ELSA EUROPEAN EDUCATION AWARD PROGRAMME
FOR FINAL YEAR AND POST-GRADUATE STUDENTS
IN ECONOMICS, BUSINESS, FINANCE AND LAW
ELSA announced the European Education Award Programme on 22nd September 2011 at the ELSA INVESTOR SUMMIT in London. The Programme aims to raise awareness of life settlements as an asset class in the next generation of opinion leaders in the investment, finance and insurance industries.
ELSA therefore invites final year, post-graduate and MBA students from the Economics, Business and Law departments of European colleges, universities and business schools to take part in the Award Programme.
In order to be considered for the Award, candidates are invited to submit an original essay of at least 1500 words (up to 3000, excluding footnotes and bibliography), on key issues affecting life settlements as an asset class.
Essays must be on ONE of the following topics:
1. “What are the opportunities and risks of investing in life insurance and life insurance linked securities as an asset class? Are investment criteria different for institutional and retail investors? If so, how? Identify, quantify and evaluate the risks in the various investment structures for life insurance policies and life insurance linked securities and determine if there are ‘risk-free’ returns.”
2. “How should a pension fund or institution with longevity risks in their business models utilize investments in life insurance policies and life insurance linked securities to balance overall investment returns? What are the entry barriers? What performance measurements and reporting are appropriate for investments in life insurance policies and life insurance linked securities, for institutions and for retail investors? Why?”
3. “In the United States, mortgages were originally local investments, originated and kept by local savings and loans. Under the later Ginnie Mae, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac programmes, loan document became standardised and credit guarantees were provided by a federal agency. This transformed the market. S&Ls remained as originators and servicers, but loan portfolios were widely sold to investors in securitised form. Compare the development of the mortgage-backed securities market from the early 1970s with the evolution of the life settlement and life insurance linked securities market.”
4. “How should Internet social networks be used to promote investments in life insurance policies and life insurance linked securities to institutional and retail investors? Your answer should refer to the UK and EU legal and regulatory framework, and the relative sophistication and knowledge of investors.”
Essay Requirements:
· Typed, Times New Roman style font, 12 point font size
· 1 inch margins on all sides
· Double spaced
· Spell-checked
· Grammar-checked
· Title is present and relevant
· Title is centered and is NOT underlined, in quotation marks nor in bold print
· MLA format is used throughout
· MLA Headers
· MLA Citation- you may not cite Wikipedia
· Either British or American spelling is acceptable. Whichever form of spelling you choose, use it consistently throughout your essay, except in quotations, in which you should carefully follow the spelling of your source.
· Essays should be presented in .pdf format and should not exceed 3000 words, plus exhibits.
Plagiarism:
a) Explanation:
In a literary essay you will support your arguments with quotations. You may also incorporate material from scholarly works and other information sources. You must attribute any material you use, whether direct quotations, paraphrases of others, arguments, opinions, facts, or figures. Accurate documentation acknowledges the work of others and makes your work more useful to readers, allowing them to find and use your sources. Failure to document sources is plagiarism, a form of academic dishonesty.
You are plagiarizing if you present the words, thoughts, or research findings of someone else as if they were your own, or if you use material received or purchased from another person, or prepared by any person other than yourself.
b) Consequences of Plagiarism
ELSA has only two options in dealing with academic dishonesty, including plagiarism: 1) if the judge recognizes that there has been a misunderstanding or simple carelessness of a minor sort on the part of the student, the judge may issue an explanation and a warning to the head of your department; 2) a judge who thinks that academic dishonesty has occurred will make a formal allegation of academic dishonesty to the Dean of your respective college. If the Dean finds and agrees that academic dishonesty has occurred, ELSA will decline the application for the award and your respective university will follow its rules and protocol for dealing with academic dishonesty. Do not plagiarize; it is not worth the risk.
Review Process and Duration:
Essays will be judged on presentation, innovation and thoroughness of research. The review process will begin on 1st July 2012. All submissions will be reviewed by the ELSA Education Committee and then passed on to a panel of experts which will select the three best essays. Once the winners have been chosen, ELSA will notify them and their deans, heads of department or academic advisors.
ALL RIGHTS TO THE PAPERS AND INFORMATION PRESENTED
WILL BECOME THE PROPERTY OF ELSA.
Essays must be emailed to us at info@elsa-sls.org by 30th June 2012, together with the attached application form. Essays will be reviewed and judged by a panel of experts and scholars chaired by Prof. Narayan Naik of the London Business School.
The winning student will be awarded a cash prize of £1,000 and the opportunity to become an intern with an ELSA member company to gain direct experience with leading Life Settlement stakeholders in Europe. Finalists will be invited to the award ceremony on 26th September 2012 and will receive a special ELSA Education Programme Certificate.
For further details please contact:
Michael Fugler, ELSA Education Committee Chair
European Life Settlement Association
c/o Stephenson Harwood
1 Finsbury Circus
London, EC2M 7SH
T: +44 (0)79 8416 0102
W: www.elsa-sls.org
E: info@elsa-sls.org