• Identification of a research problem and development of a research question
• Thematically formulating a problem and developing a solution through application of scientific methods
• Independence in handling a research problem determined in the course of an assessment. Discussion with the advisor about methodological and content issues in solving a research topic.
• Completion of a comprehensive assignment where the students deal with a theoretical or practice-oriented problem in their area of specialisation by drawing on scientific work methods.
• Mid-term report about the current stage of the progress during the Colloquium.
• Completion of presentation documentation on a research problem within their specialised area.
• Defense of the elaborated research topic and in-depth discussion with the examination board.

After completion of the module, the students have acquired a detailed knowledge and a critical understanding of their research topic. They have at their disposal specialised knowledge of methods and procedures for processing data and explaining it in a structured manner. Furthermore, they exhibit originality and creativity in the application of their knowledge.

The students complete research and development projects, applying specialised research methods, survey and development techniques by drawing on their previously acquired skills. Additionally, they present the significant findings of their project to academic and real economy specialists, thereby utilising various communication methods in order to illustrate complex data on a scientific level.

Upon positive evaluation of the thesis module the Master's degree is awarded to the candidate.

Expose and thesis template are available here: Regulations and Guidelines

• Colloquium presentation (attendance at Colloquium day obligatory)
• Evaluation of the written thesis paper
• Presentation and defense in front of the examination board

Web-based online evaluation upon completion of module

IMPORTANT DEADLINES:

Final Exposé: 25.02.2015

Start of Master Thesis: 01.03.2015

Colloquium: 27.03.2015

Deadline Master Thesis: 31.07.2015, 8.30 - 11.30am at the Central Services Desk at latest

Presentation and Defence: 27.+ 28.08.2015

Graduation Cermony: 25.09.2015

• Review of relevant economic concepts and topics
• International Monetary Trade
• Portfolio and Asset Management
• Banking
• Discussion of Case Studies

Interactive lectures, case studies

After completion of the module, the students are able to recognise and analyse challenges in the practice of banking. They can explain suggestions for solutions and thereby integrate their theoretical knowledge. In discussions with instructors and fellow students they are able to assess basic approaches to solutions, to suggest their own solutions and to enlarge on concepts.

• Written examination with 60 minutes editing time
• Assignment
• Obligatory class participation

Web-based online evaluation upon completion of module

• Function of Financial Markets
• Regulation of the Financial System
• Monetary Policy
• Banking Regulation
• Going Public, IPO`s
• Underpricing and Underperformance
• Merger and Acquisitions Process
• Merger Motives
• Defence Measures
• The Role of Investment Funds in Investment Banking
• Hedge Funds and Private Equity Funds

Interactive lectures, exercises, business-scene simulation

After completion of the module, the students have at their disposal comprehensive knowledge in the specialised area of investment banking, so that they are readily able to integrate theoretical knowledge of financial markets and relate various views to each other. They understand how both subject areas are connected and are able to mirror the current state of research.

Furthermore, they conduct research projects within a specified framework, while applying advanced investigative techniques. Thus they identify and define new and abstract problems and develop appropriate solutions for it. Their detailed solutions that were developed together with colleagues as well as peers, are presented to an audience of experts.

• Written examination with 90 minutes editing time
• Assignment with presentation
• Obligatory class participation

Web-based online evaluation upon completion of module

• Global Financial Environment
• International Parity Conditions and Exchange Rates
• The Foreign Exchange Market and Derivatives
• Foreign Exchange Exposure
• Financing and Investing in the Global Firm
• Working Capital Management
• Investment and Financing Decisions in Entrepreneurial Settings
• Deal Structuring
• Evaluation Instruments for Entrepreneurial Ventures
• Harvesting Strategies
• Discussion of the Methods of Individually Selected Journal Articles

Interactive lecture, exercises, seminar

After completion of the module students have at their disposal a comprehensive and integrated knowledge of the majority of core issues in International Business Finance und Entrepreneurial Finance. They also have an analytical comprehension of the procedures and methods. With their acquired knowledge and abilities they are able to independently solve problems in the discussed field.

Students can apply procedures and techniques that are specialised and consistently state-of-the-art and identify, conceptualise and define new and abstract issues and problems in international corporate finance and entrepreneurial finance and communicate comprehensively with professionals and laities.

As part of the final assignment participants prepare research papers on assigned topics or smaller empirical or analytical research projects, and apply exact technical procedures and methodologies. They show their capability to deliver and explain results of their own seminar project in a presentation and in a question and answer session. Students are able to communicate at a professional level reflecting various degrees of expertise in front of an audience of specialists and critically comment on projects of other seminar participants and verify their remarks.

• Written examination 50% and 90min (Midterm Exam 30min 15% and Final Exam 60min 35%)
• Term paper 40% (Expose 10% and Paper 30%)
• Presentation 10%

Web-based online evaluation upon completion of module

• Instruments on the Futures Market: Forwards, Futures, Options and Swaps
• Significance of Yield Curve
• Evaluation of Forwards, Futures and Swaps
• Characteristics of Option Prices
• Evaluation of Options According to Black/Scholes and Binomial Model
• Derivative Elements in Structured Products
• Greeks and Volatility Smiles
• Exotic Options
• Selected Aspects of Risk Management (e.g. Value at Risk, Backtesting, Stress Testing)
• Hedging Strategies
• Financial Engineering of Various Finance Instruments
• Operational Risks

Interactive lectures with exercises

After completion of the module, the students recognise the most significant derivative instruments and the particularities of financial engineering. They have at their disposal comprehensive knowledge of the significant principles governing determination and evaluation of derivatives and are able to mirror the current stage of research on financial engineering.

Additionally, they master advanced hedging procedures, which they apply in a target-oriented manner in the areas of risk management. Because of their acquired specialised knowledge, they are able to meet complicated challenges in financial engineering. They are also able to identify and conceptualise abstract problems, such as the preparation of a special risk-profit profile and handle Operational risk.

• Utilising and identifying financial instruments and their application in practice
• Taking into consideration the yield curve in the evaluation of derivatives and relating to it
• Differentiating valuation approaches for forwards, futures, swaps and options as well as exotic options.
• Explaining the use of Greeks and volatility smiles
• Illustrating the fundamentals of risk management
• Contrasting special risk management concepts
• Developing and examining hedging strategies as a means of risk reduction
• Analysing financial engineering for various financial instruments
• Coping with Operational risk

• Written examination with 80 minutes editing time
• Assignment

Web-based online evaluation upon completion of module

• Essay Writing
• Dokumentation und Recherche
• Sprache und Intertextualität
• Schreibprodukt und Schreibprozess

Just as the doctoral consortium, the summer school serves multiple purposes in the educational programme of the students: Whereas the doctoral consortium aims at presenting the own work in an international frame, the summer school intends to deepen methodological skills in a specific field of choice relevant to the PhD theses of the students. In addition, working together with professors and PhD-students from abroad also contributes to social and communicative skills of the students in an international and intercultural environment.

Doctorate information systems students participating in an international Ph.D. summer school study contemporary issues in information systems research design and/or methodology.

Students will be assisted by lecturers of the Institute of Information Systems at the University of Liechtenstein in preparing their proposal and application for the summer school. Accepted students will take part in the summer school. Also a reflection of the lessons learned at the summer school together with the lecturers at Liechtenstein is part of the module.

The primary objective of the summer school is to get further insights into the research methods applied by the PhD students and to discuss evolving questions with other young scientists.

The students will be assessed in this module through:

• competitive selection process of the summer school
• specific mechanisms of the summer school

Module availability:
On application at an internationally renown summer school, such as organised e. g. by the European Research Center for Information Systems (ERCIS).

Just as the doctoral consortium, the summer school serves multiple purposes in the educational programme of the students: Whereas the doctoral consortium aims at presenting the own work in an international frame, the summer school intends to deepen methodological skills in a specific field of choice relevant to the PhD theses of the students. In addition, working together with professors and PhD-students from abroad also contributes to social and communicative skills of the students in an international and intercultural environment.

Doctorate entrepreneurship and management students participating in an international Ph.D. summer school study contemporary issues in research design and/or methodology.

The primary objective of the summer school is to get further insights into the research methods applied by the PhD students and to discuss evolving questions with other young scientists and leading experts in the field.

The students will be assessed in this module through:

• competitive selection process of the summer school
• specific mechanisms of the summer school

Module availability:
On application at an internationally renown summer school, such as organised e. g. by the Swiss National Science Foundation or Essex Summer School in Social Science Data Analysis and Collection.

This course is designed to give first year PhD Students an aid for their academic endeavour. Just like in Research Design, the focus lies on methodological competences. At the same time, however, this course also aims at techniques rather than design strategies. The objective is to provide core compentences on how to craft a scientific text properly. Due to the concept of peer-monitoring applied in this course also social competencies will be trained.

During the first year students will be working on their academic writing style, they will be made familiar with normative writing styles and ways to publish tackling various kinds of genres, and they will help and learn from each other through peer-monitoring activities. As a base sample texts will be used and the texts students will be producing will be worked on. The course is built on four pillars:

• Text Coaching:
  How to write academically: spelling, grammar, academic vocabulary, numbers, abbreviations, tables, figures, etc.
• Knowledge Management:
  Working with databases, literature management softwares, etc.
• Publishing:
  How to write and publish various genres: abstracts, research papers, articles, data commentaries, reviews, project proposals, formatting, etc.
• Peer-Mentoring:
  Giving and receiving feed-back, presenting and reviewing, considering peer-feedback, joint writing activities, etc.

During the course, students will maintain a blog which they will be feeding with weekly entries about their research activities and they will comment on two other PhD Students' blogs. This way, they will structure their thoughts and ideas and it will stimulate transparency and exchange about what they individually and what peer-students are working on. This will help learning how to give and receive feed-back, and it will be monitored by supervisors helping in giving individualised feed-back.

At the end of the course students will hand in a portfolio containing all the texts they have written and the blog entries and comments they will have made.

During the course, plenary speakers will be invited from various fields organising a workshop with students on particular issues of academic writing in genre-specific areas.

Workshops, one-on-one and think-pair-share sessions, individual and guided e-learning.

Students will be acquainted with principles of academic writing, normative writing, publishing, and peer-mentoring.

By the end of the course they will be able to make use of academic vocabulary, they will be able to discuss texts, tables, charts, and figures, and they will be sensitised about their personal and academic command of the English language.

They will be familiar with reference management systems, working with databases, formatting written texts, and academic values.

They will know principles of certain academic genres, like abstracts, research papers, articles, data commentaries, reviews, project proposals, etc.

They will be able to give and consider peer-feed-back, present and review, and they will be able to carry out joint writing activities, etc.

• Bailey, S. (2006) Academic Writing. A Handbook for International Students, Lond, New York: Routledge.
• Huff, Anne (1998) Writing for Scholarly Publication, London (et al.): Sage.
• McCarthy, M., O'Dell, F. (2008) Academic Vocabulary in Use. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Swales, J., Feak C. (2004) Academic Writing for Graduate Students, University of Michigan Press.
• Turabian, K.L. ( 2007) A Manual for Writers of Research. Papers, Theses, and Dissertations. Chicago, London: Chicago University Press.

Assessment modalities split up into the three parts "Text Discussion" (1), "Participation in Discussions" (2), "Regular Blog Updates" (3).

The parts are specified as follows:

1. Text Discussion:
Each participant engages actively into a 45-minute-text-discussion-phase about a text of a fellow student; Each participant delivers a text to be discussed jointly.

2. Each participant must at least take part into the discussion of five texts.

3. Each participant must blog once a week and deliver at least two peer-feedbacks on other fellow students' blogs once a week.