Postgraduate finance research student testimonials

Dr Oh Kang Kwon

Dr Oh Kang Kwon completed his PhD at the Discipline Group in 2001. Since completing his PhD he has held several academic positions as well several positions with industry. He is currently working at the ANZ bank.

My motivation for undertaking PhD studies at UTS Business School was that it was well-regarded, both nationally and internationally, as having a strong quantitative finance group. I discovered over the three years I spent completing my PhD that the Finance Discipline Group was deserving of this reputation. As well as the expert permanent staff at the Discipline Group, there were numerous internationally recognised academics visiting the Discipline Group throughout the year.

My supervisor was Prof. Carl Chiarella who prodded and extracted results from his students that may have otherwise remained hidden. He not only provided great academic support, but also provided administrative support by enabling the presentation of various parts of my PhD thesis at local and international conferences (I have presented papers in Canberra, Bangkok and Tokyo during my time at UTS).

I initially chose an academic career, and worked at various capacities at UNSW, UTS, and University of Sydney between 2001 and 2006. I left academia in 2006 to pursue a career as a quantitative analyst, and I am currently working as a Senior Quantitative Analyst at ANZ supporting the equities and commodities desks.

Dr Thuy Duong To

Thuy Duong completed her PhD in 2005. She has held several academic positions since completing her PhD and is currently a Senior Lecturer at the University of NSW. During her PhD studies she was awarded first prize for the Best Poster at the Third National Symposium on Financial Mathematics held in Melbourne in June 2004 and was a joint winner for the Best Paper in Finance at the annual PhD Conference in Economics and Business held in Perth in November 2003.

I enjoyed my student life in the Finance Discipline Group at UTS Business School. The Discipline Group not only provided a professional environment where I was able to develop research skills, but it also provided a personal touch that made me feel valued and taken care of. This made my PhD studies an interesting journey of exploration rather than a stressful series of dull working days. When I first came to the Discipline Group as an international student, they had faith in me, provided me with a scholarship and opened a unique gateway to an academic career. The papers that I have published from my thesis work are no doubt a result of the continual discussions, debates with, guidance by, and encouragement from my supervisors, other senior researchers in the Discipline Group and fellow students