How Ethica Globalizes Your Campus

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"How Ethica Globalizes Your Campus"
(Pages 29-36)

Deliver E-Learning in 3 Easy Steps at your University

1. You: Send student details to Ethica

2. We: Create your branded login page

3. You: Deliver e-learning to your students

How La Trobe Delivered The IFPD

Course Content
The course will cover the key principles underlying Islamic finance: Modes of Islamic finance such as Islamic leasing (Ijarah); Islamic investment (Mudarabah); Cost-Plus Financing (Murabaha): Partnerships (Musharakah); Islamic Forward Selling and Manufacturing Contracts (Salam and Istisna'), and; Islamic Securitisation (Sukuk).  Other topics include: Global Development of Islamic Finance; Challenges for Islamic Financial Providers; Opportunities in Australia (Government policies and tax reforms); Islamic Capital Markets; Islamic Insurance (Takaful) and Islamic Banking Products.

Accreditation And Certification
The course, subject to approval, is accredited to the related masters programs at La Trobe University. Upon successful completion of the program, students will receive IFPD certificate from La Trobe University as well as a CIFE™ (Certified Islamic Finance Executive), certificate from the Ethica Institute of Islamic Finance. The CIFE™ component relates to the online modules offered by Ethica. The course will comprise of up-to-date practical knowledge designed to conform to the internationally acclaimed AAOIFI (Accounting and Auditing Organisation for Islamic Financial Institutions) standards.

Course Structure And Delivery
The course will include on-line modules, class activities and a research project that could potentially be adopted by financial institutions. The idea behind the research project is to encourage students and professionals to take on projects that are practical and relevant to their individual interests and expertise.

Lectures And Modules

• Complete first set of online modules towards Ethica's CIFE™ certificate. This is done in order to prepare students for the face-to-face intensive course and to enable constructive discussions with the class and instructor.
• Two days intensive course for local students (conducted at Melbourne Campus) and online for students abroad.
• Complete second set of online modules for Ethica's CIFE™ certificate.
• One-on-one research project consultation (by appointment).

Who can enroll?
This course is available for local and international students who want to enhance their understanding of Islamic banking and finance, enter the field or further their employment opportunities. No prior knowledge or qualifications are necessary.

Assessment

• Certified Islamic Finance Executive™ (CIFE™) Examination: 90 minute online exam with 100 multiple choice questions covering the "Understanding Islamic Finance" (18) and the "Islamic Financial Innovation" (4) modules.
• Major project: A minimum of 2000 word essay to be approved by the course coordinator/director.

Course Duration
6 weeks

FAQ for Universities

Our university offers a Degree/Diploma/MBA in Finance. Will inclusion of Islamic banking be an appropriate move?
This would be a very positive development for your university. Repeatedly universities have seen a dramatic increase in interest (and enrollment) when they announce a new Islamic finance program. It is on the headlines for weeks. The bottleneck is finding the right content to deliver the Islamic finance know-how. We hope that with Ethica those days are over.

What form does Ethica's program take?
All online or blended. We are the only accredited Islamic finance program that delivers training and certification 100% online with the flexibility to add face-to-face training and testing conducted by you or us.

How long is it?
The program can be compressed into as little as 1 month or as much as 6 months. We designed the program to be flexible for universities to absorb Ethica's training within their own program. The CIFE™ (Certified Islamic Finance Program™) is a 4-month training and certification program, designed to conveniently fit into a standard semester-based or executive training program. One must understand the 22 modules in the program before taking the exam so it is self-paced.

How many contact hours?
The CIFE™ consists of 22 modules x 20 minutes, plus about 1 hour per module of self-study. Each module consists of an approximately 20 minute training video comprising a variety of exercises, case studies, and quizzes. Experience with hundreds of other learners shows that the CIFE™ program is comfortably manageable in about 1 to 3 months of training and about 1 month or less of studying for the examination, enabling most users to complete the program in less than the 4 month access period.

Are the courses academic in content or practical?   
We keep the content practical and add just enough theory to provide newcomers with a meaningful starting point. In terms of our standards, we follow the most widely followed Islamic finance standard in the world, AAOIFI (Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions).

What entry qualifications should students have?    
Ethica's program targets anyone with limited to no understanding of finance, and certainly anyone with no prior exposure to Islamic finance. Ethica's CIFE™ graduates include non-finance majors, non-Muslims, and non-bankers. We designed the program to be comprehensible to newcomers but accelerated enough to get learners up to speed in a short period of time.

Do students have to have an in-depth knowledge of Sharia law? 
No.

Is it possible to turn Ethica's online program into 4 x 14 week courses thus giving a Certificate in Islamic Banking as part of the Finance Diploma/Degree/MBA we currently offer?
We are open to co-branding and would be happy to support you on a Certificate in Islamic Banking.