Course coordinator
Dr Chris Bell
Course overview
- Study period
- Semester 1, 2025 (03/04/2025 - 16/05/2025)
- Study level
- Postgraduate Coursework
- Location
- Brisbane City
- Attendance mode
- Intensive
- Units
- 2
- Administrative campus
- St Lucia
- Coordinating unit
- Business School
Derivatives and Applied Risk Management uses practical knowledge of global derivative instruments for the purposes of risk management and potentially opportunistic investments. The course examines risks in hedging and/or replicating exposures to physical equity, foreign exchange, fixed income, and commodities along with methods for implementing cost minimisation strategies and identifying arbitrage opportunities. The course covers pricing derivatives using analytical and numerical techniques.
Derivatives may be better known for the ominous role they played in the Global Financial Crisis or how a small few speculators at prominent financial institutions placed unauthorised derivative positions and caused large financial losses. Less is discussed about the benefits of derivatives and how derivatives can be a useful tool to mitigate financial risks and provide certainty to an organisation. The objective of this course is to provide students with exposure to the theoretical underpinnings and the practical applications of derivatives across a variety of asset classes and industries. Students will learn pricing techniques and work individually and collaboratively in a team environment to apply these in real world scenarios.
The practical nature of the course lends students to apply the knowledge they have learnt in the online course and face to face workshops into their own assessment and outside of the classroom. The students will have access to industry experts in the face to face workshops who will share their derivative knowledge and experience in risk management.
Course requirements
Companion or co-requisite courses
You'll need to complete the following courses at the same time:
FINM7101
Restrictions
Restricted to students enrolled in the MFinInvMgt and GCFinInvM.
Course contact
Course staff
Lecturer
Dr Chris Bell
Timetable
The timetable for this course is available on the UQ Public Timetable.
Additional timetable information
This is an intensive course that will include both self-paced online and face-to-face teaching as part of its delivery. Important dates for this course that do not appear on the public timetable are as follows:
- Online Content Available: 3 April 2025
- Face-to-Face Delivery: 30 April, 1 May and 2 May 2025
- End of Course: 16 May 2025
Aims and outcomes
This course aims to provide students with a practical knowledge of global derivative instruments in the context of risk management and opportunistic investment. Students will have the opportunity to develop a deeper understanding of how derivative products can be used to hedge or invest while minimising costs by examining risk profiles in various industries.
Learning outcomes
After successfully completing this course you should be able to:
LO1.
Demonstrate the fundamental concepts in pricing derivative instruments using various state-of-the-art techniques.
LO2.
Demonstrate how a range of derivative products can be used to hedge or invest while minimising costs.
LO3.
Employ effective risk management hedging strategies within an enterprise and funds risk management context under alternate risk profiles in various industries.
LO4.
Work collaboratively in a team to collect and analyse financial/derivative data, and price/evaluate different financial derivatives strategies.
Assessment
Assessment summary
| Category | Assessment task | Weight | Due date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paper/ Report/ Annotation | A1: Short Answer Assignment | 40% |
28/04/2025 5:00 pm |
| Paper/ Report/ Annotation |
A2: Scenario Analysis
|
40% |
9/05/2025 5:00 pm |
| Practical/ Demonstration |
A3: Oral Interview
|
20% |
12/05/2025 - 16/05/2025
Interviews will be scheduled individually |
Assessment details
A1: Short Answer Assignment
- Mode
- Written
- Category
- Paper/ Report/ Annotation
- Weight
- 40%
- Due date
28/04/2025 5:00 pm
- Learning outcomes
- L01, L02, L03
Task description
Assessment 1 takes the form of an assignment with a number of short answer and numerical questions designed to test the student's understanding of the online content. This is an individual task.
The assignment is composed of 8 questions worth 5 marks each. The short answer questions will ask students to show their understanding of concepts of different types of derivatives and their underlying asset classes in a theoretical sense and also how they relate to several real world scenarios. Where research is required, students are encouraged to use references.
AI Statement:
This assessment task evaluates students' abilities, skills and knowledge without the aid of generative Artificial Intelligence (AI). Students are advised that the use of AI technologies to develop responses is strictly prohibited and may constitute student misconduct under the Student Code of Conduct.
Submission guidelines
The assessment will be submitted in a pdf file to Blackboard. Note that any calculation questions should be accompanied by an Excel file detailing the steps made.
Deferral or extension
You may be able to apply for an extension.
Late submission
A penalty of 10% of the maximum possible mark will be deducted per 24 hours from time submission is due for up to 7 days. After 7 days, you will receive a mark of 0.
A2: Scenario Analysis
- Team or group-based
- Mode
- Written
- Category
- Paper/ Report/ Annotation
- Weight
- 40%
- Due date
9/05/2025 5:00 pm
- Other conditions
- Peer assessed.
- Learning outcomes
- L01, L02, L03, L04
Task description
Assessment 2 is a group task in which the group is presented with two scenarios that simulate real world applications of financial derivatives. The scenarios cover the banking and funds management industries, and the students are required to write a report for each scenario.
This assessment will be released during the three face-to-face workshop sessions.
Students will have the opportunity to provide peer assessment feedback related to team contributions to the assessment task.
AI Statement:
This assessment task evaluates students' abilities, skills and knowledge without the aid of generative Artificial Intelligence (AI). Students are advised that the use of AI technologies to develop responses is strictly prohibited and may constitute student misconduct under the Student Code of Conduct.
Submission guidelines
To be submitted via Blackboard
Deferral or extension
You may be able to apply for an extension.
The maximum extension allowed is 7 days. Extensions are given in multiples of 24 hours.
As Assessment 3 is directly related to the work done on Assessment 2, the length of extension for this task will be limited to 7 days to ensure that feedback and preparation can be completed.
Late submission
A penalty of 10% of the maximum possible mark will be deducted per 24 hours from time submission is due for up to 7 days. After 7 days, you will receive a mark of 0.
A3: Oral Interview
- Identity Verified
- In-person
- Mode
- Oral
- Category
- Practical/ Demonstration
- Weight
- 20%
- Due date
12/05/2025 - 16/05/2025
Interviews will be scheduled individually
- Learning outcomes
- L02, L03
Task description
Assessment 3 is an individual oral interview and will determine an individual’s understanding of both scenarios from their group Assessment 2 in a question-and-answer format.
The interviewer will assess the individual contribution, collaboration and completeness of the assessment for each individual. The interviewer will also provide alternative scenarios based on the organisations from Scenario One and Scenario Two to further test the individual's understanding of real-world applications of risk management with derivatives.
Please Note: The interview will be recorded for marking purposes per UQ Policy.
AI Statement:
This assessment task is to be completed in-person. The use of generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools will not be permitted. Any attempted use of Generative AI may constitute student misconduct under the Student Code of Conduct.
Submission guidelines
Deferral or extension
You may be able to apply for an extension.
Course grading
Full criteria for each grade is available in the Assessment Procedure.
| Grade | Cut off Percent | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1 (Low Fail) | 0 - 29 |
Absence of evidence of achievement of course learning outcomes. |
| 2 (Fail) | 30 - 46 |
Minimal evidence of achievement of course learning outcomes. |
| 3 (Marginal Fail) | 47 - 49 |
Demonstrated evidence of developing achievement of course learning outcomes |
| 4 (Pass) | 50 - 64 |
Demonstrated evidence of functional achievement of course learning outcomes. |
| 5 (Credit) | 65 - 74 |
Demonstrated evidence of proficient achievement of course learning outcomes. |
| 6 (Distinction) | 75 - 84 |
Demonstrated evidence of advanced achievement of course learning outcomes. |
| 7 (High Distinction) | 85 - 100 |
Demonstrated evidence of exceptional achievement of course learning outcomes. |
Additional course grading information
Grades will be allocated according to University-wide standards of criterion-based assessment.
Supplementary assessment
Supplementary assessment is available for this course.
Learning resources
You'll need the following resources to successfully complete the course. We've indicated below if you need a personal copy of the reading materials or your own item.
Library resources
Library resources are available on the UQ Library website.
Learning activities
The learning activities for this course are outlined below. Learn more about the learning outcomes that apply to this course.
Filter activity type by
Please select
| Learning period | Activity type | Topic |
|---|---|---|
Not Timetabled |
Online Learning / Self-Directed Learning 3 April - 29 April (Self-Directed Learning)
Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03 |
|
Workshop |
Face-to-Face Learning: Day 1 30 April 2025
Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03 |
|
Workshop |
Face-to-Face Learning: Day 2 1 May 2025
Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03, L04 |
|
Workshop |
Face-to-Face Learning: Day 3 2 May 2025
Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03, L04 |
|
Not Timetabled |
Online / Assessment 4 May - 16 May (Self-Directed Learning) In addition to self-directed learning, students will be working in their team(s) to develop their assessment. Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03, L04 |
Policies and procedures
University policies and procedures apply to all aspects of student life. As a UQ student, you must comply with University-wide and program-specific requirements, including the:
- Student Code of Conduct Policy
- Student Integrity and Misconduct Policy and Procedure
- Assessment Procedure
- Examinations Procedure
- Reasonable Adjustments - Students Policy and Procedure
Learn more about UQ policies on my.UQ and the Policy and Procedure Library.