02 UC/13 MAFE
UNIVERSITY OF CANTERBURY
Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha
CUAP Proposal-New Qualification/Subject 2013
Section A
Proposal Description
Purpose of the proposal
To introduce a new 180 point degree – a Master of Applied Finance and Economics and a new subject code (FIECFinance and Economics) that reflects the combined nature of the qualification.
Justification
The Department of Economics and Finance propose to launch a joint, applied Masters degree that can potentially be
completed in one calendar year, and attract international and domestic students who would not otherwise be attracted
by the department’s traditional honours and masters programmes.
This proposal fits well with Goal 1.5 of the draft UC Strategic Plan:
“Refresh UC’s teaching offerings by introducing new courses and programmes in emerging niches and priority
areas that attract students and are expected to be financially viable within two years.”
Under the UC Strategic Plan’s heading “2013 Initiatives” is “Establish professional taught Masters”.
This proposal seeks to establish a 1 year taught masters jointly in finance and economics – the Master of Applied
Finance and Economics. The degree would (i) provide students with advanced preparation in both economics and
finance, allowing graduates to signal to employers strengths in either or both areas, and (ii) provide students with the
advanced analytical skills already offered in existing honours coursework, and then (iii) give them the chance to put
these technical skills to use in applications that provide them with a variety of ‘work-ready’ skills and tools.
Students can enter the Masters of Applied Finance and Economics from a variety of backgrounds (including nonbusiness backgrounds), but will be required to satisfy certain minimum requirements in economics and finance (the
equivalent of one 200-level course in each), and mathematics and statistics (the equivalent of one 100-level course in
each). As a result, we expect the MAFE to be particularly attractive to international students seeking a 1 year masters in
finance and economics, and to the increasing percentage of local students who have completed a double major in
economics and finance, but who are not attracted to our traditional honours and masters thesis degrees. It may also
attract students with undergraduate degrees in mathematically rich subjects such as mathematics, statistics, physics or
engineering who have taken a minimum amount of economics and finance.
While the programme would cater for international students who come independently, we anticipate attracting the
highest possible quality of such students by extending existing articulations agreements with carefully selected overseas
universities, particularly in China. This proposal would thus assist in the internationalisation of the taught postgraduate
programmes of the Department of Economics and Finance.
We anticipate that graduates of this programme would find employment in trading and investment banks, government
departments, consulting firms, research units, corporate treasuries, and anywhere that seeks graduates with strong
analytical skills and a proven ability to apply them to new situations. In terms of targeting, we expect MAFE graduates
to be attractive to a wider range of employers than are graduates of our traditional honours and masters thesis
programmes. Nevertheless, MAFE graduates will still be capable of fulfilling traditional economics and finance
roles, and not merely convey helpful existing economic or finance analysis done by others to the organisations in which
they work. That is, we are seeking to place this programme at a more demanding and rigorous level than the economics
and finance equivalent of a professional degree such as the MBA.
To the greatest extent possible, this degree would make use of existing level 8 Honours courses provided in the two
standard semesters of each New Zealand academic year. It would also require the creation of two new courses worth a
total of 60 points. The department is also currently reviewing other course offerings and teaching duties to achieve
efficiencies across economics and finance. Regarding the two new courses for this degree, those students who only
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meet the minimum entry criteria would be required to take a 15 point entry course in January-early February. All
students would later be required to take a 45 point advanced applications course in November-January. This course
would contain four masters – level applied projects and give the programme its ‘applied’ yet ‘advanced analytical’
flavour. The new entry and exit courses would be available only to MAFE students.
For students who need to enrol in FIEC 601 they would complete the qualification with equal parts of finance and
economics. For those who do not require FIEC 601 they would take 15 points more of economics or of finance
depending on their choice.
Acceptability
The Department has consulted with three categories of people with respect to the structure and content of this
proposed masters, and its likelihood of attracting new students to UC (as opposed to transfers between programmes at
UC). These categories are 1) people with expertise regarding Chinese or Indonesian universities, 2) current domestic
and international undergraduates enrolled in economics and finance courses, and 3) potential employers of students via
the College of Business and Law’s Advisory Board and UC Careers Hub.
Contacts at Chinese and Indonesian Universities
Prof. Bob Reed consulted with the following people regarding the structure, emphasis and timing of the proposed
masters: Thomas (Fan) Yang, immediate past China Programme Officer for UC under Bob Korzeniowski; Mei Li of
Huazhong University of Science and Technology (HUST); Ji Yang, Senior Consultant in NZ/Australia division of New
Oriental Vision Overseas Consulting; Sky Yang, Program Manager Can-Achieve IES Education; Zheng Chen, professional
consultant at JJL; and Kodrat Wibowo, a former student and now Head of Department of Economics at the University of
Padjajaran in Bandung, Indonesia.
Most rated a twelve month programme starting in January, without a major research component, as our most likely
structure to attract students, particularly with fees that compared favourably with European one year masters degrees.
Some expressed the view that for ‘independent’ international students, a September start date would suit students with
strong English language skills, but that a January start would attract those needing time to improve their written and
spoken English prior to arrival. A January start date would also suit students in “3 + 1 + 1” articulation agreements, who
would already be on a southern hemisphere timetable for the final undergraduate year course work at UC. Delegates
from HUST to UC recently expressed interest in such a degree as part of an extended articulation agreement. Bob
Korzeniowski has pointed out that offering two start dates (September and January) would provide ideal start date
coverage, but this would not be feasible given the new course requirements and variety of entry preparation that
students would arrive with.
One respondent suggested that providing an extension pathway from the MAFE to a traditional masters research thesis
would be useful (e.g. making it possible to continue on to a 120 point MCom thesis). This is possible under the current
regulations as MAFE students complete 120 points similar to the MCom part i.
1. Surveying UC Undergraduates in Economics and Finance
The Department anonymously surveyed all current domestic and international students enrolled in 100, 200 and 300
level courses in economics and finance. Of the150 who responded, 23 ticked the box beside the statement “I wasn’t
thinking I would be interested in postgraduate study, but I would now be interested if the new programme goes ahead.”
Of these 23, 8 were students at 300 level. (A separate 31 students instead ticked the box beside the statement “I was
thinking about an honours or masters degree in economics or finance, but would probably prefer the new programme.”
However, these students represent ‘transferrers’, so are not included in our business case.
On this basis we forecast that 6 additional domestic students from UC would enrol if the MAFE were offered in 2014.
2. Surveying Potential Employers via the College’s Advisory Board
The Department sent a survey to all members of the College of Business and Law’s Advisory Board. Spencer Smith, the
director of Staples Rodway Christchurch Ltd., agreed that the programme would make its graduates attractive to
employers in New Zealand, though he thought this more true for accounting students seeking to broaden their skill base
to employers than economics students seeking jobs with government agencies. He emphasized that the programme
needs to set high standards and therefore develop a reputation as being the source of high calibre graduates. Richard
Webster of Christchurch Boys’ High School queried whether we could enhance the ‘applied’ and ‘work ready’ aspect of
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the programme by incorporating work placements for its students. This is not something we thought we could
accommodate if we were to make the programme scalable beyond a modest number of students.
Goals of the programme
The MAFE has been designed as an “advanced yet applied” programme that seeks to take students with only moderate
background in economics and finance, equip them with strong analytical skills, and then provide them with
opportunities to apply those skills in ways likely to be valuable in careers in finance and economics.
Students would enter the programme with varying degrees of preparation in finance and economics. The use of an
intensive 15 point skill-building course in January-February and level 8 courses in semester I in missing core areas of
preparation would equip students with the required skills and knowledge to succeed in a Masters programme that
culminates in an advanced applications course.
The exact programme of courses that students are required to undertake would be determined on an individual basis
with the Graduate Studies Co-ordinators for economics and for finance, though the degree of overall variation would be
limited. All students would complete 180 points, of which 45 points would be at level 9 and 135 points at level 8, and all
students would take at least 45% of their points in economics and at least 45% in finance.
The 45 point level 9 advanced applications course (FIEC 675) would provide students with the opportunity to apply the
advanced techniques learned throughout the programme, beyond those opportunities already provided in existing
honours coursework. By directly linking real-world problems in economics and finance to an underlying theoretical
framework, this programme would aim to produce “work ready” graduates who are capable of high-level performance
in the banking sector, government departments, non-profit agencies, consulting firms, and larger private firms needing
in-house economic or financial analysis.
More broadly, this programme seeks to diversify the pool of domestic and international students who would benefit
from the strong analytical skills and techniques already provided by the Department of Economics and Finance’s post
graduate level courses, beyond traditional Honours and Masters thesis students. Yet it seeks to do so in a way that
maintains strong academic standards so as to attract high calibre graduates, both locally and from good overseas
universities. Strategically, this programme represents perhaps the most promising avenue for our department to
expand its post graduate student numbers.
Graduate profile
At the conclusion of the Master of Applied Finance and Economics graduates;

can demonstrate in-depth knowledge and understanding of current theoretical concepts and frameworks within
finance and economics.

are able to think logically, analytically and critically with respect to the academic literature in finance and
economics and explain how this literature applies to real world problems.

are able to synthesise academic or professional literature and effectively communicate the results of their
independent study orally and in written form.

are able to apply their in-depth knowledge of finance and economics to practical real world problems.
Outcome statement
This programme is a taught Masters programme. Graduates will have a blend of Masters level finance and economics in
their degree with limited flexibility to focus more on one over the other. All graduates must complete the 45 point
advanced applications course which focuses on the application of skills developed in the earlier part of the programme.
Graduates will find employment in roles requiring an advanced (post-graduate) understanding of finance or economics.
Investment and trading banks, corporate treasuries and stockbrokers, as well as Government agencies will be likely to
hire graduates of this programme.
Programme overview
The minimum requirements to enter the programme are
1. Intermediate microeconomics. (with or without calculus)
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2. Business Finance.
3. At least one university level mathematics course containing calculus.
4. At least one university level statistics course containing estimation and hypothesis testing.
Students are required to take 180 points as follows
A.
FIEC 675 (Advanced Applications in Finance and Economics)
B.
135 additional points comprising
(i)
At least 60 points from ECON 601-669, including at least 30 points from ECON 620-669 and
(ii)
At least 60 points from FINC 601-669, including at least 30 points from FINC 620-669.
(iii)
Students may be required to take the 15 point FIEC 601 (Quantitative Finance and Economics).
Sequence of Study:
Those students who enter with minimum or near-minimum requirements would be required to take FIEC 601
(Quantitative Finance and Economics) in January - February. This course would be an intensive skill-building course that
would focus on interpreting the key concepts of economics and finance as expressed mathematically. Students would
be expected to undertake a significant amount of self-directed learning. Each student would be assessed on an
individual basis.
In each of semesters I and II, students would take 60 points of coursework (unless they were exempted from taking FIEC
601, in which case they would need to take 75 points in one semester.) Depending on individual background, students
might be required to take up to four of the following existing courses:
ECON 610
ECON 613
FINC 610
FINC 613
Directed Readings in Economics I
Directed Readings in Economics II
Studies in Capital Markets
Studies in Capital Markets II
These courses would further develop skills and knowledge in any advanced core areas in which an individual student is
deficient: microeconomics, macroeconomics, econometrics, financial economics, corporate finance, investments or
derivatives. These existing courses are at honours standard (level 8) and the work expected would be consistent with
this level. Students not needing to complete these courses would be free to take other honours courses in semester I,
again split between economics and finance.
The Department has an excellent record in only admitting students into its postgraduate programmes who are likely to
succeed. This would continue in the MAFE and the Department would need to be reasonably confident that a student
would be likely to succeed before admitting him/her. Despite that, it is still possible that any particular student could
fail FIEC 601 or any other course (excluding FIEC 675 which is a degree requirement). MAFE students would be treated
in the same way as other postgraduate students. In particular, students who failed any course including FIEC 601 would
need to take an additional 15 points at some stage. Continued failure would not be an option as students who failed
more than one course could not graduate with a MAFE. The regulations would allow students to choose to complete
the MAFE over a longer period of time should that be more appropriate, or to transfer to a more suitable exit
qualification.
The new courses created specifically for the MAFE are (with prescriptions):
FIEC 601
Quantitative Finance and Economics.
An intensive finance and economics course for students with the minimum entry requirement
for the MAFE degree. The finance section reviews foundational content in skills and techniques
that students will likely be deficient in if they have met only the minimum prerequisites. It will
bring students up to speed on the use of math, or else the ability to evaluate the math, for
finance topics they would have seen in the undergraduate prerequisite for entry to the
programme. The economics section is similar.
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FIEC 675
Advanced Applications in Finance and Economics:
A project based course that is required for the Master of Applied Finance and Economics. The
course contains four modules in applied finance and economics: (i) analysis of time series data,
particularly for forecasting, (ii) cost benefit analysis, (iii) portfolio management, and (iv) financial
decision-making.
Simultaneous with this proposal, some existing honours courses would be re-numbered to provide a more logical and
coherent organisation of courses.
A number of courses that have not been offered for some time and have no likelihood of being offered any time soon
will be deleted: ECON 602, 604, 606, 632, 633.
Proposed teaching/delivery methods
Level 8 courses would be delivered using the usual range of lectures, seminars, and presentations by students. FIEC 675
would be characterised by using relatively fewer lecture hours, more project consultation hours, and more self-directed
and independent study hours. Some computer lab work outside of class would be required.
Assessment procedures
Assessment would be via projects, essays, presentations, examinations and in-class participation.
Resources
The proposed MAFE would require the creation of two additional courses in January-February, and November-January,
totalling 60 points. At the same time, the department would stop offering 30 points of less popular honours courses,
and a 15 points 300 level elective in finance as staff are re-deployed to accommodate the new programme. We would
not make further offsetting reductions in finance course offerings because of the scarcity and popularity of the electives
we do offer. Separately, however, the department is also currently reviewing all of its course offerings and teaching
duties to achieve efficiencies across economics and finance. This is likely to result in an additional reduction in
economics courses offered, quite apart from the MAFE.
The following courses will no longer be offered to facilitate the introduction of this programme:
ECON 601 Advanced Econometrics I; ECON 605 Macroeconomics I; FINC 302 Applied Corporate Finance
The programme will impose additional administrative time on the part of the graduate studies coordinators for
economics and finance, as well as the HoD and College of Business and Law staff regarding the extension of articulation
agreements with international universities, and pastoral care for newly arriving international students.
Plans for monitoring programme quality
The Department of Economics and Finance conducts an annual review of the postgraduate programme. Recently this
has involved staff from the UC Academic Development Group conducting interviews with exiting students. The results
of these reviews are presented at a Department meeting for discussion and then posted on the Department’s internal
site for future reference and action by individual staff.
The qualification as a whole is subject to the regular review cycle and will also undergo a graduating year review at the
appropriate time.
Confirmation that Section B has been prepared and is available to CUAP on request
Yes.
For New Qualifications – TEC/NZQA/NZVCC Requirements
EFTS value of qualification: 1.5 EFTS
NZSCED code: 091901- Economics, 081101- Banking and Finance
NZQA exit level of qualification to go on the New Zealand Qualifications Framework: Level 9
Statement regarding funding: Should be funded at the PG level
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Memorandum of understanding
n.a
Duration of the Qualification
Minimum number of points to complete the qualification: 180
Vacation/recess weeks: Standard university vacation and recess weeks apply.
Work experience/placement hours per week: n.a.
Tuition/teaching (full-time equivalent) weeks (including exam and study weeks):Standard university semesters plus
the summer period.
Teaching hours per week
Jan – Feb Summer term: for those who take FIEC 601 there will be 4 contact hours per week over 6 weeks.
Semester 1 and 2: Contact hours will be 8 per week if a student takes 60 points and 10 per week if 75.
Nov – Jan term: an average of 13.3 contact hours per week (lectures, discussions, consultations) prior to Christmas
though the actual number will vary from week to week.
Self-directed learning hours per week
Jan – Feb Summer term: for those who take FIEC 601 there will be 21 self-directed learning hours per week over 6
weeks.
Semester 1 and 2: Self-directed learning hours will be 31.5 per week (given 16 weeks of available time) if a student takes
60 points and 40 per week if 75.
Nov – Jan term: an average of 25 self-directed hours per week prior to Christmas and 40 following.
Calendar Form
New Qualification Regulations
Calendar Page 101
The Degree of Master of Applied Finance and Economics (MAFE)
See also General Course and Examination Regulations.
1.
Qualifications Required to Enrol in the Degree
Every candidate for the Degree of Master of Applied Finance and Economics, before enrolling in a course of study for
this degree, shall have:
(a)
(b)
been approved as a candidate for the degree by the Dean of Commerce and either:
(i)
qualified for a degree in a New Zealand university or
(ii)
been admitted ad eundem statum as a holder of such a degree; and
satisfied the following prerequisites:
1. ECON 202 or ECON 207 or an equivalent Intermediate Microeconomics course
2. FINC 201 or an equivalent Business Finance course.
3. MATH 102 or an equivalent introductory course containing calculus.
4. STAT101 or an equivalent statistics course containing estimation and hypothesis testing.
No candidate shall enrol in this degree if he or she has already qualified for the award of an Honours degree or higher in
Economics.
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Note: Relevance and standard of undergraduate studies are the main criteria for approval.
2.
Course of Study
To qualify for the Master of Applied Finance and Economics a student must satisfactorily pass:
A.
FIEC 675; and
B.
135 additional points selected from
(i)
60 points from ECON 601-669, including at least 30 points from ECON 620-669 and
(ii)
60 points from FINC 601-669, including at least 30 points from FINC 620-669
(iii)
FIEC 601 or, at the discretion of the Head of Department of Economics and Finance, an
additional 15 points from ECON 601-669 or FINC601-669
No candidate for the degree shall graduate who has failed more than one of the courses offered. Enrolment in any
combination of courses is subject to the approval of the Head of Department. Candidates can normally attempt each
course on offer only once.
3.
Time Limits
A candidate must complete all requirements for the Master of Applied Finance and Economics degree in accordance
with the time limits set out in the Commerce Graduate and Postgraduate Qualifications Time Limit Schedule.
Calendar Page 89
Add the following row to the Time Limit Schedule
MAFE
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