The primary objective of this course is to extend students' basic skills and knowledge of alternative investment by applying these skills to finance and share market-related applications. In particular, this course provides an in-depth look at risk and return characteristics of various alternative investments including hedge funds, commodities, real estate and private equity(venture capital, leverage buyouts, mezzanine financing and distressed debt), and why alternative securities can be treated as valuable components in investors' portfolio. This course assesses new and interesting applications of alternative securities, with significant emphasis on applications relating to portfolio construction and risk management. This course equips students with advanced financial analysis techniques , with a focus on multivariate applications and their advantages over traditional evaluation methods. Extensive consideration will be given to the unique features of alternative securities and the various evaluation methods used to determine the risk and return associated with popular alternative securities.