Benefits for Australia

Educational Sector

All Overseas Students by Broad Field of Education, 2002

Source: Dart2002

In 2002, international education generated $4.2 billion in export earnings for Australia (across all education sectors), making it Australia's eighth-largest export earner. By helping to raise the international profile of financial markets related research in Australia, FIRN will contribute to making Australia internationally competitive in this significant export market.

For our resident students, Finance, Commerce and Economics is now the largest field of higher education study attracting over 75,000 new enrolments in 2001 and one of the fastest growing with compound annual growth rate of over 7.5% [Over 10 years, DEST, Commencing students, 2001]. Nearly half of all overseas students enrolled in higher education in Australia in 2002 were enrolled in finance-related courses.

Despite being the largest field of study, Finance related disciplines are significantly under represented in research student enrolments. If present trends continue, only one in fifty-seven undergraduate Finance students will go on to a research degree (PhD or Research Masters) compared to one in eleven Science students and one in twenty-three across all disciplines. FIRN will work to reverse this trend.

FIRN's research programme will increase Australia's research output productivity, impact, and innovation through the greater cross institutional and interdisciplinary collaboration that it will involve.

Total Student Enrolments by Field of Study, 2001

Source: DEST2002

Finance, Business and Economics students represent the largest group of undergraduate students in Australia, yet like Information Technology students they are the most under represented fields in research degree enrolments.

Financial Systems

FIRN will provide a better fundamental understanding and development of techniques and tools for effective management of risk in complex financial systems such as securities markets, insurance, superannuation and investment. This will deliver significant social and economic benefits.

Benefits include:

  • Globally competitive business education
  • Increase of research output
  • More efficient financial markets and services
  • Creation of new intellectual property and spin-off companies
  • Greater market integrity
  • Better managed and regulated retirement savings industry
  • More robust insurance industry
  • Better organisational governance

FIRN's research programme has numerous applications for a diverse group of users, including:

  • Public company investors
  • Regulators
  • Financial planners
  • Law enforcers
  • Insurers and policy holders
  • Fund managers and their users.
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