BEX5131 Fundamentals of investment strategy
Faculty of Business and Economics
BEX5131 Fundamentals of investment strategy is a level 5, 6-credit-point, postgraduate unit from the Faculty of Business and Economics, offered in 2027 in Summer A and Semester 1 at Caulfield. It has no prerequisites.
- Credit points
- 6
- Offered in 2027
- Summer A, Semester 1
- Caulfield
- Assessment
- No exam
- 3 tasks
- Workload
- 144 hours
- per semester
Reviews
No reviews yetNo reviews yet. Be the first to review BEX5131.
Requisites
Before BEX5131
Prohibitions
You can't enrol if you have passed any of these.
After BEX5131
No unit lists BEX5131 as a prerequisite in the 2027 handbook.
Equivalent units
The same content under another code. Only one of them counts.
Overview
This unit provides you with a unique opportunity to learn about the basics of investment management from leading local and international investment professionals. The course has a practical focus, providing knowledge and insights about the complexities of investment markets and superannuation.
The unit aims to help you build a strong base of knowledge and confidence around personal investment and to develop your own investment philosophy – a set of principles guiding their understanding of investment and financial markets. While primarily designed for students interested in managing their own investments, the unit also offers significant value for those students aiming for careers as investment and financial professionals.
Upon completing the unit, you will develop practical life skills in investment management and emerge with extensive theoretical and practical knowledge across the main facets of investment in financial markets, which cannot be gathered from current textbook-based units.
Through a combination of case study evaluation, lectures, and discussion with investment practitioners, you will acquire a broad understanding of capital markets, asset classes (stocks, bonds, credit, real estate, private equity, commodities, digital assets etc.), investing styles, and instruments (active and index investing, value and growth investing, activism, ESG investing, tail risk hedging, futures and swaps, etc.). The unit will also cover investing from the perspective of an asset owner, teaching modern practices in portfolio construction for personal and institutional investors and risk management.
Offerings in 2027
| Teaching period | Campus | Mode |
|---|---|---|
| Summer semester A | Caulfield | On campus, block |
| First semester | Caulfield | On campus |
Assessment
- Exercise35%
- Quiz / Test40%
- Written25%
Assessment details may change. Please refer to the assessment information in Moodle closer to the start of the teaching period.
Learning outcomes
When you finish this unit, you should be able to:
- 1
develop
- your own investment philosophy
- an investment strategy aligned with your personal investment goals
- 2
understand
- the practical sides of different investment strategies
- simple and effective ways to manage risks and returns
- how to transform this knowledge into practice
- the challenges investors face
- 3
improve
- your skill of critical thinking and problem-solving
- communication skills
Workload and teaching
- Seminars24 hours
- Seminars36 hours
- Teaching approachCase-based teaching
- Teaching approachEnquiry-based learning
- Teaching approachProblem-based learning
- Teaching approachActive learning
Minimum total expected workload to achieve the learning outcomes for this unit is 144 hours per semester typically comprising a mixture of scheduled learning activities and independent study. Independent study may include associated readings, assessment and preparation for scheduled activities. You are expected to complete all pre-class activities prior to your scheduled class, and post-class activities should be completed after your scheduled class. Learning activities may include a combination of teacher directed, peer directed and online engagement activities.
This unit includes case-based teaching, where you apply your knowledge and engage in analytical and reflective thinking to solve complex contextual scenarios. Activities are often designed so that there is not one clear answer, but you need to work together to examine, analyse and make decisions to resolve the situation.
This unit engages you in enquiry-based learning, where you will be encouraged to use your own knowledge to develop and engage in a process of enquiry, study and research to identify areas to be investigated and an approach to doing so.
This unit includes problem-based learning approaches, where you engage in research, integrate theory and practice and apply knowledge and skills to develop viable solutions in response to a problem or set of problems.
This unit engages you in actively applying your knowledge, skills and attributes in interactive, collaborative and reflective activities.
Where it fits
BEX5131 is part of 1 area of study in the 2027 handbook.
Contacts
- Chief Examiners
- Dr Nga Pham
- Dr Bei Cui
Common questions
What are the prerequisites for BEX5131?
BEX5131 has no prerequisites.
When is BEX5131 offered?
In 2027, BEX5131 runs in Summer A and Semester 1 at Caulfield.
How much work is BEX5131?
The handbook expects about 144 hours of study across the semester. No students have rated its difficulty yet.
Does BEX5131 have an exam?
No. BEX5131 has 3 assessment tasks and no exam.
Which majors and minors include BEX5131?
BEX5131 is part of Financial and risk management.