ZFIN1066 - Investing in Stocks and Bonds (Online)

Course Description

Course Outline

Lesson 1: Why Is Finance Through Bonds and Stocks So Important?

A brief look at the history of stocks and bonds, including specific problems they can help us overcome.

Lesson 2: What Is a Bond?

Examine different types of bonds, including their specific characteristics and uses, as well as basic features of the secondary resale market.

Lesson 3: What Determines Prices and Interest Rates on Bonds?

How do changes in prices change the actual returns on holding a bond, even if the interest rate doesn’t change? How does inflation impact the real return on holding bonds?

Lesson 4: How Do Bond Markets Work?

Explore various elements that determine the returns to and risk of holding bonds.

Lesson 5: How Do Stocks and Stock Markets Work?

Learn the common features of stocks and how they differ from bonds, as well as how stocks are valued and how differences of opinion regarding risk and return create a resale market for stocks.

Lesson 6: What Is the Federal Reserve, and How Does Monetary Policy Work?

Explore the role that central banks play in modern economies, with particular focus on their role in setting monetary and interest rate policy, the goals of monetary policy and how changes in policy impact the returns to stock and bondholders.

Lesson 7: What Causes Stock Market Bubbles and Government Debt Crises?

Why do these climbs and crashes in prices take place? To what extent are bubbles and government debt crises driven by real factors versus psychology? 

Lesson 8: How Should You Invest in Stocks and Bonds?

Explore personal finance and the role that bonds and stocks should play in saving for the future, as well as the importance of diversification, investing for the long term and placing money in indexed mutual funds.

Lesson 9: The Future of Bonds and Stocks

Learn about issues and controversies that will shape the future of bond and stock markets: financial innovation, government regulation, government debt crises and stock market bubbles.

Learner Outcomes

Upon completion, participants will be able to:

• Explain why stocks and bonds are so important to economic progress and making societies more profitable and peaceful.
• Describe specific characteristics of bonds as well as different types of bonds and their particular use.
• Explain how changes in the prices of bonds change the actual returns on holding a bond and how inflation impacts the real return on holding bonds.
• Discuss various elements that determine returns to and risk of holding bonds.
• Explain how stocks are valued and how differences of opinion regarding risk and return create the stock market.
• Discuss the role central banks play in modern economies and in setting monetary and interest rate policy.
• Explain factors that influence stock market bubbles and government debt crises, including real factors and psychological influences.
• Invest in stocks and bonds using sound investing techniques including diversification, long-term investing and indexed mutual funds.

Notes

Participants have 180 days to complete this self-paced online course.

All necessary course materials included. 

System Requirements:

Internet Connectivity Requirements:

• Cable and DSL internet connections recommended for best experience.

• CPU: 1 GHz or higher
• RAM: 2 GB or higher
• Resolution: 1280 x 720 or higher
• Speakers / Headphones
• Microphone (Webinar / Live Online sessions)

• Microsoft Windows 7 or 10 (Home, Pro)
• Mac OSX 10 or higher.
• Latest Chrome OS
• Latest Linux Distributions

NOTE: While courses can be viewed on Android and iPhone devices, their size does not provide an optimal learning environment for online or live online based courses.

• Latest Google Chrome recommended for best experience.
• Latest Mozilla FireFox
• Latest Microsoft Edge
• Latest Apple Safari

• Office suite software (Microsoft Office, OpenOffice or LibreOffice)
• PDF reader program (Adobe Reader, FoxIt)
• Courses may require other software that is denoted in the above course outline.