Curriculum

Full-time programme

This is tailored for fresh graduates and junior professionals who want to obtain a solid foundation in finance and quantitative skills.

To complete the programme, you will need to attain 36 credits of coursework, comprising of 7 core courses and 5 elective courses worth 3 credits each.

Part-time programme

This is for executives with extensive work experience who want to gain in-depth knowledge of corporate finance and investment.

To complete the programme, you will need to attain 30 credits of coursework, comprising of 5 core courses and 5 elective courses worth 3 credits each.

• Full-time programme (1 year)

  1^st TRIMESTER | September-December
  3 core courses
  1 elective course

  2^nd TRIMESTER | December-March
  3 core courses
  1 elective course

  3^rd TRIMESTER | March-June
  1 core course
  3 elective courses

  SUMMER TERM (INTENSIVE) | July-August
  1 elective course (optional)

• Part-time programme (2 years)

  FIRST YEAR

  1^st TRIMESTER | September-December
  2 core courses

  2^nd TRIMESTER | December-March
  2 core courses

  3^rd TRIMESTER | March-June
  1 core course

  SUMMER TERM (INTENSIVE) | July-August
  1 elective course (optional)

  ---

  SECOND YEAR

  1^st TRIMESTER | September-December
  2 elective courses

  2^nd TRIMESTER | December-March
  2 elective courses

  3^rd TRIMESTER | March-June
  1 elective course

  SUMMER TERM (INTENSIVE) | July-August
  1 elective course (optional)

Please note:

• Each course is 3 hours per week for 12 weeks, or for the intensive option, 6 hours per week for 6 weeks.
• Core and elective courses are subject to change.
• The medium of instruction is English.

Full-time programme (1 year)

Required courses* (Total 7 courses / 21 credits)

• Corporate Financial Reporting

  This course provides a graduate-level overview of the principles and concepts that underlie corporate financial reporting and the economic consequences of accounting choices. The course focus is on developing the skills required to interpret the information contained in financial statements and its use in decision-making rather than on the skills required to prepare financial statements. Topics include the use of accounting information in evaluating firm performance, and corporate reporting policies.

• Advanced Financial Management

  This course provides an in-depth analysis of the financial management decisions of the corporation entity. Specific topics include: theories of agency costs and asymmetric information that underlie financial decisions, capital structure, dividend policy, equity capital and long-term debt funding; warrants and convertibles, and corporate risk management.

• Investment and Portfolio Analysis

  The foundations underpinning investment decisions are examined alongside portfolio management in this course. Topics include the risk-return tradeoff, the capital asset pricing model, the arbitrage pricing model, security analysis, portfolio selection, performance evaluation, hedging strategies, bond analysis, and an introduction of the uses of derivative securities in portfolio management. A delicate balance will be maintained between theory and practical applications.

• Derivatives Markets

  This course examines the valuation and market structure of derivative securities. Topics include the role of derivative securities, the determination of forward and futures prices, hedging strategies using futures, trading strategies with futures, properties of options, the pricing of stock options, options on indices, currencies and futures contracts, risk analysis, applications of option pricing models, biases in the Black-Scholes model, interest rate options, exotic options, risk management with options, and trading strategies with options. The course involves extensive and intensive use of computer and relevant software packages.

• Economics for Finance Practice

  The course covers both micro- and macro-economics fundamental to finance practice. Topics for microeconomics include: game theory and its application in finance, asymmetric information, consumer and producer behaviors, externality, public goods, information technology and network effect, asset markets and investment under uncertainty, mean variance optimization and portfolio theory, and behavioral economics. Topics for macroeconomics include: Classical macroeconomics, Keynesian macroeconomics, Output, inflation and unemployment, trade and exchange rate, economic policies, and Economic growth.

• Capital Markets

  This course provides an overview of the capital markets and financing strategies for corporations. It covers equity capital markets, fixed income markets, and loans. Specific topics include analyzing IPO documents, secondary offerings, equity valuation, convertible bonds and other hybrid instruments, debt capital markets, analyzing bond documents, loan revolvers, working capital management, and syndicated loans.

• Quantitative Methods in Finance

  The course introduces probability, stochastic processes, and statistics required for quantitative finance study. Topics include: time value of money, probability, probability distributions and descriptive statistics, sampling and estimation, hypothesis testing, correlation analysis and regression, time series analysis, simulation analysis and technical analysis.

• Financial Econometrics

  This course covers econometrics used in empirical finance. Topics will include univariate and multivariate linear models, parametric and nonparametric models of volatility, evaluation of capital asset pricing model, arbitrage pricing theory, risk management models. The course makes extensive use of computer-based applications to draw inferences.

*Student is required to select either Quantitative Methods in Finance or Financial Econometrics.

Elective courses (Total 5 courses / 15 credits)

• Corporate Fund-Raising Initiatives in the Chinese Equity Markets

  This course delves into the major issues surrounding equity fund-raising in China. The principal focus is on initial public offerings (IPOs) and seasoned issues in Chinese stocks (including H- share, 'red-chip', private Chinese and 'China-concept' issuers) listed in Hong Kong. The characteristics of the various corporate entities and the nature of the funding methods utilized are critically explored. Case analysis of major IPO and seasoned equity issues (rights issues and private placings) features to amplify these objectives. Shanghai A- share listings are also considered as well as the various reforms to its constituent issuers. These include the transformation of non-tradable stock holdings into tradable form, the development of QFII and QDII schemes and the key reforms to China's leading state-owned commercial banks. Finally, dual listings, such as American depositary receipts, and alternative routes to listing ('reverse takeovers') are also assessed. Upon completion of the course, students will have developed key insights into a major global funding activity.

• Fixed-income Securities Analysis

  The focus of this course is on the valuation of fixed-income securities and investment techniques in managing fixed income portfolios. Topics include the term structures of interest rates and forward rates; bond pricing, interest rate and reinvestment risks; risk and hedging in bond portfolio management; duration, convexity and portfolio immunization; corporate bonds, emerging-market bonds and default risks; fixed-income securities with embedded options; callable and convertible bonds, mortgage-backed securities; interest rate derivatives; and interest rate futures, swaps, caps and floors.

• Mergers and Acquisitions

  This course integrates areas within financial management and investments to analyse merger and acquisition (takeover) markets. The class will be conducted using both lectures and presentations. The topics covered in lectures include an overview of takeover markets, legal aspects and restrictions, capital budgeting techniques, the efficient market hypothesis, the market model and computation of abnormal returns, the dividend discount model and the free cash flow model. The topics covered in presentations will include US and Hong Kong cases of mergers, tender offers and leveraged buyouts. Amongst other things, the efficient market hypothesis is applied to analyse the stock market response to takeover announcement as well as a range of other issues including: welfare gains/losses associated with takeover, the cost of capital for due acquiror and the intrinsic value of the target (using dividend discount and free cash flow models).

• Cases in Corporate Finance & Investment Practices

  The course enables students to gain comprehensive knowledge and practical insights in the latest trends of corporate finance and investment management. The cases discussed in the course cover important topics including finance resource allocation, mergers and acquisitions, funds investment and trading strategies. Moreover, the group project, being the key component in this course, should enable students to integrate theories in corporate finance and investment to empirical topics in capital budgeting, asset management and trading strategy.

• Financial Policy

  The objective of this course is to integrate various subfields of finance for the formulation of financial policies. The focus is on the application of financial theory to real-world business decisions, financing and restructuring strategies. The course also emphasizes the impact of institutional constraints on managers' financial decision-making and the implementation of financial strategies.

• Selected Topics in Finance

  Topics and issues in subfields in finance, to be selected by the finance faculty, are addressed in this course. Students are advised to contact the department for current offerings and prerequisites.

• China Finance

  The purpose of this course is to help students study and understand the financial market and financial institutions in China. The history and current issues of China financial system will be addressed.

• Venture Capital & Private Equity

  The course will outline the mechanisms of venture capital (VC) investment and the financing of startups and early growth firms. As VC is a subset of private equity, the course will discuss the management, legal and marketing issues of private equity in general. Topics include raising and structuring private equity funds, the limited partnership, and fund strategies. The course will consider the investment decision of institutional investors in private equity and how funds are structured to meet their needs. It will discuss post-subscription private equity fund management - deal screening, evaluation, negotiation, disbursement, investee management, valuation and exit - and will consider specifically the perspective of the VC investee company - alternative sources of financing, how to approach a VC to maximize chances of success, and governance issues in VC financed firms. The course may also delve into public versus private equity buyouts, valuation of buyouts and corporate restructuring under private equity.

• Fundamentals of Derivatives Trading Strategies

  This course intends to offer students insight into the implementation of options theory in the practical trading environment. The main strategies for trading derivatives will be discussed and the students are to apply their knowledge in practical trading sessions.

• Advanced Management of Financial Institutions: Financial Information System Management

  This course introduces the students to large scale financial and risk management systems using Calypso as the example. The students will learn about the complexities of actual financial systems currently being used by global financial institutions.

• Credit Risk & Credit as an Asset Class

  This elective course aims to teach the fundamental concepts underlying general and advanced analytical tools in credit risk modelling, credit rating methodology, counterparty credit risk and credit derivatives. Course contents will also relate to latest market regulations and capital requirements.

• Foreign Exchange in Theory and Practice

  This course will cover exchange rate theory, exchange rate policy, and statistical work on exchange rate determination. It will also touch on important topics of the day, such as China's exchange rate regime, global imbalances, and the problems of the Eurozone.

• Law and the Securities Markets

  This course is designed to introduce students already familiar with the economics of securities markets to the law that governs those markets and the transactions in securities they are designed to execute. The course will closely examine actual legal documentation to show its basic structure and purpose. Further, the course will analyze basic legal principles that shape the law and regulation of corporate finance and securities markets, such as legal strategies to overcome asymmetric information, moral hazard and agency problems, as well as techniques to secure prior claims against assets held in the possession of another entity in any bankruptcy proceedings regarding that entity.

• Finance Field Study

  This course consists of assignments, case reports and/or presentations along with a week-long residential program in various countries arranged by the program. The goal in taking classroom sessions abroad is to expose our students to a wide spectrum of finance related issues, such as capital markets, derivative markets, venture capital, economics, politics, social issues, business functions and financial systems of the host country. Site visits to multi-national financial institutions, joint ventures and regulatory bodies might be included.

• Quantitative Risk Management

  This course explores quantitative methods in credit risk management and examines market risks, operational risks, integrated risk management, and risk management information technology. Basic Value-at-Risk (VaR) methodologies such as historical simulation, parametric VaR, delta-gamma approximation and Monte-Carlo simulation will be covered. Defaults of bank loans, corporate bonds, and/or counter-parties are addressed. Reduced-form models and structure models are discussed, with application of CreditmetricsTM and KMV methodologies.

• Bank and Insurance Capital

  The course offers a comprehensive understanding of Basel I, II, and III. The standard internal ratings-based (IRB) approach, as well as the foundation internal ratings-based (FIRB), and advanced internal ratings-based (AIRB) approaches, will be covered. The 3 Pillars for banking capital will be explored. Students are guided through practical implementation of different capital requirements under different regulatory frameworks.

• Mathematical Financial Modeling and Structured Solutions

  The course introduces mathematical modeling concepts and techniques for financial applications. The classic Black-Scholes Model, local volatility, stochastic volatility are critically evaluated. Interest rate models such as Ho-Lee, Hull-White, Heath-Jarrow-Morton (HJM), Libor Market Model are discussed. Cross currency models for foreign exchanges and modeling for commodity are also covered.

• Computational Finance

  This is a practical course for trading system and risk management system implementation. Existing open source software for finance will be adopted. Some current trading systems will be case shown. Students will learn the implementation through carrying out software development projects.

Part-time programme (2 years)

Required courses (Total 5 courses / 15 credits)

• Corporate Financial Reporting

  This course provides a graduate-level overview of the principles and concepts that underlie corporate financial reporting and the economic consequences of accounting choices. The course focus is on developing the skills required to interpret the information contained in financial statements and its use in decision-making rather than on the skills required to prepare financial statements. Topics include the use of accounting information in evaluating firm performance, and corporate reporting policies.

• Advanced Financial Management

  This course provides an in-depth analysis of the financial management decisions of the corporation entity. Specific topics include: theories of agency costs and asymmetric information that underlie financial decisions, capital structure, dividend policy, equity capital and long-term debt funding; warrants and convertibles, and corporate risk management.

• Investment and Portfolio Analysis

  The foundations underpinning investment decisions are examined alongside portfolio management in this course. Topics include the risk-return tradeoff, the capital asset pricing model, the arbitrage pricing model, security analysis, portfolio selection, performance evaluation, hedging strategies, bond analysis, and an introduction of the uses of derivative securities in portfolio management. A delicate balance will be maintained between theory and practical applications.

• Derivatives Markets

  This course examines the valuation and market structure of derivative securities. Topics include the role of derivative securities, the determination of forward and futures prices, hedging strategies using futures, trading strategies with futures, properties of options, the pricing of stock options, options on indices, currencies and futures contracts, risk analysis, applications of option pricing models, biases in the Black-Scholes model, interest rate options, exotic options, risk management with options, and trading strategies with options. The course involves extensive and intensive use of computer and relevant software packages.

• Economics for Finance Practice

  The course covers both micro- and macro-economics fundamental to finance practice. Topics for microeconomics include: game theory and its application in finance, asymmetric information, consumer and producer behaviors, externality, public goods, information technology and network effect, asset markets and investment under uncertainty, mean variance optimization and portfolio theory, and behavioral economics. Topics for macroeconomics include: Classical macroeconomics, Keynesian macroeconomics, Output, inflation and unemployment, trade and exchange rate, economic policies, and Economic growth.

Elective courses (Total 5 courses / 15 credits)

• Corporate Fund-Raising Initiatives in the Chinese Equity Markets

  This course delves into the major issues surrounding equity fund-raising in China. The principal focus is on initial public offerings (IPOs) and seasoned issues in Chinese stocks (including H- share, 'red-chip', private Chinese and 'China-concept' issuers) listed in Hong Kong. The characteristics of the various corporate entities and the nature of the funding methods utilized are critically explored. Case analysis of major IPO and seasoned equity issues (rights issues and private placings) features to amplify these objectives. Shanghai A- share listings are also considered as well as the various reforms to its constituent issuers. These include the transformation of non-tradable stock holdings into tradable form, the development of QFII and QDII schemes and the key reforms to China's leading state-owned commercial banks. Finally, dual listings, such as American depositary receipts, and alternative routes to listing ('reverse takeovers') are also assessed. Upon completion of the course, students will have developed key insights into a major global funding activity.

• Fixed-income Securities Analysis

  The focus of this course is on the valuation of fixed-income securities and investment techniques in managing fixed income portfolios. Topics include the term structures of interest rates and forward rates; bond pricing, interest rate and reinvestment risks; risk and hedging in bond portfolio management; duration, convexity and portfolio immunization; corporate bonds, emerging-market bonds and default risks; fixed-income securities with embedded options; callable and convertible bonds, mortgage-backed securities; interest rate derivatives; and interest rate futures, swaps, caps and floors.

• Mergers and Acquisitions

  This course integrates areas within financial management and investments to analyse merger and acquisition (takeover) markets. The class will be conducted using both lectures and presentations. The topics covered in lectures include an overview of takeover markets, legal aspects and restrictions, capital budgeting techniques, the efficient market hypothesis, the market model and computation of abnormal returns, the dividend discount model and the free cash flow model. The topics covered in presentations will include US and Hong Kong cases of mergers, tender offers and leveraged buyouts. Amongst other things, the efficient market hypothesis is applied to analyse the stock market response to takeover announcement as well as a range of other issues including: welfare gains/losses associated with takeover, the cost of capital for due acquiror and the intrinsic value of the target (using dividend discount and free cash flow models).

• Cases in Corporate Finance & Investment Practices

  The course enables students to gain comprehensive knowledge and practical insights in the latest trends of corporate finance and investment management. The cases discussed in the course cover important topics including finance resource allocation, mergers and acquisitions, funds investment and trading strategies. Moreover, the group project, being the key component in this course, should enable students to integrate theories in corporate finance and investment to empirical topics in capital budgeting, asset management and trading strategy.

• Financial Policy

  The objective of this course is to integrate various subfields of finance for the formulation of financial policies. The focus is on the application of financial theory to real-world business decisions, financing and restructuring strategies. The course also emphasizes the impact of institutional constraints on managers' financial decision-making and the implementation of financial strategies.

• Selected Topics in Finance

  Topics and issues in subfields in finance, to be selected by the finance faculty, are addressed in this course. Students are advised to contact the department for current offerings and prerequisites.

• China Finance

  The purpose of this course is to help students study and understand the financial market and financial institutions in China. The history and current issues of China financial system will be addressed.

• Venture Capital & Private Equity

  The course will outline the mechanisms of venture capital (VC) investment and the financing of startups and early growth firms. As VC is a subset of private equity, the course will discuss the management, legal and marketing issues of private equity in general. Topics include raising and structuring private equity funds, the limited partnership, and fund strategies. The course will consider the investment decision of institutional investors in private equity and how funds are structured to meet their needs. It will discuss post-subscription private equity fund management - deal screening, evaluation, negotiation, disbursement, investee management, valuation and exit - and will consider specifically the perspective of the VC investee company - alternative sources of financing, how to approach a VC to maximize chances of success, and governance issues in VC financed firms. The course may also delve into public versus private equity buyouts, valuation of buyouts and corporate restructuring under private equity.

• Fundamentals of Derivatives Trading Strategies

  This course intends to offer students insight into the implementation of options theory in the practical trading environment. The main strategies for trading derivatives will be discussed and the students are to apply their knowledge in practical trading sessions.

• Directed Research in Finance

  The purpose of this course is for students who wish to conduct an in-depth study of a selected finance problem. Prior to taking this course, students should submit a proposal to and get approval from the instructor-in-charge stating the purposes and major objectives of their study. Details regarding how the study will be conducted are decided through consultation with their instructor-in-charge. Students may take the course for one time only.

• Capital Markets

  This course provides an overview of the capital markets and financing strategies for corporations. It covers equity capital markets, fixed income markets, and loans. Specific topics include analyzing IPO documents, secondary offerings, equity valuation, convertible bonds and other hybrid instruments, debt capital markets, analyzing bond documents, loan revolvers, working capital management, and syndicated loans.

• Advanced Management of Financial Institutions: Financial Information System Management

  This course introduces the students to large scale financial and risk management systems using Calypso as the example. The students will learn about the complexities of actual financial systems currently being used by global financial institutions.

• Credit Risk & Credit as an Asset Class

  This elective course aims to teach the fundamental concepts underlying general and advanced analytical tools in credit risk modelling, credit rating methodology, counterparty credit risk and credit derivatives. Course contents will also relate to latest market regulations and capital requirements.

• Foreign Exchange in Theory and Practice

  This course will cover exchange rate theory, exchange rate policy, and statistical work on exchange rate determination. It will also touch on important topics of the day, such as China's exchange rate regime, global imbalances, and the problems of the Eurozone.

• Law and the Securities Markets

  This course is designed to introduce students already familiar with the economics of securities markets to the law that governs those markets and the transactions in securities they are designed to execute. The course will closely examine actual legal documentation to show its basic structure and purpose. Further, the course will analyze basic legal principles that shape the law and regulation of corporate finance and securities markets, such as legal strategies to overcome asymmetric information, moral hazard and agency problems, as well as techniques to secure prior claims against assets held in the possession of another entity in any bankruptcy proceedings regarding that entity.

• Quantitative Methods in Finance

  The course introduces probability, stochastic processes, and statistics required for quantitative finance study. Topics include: time value of money, probability, probability distributions and descriptive statistics, sampling and estimation, hypothesis testing, correlation analysis and regression, time series analysis, simulation analysis and technical analysis.

• Finance Field Study

  This course consists of assignments, case reports and/or presentations along with a week-long residential program in various countries arranged by the program. The goal in taking classroom sessions abroad is to expose our students to a wide spectrum of finance related issues, such as capital markets, derivative markets, venture capital, economics, politics, social issues, business functions and financial systems of the host country. Site visits to multi-national financial institutions, joint ventures and regulatory bodies might be included.

• Quantitative Risk Management

  This course explores quantitative methods in credit risk management and examines market risks, operational risks, integrated risk management, and risk management information technology. Basic Value-at-Risk (VaR) methodologies such as historical simulation, parametric VaR, delta-gamma approximation and Monte-Carlo simulation will be covered. Defaults of bank loans, corporate bonds, and/or counter-parties are addressed. Reduced-form models and structure models are discussed, with application of CreditmetricsTM and KMV methodologies.

• Bank and Insurance Capital

  The course offers a comprehensive understanding of Basel I, II, and III. The standard internal ratings-based (IRB) approach, as well as the foundation internal ratings-based (FIRB), and advanced internal ratings-based (AIRB) approaches, will be covered. The 3 Pillars for banking capital will be explored. Students are guided through practical implementation of different capital requirements under different regulatory frameworks.

• Mathematical Financial Modeling and Structured Solutions

  The course introduces mathematical modeling concepts and techniques for financial applications. The classic Black-Scholes Model, local volatility, stochastic volatility are critically evaluated. Interest rate models such as Ho-Lee, Hull-White, Heath-Jarrow-Morton (HJM), Libor Market Model are discussed. Cross currency models for foreign exchanges and modeling for commodity are also covered.

• Computational Finance

  This is a practical course for trading system and risk management system implementation. Existing open source software for finance will be adopted. Some current trading systems will be case shown. Students will learn the implementation through carrying out software development projects.

• Financial Econometrics

  This course covers econometrics used in empirical finance. Topics will include univariate and multivariate linear models, parametric and nonparametric models of volatility, evaluation of capital asset pricing model, arbitrage pricing theory, risk management models. The course makes extensive use of computer-based applications to draw inferences.

Other elective courses

You may take up to 3-credits-worth of courses offered by the Master of Accountancy programme and other Master of Science programmes of the Faculty of Business Administration, subject to approval by Programme Directors.

You may be exempt from taking a course if you have completed an equivalent course in your postgraduate studies and achieved a grade of B or above. You will need to provide supporting documents, such as academic transcripts and a course syllabus. If you are exempt from certain courses, you will need to replace the credits with elective courses.

Granting exemptions is at the discretion of the programme and the University.

Study abroad opportunities

The Exchange Programme offers an opportunity for you to study at prestigious business schools around the world and gain a different perspective on industry issues while building a global network for your future career.

Overseas study trips

You can take certain courses at overseas institutions to gain broader experience and acquire new skills.

Outward Bound

Outward Bound is an acclaimed 3-day personal development programme offering a unique experience. With activities specially designed to develop teamwork, leadership, stress management and problem-solving skills, while strengthening your ability to face real-life challenges, you will be trained in the soft skills employers are looking for.

Study support

To help students reinforce their understanding of a subject and apply theories in solving real-life problems, we have a well-established tutorial system. These are typically in small groups which allow you to interact more with your tutors. It is best to bring questions with you so you can gain maximum benefit from these sessions.

Language learning

You can take our Business Communications in Practice course during the pre-term period to improve your English proficiency, so you are better prepared for interviews and communicating in the workplace.

We offer an intensive Cantonese course in the pre-term period for non-local students, helping them adapt to living and studying in Hong Kong.

Mentorship programme

This programme helps you establish a mentoring relationship with alumni, providing a platform for you to communicate, exchange ideas and share on and off campus experiences. We invite our alumni and final year students to serve as mentors and provide coaching and guidance to help you during your studies at CUHK.

Others

We organise many informal experiential learning activities, such as career talks, company visits, alumni sharing sessions, executive talks, networking events and festival celebrations to make the most of university life.

Your performance is assessed based on exams and assignments, according to CUHK’s grading system.

To graduate, you must complete the prescribed coursework and achieve a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of at least 2.50.

Students who obtain a cumulative GPA below 2.50 in the term assessment will be put on academic probation. If the probation is not lifted after two consecutive terms, the student will be required to discontinue his or her studies.

Students who receive a grade D+ or below in a course must repeat it or take an approved substitute course.

Dean’s List

Students in the top 20 percentile who achieve a cumulative GPA of 3.60 or above are eligible for the Dean’s List. These students will be issued a Dean’s List Certificate, and the honour will be recorded on their academic transcripts.