A typical traditional teaching and learning setting consists of lectures, tutorials, and practical sessions. Realizing the need to complement such conventional delivery approaches with practical and hands-on applications, the incorporation of guest lectures, delivered by industrial experts, are deemed imperative, particularly in the current educational landscape.

Research has shown that the inclusion of external expertise in the classroom setting not only helps in learners’ engagement but also promotes active learning and motivates learners to relate the theoretical concepts learned with industry knowledge.

The School of Mathematical Sciences recently welcomed Dr Dominic Cortis, who delivered a guest lecture on the subject, Theory of Interest.

Dr Cortis is a Fellow of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries (IFoA). The IFoA is a professional actuarial body based in the UK. Dr Cortis also holds a PhD in mathematics and actuarial science, from the University of Leicester, UK.

The guest lecture, entitled “Measures of Interest Rate Sensitivity”, was attended by an audience of over 80 students from the BSc (Hons) in Actuarial Studies programme, offered by the School of Mathematical Sciences.

After a brief pleasantry by Dr Cortis, the session kicked off with a quick recap on the interest rate structure. The difference between forward and spot interest rates was explained thoroughly with some examples to ensure a firm understanding by the students.

Subsequently, Dr Cortis introduced various actuarial concepts encompassing Macaulay duration, modified duration, and convexity. In tandem to this, Dr Cortis further explained in detail the relationship between the three concepts for better clarity.

Soon after, Dr Cortis advanced with then a comprehensive walkthrough on Redington Immunization, Full Immunization and Dedication; each of which has their distinct conditions to be fulfilled.

The guest lecture then concluded with Dr Cortis illustrating the yield curves of different countries to provide a much wider view on the real-life application of interest rates.

In the Q&A session that followed, students posed questions on topics related to the inverted yield curve, IFRS (International Financial Reporting Standards) 17, and the LIBOR (London Interbank Offered Rate).

The talk delivered by Dr Cortis has greatly benefited students who were taking the subject Theory of Interest. In addition to enriching students’ learning experience, the talk also provides a good opportunity for learners to gain additional knowledge shared by industrial practitioners. The school looks forward to inviting more industrial experts to deliver guest lectures in various subjects offered by the school.

Dr Lai Kee Huong 
School of Mathematical Sciences
Email: @email

Darren Tan Tik Lun
Year 3, Semester 2
MSc in Actuarial Science

Matthew Philippe Liu Man Hin
Year 2, Semester 2
BSc (Hons) in Actuarial Studies

This article was first published on the school’s LinkedIn page.