, University Education Committee and Academic Board with opportunities to recognise excellent teaching, and opportunities for improvement. The Surveys and Evaluation website provides more information on student surveys at ANU and reports on the feedback provided on ANU courses.

Class Schedule

Week/Session	Summary of Activities	Assessment
1	Introduction to Investments
2	Risk, Return, and the Historical Record
3	Capital Allocation and Optimal Risky Portfolios
4	Index Models
5	The Capital Asset Pricing Model	Quiz 1
6	Multi-factor Asset Pricing Models and Empirical Evidence on Security Returns
7	The Efficient Market Hypothesis and Behavioral Finance	Mid-semester Exam
8	Bond Prices and Yields and The Term Structure of Interest Rates
9	Managing Bond Portfolios	Quiz 2
10	Portfolio Performance Evaluation
11	Hedge Funds
12	Review

Tutorial Registration

Tutorials will be available on campus, live through scheduled Zoom sessions and as pre-recorded videos. Information regarding enrolments for these options will be provided on Wattle during O-week, prior to the start of the semester.

Assessment Summary

Assessment task	Value	Due Date	Return of assessment	Learning Outcomes
Online Quizzes	20 %	24/08/2021	30/08/2021	1,2,3,4
Mid-semester exam	20 %	30/08/2021	13/09/2021	1,2,3,4
Final Exam	60 %	04/11/2021	02/12/2021	1,2,3,4

* If the Due Date and Return of Assessment date are blank, see the Assessment Tab for specific Assessment Task details

Policies

ANU has educational policies, procedures and guidelines, which are designed to ensure that staff and students are aware of the University’s academic standards, and implement them. Students are expected to have read the Academic Misconduct Rule before the commencement of their course. Other key policies and guidelines include:

• Student Assessment (Coursework) Policy and Procedure
• Special Assessment Consideration Policy and General Information 
• Student Surveys and Evaluations
• Deferred Examinations
• Student Complaint Resolution Policy and Procedure

Assessment Requirements

The ANU is using Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the Academic Integrity . In rare cases where online submission using Turnitin software is not technically possible; or where not using Turnitin software has been justified by the Course Convener and approved by the Associate Dean (Education) on the basis of the teaching model being employed; students shall submit assessment online via ‘Wattle’ outside of Turnitin, or failing that in hard copy, or through a combination of submission methods as approved by the Associate Dean (Education). The submission method is detailed below.

Moderation of Assessment

Marks that are allocated during Semester are to be considered provisional until formalised by the College examiners meeting at the end of each Semester. If appropriate, some moderation of marks might be applied prior to final results being released.

Participation

Course content delivery will take the form of pre-recorded weekly lectures (available via echo360 on Wattle), pre-recorded weekly workshops (available via echo360 on Wattle) and weekly tutorials, delivered in hybrid format (on campus, live through scheduled Zoom sessions and as pre-recorded videos).

Examination(s)

Centrally scheduled examinations through Examinations, Graduations & Prizes will be timetabled prior to the examination period. Please check ANU Timetabling for further information.

Assessment Task 1

Online Quizzes

Weight: 20% in total

Duration: 20 minutes each

Time: Weeks 5 & 9

Submission: via Wattle

Below are the topics covered:

Quiz 1 on Lectures 1 – 4

Quiz 2 on Lectures 5 – 8 

Two online quizzes are counted towards the final grade and all quizzes are of equal value (10%). The quizzes are to be completed individually. Each quiz is 20mins and this includes the time to upload your document. Each quiz contains one calculation question and you must show all workings. The marking criteria will be based on model solutions and answers prepared by the lecturer and will be made available to students after the quiz week. No alternative arrangement will be made if a student misses a quiz. In cases where students apply for special considerations and have them approved before the quiz, the weighting of the quiz will be transferred to the final exam. 

Assessment Task 2

Mid-semester exam

Weight: 20% or 0%

Duration: 2 hours

Time: Week 6 or Week 7

Topics covered: Weeks 1 - 5.

Submission: via Wattle

The mid-term exam is optional, redeemable and to be completed individually. Specifically, if a student takes the mid-term exam, and performs better in the final exam, then the final grade for the student will be 80% of the final exam mark plus 20% of the quiz mark. Otherwise, the final grade for the student will count 60% of the final exam mark, 20% of the mid-term exam mark, and 20% of the quiz mark.

More details about the exam will be provided two weeks before the mid-semester exam.

Assessment Task 3

Final Exam

Weight: 60% or 80%

Duration: 3 hours

Time: Examination Period

Submission: via Wattle

The final exam is worth 60% (or 80% if the mid-term exam is not attempted/redeemed). It is to be completed individually. A mixture of theoretical and practical (numerical) questions will be included. All topics covered in this course will be examined. Students will be provided with more details regarding the exam in week 12.

Academic Integrity

Academic integrity is a core part of the ANU culture as a community of scholars. At its heart, academic integrity is about behaving ethically, committing to honest and responsible scholarly practice and upholding these values with respect and fairness.

The ANU commits to assisting all members of our community to understand how to engage in academic work in ways that are consistent with, and actively support academic integrity. The ANU expects staff and students to be familiar with the academic integrity principle and Academic Misconduct Rule, uphold high standards of academic integrity and act ethically and honestly, to ensure the quality and value of the qualification that you will graduate with.

The Academic Misconduct Rule is in place to promote academic integrity and manage academic misconduct. Very minor breaches of the academic integrity principle may result in a reduction of marks of up to 10% of the total marks available for the assessment. The ANU offers a number of online and in person services to assist students with their assignments, examinations, and other learning activities. Visit the Academic Skills website for more information about academic integrity, your responsibilities and for assistance with your assignments, writing skills and study.

Online Submission

All assessments are to be submitted online.

Hardcopy Submission

There are no hard-copy submission for this course.

Late Submission

No submission of assessment tasks without an extension after the due date will be permitted. If an assessment task is not submitted by the due date, a mark of 0 will be awarded.

Referencing Requirements

Accepted academic practice for referencing sources that you use in presentations can be found via the links on the Wattle site, under the file named “ANU and College Policies, Program Information, Student Support Services and Assessment”. Alternatively, you can seek help through the Students Learning Development website.

Extensions and Penalties

Extensions and late submission of assessment pieces are covered by the Student Assessment (Coursework) Policy and Procedure. Extensions may be granted for assessment pieces that are not examinations or take-home examinations. If you need an extension, you must request an extension in writing on or before the due date. If you have documented and appropriate medical evidence that demonstrates you were not able to request an extension on or before the due date, you may be able to request it after the due date.

Privacy Notice

The ANU has made a number of third party, online, databases available for students to use. Use of each online database is conditional on student end users first agreeing to the database licensor’s terms of service and/or privacy policy. Students should read these carefully. In some cases student end users will be required to register an account with the database licensor and submit personal information, including their: first name; last name; ANU email address; and other information.
In cases where student end users are asked to submit ‘content’ to a database, such as an assignment or short answers, the database licensor may only use the student’s ‘content’ in accordance with the terms of service – including any (copyright) licence the student grants to the database licensor. Any personal information or content a student submits may be stored by the licensor, potentially offshore, and will be used to process the database service in accordance with the licensors terms of service and/or privacy policy.
If any student chooses not to agree to the database licensor’s terms of service or privacy policy, the student will not be able to access and use the database. In these circumstances students should contact their lecturer to enquire about alternative arrangements that are available.

Distribution of grades policy

Academic Quality Assurance Committee monitors the performance of students, including attrition, further study and employment rates and grade distribution, and College reports on quality assurance processes for assessment activities, including alignment with national and international disciplinary and interdisciplinary standards, as well as qualification type learning outcomes.

Since first semester 1994, ANU uses a grading scale for all courses. This grading scale is used by all academic areas of the University.

Support for students

The University offers students support through several different services. You may contact the services listed below directly or seek advice from your Course Convener, Student Administrators, or your College and Course representatives (if applicable).

• ANU Health, safety & wellbeing for medical services, counselling, mental health and spiritual support
• ANU Diversity and inclusion for students with a disability or ongoing or chronic illness
• ANU Dean of Students for confidential, impartial advice and help to resolve problems between students and the academic or administrative areas of the University
• ANU Academic Skills and Learning Centre supports you make your own decisions about how you learn and manage your workload.
• ANU Counselling Centre promotes, supports and enhances mental health and wellbeing within the University student community.
• ANUSA supports and represents undergraduate and ANU College students
• PARSA supports and represents postgraduate and research students