Vietnam National University HCMC

International University
SCHOOL OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

COURSE SYLLABUS1
BA185IU
Commercial Banking

Note: The outline with specific venue and time, and updated learning
materials for the current semester will be provided to the enrolled students
by the lecturer
BA185IU VNU International University
Commercial Banking School of Business

1. COURSE STAFF

Lecturer: Le Ngoc Anh Khoa, MSc.

Room: TBA
Telephone: 0939.456.447
E-mail: lnakhoa@hcmiu.edu.vn
Consultation Hours: TBA

Teaching Assistant: TBA

Room: TBA
Telephone: TBA
E-mail: TBA
Consultation Hours: TBA

Should the students wish to meet the staff outside the consultation hours, they are advised
to make appointment in advance.

2. COURSE INFORMATION
1
22.1 Teaching times and Locations
3
Lecture: TBA
Venue: TBA
1
22.2 Units of Credit
3
This course is worth 3 credits.

2.3 Parallel teaching in the course

There is no parallel teaching involved in this course.

2.4 Relationship of this course to others

BA185IU Commercial Banking provides an overview of the history of banking

progressing to the banking of today. It extends basic understanding of finance taught in
BA207IU Fundamental of Financial Management. Students also could take BA309AF
Investment Banking and BA315AF Banking Risk Management to grasp more
knowledge of banking analysis.

2.5 Approach to learning and teaching

Employing the interactive learning and problem-based teaching approach, this course
emphasizes the interaction between lecturers and students. The lecture materials will be
uploaded in Blackboard to help the students to preview the materials and to concentrate
on listening and critical thinking during the lecture. The course will draw on concepts,

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BA185IU VNU International University
Commercial Banking School of Business

issues and practical information from textbooks, academic and financial press articles, as
well as websites of relevant financial services regulators. Students are therefore required
to read and understand these materials and their relevance. Students are also expected to
extend and apply their knowledge acquired in the lecture to current issues discussed in
the financial press. It is essential that students actively participate in class and raise
questions regarding areas where further reviews or discussion are necessary.

3. COURSE AIMS AND OUTCOMES

3.1 Course Aims

This course is designed to help students who are new to banking a general understanding
of the industry. The course introduces fundamental banking concepts and principles, the
basics of how banks operate as service providers and business, their obligation to operate
in safe and sound manner and manage risk, and the responsibilities of bank employees in
a customer-focused financial services environment.

3.2 Student Learning Outcomes

After completing the course, students should be able have the knowledge of:
- The context, structure, and operation of banks as both service providers and
profit-making enterprises.
- The roles of boards of directors, senior management, committees, and employees.
- Deposit products and services, the banks function in opening deposit accounts,
and laws and regulations relating to deposits.
- Banking laws and regulations related to payment process.
- Types of loans banks offer their customers, the lending process, and laws and
regulations pertaining to lending.
- How banks build relationships with customers by meeting their expectations,
what factors influence customer purchasing decisions, and how both banks and
their customer purchasing decisions.
- Methods by which banks protect customer data, indentify customers, and
authenticate transactions.

3.3 Teaching Strategies

The learning system in this course consists of lectures and scheduled

presentations/discussions. Lectures elaborate the appropriate theoretical content in the
textbook and readings. Classes provide a more detailed and refined analysis of both
concepts and applied materials. Classes are strongly oriented towards interactive
discussion of the text and cases. In order to gain the most from the lectures and class
activities, the assigned text/reading should be read before the lecture to participate in the
discussions.

From the second week, the students will need to form small discussion groups (5-8
students/group) to do the group projects. Discussing with group members as to the

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BA185IU VNU International University
Commercial Banking School of Business

common strategy for sourcing, documenting, analyzing and presenting the projects - for
which a basic minimum interaction will be necessary. For the audience, it is important
that they contribute to the projects by getting additional information carefully beforehand
so that they prepared to participate in the discussions.

4. STUDENT RESPONSIBILITIES AND CONDUCT

4.1 Workload

It is expected that the students will spend at least six hours per week studying this course.
This time should be made up of reading, research, working on exercises and problems,
and attending classes. In periods where they need to complete assignments or prepare for
examinations, the workload may be greater.

Over-commitment has been a cause of failure for many students. They should take the
required workload into account when planning how to balance study with part-time jobs
and other activities.

4.2 Attendance

Regular and punctual attendance at lectures and seminars is expected in this course.
University regulations indicate that if students attend less than eighty per cent of
scheduled classes they may be refused final assessment. Exemptions may only be made
on medical grounds.

4.3 General Conduct and Behavior

The students are expected to conduct themselves with consideration and respect for the
needs of the fellow students and teaching staff. Conduct which unduly disrupts or
interferes with a class, such as ringing or talking on mobile phones, is not acceptable and
students will be asked to leave the class. More information on student conduct is
available at the university webpage.

4.4 Keeping informed

The students should take note of all announcements made in lectures or on the courses
Blackboard. From time to time, the university will send important announcements to their
university e-mail addresses without providing a paper copy. The students will be deemed
to have received this information.

5. LEARNING ASSESSMENT

5.1 Formal Requirements

In order to pass this course, the students must:
achieve a composite mark of at least 50; and
make a satisfactory attempt at all assessment tasks (see below).

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BA185IU VNU International University
Commercial Banking School of Business

5.2 Assessment Details

Mid-Term Exam (One Hour) 30%

Five quizzes 10%
Group project 20%
Final Exam (Two Hours) 40%
Total 100%

5.3 Assessment Format

1) Mid-term and final exams:
Mid-term and final test will be a combination of short answer questions, application
problems and multiple-choice questions and will cover all the reading, homework, and
lectures associated with the topics noted on the reading list. Details of the exams,
including its time and venue will be announced towards the end of the course.

2) Five close-book quizzes:

They will be conducted in the lecture classes. Each quiz will consist of 10 MCQs and
last for 20 minutes. Quiz 1 will be based on materials in the first three lectures (week 1 -
2), quiz 2 covers week 3 - 4, quiz 3 covers week 5 - 6, quiz 4 covers week 7 - 8, and quiz
5 covers week 9 - 10.

3) Project Report:
In groups of 5-8 students (no more than 8, no less than 5), students will conduct the
assignments which will be informed by the lecturer.
Length and Style: Maximum 2,000 words, excluding footnotes, tables, figures and
references. The format for assignments is to be double spaced with 2.5 cm margins and
font size of 12 cpi. Please show the word count, along with all other details on the cover
sheet.

The project will be assessed for analytical content and presentation. The same marks will
be awarded to all students in the same group. All work must be original and must not
have been submitted for any other subject or course here or elsewhere. Copying or
plagiarizing works of other authors, including your fellow students or cutting and pasting
from the internet and other sources is an offence and will be seriously penalized.

Due Date: The project report is due at 11:00 AM on 22 April 2014. Assignments are to be
emailed to lecturer.
Late work will be penalized at the rate of 25 percentage points per week day.
Students must keep copies of all work submitted.

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BA185IU VNU International University
Commercial Banking School of Business

5.4 Marking criteria (project report)

Marking Criteria Marks Learning outcomes/attributes

Quality of arguments: 20
relevance, logic and cohesion
Use of frameworks to
support analysis
Use of case evidence to
support analysis
Originality and usefulness of
the analysis
Organization, clarity of
expression, editing etc.
Ability to give compelling arguments and
reasoning to support analysis
20 Ability to structure problems in accordance
with theoretical frameworks and resolve
them
20 Ability to conduct applied research to gather
data/information pertaining to the case
20 Ability to engage in creative problem
solving skills
20 Clarity of vision

5.5 Class participation and Presentation

Students are expected to attend class regularly, and are responsible for materials covered
during their absences. Although it is the responsibility of the student for non-attendance,
the lecturer has full authority to drop a student for excessive absences.

5.6 Special Consideration

Request for special consideration (for final examination only) must be made to the Office
of Academic Affairs within one week after the examination. General policy and
information on special consideration can be found at the Office of Academic Affairs.

6. ACADEMIC HONESTY AND PLAGIARISM

Plagiarism is the presentation of the thoughts or work of another as ones own (definition
proposed by the University of Newcastle). Students are also reminded that careful time
management is an important part of study and one of the identified causes of plagiarism
is poor time management. Students should allow sufficient time for research, drafting,
and the proper referencing of sources in preparing all assessment items. The university
regards plagiarism as a form of academic misconduct, and has very strict rules regarding
plagiarism.1

1 This is adapted with kind permission from the University of New South Wales.

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BA185IU VNU International University
Commercial Banking School of Business

7. STUDENT RESOURCES

7.1 Course Resources

Please note that it is very important to gain familiarity with the subject matter in the
readings and cases prior to attendance in classes.

Textbook:
Principles of Banking, 11th ed, American Banker Association, 2014.

Reference Books:

Additional materials provided in Blackboard

The lecturer will attempt to make lecture notes and additional reading available on
Blackboard. However this is not an automatic entitlement for students doing this subject.
Note that this is not a distance learning course, and you are expected to attend lectures
and take notes. This way, you will get the additional benefit of class interaction and
demonstration.

7.2 Other Resources, Support and Information

1
2Additional learning assistance is available for students in this course and will be
made available in Blackboard. Academic journal articles are available through
connections via the VNU - Central Library. Recommended articles will be duly
informed to the students.

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 8. COURSE SCHEDULE

Wee
Topic Required reading and activities
k
Introducing the course,
1 Introduction
Task: Forming group, announce topics
Readings: Chapter 1, Principles of
2 Bank as Service Providers Banking (11th ed)
Task: Presentation
Readings: Chapter 2, Principles of
3 Bank as Business Banking (11th ed)

Readings: Chapter 3, Principles of

4 Deposit Accounts Banking (11th ed)

Readings: Chapter 4, Principles of

5 Payments: Cash and Checks Banking (11th ed)

Readings: Chapter 5, Principles of

6 Electronic Banking Banking (11th ed)

Readings: Chapter 6 Principles of

7 Lending Banking (11th ed)

Readings: Chapter 6 Principles of

8 Lending (cont.) Banking (11th ed)

Readings: Chapter 7, Principles of

9 Personal Financial Planning Banking (11th ed)

Readings: Chapter 8 Principles of

Business and International
10 Banking (11th ed)
Banking Services
Readings: Chapter 8 Principles of
Business and International
11 Banking (11th ed)
Banking Services (cont.)
12 Quiz
Building Relationships: Readings: Chapter 9, Principles of
13 Marketing, Sales and Customer Banking (11th ed)
Service
Readings: Chapter 10, Principles of
Safeguarding Customers and the
14 Banking (11th ed)
Bank
15 Unit revision
1 The syllabus is prepared following the format provided by the School of Organization and Management, University of
New South Wales, with kind permission.