Unit Profile Correction added on 26-03-20
The end of term examination has now been changed to an alternate form of assessment. Please see your Moodle site for details of the assessment
Overview
This unit covers investment analysis of complex investment portfolios. You will be introduced to contemporary investment theories and construct a client focused portfolio. You will examine the risks associated with domestic and international investment products.
Details
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites
Prerequisite: FINC 19011
Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).
Offerings For Term 1 - 2020
Attendance Requirements
All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes – in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).
Recommended Student Time Commitment
Each 6-credit Undergraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 12.5 hours of study per week, making a total of 150 hours for the unit.
Class Timetable
Assessment Overview
Assessment Grading
This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of ‘pass’ in order to pass the unit. If any ‘pass/fail’ tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully (‘pass’ grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the ‘assessment task’ section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%). Consult the University’s Grades and Results Policy for more details of interim results and final grades.
All University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
You may wish to view these policies:
- Grades and Results Policy
- Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework)
- Review of Grade Procedure
- Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure – Domestic Students
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure – International Students
- Student Refund and Credit Balance Policy and Procedure
- Student Feedback – Compliments and Complaints Policy and Procedure
- Information and Communications Technology Acceptable Use Policy and Procedure
This list is not an exhaustive list of all University policies. The full list of University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
Feedback, Recommendations and Responses
Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.
Feedback from Head of Programs Financial Planning and student complaints
Assessment design was found to be the most problematic for students
A comprehensive analysis of the shortcomings of this Unit has been provided. Remedies for improvement are identified. Thus, the assessment will be revised as suggested in section 3. Namely, reduce the demanding workloads by: 1) making XPlan voluntary 2) by providing the students with a completed and accurate Fact Find 3) design the Statement of Advice (SOA) template to assess investment planning strategy/ies and product recommendations to meet the learning outcomes of the unit.
Feedback from Self-reflection and students informal feedback
Level of lecturer availability appears excessive
Lecturer availability will be determined by student demand using weekly scheduled Zoom, Email, Moodle News, Discussion and Q&A Forums.
Feedback from Self-reflection, informal discussions with students and formal student evaluations
Feedback from students seem to focus primarily on the data Fact Find inconsistencies in the assignment
The Fact Find has been simplified and the inconsistencies removed. Given our assignments do not equate precisely in terms of depth with industry activities as a consequence of the implementation of post-Royal Commission industry compliance standards, the students will be made aware of the places where the simplifications lie and what they will be expected to do when in practice.
- Explain the principles of advanced investment analysis and risk management
- Construct client focused portfolios using domestic and international financial products
- Solve real world complex investment problems.
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
| Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| 1 - Written Assessment - 50% | |||
| 2 - Examination - 50% | |||
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
| Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| 1 - Communication | |||
| 2 - Problem Solving | |||
| 3 - Critical Thinking | |||
| 4 - Information Literacy | |||
| 5 - Team Work | |||
| 6 - Information Technology Competence | |||
| 7 - Cross Cultural Competence | |||
| 8 - Ethical practice | |||
| 9 - Social Innovation | |||
| 10 - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultures | |||
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Graduate Attributes
| Assessment Tasks | Graduate Attributes | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | |
| 1 - Written Assessment - 50% | ||||||||||
| 2 - Examination - 50% | ||||||||||
Textbooks
Fundamentals of Investing, Global Edition
Edition: 14th (2019)
Authors: Scott B. Smart and Chad J. Zutter
Pearson Education Limited
Harlow Harlow , Essex , England
ISBN: 9781292316970
Binding: Paperback
Financial Planning
Edition: 2nd (2017)
Authors: Warren McKeown, Mike Kerry and Marc Olynyk
Wiley
Milton Milton , Queensland , Australia
ISBN: 9780730343554
Binding: eBook
Financial Planning in Australia 2019 Essentials Edition
Edition: 2019 (2019)
Authors: Sharon Taylor
LexisNexis Butterworths
Australia
ISBN: 9780409349047
Binding: Paperback
Additional Textbook Information
Paper copies can be purchased from the CQUni Bookshop here: http://bookshop.cqu.edu.au (search on the Unit code)
IT Resources
- CQUniversity Student Email
- Internet
- Unit Website (Moodle)
- XPlan software to complete Practical Assessment 1
All submissions for this unit must use the referencing style: American Psychological Association 6th Edition (APA 6th edition)
For further information, see the Assessment Tasks.
a.mcinnes@cqu.edu.au
Module/Topic
The Investment Environment
Chapter
1
Events and Submissions/Topic
- Refer to the weekly study guide.
- Complete self-study questions.
- For the practical assessment download the three files from Moodle.
- Read the assessment instructions and start unpacking the case study.
- Use the Q&A Forum on Moodle if you are unsure how to proceed.
Module/Topic
Securities Markets and Transactions
Chapter
2
Events and Submissions/Topic
- Refer to the weekly study guide.
- Complete self-study questions.
- For the practical assessment this week complete the ‘Scope of our advice’; ‘Your goals and objectives’ and ‘Your risk tolerance’ sections of the Statement of Advice.
Module/Topic
Investment Information and Securities Transactions
Chapter
3
Events and Submissions/Topic
- Refer to the weekly study guide.
- Complete self-study questions.
- For the practical assessment complete the ‘Our Recommended Investment Strategies’ section by reviewing the Fact Find, the client's objectives, needs and risk tolerance and linking these to what investment strategy/ies you believe are achieve them
Module/Topic
Return and Risk
Chapter
4
Events and Submissions/Topic
- Refer to the weekly study guide.
- Complete self-study questions.
- For the practical assessment complete the ‘Our Investment Product Recommendations’ section using the prompts/analysis questions within the SOA.
Module/Topic
Modern Portfolio Concepts
Chapter
5
Events and Submissions/Topic
- Refer to the weekly study guide.
- Complete self-study questions.
- For the practical assessment complete the “Replacement and alternative product recommendations” sections of the SOA.
- Please follow the grading guidelines in the rubrics carefully.
Module/Topic
Catchup and assessment completion
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Share investments and analysis
Chapter
6, 7 and 8
Events and Submissions/Topic
- Refer to the weekly study guide.
- Complete self-study questions.
- For the practical assessment continue working through the SOA. You should be at the stage of completing the ‘Recommended asset allocation’ as well as making a start on the ‘Financial outcomes of our recommended strategies’.
Module/Topic
Market Efficiency and Behavioral Finance, Preferred Stock and Taxation of Investments
Chapter
9 and 16
Events and Submissions/Topic
- Refer to the weekly study guide.
- Complete self-study questions.
- For the practical assessment complete the ‘Cost of our advice’ section of the SOA and the ‘Supporting information and Annexures’.
Module/Topic
Fixed Interest Securities and Bond Valuation
Chapter
10 and 11
Events and Submissions/Topic
- Refer to the weekly study guide.
- Complete self-study questions.
- For the practical assessment finalise your written Statement of Advice template
PRACTICAL ASSESSMENT: INVESTMENT ANALYSIS AND PLANNING Due: Week 8 Friday (8 May 2020) 11:45 pm AEST
Module/Topic
Mutual (Managed funds) and Exchange Traded Funds
Chapter
12
Events and Submissions/Topic
- Please refer to the study guide for the exact pages to refer to for each chapter.
- Complete self-study questions
- Prepare for the exams.
Module/Topic
Managing your own portfolio
Chapter
13
Events and Submissions/Topic
- Please refer to the study guide for the exact pages to refer to for each chapter.
- Complete self-study questions
- Prepare for the exams
- Complete the student evaluation
Module/Topic
Options: Puts and Calls
Chapter
14
Events and Submissions/Topic
- Please refer to the study guide for the exact pages to refer to for each chapter.
- Complete self-study questions
- Prepare for the exams
- Complete the student evaluation if you have not already done so
Module/Topic
Futures and Forward Contracts
Chapter
15
Events and Submissions/Topic
- Please refer to the study guide for the exact pages to refer to for each chapter.
- Complete self-study questions.
- Prepare for the exams.
- Complete the student evaluation if you have not already done so.
Module/Topic
All the best for the exams.
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
1 Written Assessment
This is an individual assessment.
Important detailed information for your assessment is on the Moodle site.
Before you begin please read the:
- instructions for completing and submitting your assessment.
- case study background.
Task requirements:
- Identify the client's objectives, needs and financial situation by reviewing the case study background, fact find and risk profile information provided.
- If you choose to use XPlan, input this information into XPlan software so that you can model the various strategies within XPlan.
- Prepare a written Statement of Advice using the template provided and financial planning software [XPlan, Microsoft-Excel and/or related software]. The software is available to you via Moodle.
- Using the analysis questions provided within the Statement of Advice template, develop and document appropriate investment strategies and recommendations to achieve the client's investment goals.
We provide:
- Instructions document to complete the assessment with grading rubrics
- Completed fact find and risk profile document assumedly obtained during a meeting with the client that has already taken place.
- Statement of Advice template, which you must complete to be graded.
- Data analysis questions within the Statement of Advice to assist preparing the Statement of Advice document.
From the above task, it is clear this is a practical assessment dealing with a real world financial planning client investment need. Please start this assessment as soon as possible, because for some of you it will require learning numerous new skills. Learning how to use new software [for instance, XPlan] may need sometime and practice. Your unit coordinator is available via Moodle discussion forum and Q&A forum, as well as Zoom drop-in sessions.
Please refer to Moodle and download all three files relating to this Assessment requirements. Please read these documents carefully.
Email your unit coordinator directly to address any personal matters, concerns or difficulties during the term is encouraged.
Week 8 Friday (8 May 2020) 11:45 pm AEST
Submission via Moodle
Week 9 Friday (15 May 2020)
Feedback via Moodle
We award marks for completing a Statement of Advice (SOA) Microsoft-Word template provided covering the following sections of the SOA.
- Introduction (Table of Contents)
- Your goals and objectives
- Scope of your advice
- Your tolerance to risk
- Retirement funding
- Summary of our Advice in a Strategy Map
- Our Recommended Superannuation Strategies
- Our Superannuation Product Recommendations
- Replacement and alternative product recommendations included
- Recommended asset allocation
- Financial outcomes of our recommended strategies
- Cost of our advice
- Supporting information and Annexures
- Organisation/Structure/Presentation/Mechanics
- Sources/Evidence
Find in the Assessment Instruction File in Moodle a comprehensive marking criteria sheet covering grade
- Explain the principles of advanced investment analysis and risk management
- Construct client focused portfolios using domestic and international financial products
- Solve real world complex investment problems.
- Communication
- Problem Solving
- Critical Thinking
- Information Literacy
- Team Work
- Information Technology Competence
- Cross Cultural Competence
- Ethical practice
Examination
Calculator - all non-communicable calculators, including scientific, programmable and graphics calculators are authorised
As a CQUniversity student you are expected to act honestly in all aspects of your academic work.
Any assessable work undertaken or submitted for review or assessment must be your own work. Assessable work is any type of work you do to meet the assessment requirements in the unit, including draft work submitted for review and feedback and final work to be assessed.
When you use the ideas, words or data of others in your assessment, you must thoroughly and clearly acknowledge the source of this information by using the correct referencing style for your unit. Using others’ work without proper acknowledgement may be considered a form of intellectual dishonesty.
Participating honestly, respectfully, responsibly, and fairly in your university study ensures the CQUniversity qualification you earn will be valued as a true indication of your individual academic achievement and will continue to receive the respect and recognition it deserves.
As a student, you are responsible for reading and following CQUniversity’s policies, including the Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure. This policy sets out CQUniversity’s expectations of you to act with integrity, examples of academic integrity breaches to avoid, the processes used to address alleged breaches of academic integrity, and potential penalties.
What is a breach of academic integrity?
A breach of academic integrity includes but is not limited to plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion, cheating, contract cheating, and academic misconduct. The Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure defines what these terms mean and gives examples.
Why is academic integrity important?
A breach of academic integrity may result in one or more penalties, including suspension or even expulsion from the University. It can also have negative implications for student visas and future enrolment at CQUniversity or elsewhere. Students who engage in contract cheating also risk being blackmailed by contract cheating services.
Where can I get assistance?
For academic advice and guidance, the Academic Learning Centre (ALC) can support you in becoming confident in completing assessments with integrity and of high standard.
What can you do to act with integrity?
