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Personal Financial Planning
Individual Assignment – The Pensions Environment
Required
This module will be using Safe Assign. You are required to submit a draft of your assignment to the ‘draft assignment’ on BlackBoard by 19th February. Your final version must be submitted in hard copy to the assignment boxes outside Cribs by 2pm on Friday 5th March 2010. The assignment box will be open 5 days before the deadline for early submissions.
The assignment will be marked out of 50 marks:
Essay (45 marks)
Write an essay of up to 25,00 words on one of the following two options.
The essay should include reference to academic research journals, as well as industry analysis, regulatory reports and other media such as the quality newspapers and periodicals. Generic, randomly generated internet sites with no quality indicators, blogs and wikis will not be acceptable. Starter resources are listed below.
Reflection (5 marks)
You must also submit one paragraph (max 300 words) entitled ‘Response to Draft Feedback’. This will explain your response to the Safe Assign report on your first draft, explaining what steps you took to amend your academic writing and referencing technique, if any, in the light of the content of the report .
The assignment options are:
Option One
Increasing longevity is placing severe strains on the pension system and forcing radical reform of pensions structures in developed economies. Explain why longevity expectations are so important in pensions policy planning and illustrate the impact using examples from changes in recent UK pensions policy. To what extent are these changes in pensions policy likely to improve the pensions prospects of those workers currently in their 20’s and 30’s?
Resources:
Pensions Policy Institute at
Financial Services Authority papers at
Financial Time Pensions resources at
Institute of Economic Affairs – Savings and Pensions Resources at
Office for National Statistics at
Eg ONS news release : Private Sector Pension Deficit nears £200 billion
Department for Work and Pensions – Pension Policy information at
You should also be using the e-journals search function on the library web page at to generate journal resources such as:
Heijdra B. J. and Romp, W. E. (2009) Retirement, pensions, and ageing. Journal of Public Economics 93:3/4 p586 -604
Try key words such as : pensions, demograph*, longevity, pensions policy, retirement planning, defined contribution schemes, defined benefit schemes, pension reform …..
If you need help in using the databases, ask a librarian or use the online tutorial.
Plagiarism and Collusion
Please note that all sources must be appropriately cited and referenced. You are advised to use the library i-skills resources to ensure you are referencing effectively and to complete the Write Right learning unit on your BB Programmes homepage if you have any concerns about why referencing is required, how to paraphrase/summarise/quote, and how to reference effectively.
This is an individual assignment – you may discuss your research with your peers and share resources if you wish, but you must produce an individually written piece of work based on your own notes. Once drafted, do not show your work to, or share your assignment with, any other student and keep your work secure by using passwords on your files and closing files if they are unattended.
Safe Assign will identify poor practice in referencing and collusion. It may be used as to support allegations of misconduct where necessary. Don’t take the risk.
PS. The Module leader is also the Assessment Offences Officer for the Faculty……..
New Regulations
Please note the deadline for assignment submission is final. You will not be able to submit your work for marking or feedback after 2pm on the submission date. If you have extenuating circumstances for failure to submit, you must immediately consult a Student Adviser and complete the appropriate form for consideration. Non submissions without reasonable and accepted extenuating circumstances could affect your eligibility for referral attempts and thus the completion of your degree. If you believe you are entitled to additional time to complete assignments due to special conditions relating to disability, please see Debbie Sturge (Leader of Student Support and Guidance) by 19th November 2009 latest, to discuss whether these conditions apply to your case. Adjustments cannot be made at the last minute. These rules apply from September 2009 and override any previous arrangements. See guidance on academic regulation on the UWE and BBS websites for further information.
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