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The objective of the ANU College of Business and Economics is to advance knowledge through high quality teaching and research in the closely related areas of accounting, actuarial studies, business information systems, econometrics, economic history, economics, finance, international business, management, marketing and statistics. It endeavours to do this through the provision of a range of undergraduate and graduate programs, and through its research, publications and contributions to the associated professions, commerce, industry and government.

The undergraduate program includes the following bachelor degrees:

•    Bachelor of Actuarial Studies at pass and honours level

•    Bachelor of Commerce at pass and honours level

•    Bachelor of Economics at pass and honours level

•    Bachelor of Finance at pass and honours level

•    Bachelor of International Business (with specialisations in either Asia or Europe) at pass level

•    Bachelor of Social Sciences (Honours in Actuarial Studies and Economics) - offered jointly with the National University of Singapore (NUS)

•    Bachelor of Statistics at pass and honours level

The Actuarial Studies degree may be combined with degrees in Commerce, Economics, Finance, Law and Science.

The Commerce degree may be combined with degrees in Actuarial Studies, Arts, Asian Studies, Economics, Engineering, Information Technology, Law, Music, Science, Science (Forestry), Science (Psychology) and Software Engineering.

The Economics degree may be combined with degrees in Actuarial Studies, Arts, Asian Studies, Commerce, Engineering, Finance, Information Technology, Law, Science, Science (Forestry) and Science (Psychology).

The Finance degree may be combined with degrees in Actuarial Studies, Economics, Law and Science.

The Bachelor of International Business, the Bachelor of Social Sciences (Honours In Actuarial Studies and Economics) and the Bachelor of Statistics are not available in combined degree format.

The Bachelor of Actuarial Studies is a specialist degree combining studies in the areas of economics, finance, and statistics.

The Bachelor of Commerce degree focuses on accounting, business information systems, international business, finance, management and marketing. The Bachelor of Economics degree focuses on economics as the major discipline. The Business and Economics degrees allow for substantial choice and diversity in the selection of courses. Beyond the minimum degree requirements, students have an opportunity to pursue a wide range of elective courses and optional majors.

The Bachelor of Finance is a specialist degree focusing on the study of financial instruments, institutions and markets. It provides the opportunity to study the field of financial decision-making in more depth than within the finance major of the Bachelor of Commerce degree program. Students may choose to major in either quantitative finance or corporate finance and investment management.

The Bachelor of International Business provides students with a three-year sequence of specialist studies focusing on either Asia or Europe in which the study of international business is complemented and enhanced through the study of a related language and culture. The specialisations are offered in conjunction with the Faculties of Asian Studies and Arts.

The Bachelor of Social Sciences (Honours in Actuarial Studies and Economics) is a highly specialised four-year joint honours program in Actuarial Studies and Economics offered in conjunction with the National University of Singapore, with half of the program undertaken on campus at ANU and the balance of the program completed on campus at NUS in Singapore. Entry is highly competitive, and is open to suitably qualified domestic and international applicants.

The Bachelor of Statistics provides students who are interested in quantitative disciplines to take subjects from across the campus and requires students to develop strong mathematical, computational and statistical skills. Students may choose from six statistical specialisations including Business, Mathematical or Financial Statistics, Econometrics, Psychological Research Methods or Sociological Research Methods.

The College aims to educate its students for a wide range of careers including work as professional actuaries, economists, bankers, financial managers, administrators, accountants, econometricians, business and management analysts, marketers, statisticians, fund managers, stock brokers, treasurers and information systems professionals in the public and private sectors of the economy. Through its teaching programs, it seeks to develop in its students the ability to recognise and solve problems, and to make policy recommendations and management decisions. The College expects that its graduates will become competent professionals in their fields of employment once adequate experience has been obtained.

The degree programs have been designed to also enable students to meet the educational requirements for entry to the relevant professional associations including the Australian Computer Society, Institute of Actuaries of Australia, CPA Australia, The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia, National Institute of Accountants, Chartered Institute of Management Accountants, Finance and Treasury Association, and the Chartered Institute of Company Secretaries.

Students who excel in the undergraduate program may be invited to undertake an honours year, or may consider progression to higher studies and research at graduate level.

Accounting is concerned with measurement, reporting and evaluation of information, including computerised information, which assists in the management of resources in business entities and government organisations. The program aims to develop the theory and practice of financial measurement for both business and public entities.

Actuarial studies combines studies in economics, finance and statistics, to develop techniques and skills to assess, evaluate and manage future financial risk and thereby address a wide range of practical problems in long-term financial planning
and management.

Business information systems is concerned with the study of business information and its production, flows and usage within organisations. It encompasses both manual activities and those involving any form of automation, particularly computing and telecommunications. Courses in electronic commerce are available as an extension of this subject area.

Econometrics is concerned with economic measurement and interpretation. The program aims to develop proper methods of measuring economic relationships using economic data.

Economic history involves a study of change over time in the performance and structure of an economy. The program aims to analyse economic problems in a long-run time and institutional framework in a range of economies from underdeveloped countries through to advanced developed countries and for both free market and command systems.

Economics aims to provide students with an appreciation of economic systems and an understanding of various economic issues such as unemployment, inflation, resource allocation, economic growth, income distribution and international trade. Economics is the science of rational decision-making about economic choices and behaviour, and the effective use of
scarce resources. The discipline involves a wide range of technical and analytical skills in addition to institutional and factual knowledge.

Finance is concerned with the study of financial instruments, institutions, markets and systems. It involves the study of financial decision-making under uncertainty, which has many applications such as in the fields of accounting, banking, financial consulting and planning, funds management, merchant banking, stock broking and treasury.

International business focuses on the principles and processes of managing business in a global environment. Emphasis is placed on international issues in the internal and external environments of business and the management responses to those issues in different country contexts.

Management is concerned with the study of the theories and practices relevant to management in business and organisational contexts including individual, group and organisational behaviour, human resource management, international management, leadership, strategy, managing performance and managerial decision-making.

Marketing is concerned with the principles and practices involved in addressing marketing management problems related to the needs and wants of customers, and with the techniques of planning and managing marketing strategies.

Statistics is concerned with a wide variety of data measurement and interpretation across the range of natural and social sciences. The program aims to develop a coherent body of statistical theory and practices applicable to various discipline areas.

Other activities

The honours and graduate programs in each discipline cover advanced theoretical and applied topics. They are designed to equip graduates with research abilities as well as higher-level professional expertise. The graduate work of the College also involves the supervision of PhD candidates and the training of research workers and future academic staff.

Research within the College is concerned with the advancement of knowledge in its disciplines, in both theoretical and applied areas, and covers a wide range of topics. College members regularly contribute to leading academic and professional journals, and publish books, monographs and working papers. Members of College also provide specialist advice to business, the Federal Government and its instrumentalities, and play an active role in appropriate professional bodies.

The Australian National Centre for Audit and Assurance Research (ANCAAR) is a focus for research concerning the audit process and financial reporting and, in particular, improving the quality of audit and assurance services and the role of the audit process in capital markets.

The Centre for Actuarial Research is a focus for, and sponsors activities related to, the examination and promotion of areas of current actuarial research and interest.

The National Centre for Information Systems Research (NCISR) is a focus for research on business information systems and e-commerce relevant to industry and government.

The College produces the journal Agenda, which publishes work of topical policy interest in economics and finance.

Admission and restrictions on entry

Applicants for admission to a program leading to the degree of Bachelor of Actuarial Studies, Bachelor of Commerce, Bachelor of Economics, Bachelor of Finance, Bachelor of International Business, Bachelor of Social Sciences (Hons in Actuarial Studies and Economics) or Bachelor of Statistics, including the associated combined degrees, must satisfy the general requirements for admission to the University and meet the competitive entry level for the particular program. Applicants for the Actuarial Studies degree programs, including the Bachelor of Social Sciences (Hons In Actuarial Studies and Economics), and the Bachelor of Statistics must also satisfy a mathematics prerequisite as a requirement for admission. Applicants for the Commerce, Economics, International Business and Finance degree programs are assumed to have achieved a satisfactory level of knowledge of mathematics prior to admission. There is a quota on entry to the ANU College of Business and Economics. The College ranks applicants for each program in order of academic merit and places are offered to the most highly qualified. Information concerning program approval and registration of enrolment is included with the offer of admission.

Mathematics Prerequisite and Assumed Knowledge
Requirements

BActS, BSocScs(H) and BStats — Applicants for the Actuarial Studies Social Sciences (Honours) and Statistics degree programs must have achieved at least ACT Specialist Mathematics Major /Minor (+160) or at least NSW HSC Mathematics Extension 1 (Band E3) or equivalent.

BComm, BIntBus, BEc, BeComm and BFin — Applicants for the Commerce, Economics, Finance and International Business degree programs are assumed to have achieved a level of knowledge of mathematics comparable to at least a major in Mathematical Methods in the ACT, NSW HSC 2 unit Mathematics or equivalent. Successful applicants for these degrees will not be prevented from enrolling in the program if they do not have the assumed level of knowledge in mathematics. However, a knowledge of mathematics, particularly calculus, is considered desirable for successful study in the College. Candidates who do not have this level of knowledge of mathematics may be at a disadvantage in their studies and it is very strongly advised that such applicants undertake a suitable bridging or preparation course in mathematics prior to commencing study.

Further details concerning admission are given in the General Information section of the Handbook.

 

Status

Applications for status may be considered under the following categories:

•    Studies successfully completed at a recognised institution of higher education within the last ten years

•    Cross-institutional study

•    Exchange and study abroad programs

•    Summer programs

Applications for status are considered on a case-by-case basis and restrictions apply. Inquiries concerning status can be directed to the College Office.

Arrangement of programs

The pass degrees consist of courses to the value of 144 units in specified sequences. Full-time students normally take courses with a value of 48 units in each year. Usually, a semester course in the College has a value of 6 units. The standard pattern of full-time enrolment in College courses is four courses each semester.

A major sequence of study consists of 36 units normally comprising a sequence of six cognate courses. Further details concerning the arrangement of programs is contained in the General Information section at the front of this Handbook and in the sections relating to each degree.

Enrolment/re-enrolment

A student must enrol/re-enrol in the manner and at the time prescribed by the Registar. Failure to do so may lead to the imposition of conditions or fees, or cancellation of enrolment. It is a student’s responsibility to ensure that she/he is correctly enrolled. A student may not attempt an examination in, nor receive a result in a course for which she/he is not properly enrolled.

Leave of absence from a program

A student who wishes to temporarily suspend studies may apply for leave of absence by completing an ‘application for program leave’ form obtainable from the College Office. The application should include the reason(s) for the request. The application must be lodged no later than the start of the period for which leave is sought. Approval is not automatic and is not normally granted for more than two semesters on an occasion, nor more than four semesters in total. Periods of leave count towards maximum time for completion of a program.

Examinations

The College may refuse to admit to an examination in a course a student who has been repeatedly absent from classes or who has not submitted prescribed work in the course. A student must be available for the whole of the examination period. See also the General Information section earlier in this Handbook.

Academic performance

All undergraduate students are subject to a minimum standard of academic performance. Progress in courses and programs, including combined programs, will be considered at the end of each semester. Unsatisfactory performance may lead to exclusion from a course, a program of study, or the College. The criteria, as determined by the University are detailed in the General Information section of this Handbook.

The degree with honours

The program for the degree of bachelor with honours is a four-year program for full-time students. During the first three years students take the pass program and may take additional honours work in the more important courses. Admission to the fourth honours year depends on the achievement of a sufficiently high standard, especially in the more important courses, during the first three years of the program and is at the discretion of the head of the relevant school and the College.

Students enrolled in the ANU College of Business and Economics are not formally enrolled in the program for the degree with honours until the fourth honours year except in the Social Sciences program. Students hoping to undertake the honours year should consult the ANU College of Business and Economics Honours School Convenor early in their program for advice on course selection and preparation for the honours year. Pass degree students from other higher education institutions may apply to undertake the honours degree.

The Social Sciences program is a specialist integrated honours program with the honours preparation commencing in year 1 of the program - a description of this program is given later in the Handbook.

Graduate study

The College offers a range of postgraduate programs at certificate, diploma, master and doctor of philosophy level. Details are contained in various information brochures produced by the College and affiliated Graduate Programs in Business Administration, Commerce, Economics, Finance, and Statistics. Further information may be obtained from the College Office, the College and ANU websites at http://cbe.anu.edu.au and http://anu.edu.au

Professional accreditation

Students undertaking appropriate courses in degrees offered by the College are recognised for professional accreditation and/or exemptions from a number of professional associations in the areas of actuarial studies, accounting, computing and information systems, economics, finance, management and statistics. A detailed brochure outlining the professional accreditation requirements is available from the College Office.

Policies and procedures relating to students

The ANU College of Business and Economics has determined a number of policies and procedures relating to studies in the College. These are available from the College’s website at http://cbe.anu.edu.au

Further information and contact details

Detailed information concerning the ANU College of Business and Economics is available at its website. The ANU College of Business and Economics Office is located on the first floor, Copland Building (Room 1120, Building 24), Acton Campus. Contact details are:

The ANU College of Business and Economics

Copland Building (Building 24)

The Australian National University

Canberra ACT 0200 Australia

T: 02 6125 3807

F: 02 6125 0744

E: info.cbe@anu.edu.au

W:            http://cbe.anu.edu.au

 

 

The ANU College of Business and Economics comprises the School of Accounting and Business Information Systems, the School of Economics, the School of Finance and Applied Statistics and the School of Management, Marketing and International Business,

Kerry Jacobs, BCom, MCom(Hons) Canty NZ, PhD Edin

Head of School and Professor of Accounting

The School of Accounting and Business Information Systems offers major sequences of study in the areas of accounting and business information systems. Courses offered by the School may be taken in various combinations as part of the degrees of Bachelor of Actuarial Studies, Bachelor of Commerce, Bachelor of Economics, Bachelor of Finance, Bachelor of International Business, and Bachelor of Information Technology.

The courses taught in the School prepare students for careers in a wide range of fields including business and commercial development, public accounting, management accounting, information management, taxation, financial accounting and reporting, auditing, public sector accounting, and business and management information systems.

Courses offered by the School of Accounting and Business Information Systems enable students to satisfy the educational requirements of a number of professional bodies including CPA Australia, the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia, the National Institute of Accountants and the Australian Computer Society. Professional membership requires specified sequences of courses. Students are advised to seek advice from the College Office.

An honours degree program is available for students who qualify. It includes advanced level coursework, research training and a thesis, and may be undertaken in any of the major areas of study in the School. The School has an active graduate program and is a primary provider of teaching and supervision of candidates in master and doctor of philosophy degrees.

M Richardson, BA Otago, MEC ANU, PhD Princeton

Head of School and Professor of Economics

The School of Economics embraces the subject areas of microeconomics, macroeconomics, economic history and econometrics. It provides the backbone of economics teaching at both undergraduate and graduate levels in ANU and, in cooperation with economists located elsewhere in ANU, it is a focus for the highest level of economic research activity and training available in Australia.

The undergraduate economics courses are distinctive within Australia for the high degree of analytical and problem-solving content and their structured progression from first to third year. The courses seek to give students an appreciation of the workings of the economic system: how individual consumers and firms make decisions about consumption, savings, investment and prices (microeconomics) and how these decisions interact through markets to affect outcomes such as interest rates, inflation and the exchange rate (macroeconomics). Students have the opportunity to specialise in particular areas such as business economics, labour economics, international economics. econometrics and economics history. Econometrics courses teach methods of statistical analysis of economic data, designed to test economic hypotheses and to forecast economic outcomes.

In its teaching program the School aims to provide students with the ability to recognise and to solve economic problems, to analyse and to make recommendations on economic policy, and to make good management decisions. The courses offered by the School contribute importantly to all College degrees and form the basis of the Bachelor of Economics degree subject to prerequisites, are available to students in all faculties of the University who wish to gain an understanding of economic behaviour and decision-making.

In addition to the Bachelor of Economics pass degree, the School offers highly prestigious undergraduate honours programs that provide higher level teaching in each of the three years of the pass degree as well as intensive full-time fourth year courses. Students who hold a strong economics degree from another university may apply to be considered for admission to the honours programs in Economics, Applied Economics, Economics/Econometrics, Econometrics, and Economic History. The School also provides the core teaching in the University’s large and highly respected PhD Program in Economics. The School has an active research program leading to publications of books and articles in major international journals and its staff are engaged in supervising the research of candidates for PhD degrees both within the school and throughout the University.

 

Finance and Applied Statistics

T. J. O'Neill, BSc Adel, MS, PhD Stanford, AStat

Head of School and Professor of Applied Statistics

The School of Finance and Applied Statistics has primary responsibility for the disciplines of actuarial studies, finance and applied statistics. The undergraduate teaching responsibilities of the School cover four main areas.

First, the School offers courses concerned with financial institutions, markets and instruments; the valuation and use of risky securities; portfolio theory, and the operation and financing of modern businesses. The College offers a Bachelor of Finance as well as the popular undergraduate major in finance that is a core major in the Bachelor of Commerce. Finance courses taught within the school include money, markets and finance, corporate finance, investments, international financial management and financial instruments and risk management. In addition, the School offers a sequence of courses in quantitative finance, and administers the Quantitative Finance major which, in conjunction with the Corporate Finance and Investment Management major, forms the core of the Bachelor of Finance degree structure.

Second, the College offers an accredited Bachelor of Actuarial Studies for which the School teaches the specialist actuarial courses that form the core of the degree.

Third, the School is the focus within the College for the Bachelor of Social Sciences (Honours in Actuarial Studies and Economics). This is a unique four-year integrated joint honours program in actuarial studies and economics, which is offered in conjunction with the National University of Singapore. Students undertake half of the program on campus at ANU and complete the balance of the program on campus at NUS in Singapore. The program incorporates specialist actuarial courses for professional practice.

Fourth, the School is the focus within the University for the Bachelor of Statistics for which the School teaches a host of courses that form the core of the degree. The School also operates closely with the ANU College of Science and offers courses in areas of statistics and mathematical finance that are closely related to the cognate areas in science and mathematics. These courses can be completed as majors in either Mathematical Finance or Statistics within the Bachelor of Science.

The School supervises undergraduate honours programs in actuarial studies, finance and statistics. Students who excel in these areas at pass level either at ANU or another university may be considered for admission to an honours degree. Honours students undertake a mix of coursework and research projects.

At the graduate level, the School is responsible for the coursework teaching and supervision of students in the University-wide Graduate Programs in Finance and Statistics. Both programs offer degrees at the Graduate Certificate, Master by coursework, MPhil and PhD level, including graduate offerings in Actuarial Studies.

 

Management, Marketing and
International Business

Michael O'Donnell, BA (Hons) Dublin, MA Westminister, PhD UNSW

Head of School and Associate Professor

The School of Management, Marketing and International Business offers a range of courses which may be taken as components of the marketing, management and international business majors or as electives in the undergraduate degrees of the ANU College of Business and Economics: Bachelor of Commerce, Bachelor of Actuarial Studies, Bachelor of Economics, Bachelor of Finance and Bachelor of International Business.

International Business is a rapidly growing field of study dealing with the development, strategy and management of multinational enterprises in the global context, and teaching is delivered by staff members in the discipline who have extensive international teaching experience. The management program develops students’ conceptual, social and technical skills to prepare them for their future career endeavours. Students have the opportunity to learn not only various theories of management but the latest and emerging ideas, strategies and technologies adopted by organisations around the world. Marketing in the School combines aspects of economics/commerce, psychology/sociology and statistical analysis in the assessment of market behaviour and the development of appropriate business responses.

An honours degree program is available for students who qualify. It includes advanced level coursework, research methods and a thesis, and may be undertaken in any of the major areas of study in the School. The School has an active graduate program and is a primary provider of teaching and supervision of candidates in graduate diplomas, master and doctor of philosophy degrees.