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UQ Commerce subjects reviewed by your fellow students to help you do better.
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Compass The Bachelor of
Commerce 2014 Guide
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Contents
About FMAA ............................................................................................................................................... 4
Preface .......................................................................................................................................................... 5
Getting the most from your Commerce degree ......................................................................................... 9
Compulsory subjects ....................................................................................................................................11
ACCT1101 – Accounting for Decision Making ......................................................................................11
ACCT2101 – Financial Reporting ........................................................................................................... 12
ACCT2102 – Principles of Management Accounting ........................................................................... 13
ECON1010 – Introductory Microeconomics ......................................................................................... 14
ECON1020 – Introductory Macroeconomics ........................................................................................ 15
ECON1310 – Quantitative Economic & Business Analysis A ............................................................. 17
ECON1320 -- Quantitative Economic & Business Analysis B ............................................................. 18
FINM2401 – Financial Management ..................................................................................................... 19
LAWS1100 – Business Law ................................................................................................................... 20
MGTS1201 – Introduction to Computer Based Information Systems ................................................ 21
MGTS1301 – Introduction to Management ........................................................................................... 22
MKTG1501 – Foundations of Marketing ............................................................................................... 23
Accounting Major ...................................................................................................................................... 24
ACCT3101 – Auditing and Public Practice ........................................................................................... 24
ACCT3102 – External Reporting Issues ................................................................................................ 25
ACCT3103 – Accounting for Corporate Structures ............................................................................. 26
ACCT3104 – Principles of Management Accounting .......................................................................... 28
ACCT3105 (awaiting response) ............................................................................................................ 29
LAWS3100 – Corporations Law ............................................................................................................. 30
LAWS3101 – Income Tax Law ............................................................................................................... 31
Business Information Systems Major ....................................................................................................... 33
ACCT3201 – Business Information Systems ........................................................................................ 33
INFS3222 – Systems Analysis and Design ............................................................................................ 34
MGTS2202 – Data and Information Management ...............................................................................36
MGTS3203 – Database Management in Business ................................................................................. 38
MGTS3207 – Managing the Virtual Organisation .............................................................................. 40
MGTS3208 – Managing Information Systems and Services ............................................................... 41
Finance Major ............................................................................................................................................ 42
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ECON2200 – Management of Financial Institutions .......................................................................... 42
ECON2300 – Introductory Econometrics ............................................................................................. 43
ECON3210 – Financial Markets and Institutions .................................................................................45
FINM3401 – Corporate Finance ............................................................................................................ 46
FINM3402 – Investments and Portfolio Management ........................................................................ 48
FINM3403 – International Financial Management ............................................................................. 49
FINM3404 – Banking and Lending Decisions ......................................................................................50
FINM3405 – Derivatives and Risk Management .................................................................................. 51
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About FMAA
The Financial Management Association of Australia was established in 1990 at The University of Melbourne. With
the continuing support of Gold and Founding Sponsor, the Macquarie Group, the FMAA actively promotes the
career awareness of students and facilitates involvement in business-related activities. At UQ, The FMAA is an
incorporated student society affiliated with the UQ Union.
At UQ we run a number of events including:
Down-to-Business Luncheon – 21 March
Corporate Cocktails – 15 May
Mid-tier Accounting Event – 19 March (TBA)
Professional Services Evening – 14 August
International Students Careers Forum - TBA
First Year Event/ Intern Speaker Night - TBA
And firm-specific events such as barbeques and innovation cafés - TBA
Competitions such as:
The UBS Investment Banking Challenge – End of Semester 1 (TBA)
FMAA Management Consulting Competition – Start of Semester 2 (TBA)
DCM Blue Lake Share Trading - TBA
The CFA Analyst Competition - TBA
In addition, we have started a Peer Mentoring program to make the transition into your first year at UQ easier. For
more details on this program, including how to register, head to our Facebook page or website.
Nationally, we benefit from strong connections with other universities and a broad variety of sponsors. In 1994 the
University of Sydney branch opened, followed by the University of Queensland in 1995, the University of New
South Wales in 2009 and Monash University in 2012. Today we have about 4,500 members nationally, making us the
largest professionally-focused student organisation in Australia.
Contacts:
www.fmaa.com.au facebook.com/fmaabrisbane
President: Melissa Chan Email: [email protected]
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2014 GOLD SPONSOR
FINANCIAL SERVICES PROFESSIONAL SERVICES CONSULTING
LEGAL SERVICES………………………..
PROFESSIONAL BODIES………………….
NOT-FOR-PROFIT
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Contributors
Special thanks to the following people for their fantastic reviews: Andrew Lee
Ash Joseph
Ben Ngo
Bryton Chin
Fiona Blanch
Harry Sullivan
Jackson Chen
Jacob Casson
Jessica Fernandez
Johnny Black
Joseph Rich
Kane Bennett
Karim Moummar Rodriguez
Kate Williams
Katija Lusic
Katrina Byrne
Laura McKennariey
Leong Ooi
Martin Rose
Matt Smith
Melissa Chan
Paddy McCann
Pippa Leahy
Rajat Mathew
Samir Bhagat
Talisia Conway
Tanushree Venaik And extra thanks go to Joel Van Veluwen for his invaluable contribution to the Business Information
Systems reviews.
Compass publication team
Daniel Claes
Daniel Mouat
Filip Milosavlijevic
Hugo Visscher
Joseph Rich
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Preface
Studying Commerce at UQ can be a highly rewarding, albeit daunting, experience. With up to a
thousand students in introductory courses, it can be particularly difficult to navigate your way around
campus and receive advice on how best to approach your degree. It is our hope that this guide will
make it easier to find out information that until now has mostly been spread by word of mouth. If
things go as planned, it will be easier to pick courses and you’ll be more prepared when it comes time
for assessment.
Offering more detailed advice on the order in which to attempt courses is more difficult given the
variety of dual degree combinations students may be studying. Broadly speaking, you should arrange
courses so that you complete prerequisites and recommended courses first, and if we believe a subject
will assist you in studying another we have done our best to make a note. If you’re unsure of your
commitment to Commerce you should also see what courses overlap with Business Management and
Economics (there are many) and attempt these courses first: it will make changing later much easier.
Some students like to save introductory courses for later in their degree to ‘balance out’ tougher third-
year ones and this is a strategy you may wish to pursue.
Choosing a major can also be particularly difficult but after having done the first three accounting
courses, the one introductory finance course and an introduction to computer-based information
systems it should be much easier. If you’re in doubt, you have the ability to complete a dual major,
although it must be noted that this requires all six of your Commerce electives. You should also think
about which career you would like, be it in a professional services firm, a bank or a consulting firm, as
this will influence your choice of major. Attending FMAA events to hear from these companies first
hand is particularly insightful.
Lastly, we would like to wholeheartedly thank everyone who submitted course reviews and encourage
you to submit as many reviews as you can in the future: your invaluable gems of wisdom will be of
great benefit to your fellow students.
Daniel Mouat
Publications Director
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Getting the most from your Commerce degree By Dr Karen Alpert, Lecturer
To get the most from your time at university it is helpful to keep in mind one of Stephen Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: “Begin with the end in mind.” If you’re lucky enough to know what career you want after graduation, then it is easy to select a degree program and major that furthers that goal. If, as is more likely, you don’t know what you want to do “when you grow up,” then the first goal of your university education is to learn more about your alternatives. The first year of your Commerce degree will expose you to a variety of areas of business; take advantage of this opportunity and choose an area that interests you. Either way, it is important that you choose a degree and major because you find it interesting rather than because you think it is expected of you. Make sure you enjoy the journey. Good grades are nice, but the real value of an education comes from being able to apply what you’ve learned to your career and your life.
Treat your university studies as a full time job – with a full-time load of 4 courses, you should expect to spend an average of 10 hours per course per week including classroom time. Time management and keeping up with your course work are key factors in achieving good grades. This doesn’t mean you need to spend every waking hour with your textbooks! As with any job, work/life balance is important. Make time for fun and relaxation; a clear mind will be more productive when it comes time to study. Likewise, make sure you get enough sleep, as sleep deprivation can make study seem impossible.
Study smart! Keep up with course readings and tutorial work. If you don’t understand something in the textbook or lecture then clear it up quickly. Re-read it, or listen to a lecture recording once or twice, but ask for help if you still don’t understand. If you have friends in the class, ask them to explain (and be willing to do the same for them – sometimes you learn best by explaining to others what you’ve learned). Many students find it helpful to set up a study group where they can help each other with course material. And don’t be afraid to ask your tutor or lecturer for clarification (after you’ve read the assigned readings). Teaching staff set regular times when they are available for drop-in consultation with students. My experience is that students rarely show up to these sessions except in the week before assessment is due; you should take advantage of this opportunity. If you’ve done the reading, your lecturer or tutor won’t think that your question is stupid; in fact, one of the most rewarding aspects of teaching is helping a student to understand something they initially found difficult. Likewise, one of the most rewarding aspects of learning is when you finally figure out something you found difficult or confusing.
Exams and assignments are a chance for you to demonstrate what you’ve learned. Study by revising your lecture notes and tutorial work. Once you feel confident, try taking a prior exam (or practice exam) under exam-like conditions. If there are no practice exams, you can even make up mock exams from tutorial questions. This will help you identify any areas that you need to focus your study on. Don’t memorise the answers to prior exams – you will not see exactly the same questions on your exam. Focus on understanding the underlying concepts. When you get to the exam be sure to manage your time wisely; allocate time to each question and move on once you’ve reached the time limit. Read each question carefully and make sure you answer the question on the exam paper, rather than the question you remember from tutorials or the practice exam. If you have time at the end of the exam, you can go back and polish any incomplete answers.
The goal of any student at university is to complete their degree and move on to a career. There are several things you can do at university to enhance your prospects in the job market. First of all, keep up with the real-world in your chosen area of business. Commerce is a real-world discipline and
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many of the concepts you learn in class will be applicable to the articles you read in the business press. A familiarity with current trends and business personalities in your area will be helpful during the interview process. Additionally, you should be on the lookout for opportunities to enhance your résumé. There are student competitions, volunteer opportunities, and summer internships that can help you stand out from the crowd. Student clubs and societies offer a chance to network with fellow students who may one day be clients, colleagues or contacts in your working life.
Above all, have fun. Your years at university are a special time in your life. Enjoy all the university has to offer.
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Compulsory subjects
ACCT1101 – Accounting for Decision Making
Overview
This course is an introduction into accounting practices used by individuals
and businesses when making economic decisions. The focus of this course is
recording, reading and interpreting financial documents such as a balance
sheets and income statements.
Advantages
The workshops are really good as they go through exam-style questions. The
course content is well-structured and the past exams mirror what is on the
final. The group assignment’s procedural nature means obtaining good marks
is a matter of commitment, although it is fairly time consuming.
Students who have previously had accounting experience will learn to use and
interpret documents key for businesses, raising their financial literacy. If you
did accounting at high school, you’ll have an advantage in this course as much
of the material will repeat key concepts.
Disadvantages
While students who have taken accounting courses in high school will have an
academic advantage, they may find much of the material repetitive. The group
assignment can be challenging for those who don’t know their group or who
haven’t done a group assignment before.
Tips
Attending the workshops can be useful in staying on top of the content.
Ensure that each individual group member checks the entire assignment
because it forms a large portion of the assessment and a mistake can be easily
missed.
Past exams are also useful in preparing for the final exam as it will give an idea
of what students can expect to see and how questions will be presented.
Take care when picking your group; if you know people doing the course with
whom you would work well, team up with them. If you don’t know your
group, forming a Facebook group can help organise tasks and check on
members’ progress.
Course Details Offered: Semester 1 & 2 Prerequisites: None. Assessment: Group Assignment Mid-Semester Exam Final Exam
25% 25% 50%
Contact hours: 2 L 2 T Course coordinator: Robert Ferguson
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ACCT2101 – Financial Reporting
Overview
ACCT2101 focuses on interpretation and preparation of financial statements,
such as cash flow statements, income statements and balance sheets. The
course also looks at the regulatory framework for financial reporting.
Advantages
The course is useful for general business awareness; no matter what field you
end up in, understanding key financial statements is essential. The tutorials
complemented lectures well with little disparity between the two.
The inclusion of a 10% quiz early in the semester ensured you had the
fundamentals of debits and credits down and were able to proceed with the rest
of the course.
Disadvantages
The final exam has been found by students in past years to be relatively
difficult. A large portion of the final exams in 2013 was taken up by a cash flow
statement, a relatively difficult financial statement introduced late in the
course.
Tips
The statements you have to write up on the final exam will often need to be
corrected and changed, so bringing whiteout, or using a pencil and rubber for
the creation of statements in the exam will save lots of stress.
It’s also important not to be lulled into a false sense of security after the 10%
quiz: if you have a solid mastery of basic concepts you will do well in this but
success in later, more complex parts of the course is not guaranteed without
focused study.
Course Details Offered: Semester 1 & 2 Prerequisites: ACCT1101 Assessment: Quiz in Lecture Mid-Semester Exam Final Exam
10% 35% 55%
Contact hours: 2 L 2 T Course coordinator: Dr Michael Turner
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ACCT2102 – Principles of Management Accounting
Overview
The focus of this course is on accounting systems used for decision making,
including resource allocation and performance evaluation. Previously called
‘Cost accounting’, the first half of the course looks at different methods of
recording costs within businesses, such as variable costing, cost-volume-profit
analysis, activity based costing and job costing. The second half of the course
looks at master budgeting and management control.
Advantages
The assessable content in the subject is made clear, and tutorial questions are
representative of what is on the exam. The assessable quizzes throughout the
course keep the student on track and allow them to collect a good portion of
marks before the exam. Quizzes could be attempted five times with the best
mark being counted! In the course there is a good mixture of conceptual theory
and calculation questions throughout the subject.
Disadvantages
There is a large amount of lecture content to process. At times the lecture
material was dry and many students did not find it engaging.
Tutorials can be challenging because of the high volume of additional material
covered. However, attendance is extremely beneficial towards success on the
final.
Tips
Tutorials are very helpful for this subject; the tutorial questions more closely
resemble the examination questions than lecture examples. Supplementary
sheets of questions are provided and often their answers are only available
within class.
Ten percent of assessment is in the form of hand in reports. Putting lots of
work into these will make obtaining your desired grade easier.
Course Details Offered: Semester 1 & 2 Prerequisites: ACCT1101 ACCT2101 Assessment: Hand-in Reports (Best 2 of 3) Mid-Semester Exam Final Exam
10% 35% 55%
Contact hours: 2 L 2 T Course coordinator: Dr Robyn King
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ECON1010 – Introductory Microeconomics
Overview
ECON1010 provides a student with a background to what economics means
and what thinking like an economist involves. It covers fundamental concepts
like supply and demand as well as exploring broader microeconomic concepts
as they affect individuals, companies and governments.
Advantages
This course provides a basis for many core economic concepts which are
relevant for business, politics and smart decision making. The lecturer
provides a clear view of what is required of students and the content that is
necessary to understand for the exam. Questions given at the end of lectures
are useful in testing your knowledge of the content and it’s strongly
recommended that you stay to the end of the lecture for these – they’re quite
representative of exam content. Furthermore, answers to previous mid-
semester examinations are given, which is useful in preparing for the exam.
Disadvantages
At times the lecture material was dry and many students did not find it
engaging. Some students who have done high school economics may find some
of the material repetitive; that said, there’s still plenty to extend you.
Many students have, in the past, been surprised by the large role maths plays
in the course. Consequently, aspects of the course may be challenging for
students who haven’t done Maths B.
Tips
Staying through to the very end of the lecture to complete questions offered at
that point can be very helpful in reinforcing key concepts and identifying
possible areas of misunderstanding.
Preparing a summary of content covered every two weeks is a good way in
keeping on top of the material. This should include practicing drawing and
labeling graphs taught in lectures and tutorials.
To become comfortable in answering questions in the exam, previous exams
are a good way to prepare. Furthermore, tutorial questions are often of a
similar difficulty to the exam and can be useful in your preparation. PASS
sessions are recommended because you receive a summary sheet of the week’s
content in addition to revising theory and problem questions.
Course Details Offered: Semester 1 & 2 Prerequisites: None. Assessment: Mid-Semester Exam Final Exam
35% 65%
Contact hours: 2 L 1 T 1 P Course coordinator: Prof. Flavio Menezes
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ECON1020 – Introductory Macroeconomics
Overview
This course like, ECON1010, covers fundamental economic concepts but
focuses on macroeconomic issues, presenting an overview of such topics as:
GDP growth, government spending, inflation and recessions. The course can
lead students to have more informed decisions regarding political economics
and macroeconomic fluctuations.
Advantages
The majority of students find ECON1020 to be a very engaging course which
is helped by the lecturers and other course leaders keeping the content relevant
with current political and economic examples. Lecturers revisit material and
emphasise that which is important for assessment. PASS is available for
ECON1020 and students have found it a very useful tool for staying on top of
and understanding the course.
Disadvantages
The course moves through topics relatively quickly at the end of the semester,
which can lead students to fall behind. Lectures sometimes don’t go into
enough detail for assessment which is why buying and reading the textbook is
highly recommended.
Studying this course before ECON1010 is a little bit tricky because concepts
like supply and demand are taken to be assumed knowledge.
Tips
Ensure that you understand the major concepts clearly: you should be able to
explain the economic ideas introduced in a clear and concise manner.
Practicing explaining key ideas can be useful in preparing for the short-
response section.
Attempting past exams is a good way of practicing for the multiple choice
section of the exam.
Revisit key lectures on ECHO360 to hammer down key ideas presented.
Course Details Offered: Semester 1 & 2 Prerequisites: None. Assessment: Mid-Semester Exam Final Exam
35/50% 65/50%
Contact hours: 2 L 1 T 1 P Course coordinator: Dr James Laurenceson
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PASS sessions are recommended because you receive a summary sheet of the
week’s content in addition to revising theory and problem questions.
If you’re completing this course before, or at the same time as, ECON1010,
reading the first four chapters of the textbook is recommended because they
cover the main points of assumed knowledge from ECON1010.
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ECON1310 – Quantitative Economic & Business
Analysis A
Overview
This course is an introduction to business statistics spanning hypothesis
testing via various methods, descriptive statistics and important probability
concepts.
Advantages
Lots of consultation sessions with approachable and helpful tutors were
provided every week. Lectures and their recordings were also useful, with the
lecturer, after teaching the theory, immediately going through a question to
explain how it could be applied in the real world . Many past final and mid-
semester exams were also provided which were very similar to the actual
exams we had to sit. The marking scheme was also available so it allowed
students to understand how points were allocated. The CML quizzes, tutorial
questions and the exams reflected the course content very well with the
quizzes providing good feedback. With all the materials provided it was
relatively easy to predict the sort of questions that might come up.
Disadvantages
Tutorial questions and lectures were at times very repetitive which meant it
could be difficult to remain interested in the course. However, this meant
students received more practice and by the end of the tutorial all of the
students were comfortable with the material.
Tips
If you attend lectures, tutorials and PASS and work through the CML quizzes
with your friends to understand all the questions that may be asked you will be
very well prepared. Reading the textbook was less useful and didn’t help as
much as the aforementioned resources.
Do the past exam questions for both the mid-semester and final, as the
questions are representative of actual assessment. If you go to PASS you will
get summary sheets which aid preparation for both the mid-semester and final
exams.
Course Details Offered: Semester 1 & 2 Prerequisites: None. Assessment: CML Quizzes (Best 5 of 6) Mid-Semester Exam Final Exam
20% 25% 55%
Contact hours: 2 L 1 T 1 P Course coordinator: Dr Bryan Morgan
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ECON1320 – Quantitative Economic & Business
Analysis B
Overview
An introductory statistics course that advances some of the concepts learnt in
ECON1310 (“Stats A”). Concepts such as hypothesis testing and different
types of probability distribution were covered, with many of the learning tasks
Excel-based.
Advantages
Additional tutorial questions with answers were provided which allowed
students to master the week’s content. Consultation sessions were frequent
and tutors were happy to answer questions relating to CMLs. The course was
extremely well structured and the workload manageable. PASS was extremely
helpful for its summary sheets, enthusiastic leaders and coverage of key
concepts. Exams were easier than tutorials and lectures so if you were
comfortable doing the latter two during study you would be fine for exams.
Disadvantages
The lecturer could have used the visualiser to work through problems more
rather than reading through the solutions on the slides. The advantage of
having the solutions on the slides, however, is that revision was much easier to
do. The high number of tutors required for the course meant many were
inexperienced and took a while to become comfortable in front of a class.
Tips
If you attend lectures, tutorials and PASS and work through the CML quizzes
with your friends to understand all the questions that may be asked you will be
very well prepared. Reading the textbook was not essential given the high
detail present on lecture slides. .
Do the past exam questions for both the mid-semester and final, as the
questions are representative of assessment. If you go to PASS you will get
summary sheets which aid preparation for both the mid-semester and final
exams.
Course Details Offered: Semester 2 Prerequisites: None. Assessment: Quizzes (Best 4 of 5) Mid-Semester Exam Final Exam
15% 35% 55%
Contact hours: 2 L 2 T Course coordinator: Dr Temesgen Kifle
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FINM2401 – Financial Management
Overview
A good introduction to finance, especially for those interested in pursuing a
finance major. The course teaches a lot of useful skills regarding the future and
present values of cash flows and annuities as well as looking at portfolio
construction strategies. The course is perhaps the most difficult compulsory
course.
Advantages
Tutorials were useful, with a good variety of questions that were indicative of
the final. Quizzes provided useful feedback and could be used to secure 10% of
a student’s final grade. The lecturer was very good: she put a lot of thought and
effort into producing slides that were the primary source of learning and
revision material. She gave comprehensive examples in lectures and gave
detailed explanations of theoretical concepts. The tutorials built on the lectures
with deeper and more challenging questions. However, the usefulness of
tutorials depended on which tutor you had.
Disadvantages
A copy of the textbook was required to access the tutorial questions, which
were not made available by the lecturer. However, the book was often of
limited use when trying to gain a better understanding of many concepts,
especially those taught earlier in the course. It was, however, useful for the
more theoretical concepts in the last couple of lectures. The mid-semester
exam was multi-choice, which gave little scope for detailed feedback.
However, the marks were returned within three days, and there was an exam
viewing session held soon after.
Tips
Reading the textbook is recommended for providing additional breadth of
knowledge. Going to tutorials was especially important to be able to do well on
the challenging final exam. Switching tutors early on is recommended if you
don’t like your tutor’s style.
Ensuring a reasonable understanding of each weeks' content was important as
many of the later lectures built on lectures in earlier weeks.
Being able to relate various concepts covered in lectures to events and
announcements covered in the press was a good way to develop interest and
enthusiasm in this course.
Course Details Offered: Semester 1 & 2 Prerequisites: None. Assessment: CML Quizzes (Best 5 of 6) Mid-Semester Exam Final Exam
15% 25% 60%
Contact hours: 2 L 2 T Course coordinator: A/Prof. Karen Benson
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LAWS1100 – Business Law
Overview
The course gives an overview of the law as it applies to business, covering
areas like the legal system, torts, contracts and the laws associated with
running, opening and closing a business.
Advantages
The lectures were detailed, well planned and easily accessible. Because of the
broad nature of the course, the most interesting aspects of the law were taught
with the drier parts being left out.
Disadvantages
A high value placed on tutorial participation can be challenging for more timid
students. However, preparing answers to the relevant problems should ensure
students manage to obtain top marks. The material can often seem easy;
however, the problem questions from tutorials and the textbook should be
thoroughly practiced if a student expects to do well on the final.
Tips
For the mid-semester, practice the end-of-chapter textbook questions
beforehand as many of the MCQ's come from that textbook. Having the actual
textbook beside you while doing the online exam will also help.
The final exam was open book which meant preparing answers and
familiarising yourself with the layout of your textbook made it easier to do
well.
Course Details Offered: Semester 1 & 2 Prerequisites: None. Assessment: Tutorial Participation Mid-Semester Exam Final Exam
10% 30% 40%
Contact hours: 2 L 1 T Course coordinator: Katherine Curnow
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MGTS1201 – Introduction to Computer Based
Information Systems
Overview
Students learn how businesses rely on different aspects of information systems
to function and interact with their clients. The course content was split into
three components: basic management theory, information system theory and
Excel-based skills. Microsoft Excel is used heavily, with students able to gain
an understanding of some of its more advanced functions.
Advantages
Tutorials were extremely helpful in understanding the practical applications of
the theories taught in lectures. There were two parts to the tutorials: one to
reinforce lecture theory and the other for doing Excel exercises.
The second half of the lecture would often feature demonstrations on using
Excel for the assignment, meaning that diligent students, or ones who watch
lectures online, were easily able to complete the assignment to a high standard.
Disadvantages
Tutorials were long, at 2 hours each, and many tutors spent considerable time
rehashing the lecture content in their own words. This was repetitive, and not
always helpful. Lectures were drawn out and slow, and this contributed to the
high absentee rate. A breakdown of results for the final exam was never
published.
Tips
Make sure you learn how to write the Excel functions taught in class correctly
by hand (rather than simply relying on the computer program to pick up errors
and autocorrect) because this is what exams assessed.
Lecture slides contained the majority of course content and should be
prioritized above the textbook for study.
The assignment solution was completed in the lectures (so attend or watch
online those lectures). The final exam was a little more challenging but
expectations were clear.
Course Details Offered: Semester 1 & 2 Prerequisites: None. Assessment: Individual Assignment Mid-Semester Exam Final Exam
20% 20% 60%
Contact hours: 2 L 2 T Course coordinator: Dr Peter Clutterbuck
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MGTS1301 – Introduction to Management
Overview
A basic introduction to management theory is given in this course, ranging
across ethics, rationality, strategic frameworks, organisational change and
innovation.
Advantages
Tutorials consist of a case study application of the previous week’s lecture, a
novel format which may appeal to more vocal students. As they rely heavily
on completing work within groups, it would help to know people in your class.
Assessment requirements were made very clear while assessment feedback
from tutorials is provided in the following week.
Disadvantages
Tutorials are assessed which means you have to attend. Further, consistent
participation is necessary to obtain full marks which means being familiar
with the previous week’s lecture is important.
Tips
The textbook goes into more detail than the lectures so it’s recommended
students stay on top of readings.
As 15% of assessment is tutorial-based and 10% group based, picking a group
you can work well with is important. If you have friends doing the course, try
and coordinate to be in the same class.
Course Details Offered: Semester 1 & 2 Prerequisites: None. Assessment: Tutorials (Best 3 of 5) 15% Group Exercise 10% Assignment 25% Final Exam 50% Contact hours: 2 L 1 T Course coordinator: Dr April Wright
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MKTG1501 – Foundations of Marketing
Overview
The course examines very basic marketing and consumer behaviour theories.
This course has a lot of overlap with other courses in terms of theory like
Porter’s five forces.
Advantages
The use of quizzes in lectures for practice MCQs was good. Example exams
were useful although many people complain of the lack of preparation material
for the final. An assignment guide was provided, and provided that you work
methodically through the guide you could do well.
Disadvantages
Lectures and tutorials seemed disjointed at times. Tutorials that did not
involve assessment often seemed to consist of discussions about marketing
that weren’t always relevant to course content.
Tips
Make sure you have a good group for your assignment, particularly if you're in
the later years of your degree. Plan your schedule with friends to ensure a good
group, given the assignment is roughly 50% of the assessment.
The textbook is dense and strays far from the essential lecture material. If you
decide not to attend lectures, make sure you don't try to cram the day before
the final.
Course Details Offered: Semester 1 & 2 Prerequisites: None. Assessment: Group Assignment Group Presentation Final Exam
30% 20% 50%
Contact hours: 2 L 1 T Course coordinator: Dr Owen Seamons
24
Accounting Major
ACCT3101 – Auditing and Public Practice
Overview
Topics covered included: financial information; demand & supply; the audit
profession and audit process; evidence, program planning, statistical sampling;
examinations; analysis of organisation; internal control, testing of transactions,
balances and allocations; the computer; reports; and responsibilities of an
auditor.
Advantages
Although the content can be dry, the course is useful for understanding how a
company is audited. Most students find the tutorials covered much of the
course content so attending tutorials is of great benefit.
This course is particularly useful if a student is considering a career in
auditing.
Disadvantages
The questions practiced in the tutorials do not fully reflect the questions in the
exam, so preparing for a wide range of questions is recommended.
Some students found the content dry.
Tips
It is useful to complete tutorial questions before attending class to thoroughly
understand the processes involved in different types of questions. It is
similarly beneficial to attempt lecture examples before the lecturer explains
them. Exam questions are theory-based so preparation requires a lot of
memorisation and well-reasoned answers. Terminology seemed to be lecturer-
specific so use outside resources with caution.
Content from the mid-semester was revisited on the final, so make sure you
keep revising it.
Course Details Offered: Semester 1 & 2 Prerequisites: ACCT2101 Assessment: Assignment Mid-Semester Exam Final Exam
10% 40% 50%
Contact hours:
2 L
1 T
Course coordinator:
Debbie Jeffery
25
ACCT3102 – External Reporting Issues
Overview
The course looked at the role of accounting information in financial contracts,
accounting for shareholders' equity, revenues as well as expenses. Assets and
liabilities were discussed with applications to leases, extractive industries and
income tax.
Advantages
For students looking to pursue a career in accounting, or for those wishing to
be very knowledgeable on the topic, this course offers invaluable content.
While the course covers very specific content, these are most likely to be the
most applicable in the work place.
The lecture slides in this course are very useful resources. The slides include example problems and possible variations of topic content. They also comprise of a step-by-step breakdown of the process for each accounting treatment. A large portion of learning comes solely from the lecture slides. The final exam seemed fairly predictable and reasonable for the preparation
content provided.
Disadvantages
Tutorials do little to build on course content. The questions are overly long
which makes it difficult to cover all of the questions in the tutorial time.
The marking rubric of the Case Study Assignment is confusing, so time
should be spent reading the criteria to fully appreciate what the marker is
looking for.
Feedback on the Case Study assignment has been light in the past, so it may
be necessary to organise a meeting with the lecturer to receive useful
comments.
Tips The topics covered in lectures can be difficult to follow so pre-lecture preparation is recommended. In preparation for the exam, re-visit lecture examples and supplement this
practice with tutorial problems for difficult topics as necessary.
The course is a combination of theoretical and practical content, so it is necessary to develop a strong understanding of the concepts, but also be able to carry out the appropriate accounting processes.
Course Details: Offered: Semester 1 & 2 Prerequisites: ACCT2101 Assessment: Assignment Mid-Semester Exam Final Exam
25% 30% 45%
Contact hours:
2 L
2 T
Course coordinator:
Dr Jac Birt
26
ACCT3103 – Accounting for Corporate Structures
Overview
Accounting for corporate group structures, joint ventures, equity accounting &
foreign operations. More specifically, students learn about the consolidation
process for Groups, starting from the Group's separate books of account to the
final reported Group accounts. Students were also taught about operating
segments, liquidation and foreign currency issues.
Advantages
Marking criteria for the individual and group components of the assignment are made very clear, making it easy to score available marks for each component. The lecture slides of the course are very extensive and provide highly detailed examples of accounting processes. The tutorial questions provide students with a wide variety of possible accounting scenarios. While not all scenarios can be tested, it helps students who wish to understand more about a particular topic. Disadvantages The course has been known to be repetitive and uninteresting.
In the past, feedback for both the assignment and mid-semester exam has been
unhelpful and delayed. It is recommended that students seek feedback from
their tutors and at consultation throughout the semester.
Tips
Lecture concepts are difficult to grasp without prior reading so lecture preparation is recommended. Tutorials are generally in line with the content from lectures and help to consolidate the concepts covered in lectures. The textbook for this course is useful for practicing questions and is basically a
requirement for the tutorials.
Under every assessable topic, make sure you are familiar with and understand all accounting scenarios that could occur and how to record them. Practice doing every non-theory tutorial question, as many times as possible, and read through all worked lecture examples. Understand how each accounting process is different and how they fit into the consolidation process as a whole. This is important because concepts are interconnected and it is easy to confuse certain journal entries with others.
Course Details:
Offered:
Semester 1 & 2
Prerequisites:
ACCT2101
Assessment:
Assignment (Individual) Group Assignment Mid-Semester Exam Final Exam
8% 12% 30% 50%
Contact hours:
2 L
2 T
Course coordinator:
Mr Paul Woollard
27
The lecturer hinted at particular questions to focus on and practice - however for the final exam, it is still vital to have been exposed to all accounting scenarios.
28
ACCT3104 – Principles of Management Accounting
Overview The course teaches accounting information relevant for planning, control and performance evaluation decisions by management in business and non-business organisations, alternative analyses and systems as well as conceptual issues with their behavioural implications. Advantages The course content was interesting and went in depth on several accounting issues discussed in earlier accounting courses. Content was very procedural with an expectation of rote learning steps in the preparation of specific financial statements and data. Course resources were useful. The majority of the content was contained in lecture slides. Memorisation of lecture slide material and an ability to complete the tutorial material was sufficient in this course. Mid semester assessment reflected the course content. Mid semester grades were also provided in a timely manner and exam viewing was simple. Disadvantages Lectures and tutorials were helpful; however, the lecturer was not particularly engaging. There was some repetition between the two, and as the course content focused on the very mechanical preparation of cost-accounting documentation, this made the lectures and tutorials dull. The final exam was too long, too mechanical and included too much content from the mid semester exam. The lecturer's ability to communicate the course content was, at times, unsatisfactory. Tips Memorise tutorial questions and answers. If you understand the procedure for tutorial questions, the final exam is not too difficult.
Course Details: Offered: Semester 1 & 2 Prerequisites: ACCT2102 Assessment: Quizzes (10) Mid-Semester Exam Final Exam
10% 35% 55%
Contact hours: 2 L
2 T
Course coordinator: Dr Hermann Frick
29
ACCT3105 Overview Accounting information relevant for planning, control & performance evaluation decisions by management in business and non-business organisations; alternative analyses and systems; conceptual issues and behavioural implications.
Course Details: Offered: Semester 1 Prerequisites: ACCT3104 Assessment: Tutorial Exercises Assignment 1 Assignment 2 Presentation Final Exam
10% 10% 10% 15% 55%
Contact hours: 2 L
2 T
Course coordinator: Professor Donald Anderson
30
LAWS3100 – Corporations Law Overview The course covers the law relating to commercial companies; in particular, legal personality, directors' duties, shareholders' rights, liquidations, takeovers and comparisons with partnership structure. Advantages It is a great course if you are wishing to become a member and/or executive on a board. Although it can be repetitive at times, you will learn about directors’ duties and the particular regulations companies must follow. The tutorials are a very helpful resource for learning the course content. In the past, mid-semester exam results have been returned within a few days and exam viewing sessions have been made available the following week. Disadvantages To get the answers to the tutorial questions, you must attend the tutorial. In the past the lecturer’s attendance at her consultation has been inconsistent (i.e. sometimes she would not turn up to the allocated time). The lecture slides were very detailed but also confusing at times. Tips The course content was clearly reflected in the assessment pieces, however the structure of the final exam caught many students off-guard. Some students found it difficult to complete all of the sections of the final exam. It is therefore recommended that you write out responses to practice exam questions to test and improve your time management skills. Do the tutorial questions prior to the tutorial, so that you can quickly and easily follow the tutorial. Don't place too much emphasis revising the legislation provided. The textbook is very helpful.
Course Details: Offered: Semester 1 & 2 Prerequisites: COMM1202 or LAWS1001 or LAWS1100 or LAWS1101 Not to be taken by LLB or LLB Dual students Assessment: Tutorial Participation Mid-Semester Exam Final Exam
10% 40% 50%
Contact hours: 2 L
1 T
Course coordinator: Susan Mendes
31
LAWS3101 – Income Tax Law
Overview
This course is an introductory level examination of the basic principles of
taxation law in Australia, with particular emphasis on the topics required by
professional accounting bodies for accreditation purposes.
Advantages While the course can sometimes be boring, the usefulness of the content to both your professional and personal lives makes it a very relevant subject. It is recommended that students take the time to actually learn the content as it is easier to absorb at university than on the job with the pressures of deadlines. The course resources were generally well structured, engaging, and timely. Lecture notes (that are basically summaries of the textbook) are provided in addition to the lecture slides. Mid-semester grades were posted very promptly and the marking criteria was clearly outlined. Tutorial questions often involved real-world scenarios, helping to provide context and relevance to the course content. Assessment reflects the course content well.
The mid-semester and final exams have both been open-book in the past. Application of content was therefore more heavily weighted than simply cramming stale content. Disadvantages There were few to none noted disadvantages for this subject. Instead, there was much praise. Tips Exam questions were challenging but not significantly more so than tutorial questions or provided exam preparation materials. Go through tutorial questions and past exam questions and practice them as if you are under exam conditions. This has been the best way to gauge how your study is going and if you're prepared. The textbook is very useful for the mid-semester and final exams. Previous
students have indicated that they have referred back to the book when working
in accounting firms and they have also used it to assist them in their CA
studies.
Course Details: Offered: Semester 1 & 2 Prerequisites: COMM1202 or LAWS1000 or LAWS1100 Not to be taken by LLB or LLB Dual students Assessment: Tutorial Participation (5 of 10) Mid-Semester Exam Final Exam
10% 30% 60%
Contact hours: 2 L
1 T
Course coordinator: Mr Ross Kirkwood
32
Students are forced to keep up to date with the course due to tutorial
participation marks.
This course is recommended for students aspiring to work in small to medium firms or tax.
33
Business Information Systems Major
ACCT3201 – Business Information Systems
Overview
This course exposes students to some of the more practical elements of
business information systems. Students learn how to use MYOB accounting
software (including a major project and assessable quizzes based on MYOB
performance). Further, students learn and apply Business
Process Management Notation in order to design and notate business processes.
The course also covers theoretical and case studies based on actual information
systems that are used to drive decision-making and represent the real world.
Advantages
Lecture attendance was not that useful but was necessary to get the edge on the
theory in exams; not attending the lectures meant missing out on key
materials. Tutorials were useful and covered theory, BPMN, and some MYOB
skills. MYOB for the assessment was intended to be self-taugh.
Disadvantages
There was some level of disconnect between lectures and tutorials.
Tips
Learn MYOB independently and start your assignment early for substantial
assignment marks. Attend lectures in order to fully understand the materials;
the lecture slides don't cover much detail. Stay on top the theory because it can
really catch up with you.
Course Details Offered: Semester 1 Prerequisites: ACCT2101 Assessment:
Individual Assignment Mid-Semester Exam Final Exam
20% 20% 60%
Contact hours: 2 L 2 T Course coordinator: Dr Alastair Robb
34
INFS3222 – Systems Analysis and Design
Overview
This course engages students in the IT/IS side of business information
systems. Students will learn a lot of about requirements gathering, planning,
and systems analysis and design. Skills developed include diagramming skills
such as Enterprise Architect, VISIO as well as project management
methodologies. These skills are applied in a major project that involves the use
of project management skills, coupled with the logical and conceptual design of
an information system
Advantages
This course had fairly comprehensive slides that covered the textbook
material. The available materials extended on core knowledge. Everything was
fairly timely and the contact with the lecturer was notably good
Lectures built on theory in the textbook and discussed concepts that would
then be applied at the tutorials. The balance between the tutorials and lecture
material was appropriate and time was left in the labs to sort out the major
assignment.
The lecture material was a clear indication of the potential examinable topics.
Further, the lecturer released the short answer topic themes in order to refine
our study. In the case of the final exam we knew exactly what diagrammatic
and conceptual design skills were necessary for success. Similarly, for the mid
semester exam we were given relevant lectures in order to focus our study.
This course had sample questions - mini exams and answers
Disadvantages
Students with a background in IT, systems analysis or databasing will note
there is a significant overlap in content. These students may find the course
boring, but should be able to achieve good marks as a result.
Tips
Depending on how quick you are with learning software you can knock of the
first assignment out quickly and get to work on the major assignment. The
skills developed here are important in both MGTS3203 and MGTS3207, so
learn BPMN, ERD and DFD diagrams with the knowledge that you'll need it
later. Databasing skills such as normalisation are important in MGTS3203.
Course Details Offered: Semester 1 Prerequisites: INFS2233 Assessment: Individual Assignment Group Assignment Mid-Semester Exam Final Exam
10% 20% 20% 50%
Contact hours: 3 L 1 T Course coordinator: Dr Sophie Cockcroft
35
The textbook and any databasing materials can be very helpful to clarify your
understanding of the material.
36
MGTS2202 – Data and Information Management
Overview
Data and information management is a follow on from Computer Information
Systems (MGTS1201). This course introduces students to a variety
of theoretical topics central to data science and information systems including
decision support systems, data and text mining, business intelligence and
group support systems. Students are also engaged in a major project that
involves the collection, exploration, cleaning, analysis and presentation of
data. This course teaches students the basics of the software package SAS.
Advantages
This course had a cheap course reader that would supplement the theory. The
lecturer also provided comprehensive slides and support. The full tutorial
materials were available at the start of semester so students could walk through
tutorials in advance and focus on their projects
The lectures went through the theory but attendance wasn't paramount,
especially given that all lectures were recorded. There was very little
connection between lecture and tutorial in this course as the tutorials focus just
on the SAS data mining, cleaning and presentation necessary for the
assignment.
As in INFS3222, we were given focus topics, relevant readings for the exam
and the lecturer dropped hints in the lecture.
This course provides chances to connect to the industry - big 4 guest lecturers
and SAS intern placement program. Take advantage of these.
Disadvantages
The tutorial and the exam have less in common, just same basic connection
regarding data extraction, cleaning and mining.
Students with experience in this found the course somewhat tedious.
Tips
The tutorials are "go at your own pace" so get ahead in order to start your data
mining assignment. This course provides chances to connect to the industry -
big 4 guest lecturers and SAS intern placement program. Take advantage of
these. Read the assignment specification, the modelling (more complex)
component of the assignment is only a small component, don't forget the
business case and presentation (visualisation) of the results. Knowledge and
Course Details Offered: Semester 2 Prerequisites: None Assessment: Group Assignment Mid-Semester Exam Final Exam
20% 20% 60%
Contact hours: 2 L 2 T Course coordinator: Dr Sophie Cockcroft
37
theory are very important for MGTS3207 and MGTS3208 - so take good
notes.
38
MGTS3203 – Database Management in Business
Overview
Database management in business is arguably one of the most technically
demanding courses in the Business Information Systems major, but also one of
the most practical. Students explore and develop their skills in writing
Structured Query Language (SQL) and build on the systems planning and
development skills they gained in INFS3222. The major assignment is based on
a full system development and implementation and involves several
significant milestones. Project management, writing and applying SQL and
learning about database theory and best practice database design are some of
the key skills developed in this course.
Advantages
There’s one key database textbook and fairly comprehensive slides. If you
didn't attend tutorials or all lectures you are very likely to miss out on key
learning materials. Not many of the tutorials were posted on Blackboard,
before or after the tutorial took place. If you chased this up with the lecturer he
was happy to catch you up and supplement you with additional material.
This course represents a great example of the right balance between lecture and
tutorial material. Lectures fed right into tutorials and theoretical concepts
explored in the lectures were applied practically in the two-hour tutorial
materials.
The basic question frameworks were provided and skills required for success
come from lecture and tutorial attendance and participation. Further, those
who performed well in the assignments were likely to find this knowledge
useful in the final exam. Without a mid-semester exam, just quizzes and
assignments, this course was easier to prepare for.
Disadvantages
Students with advanced computer and database knowledge found this course
repetitive. The group project was difficult to coordinate with large group sizes
(up to 8 members).
Tips
Lectures aren't recorded so attendance is important for success. You should not
miss any tutorials as you learn and apply your SQL programming skills. The
group project requires strong project management skills and good levels of
team work (it has up to 8 members). Use websites such as SQLZOO to
Course Details Offered: Semester 2 Prerequisites: MGTS1201 and INFS Course (#2) Assessment: In-Class Quizzes Group Assignment Final Exam
21% 24% 55%
Contact hours: 2 L 2 T Course coordinator: Dr Sophie Cockcroft
39
develop your skills further. Revise INFS3222 materials to understand
databasing and use textbooks to solidify your database knowledge.
40
MGTS3207 – Managing the Virtual Organisation
Overview
Managing the Virtual Organisation represents the most managerial focussed
course in the BIS major. This course covers a large amount of virtual
management theory and primarily teaches students about the key issues
arising in management literature. This course involves a project that covers a
virtualisation business case and encourages student’s ability to write business
cases. Business Process Management Notation is also reiterated and allows
students to further their skills. Some technical issues, i.e. internet protocols,
transmission and XBRL are covered.
Advantages
The materials in this course were notably timely and were all very extensive.
Tutorials could usually be answered with the lecture slides and meaningful
discussions took place during the tutorial sessions. Each lecture was based on
relevant literature that was provided as additional learning material.
The lectures provided a good commentary on the key management issues in
virtual organisations and the content was logically discussed in the tutorials.
Attendance to both lectures and tutorials allowed students to fully prepare for
short answers in exams.
The lecturer released slides showing the key lectures and relevant topics to
know and both the mid-semester and final were relatively easy to predict.
Disadvantages
The course content was quite broad so knowing what to study, even with
given topics was a harder task.
Tips
Read the readings as they will enhance your knowledge. Start the assignment
early and submit the optional milestones for feedback
Course Details Offered: Semester 2 Prerequisites: MGTS2202, INFS2244 Assessment: Group Assignment Mid-Semester Exam Final Exam
25% 25% 50%
Contact hours: 2 L 1 T Course coordinator: A/Prof Marta Indulska
41
MGTS3208 – Managing Information Systems and
Services
Overview
Managing Information Systems and Services is perhaps the broadest theory
based course covered in the BIS major. This course covers a very large variety
of topics from IT security and cyber defence, data analytics to IT strategy and
governance. Students take the role of a CIO (Chief Information Officer) and
have to write a brief board paper. The broadness of the topics, coupled with
guest lecturers makes this course pretty insightful, albeit somewhat repetitive.
Advantages
The lecture slides were based on the generic slide decks from the textbook.
You could get by without the textbook, and knowledge was supplemented with
additional links and articles.
The lectures were filled with anecdotes, commentary and often deviated from
the content in the slides. This provided an interesting perspective but wasn't
necessarily well aligned with the tutorial or even the examinable materials.
The tutorials were useful and interactive but were not necessarily required for
success in the course.
Disadvantages
Due to the nature of this course (high content levels), predicting and linking
lectures and tutorials to exams was far more difficult. The mid-semester
MCQs were fairly manageable but the final exam was more challenging.
Tips
The lecturer gives feedback so submit your assignment when you can. Keep up
with the content and integrate related topics - as you'll need to do this in the
exam. Read current materials to clarify your knowledge - such as CIO or
BRW.
Course Details Offered: Semester 2 Prerequisites: MGTS2202, INFS2244 Assessment: Group Assignment Mid-Semester Exam Final Exam
20% 30% 50%
Contact hours: 2 L 1 P Course coordinator: Dr Jon Heales
42
Finance Major
ECON2200 – Management of Financial Institutions Note: this course is only available with the Finance Major for students who
started a BCom before 2012. Students are unable to study this course with
ECOn3210 as part of a Finance major.
Overview
The course content is very engaging, covering a wide variety of fundamental
financial and economic concepts such as bonds, shares and monetary policy.
Aspects of modern banking theory and of financial institutions management
are also examined.
Advantages
The lecture materials and assigned reading aligned very well with the tutorial
questions, enabling a full understanding of each topic. The lecturer was
excellent in providing students with a wealth of resources: PowerPoint slides
provided a good summary of the textbook, saving a lot of time compared to
doing extra reading while practice online quizzes so there is immediate
feedback available when practicing for multiple choice questions. This course
is generally easier than its counterpart, ECON3210, and students should bear
this in mind when choosing between them.
Disadvantages
You won’t be able to do this course unless you started your BCom prior to 2012.
This course was highly rated by students with few to no listed disadvantages.
Tips
Taking this course early in your degree (if you can) would be beneficial. The
course provides the much needed ground work to understand many of the
higher level concepts in the electives. Secondly, it’s recommended that
students take advantage of resources available online. Your result is largely
dictated by the time spent using the resources available, so doing the readings
and keeping up to date with the course content is essential.
Course Details Offered: Semester 2 Prerequisites: ECON1010 Assessment: Online Tests Mid-Semester Exam Final Exam
20% 30% 50%
Contact hours: 2 L 2 W Course coordinator: Dr Frederique Bracoud
43
ECON2300 – Introductory Econometrics Overview
The course is generally considered to be one of the most practically applicable
statistics courses offered in the Bachelor of Commerce, and for the most part,
it lives up to that reputation. Econometrics is best viewed as 'Statistics C' - it
continues on very much from Statistics A (ECON1310) and Statistics B
(ECON1320) by examining several statistical tests and concepts like dummy
variables. In particular, certain course content in ECON1320 is repeated in
ECON2300. The content is engaging, and is, surprisingly, presented in such a
way that you can to an extent see how it would be used in the real world.
Advantages
The course is extremely well structured, and the course resources complement
that structure well. Each week is divided into a different statistical 'test', which
is taught in the lecture and practiced in tutorials. The assessment style follows
closely to what is completed in tutorials. A deep understanding of the content
is certainly required to do well in exams.
Disadvantages
The Semester 2, 2013 course was potentially an anomaly in terms of
assessment. Students generally did poorly in the mid-semester exam, with
approximately 50% of the course failing the assessment piece. Multiple-choice
questions in particular were poorly done. The lecturer recognised that this was
partly due to an overly-difficult exam, and as a result the final exam was
adjusted to make it easier for students. Overall however, the assessment style
closely follows what is completed in tutorials.
The lectures could be quite boring - the lecturer was passionate and was a good
teacher; however, sometimes he talked about theory in great detail and it
wouldn't feature in the tutorials at all. In this regard there did not seem to be
much overlap; the lecturers were all theory and then the tutorials were more
practical. The tutorials were certainly helpful and are worth attending.
The short answer in the final exam (semester 1, 2013) was what students
expected; the MCQs were a much harder. This was a bit of an issue as the
MCQs were overvalued in the allocation of marks when compared to short
answer.
Course Details Offered: Semester 1 & 2 Prerequisites: ECON1310 Assessment: Online Quizzes Mid-Semester Exam Final Exam
20% 30% 50%
Contact hours: 2 L 2 P Course coordinator: A/Prof A. Rambaldi (Sem 1) Professor Christopher O’Donnell (Sem 2)
44
Tips
Lecture slides are generally helpful, however students would be well advised to
listen to the lecture simultaneously with the slides - more than half of the
content in the slides consists of practical examples which make little sense
without an accompanying verbal explanation. Watching the lectures online is
potentially a better approach in this course for some. It requires a methodical
approach, and pausing the lecture recordings to understand various topics is
particularly helpful in ECON2300. The textbook is overly verbose and at times
not well-linked to the course content .
The statistical software Eviews is used constantly throughout the course. You
will not be able to pass this subject without an understanding of Eviews. It is
used in lectures, tutorials, assignments, and exams. Eviews 'outputs' are
provided for every exam question, and without an understanding of how to
read those outputs, the questions cannot be completed. Eviews can be
purchased at a student discount for around $25 online. It is otherwise only
available on a limited number of computers in the Colin Clark building (it is,
very inconveniently, not available on normal library computers).
Past exams were helpful for getting an idea of the structure and content of
future exams, especially as the course doesn’t tend to drastically change.
Tutorial attendance is essential as the answers provided at the end of the week
don’t go into great amounts of detail.
45
ECON3210 – Financial Markets and Institutions
Overview
This course provides a broad understanding of financial markets, looking at
how they are affected by interest rates, expectations and the flow of funds.
Financial institutions are examined through the lens of equity markets, debt
markets, derivatives markets and exchange rates. The course makes use of
relevant current events such as the Fed’s quantitative easing, financial market
regulation and bank capital standards.
Advantages
The course is well structured: theory is learned through lectures, problem-
solving from tutorials and MCQ technique from practice quizzes. Class hand-
outs and the textbook help in answering essay questions.
The lecturer was extremely enthusiastic and approachable, explaining the
relevance of content (i.e. “Investment banks use these techniques”).
Disadvantages
Tutorial questions were sometimes released behind schedule. There was a high
volume of assessable reading each week.
Tips
Practice makes perfect! Be confident in your ability to answer problem solving,
essay and MCQ questions.
Stay on top of readings to develop a thorough understanding of the course.
Course Details Offered: Semester 2 Prerequisites: ECON1010+FINM2401 or ECON2200 Assessment: Online Tests Mid-Semester Exam Final Exam
20% 30% 50%
Contact hours: 3 L Course coordinator: Dr Frederique Bracoud
46
FINM3401 – Corporate Finance
Overview
The course provides an in-depth analysis of the financial issues confronting
most companies with a strong focus on application and practical relevance.
Topics include valuation and project analysis, real option valuation, capital
raising, financing and dividend policy, risk management and corporate
strategy.
Advantages
The course is considered to be quite challenging, however the content is
interesting and highly relevant to anyone pursuing a career in corporate
finance. Techniques learned in the course will be particularly helpful for job
interviews.
It was made clear to students that both the mid-semester and final exams
would be difficult so expectations were fairly clear.
The FMAA also offers a $1000 cash prize to the student who receives the best
mark in this subject!
Disadvantages
Due to the complex nature of the topics in this course, there was not enough time in lectures to discuss all of the necessary theory and methods to complete tutorial questions. It was therefore essential to spend time reading the textbook and other resources provided on Blackboard. Lecture attendance is highly recommended, as the recordings were often difficult to understand and were sometimes not made available at all. Grades were provided very soon after the mid-semester exam and an exam viewing session was scheduled, however the lecturer did not provide any significant assistance or guidance to help students learn from mistakes. Tips
Tutorials are probably the most important learning tool to reinforce the
concepts covered in the lectures and textbook. Focus on the 'Extra Problems'
provided in each tutorial as they are often taken from past exam questions.
This course requires a deep understanding of the content so attending classes
and keeping up with the work is highly recommended. Simply trying to learn
content from past exams will not be enough.
Course Details Offered: Semester 2 Prerequisites: FINM2401 Assessment: Mid-Semester Exam Final Exam
35% 65%
Contact hours: 2 L 2 T Course coordinator: Dr Vanitha Ragunathan
47
This is widely regarded as the most difficult finance elective (don’t let the
‘one’ in 3401 fool you!). Taking courses like FINM3405 (Derivatives) and
FINM 3402 (Investments) is highly recommended: these courses are slightly
easier and cover the foundations of Corporate Finance.
48
FINM3402 – Investments and Portfolio Management
Overview
The course follows on from FINM2401 in examining techniques to evaluate
investments. Portfolio theory forms a key part of this unit and as such an
understanding of statistical concepts such as variance and standard deviation is
essential. Other topics covered include debt and equity investments, financial
statement analysis and markets & instruments.
Advantages
Tutorial questions with answers were released at the beginning of the semester
and were very helpful. Lecture slides were clear and relevant, helping to
answer tutorial questions. Regular consultation was also useful. The final
exam covered content that was to be expected.
Disadvantages
The semester two lecturer progressed through material at a slow pace and this
resulted in two topics not being covered. In semester one, there was a discord
between the content of tutorials and lecture slides – tutorials were significantly
more complex and detailed.
Mid-semester exam viewing in semester two was difficult, with only 20 hours’
notice given and no alternative times provided. The exam itself surprised
many students by covering material that had not been emphasized beforehand.
A ‘mock exam’ was provided instead of actual past exams which meant the
exam’s material was different to what was expected. Grades for the final exam
were never released.
Tips
Go to different tutorials to find the best tutor. Do supplementary questions for
each tutorial: despite the name, they are as equally assessable as the first
questions.
The mid-semester exam has been extremely challenging and students are
encouraged to be familiar with even minor concepts mentioned in the weeks
leading to the exam.
Course Details Offered: Semester 1 & 2 Prerequisites: FINM2401 Assessment: Mid-Semester Exam Final Exam
35% 65%
Contact hours: 2 L 2 T Course coordinator: Ms Judy Qiu
49
FINM3403 – International Financial Management
Overview
As its name suggests, this subject focuses on the international nature of
finance, covering currency trading, arbitrage activities, international hedging
and parity conditions. The course also gave an introduction to benefits of
international portfolio diversification and options
Advantages
The lecture slides were comprehensive and useful, providing enough
information for theoretical understanding and detailed examples to guide
students through the steps of solving practical questions. Tutorial questions
were extensive and helped to clarify important information for developing an
understanding of the concepts, and provided a large range of possible types of
practical questions. The tutorials provided a lot of guidance on how to apply
the content and solve problems, which was very worthwhile.
Disadvantages
While many tutorial questions were labelled ‘past exam’, a proper past exam
was not released which made predicting the layout and general emphasis on
content somewhat challenging. It also meant that some content on the final
exam was unexpected.
Many lecture examples were outdated which meant their relevance and ability
to reinforce learning were reduced.
Tips
The textbook was very useful, if not essential. Tutorial questions needed lots
of practice as there were many concepts that were difficult and which could not
be learnt at the last minute. The course may be best studied earlier in the
finance major as it introduces financial concepts that will occur in later finance
courses at a more basic level.
Focus heavily on lecture slides and content, as this covers basically everything
required for the course. Tutorial questions provide appropriate guidance and
preparation, and cover a wide range of questions to allow students to prepare
for different types of questions they may face in the final exam. Lectures and
tutorials provide a very strong and comprehensive base of knowledge, but use
of the textbook will allow for the extra marks in the exam.
Course Details Offered: Semester 1 Prerequisites: FINM2401 Assessment: Mid-Semester Exam Final Exam
35% 65%
Contact hours: 2 L 2 T Course coordinator: Dr Kelvin Tan
50
FINM3404 – Banking and Lending Decisions
Overview
This course considers credit risk assessment, risk management and principles
of lending within banks. The impact of the Global Financial Crisis is also used
to shed light on developments in bank regulation, profitability and the
international banking system.
Advantages
The lecturer did a good job of linking different topics together.
Disadvantages
The course has not been updated in a number of years given the relevance of
some of the learning activities. The content was reasonably thorough but was
not applied to real-world scenarios as well as it could have been. In addition,
content tended to be dry at times
Limited course resources outside of the textbook were provided. However,
credit must be given to the tutorial coordinator who recognised this and
provided her students with summary sheets to help with revision. Materials
were provided in a timely manner. Past exam papers were not provided; only
sample papers were provided and for the mid-semester exam, the questions
given were clearly not indicative (only the format of the sample exam was
indicative).
The lecturer made it a point to make it difficult for students to seek feedback.
She was not always in her office during her quoted consultation times and
during exam viewing sessions, she attempted to usher students out by giving
them a time limit (only half an hour into the 2 hour session). Asking questions
was made unusually difficult.
Tips
The course is quite content heavy with very basic practical application so
sufficient time should be allocated when revising for the course. Very few tips
will be given by the course coordinator so you will need to cover all ground.
However, the course has changed little over the past few years so you may find
that some sample exam questions or tutorial questions end up on your final or
mid-semester exam.
Course Details Offered: Semester 1 Prerequisites: FINM2401 Assessment: Mid-Semester Exam Final Exam
40% 60%
Contact hours: 2 L 1 T Course coordinator: Ms Mamiza Haq
51
FINM3405 – Derivatives and Risk Management
Overview
The course content was interesting and engaging with many useful topics
being covered including: hedging, forwards/futures, a variety of options and
different ways to value them. The content largely focuses on calculations so
there is a heavy emphasis on maths.
Advantages
The lectures were useful in the way that they introduced and explained
content. The tutorials were extremely helpful, going into more in depth than
the lectures while still being relevant. There was certainly a large overlap
between the two.
The assessment directly reflected the content. If you could do the tutorial
questions then you were able to complete exam questions. The expectations
were made clear - the lecturer indicated what topics would be on the exam and
their respective levels of difficulty. Grades were made available very quickly.
Disadvantages
There were few noted disadvantages for this course.
Tips
In this course it seemed that it was most important that you were able to do
the tutorial and practice exam questions. Understanding the processes, rather
than memorising them, is essential.
Completing this course before Corporate Finance will make your study of the
latter easier.
Course Details Offered: Semester 2 Prerequisites: FINM2401 Assessment: Mid-Semester Exam Final Exam
30% 70%
Contact hours: 2 L 2 T Course coordinator: Dr Kam Fong Chan
