Programme Intended Learning Outcomes (PILOs)

• Programme Intended Learning Outcomes (PILOs) represent the educational expectations of the programme. The Department and faculty are contributing efforts in achieving the PILOs during the courses of study. The PILOs of the programme are as follows:

  MSc Finance (click HERE for Curriculum Information Record)

  Upon successful completion of this Programme, students should be able to:
  1.  

  2. 1. Discover and evaluate the financing, investment and risk management needs of corporations (financial or non-financial).
     2. Describe the nature and properties of the most popular financial instruments in the real-world financial market; and evaluate quantitatively the risk and the value of the most basic ones.
     3. Design sound and innovative financing, investment and risk management strategies for corporations (financial or non-financial).
     4. Critically assess recent developments in the financial sector and their implications for financial management.

  MSc Financial Engineering (click HERE for Curriculum Information Record)

  Upon successful completion of this Programme, students should be able to:
  1.  

  2. 1. Design innovative financial products and integrated solutions to meet the needs of financial industry.
     2. Apply modern mathematical tools to price complex financial instruments.
     3. Conduct numerical computations to handle modern financial models and explore real-life problem.
     4. Assess the risk of complicated portfolios and develop risk management and investment strategies.

  MSc Financial Services (click HERE for Curriculum Information Record)

  Upon successful completion of this Programme, students should be able to:
  1.  

  2. 1. Apply corporate finance concepts to value financial institutions and critically assess financial performance.
     2. Apply quantitative models to evaluate the risk and return of investment products in the real world financial markets.
     3. Evaluate the operating risk, credit risk, and market risk of financial institutions and design appropriate and innovative handling strategies.
     4. Discover and critically evaluate the current regulations in financial services.

  In each PILO of MSF/MSFE/MSFS programme, Discovery-enriched Curriculum (DEC) elements of Attitude, Ability and Accomplishments are involved.

  Attitude: Develop an attitude of discovery/innovation/creativity, as demonstrated by students possessing a strong sense of curiosity, asking questions actively, challenging assumptions or engaging in inquiry together with teachers.

  Ability: Develop the ability/skill needed to discover/innovate/create, as demonstrated by students possessing critical thinking skills to assess ideas, acquiring research skills, synthesizing knowledge across disciplines or applying academic knowledge to real-life problems.

  Accomplishments: Demonstrate accomplishments of discovery/innovation/creativity through producing/constructing creative works/new artefacts, effective solutions to real-life problems or new processes.

Semester System

---

1The duration includes the examination period. The exact academic calendar can be found at https://www6.cityu.edu.hk/arro/ac_calendar.asp.

Study Mode & Student Status

The programmes are offered in combined mode. Local students taking programmes in combined mode can study either in full-time (12 - 18 credit units per semester) or part-time (no more than 11 credit units per semester) mode in different semesters without seeking approval from the University. For non-local students, they are admitted to these programmes in either full-time mode or part-time mode. Non-local students must maintain the required study load for their full-time or part-time studies, and if there are any changes in the mode of study, approval should be sought from the University.

Student Classification and Study Mode:

Student Classification	Examples	Study Mode
Local	Persons holding a “Hong Kong Permanent Identity Card” or the right to land in Hong Kong or a One-way Permit for entry to Hong Kong	Combined or Full-time
	Persons holding an employment visa in Hong Kong	Part-time2
Non-Local	Persons entering Hong Kong for the purpose of education with a student visa/entry permit issued by the Director of the Hong Kong Immigration Department	Either part-time or full-time depending on the permission granted by the Hong Kong Immigration Department

Study Mode and Study Load:

Study Mode	Study Load according to University’s Academic Regulations	Normal Study Load3	Time to complete the programme in general4
Part-time	-  3 - 11 credit units per semester -  no more than 7 credit units for summer term	- 6 credit units per semester - 3 credit units for summer term	24 months
Full-time	-  12 - 18 credit units per semester -  no more than 7 credit units for summer term	-  12 - 15 credit units per semester -  3 credit units for summer term	12 months
Combined	-  3 - 18 credit units per semester -  no more than 7 credit units for summer term	Depends on the study modes that students choose in different semesters (refer to the above)

Important Notes

All persons who are not holding a “Hong Kong Permanent Identity Card” should check with the Hong Kong Immigration Department on immigration regulations and conditions governing eligibility for their studies. It is the students’ responsibility to understand and comply with the immigration rules governing the conditions of their stay in Hong Kong.

For students whose status is not one of the examples above, they should also check with the Hong Kong Immigration Department.

The above information is only an extract from the University website. For details of information, please visit http://www.sgs.cityu.edu.hk/student/tpg/regulations/enrolment.

 

---

2Under exceptional circumstances, employment visa holders may apply to take more than the maximum study load permitted in the Academic Regulations for Part-time Students, by providing written proof from the employer and submitting an application for consideration and approval by the Head of the Department.

3All first-year students will also take EF5063 “Professional Seminars” in Semester A and B on top of their normal study load.

4According to the University’s regulations, students have to complete the MSF/MSFE/MSFS programme within the maximum period of study. For MSF/MSFE/MSFS, the maximum period of study is 2.5 years for full-time students and 5 years for part-time students, inclusive of programme transfer and any periods of leave of absence and suspension of studies.

Programme Structure & Study Plan

Each of the MSF/MSFE/MSFS programmes requires students to complete 30 credit units. In general, each course carries 3 credit units. In each programme, there are 8 required core courses (24 credit units) and 2 elective courses (6 credit units).

The MSF/MSFE/MSFS programme structures and study plans are presented in the following Table 1, 2 and 3 respectively. All courses listed in the tables run for one semester. One exception is EF5063 “Professional Seminars” which runs through Semester A and B / until Summer Term.

 

 

---

5Prerequisite: A requirement that must be fulfilled before a student can register in a particular course.
Precursor: Precursors are not requirements, but students are advised to complete the precursors before registering in these courses (or at least take the courses and their precursors simultaneously).

Credit Transfer & Course Exemption

Credit Transfer

Credit transfer means that you can earn the credit units without taking the course.

In general, to be eligible for credit transfer consideration, you should have taken an “equivalent” course in a completed postgraduate programme from a recognized university with grade “B” or above within the past 6 years - “equivalence” means that the transferring course should have at least 70% overlap with the current course in terms of the syllabus.

All applications will be considered on a case-by-case basis and subject to the approval of the programme leader/director and the course offering department.

Restrictions

• Up to a maximum of 15 credit units earned previously from equivalent courses undertaken in the College of Business at CityU within the past 6 years can be transferred.

• Up to a maximum of 9 credit units earned previously from equivalent courses undertaken in other recognized institutions within the past 6 years can be transferred.

• Credits previously used to satisfy the elective requirements of an academic award of the College of Business by credit transfer should not be used again.

• Transferred credit units will not be counted into your GPA in the current programme.

• You are required to take at least 5 advanced level EF courses.

Examples of Credit Transfer Recently Approved

Course Transferred	Qualification
EF5042 Corporate Finance	Corporate Finance & Valuation Master of Science in Finance London Business School
EF5052 Investments	FIN6112B Investments & Portfolio Analysis Master of Accountancy The Chinese University of Hong Kong
EF5070 Econometrics	ECON5025 Applied Econometrics Master of Arts in Economics York University (Canada)

Note: Credit transfer is applicable to required core courses only. Elective courses will not be considered.

Application Procedures (Credit Transfer & Course Exemption)

 

Course Exemption

Course exemption means that you can be exempted from taking a course. However, you cannot earn the credit units and you have to take another course to replace the course exempted.

In general, to be eligible for course exemption, substantial knowledge in a subject area (e.g., major in an undergraduate programme or professional qualifications like ACCA) is required.

All applications will be considered on a case-by-case basis and subject to the approval of the programme leader/director and the course offering department. In addition, choice of course substitution is subject to the approval of the programme leader/director.

Examples of Course Exemption Recently Approved

Course Exempted	Qualification
EF5042 Corporate Finance	ACCA (Fellowship Level)
EF5052 Investments	Bachelor’s degree in Finance from a recognized university with at least 6 credit units in Investments / Wealth Management
EF5070 Econometrics	Bachelor’s degree in Economics from a recognized university with at least 6 credit units in Econometrics and Econometrics-related courses

 

Application Procedures (Credit Transfer & Course Exemption)

• Choose the candidate course(s) & Check course details

  Go to https://www.cityu.edu.hk/pg/current/catalogue/catalogue_TP.htm?page=TP/TP_course_EF.htm to check the details of the core courses that you might be eligible for credit transfer or course exemption.

• Obtain the application form
  (same form for Credit Transfer and Course Exemption)
  1. login to https://www.cityu.edu.hk/portal with your Electronic ID (EID) and password,
  2. click AIMS under “Login to...”on the left,
  3. select “Student Record”, click “My Applications (for Undergraduate and Taught Postgraduate Programmes)” then click “Credit Transfer”, and
  4. complete the application form.
• Submission

  Submit your application together with supporting documents by post or in person to SGS Taught Postgraduate Student Records Service Counter.

  • For credit transfer/course exemption application based on courses taken from a previous university programme, you should provide the following supporting documents6:

    • official transcripts (or certified true copies), and
    • course outline/syllabus of the transferring course.

    Furthermore, we strongly urge you to submit handouts and/or exam papers of the transferring course. The more information you provide us, the more accurate we can determine if your application is appropriate.

  • For course exemption application based on professional qualifications like ACCA or CFA, you should submit the application in person to the SGS Taught Postgraduate Student Records Service Counter with the original copy of your Certificate. The staff will verify the Certificate, make a copy of it and return it to you.

• Fee and Payment

  Fee (non-refundable): HK$140 for each application form submitted.
  Payment methods:

  1. direct deposit at any branch of the Hang Seng Bank (CityU current account no.: 293-318028-004); or
  2. electronic transfer to the above CityU account at any Hang Seng Bank ATM machine; or
  3. credit card (Visa, MasterCard or UnionPay) or EPS at the SGS Taught Postgraduate Student Records Service Counter.

  For fees settled by direct deposit or electronic transfer, please attach the original receipt to the application form as proof of payment. Overseas applicants may pay by a bank draft drawn in Hong Kong Dollars made payable to “City University of Hong Kong”.

• Deadline

  • Applications for credit transfer/course exemption for work completed prior to entry to the University must be made before the start of the first semester.

  • For Semester A 2015/2016, the application period is 15 July - 29 August 2015.

  • You are suggested to complete the student enrollment and submit the credit transfer/course exemption application as soon as possible.

    It will take about one month to process your application. If you apply late, the course(s) that you plan to take after the approval of your application may already be full.

• Application Result

  You will be notified of your application result by e-mail.

For details of information, please visit http://www.sgs.cityu.edu.hk/student/TPg/record/credittransfer.

 

---

6All supporting documents submitted will not be returned to you.

Academic Honesty (and Plagiarism)

(Effective from Semester A 2012/13)

Please read the following information:

1. The Rules on Academic Honesty document is approved by the Senate to regulate student academic honesty matters and adjudicate student academic dishonesty cases. The Academic Conduct Committee under the Academic Policy Committee will determine and keep under review the Rules on Academic Honesty. Academic honesty with respect to faculty members is not covered by this set of Rules.

2. Academic honesty is central to the conduct of academic work. Students are expected to present their own work, give proper acknowledgement of other’s work, and honestly report findings obtained. As part of the University’s efforts to educate students about academic honesty, all students are required to complete the Online Tutorial and Quiz on Academic Honesty, and make a Declaration on their understanding of academic honesty.

3. Academic dishonesty is regarded as a serious offence in the University. Any related offence can lead to disciplinary action with a penalty including expulsion from the University and debarment from re-admission.

4. Academic dishonesty includes but is not restricted to the following behaviors:

   • 4.1 Plagiarism, e.g., the failure to properly acknowledge the use of another person’s work
     or submission for assessment material that is not the student’s own work;

   • 4.2 Misrepresentation of a piece of group work as the student’s own individual work;

   • 4.3 Collusion, i.e., allowing another person to gain advantage by copying one’s work;

   • 4.4 Unauthorized access to an examination/test paper;

   • 4.5 Use of unauthorized material in assessment;

   • 4.6 Unauthorized communication during assessment;

   • 4.7 Use of fabricated data claimed to be obtained by experimental work, or data copied
     or obtained by unfair means;

   • 4.8 Impersonating another student at a test or an examination or allowing oneself to
     be impersonated.

5. Students must comply with regulations promulgated by the University and the academic units in examinations and coursework.

6. All students, faculty and staff have the responsibility to report academic dishonesty cases as they will compromise the quality of education and depreciate the genuine achievements of others. Course leaders are required to report any suspected incidents of academic dishonesty in the course, if supported by clear evidence, to the Head/Dean of the course-offering academic unit.

The above information is only an extract of the University regulations on Academic Honesty. 
For details of information, please visit
https://www.cityu.edu.hk/provost/academic_honesty/rules_on_academic_honesty.htm.

Graduation Requirements & Award Classification

• Graduation Requirements
  Students are required to fulfill all the following requirements upon completion of the programme:
  • Pass all core and elective courses,
  • Earn 30 credit units, and
  • Have a Cumulative Grade Points Average (CGPA) of 2.00 or above.
  
  

  Grading of Courses

  Letter Grade	Grade Points
  A+	4.3
  A	4.0
  A-	3.7
  B+	3.3
  B	3.0
  B-	2.7
  C+	2.3
  C	2.0
  C-	1.7
  D	1.0
  F	0.0
  P	“Pass” in a pass-fail course

   

• University Award Classification
  • Distinction, Credit and Pass

  • The College Examination Board classifies awards with regard to,
    but not necessarily in strict conformity with, a student’s CGPA.

  For details, please visit http://www.sgs.cityu.edu.hk/student/tpg/regulations/cgpabanding.

  
  
• Academic Standing

  Students who fail to perform satisfactorily in the programme might be given academic warning or probation. Extreme cases might lead to termination (e.g., failing a required core course more than twice). Students are responsible for complying with all the rules and regulations regarding their study in the programme. For details of information, please visit http://www.sgs.cityu.edu.hk/student/TPg/regulation.

  
  
• Leave of Absence

  Under extenuating circumstances, students may apply for leave of absence. Application procedures and regulations can be found at “Leave of Absence” under “Student Records and Status” on the website of Chow Yei Ching School of Graduate Studies: http://www.sgs.cityu.edu.hk/student/TPg.