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What makes an effective manager? How does management theory relate to practice?
On this course, you learn what’s involved in managing organisations in an increasingly complex world. We look at the enduring patterns in how people, groups, organisations, economies and societies function and interact. By understanding these behaviours, you can manage them effectively in times of significant change.
With BSc Business Management, you gain a rich understanding of how organisations operate – what they do, how they develop strategies and why.
Study areas include:
management, innovation and new technologies
the international business environment
organisational behaviour
operations and supply chain management
leadership
human resource management
Your first year of your business management degree also introduces you to the core principles of accounting, finance, marketing and economics to provide you with the essential business knowledge needed for a successful career.
In your final year, you have the opportunity to put your knowledge into practice by completing an in-depth, independent research project or dissertation. This will give you the chance to further develop vital employability skills in areas of research, time management and critical thinking.
This course is taught at Essex Business School. We champion responsible management and ethical business practices; you join a school not just committed to excellence in business education and social science research, but an intellectual community working to make business better. We don't just prepare you for a successful career; we'll help you shape the kind of world you want to live in.
BSc Business Management can also be taken with an optional study abroad or placement year.
Why we're great.
We’re ranked in the UK’s top five for social science research.
We’re world renowned for our research on workplace behaviour and management.
We focus on ethical management and sustainable business practice.
Study abroad
The four-year version of this course enables you to study abroad during your third year. In all other areas, this version of the course remains identical to the standard three-year variant.
You can study abroad with one of our exchange partners in the United States, Europe, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Latin America, the Middle East, Hong Kong and Japan. In doing so, you experience other cultures and languages, meet new people, and gain intercultural skills that are sought-after by employers.
For students who commence their course in 2020, if you spend a full year abroad you’ll pay no tuition fees to Essex for that year. You won't pay any tuition fees to your host university either.
Placement year
Alternatively, you may prefer to take on a placement during your third year to gain relevant work experience within an external organisation. A placement can provide you with valuable experience to add to your CV.
The Essex Business School Placements Manager can offer bespoke support throughout the process of researching, applying and interviewing for placements. However, it is your responsibility to apply, prepare for and secure your own role. In recent years, our students have gained placements with organisations such as BMW, Samsung and Cummins.
If you complete a placement year you'll only pay 20% of your usual tuition fee to Essex for that year.
Our expert staff
You are taught by a highly qualified, enthusiastic team of academics and experienced, relevant business practitioners with wide-ranging research interests. Their research is used in your lectures and seminars so you learn about the latest issues impacting business today.
The role of bodies, knowledge and skills in consumption
Business model innovation
Intersectionality
We are home to industry renowned figures, including our world leading Professor of Leadership and Organisation Elisabeth Kelan, author of 'Rising Stars: Developing Millennial Women as Leaders' and an expert on women and leadership, men as change agents for gender equality, generations at work and diversity and inclusion.
In our landmark Essex Business School building - the first zero carbon business school in the UK - you’ll see our sustainable approach to business first-hand. Set around a lush winter garden, are a wealth of inspiring teaching and study zones.
Our custom designed building provides you with superb facilities:
a state-of-the-art trading floor with Bloomberg Financial Market Labs, where you’ll gain hands-on experience and learn how to utilise live business data
modern lecture theatres with ‘listen again’ recording to aid your study
study pods and innovation booths for group working
networking opportunities with visiting businesses
a café and adjacent foyer to enjoy on-site fresh food and drink
Our business school is located on the University’s Knowledge Gateway, where you may be able to take advantage of networking and work experience opportunities with businesses located on site.
Your future
Business management skills are as highly valued as your degree by graduate employers. Your future starts at Essex Business School where we prepare you to be the kind of manager who gets things done through the BSc Business Management curriculum and through the skills development services offered by the school.
Many of our graduates go on to graduate management training schemes or management roles straight after graduation.
The BSc Business Management curriculum taught here embeds transferable employability skills in analysis, critical thinking, presentation and communication across all modules.
The Study Skills module in year one will develop your academic skills, while the Successful Futures Module in year two will foster your professionalism and introduce you to the graduate recruitment process, including practical advice to excel at interviews and assessment centres.
Recent graduate destinations include:
Relationship Manager at Footprint Digital – a fast-growing digital marketing agency
Digital Marketing Executive at Premier Labellers - a machinery manufacturer based in Essex
iX Business Consultant at IBM – the multifunctional information technology conglomerate
The School will support you with a range of skills and careers opportunities, including: skills development workshops; employer talks; skills events and careers conferences.
BSc Business Management students can also take advantage of the services offered by the Student Development Team, including: careers advice; work experience; internships; placements; and voluntary opportunities.
We have studied some really insightful case studies in my business management modules and our assignments have involved a lot of practical work, including: market research; writing a marketing plan: ethnographic research; strategy and analysis - which altogether has given me a sound understanding of how the concepts and models taught in the lectures are applied in the real-life setting.
Karolina Hausman, BSc Business Management, 2019
Entry requirements
UK entry requirements
GCSE: Mathematics C/4
A-levels: BBB
BTEC: DDD, depending on subject studied - advice on acceptability can be provided.
IB: 30 points or three Higher Level certificates with 555, including Standard Level Mathematics/Maths Studies grade 4, if not taken at Higher Level.
We are also happy to consider a combination of separate IB Diploma Programmes at both Higher and Standard Level. Please note that Maths in the IB is not required if you have already achieved GCSE Maths at grade C/4 or above or 4 in IB Middle Years Maths. Exact offer levels will vary depending on the range of subjects being taken at higher and standard level, and the course applied for. Please contact the Undergraduate Admissions Office for more information.
From 2021, we will accept grade 4 in either Standard Level Mathematics: Analysis and Approaches or Standard Level Mathematics: Applications and Interpretation.
Access to HE Diploma: 45 Level 3 credits at Merit or above
Flexible offers Eligible applicants that choose us as their firm choice by the relevant deadline will be able to take advantage of a flexible offer. This offer will specify alternative entry requirements than those published here so, if your final grades aren’t what you had hoped for, you could still secure a place with us. Visit our undergraduate application information page for more details.
International & EU entry requirements
We accept a wide range of qualifications from applicants studying in the EU and other countries. Get in touch with any questions you may have about the qualifications we accept. Remember to tell us about the qualifications you have already completed or are currently taking.
Sorry, the entry requirements for the country that you have selected are not available here. Please select
your country page
where you'll find this information.
Other English language qualifications may be acceptable so please contact us for further details. If we accept the English component of an international qualification then it will be included in the information given about the academic levels listed above. Please note that date restrictions may apply to some English language qualifications
If you are an international student requiring a Tier 4 visa to study in the UK please see our immigration webpages for the latest Home Office guidance on English language qualifications.
If you do not meet our IELTS requirements then you may be able to complete a pre-sessional English pathway that enables you to start your course without retaking IELTS.
Additional Notes
If you’re an international student, but do not meet the English language or academic requirements for direct admission to this degree, you could prepare and gain entry through a pathway course. Find out more about opportunities available to you at the University of Essex International College here.
Structure
Example structure
This course is designed to provide you with a broad overview of all the main areas of business management, whilst also allowing you to be flexible to study your own areas of interest.
In the first year you will cover the fundamentals that every business manager needs to know. Then in second and final year you will have a mixture of compulsory and optional modules.
If you are joining us in January 2021 you will study an accelerated version of our usual first year. You will study all of the same modules as students joining us in October 2020 so you will be ready to start your second year alongside the earlier intake. To make sure we can fit all your teaching into our Spring and Summer terms we will deliver your teaching using the flipped classroom model. This means you will have notes, materials and reading lists for each class made available to you before the timetabled class and you will need to study these in advance of the teaching session. You will then attend a seminar or workshop for each module which will give you the opportunity to ask questions and discuss issues you've read about in the pre-class material.
The structure shown below is just one example from the current academic year of how the degree could look, including some popular optional modules.
Our research-led teaching is continually evolving to address the latest challenges and breakthroughs in the field, therefore all modules listed are subject to change. To view the full programme structure and lists of available optional modules currently on offer please click on the link below.
Teaching and learning disclaimer
Following the impact of the pandemic, we made changes to our teaching and assessment to ensure our current students could continue with their studies uninterrupted and safely. These changes included courses being taught through blended delivery, normally including some face-to-face teaching, online provision, or a combination of both across the year.
The teaching and assessment methods listed show what is currently planned for 2021 entry; changes may be necessary if, by the beginning of this course, we need to adapt the way we’re delivering them due to the external environment, and to allow you to continue to receive the best education possible safely and seamlessly.
Accounting has a lot to do with numbers, however it isn’t just about keeping track of money coming into and out of a firm. In this introductory module you’ll discuss the true nature and role of accounting and will consider who uses accounting information and for what purpose. You’ll also be introduced to the role of regulation in governing accounting practice. This module provides essential skills and information you need to know whether you want to become an accountant, be a manager or start your own company.
Throughout your career you’ll likely need to make use of a wide variety of quantitative techniques, particularly those related to accounting, finance and management. In this module you’ll revise your previous maths knowledge whilst also considering the time value of money, rates of change, probability and statistics and making extensive use of Excel for applying statistical techniques. You also study the financial system, instruments and markets and ideas about finance concepts and problems. The topics covered include investment companies, return and risk, and behavioural finance.
When studying management and marketing you’ll often find out that it is all about people. An organisation isn’t made up of buildings and equipment, but of individual people. In this introductory module you’ll consider a wide variety of important management issues, and in line with our Essex beliefs, you’ll consider ethical implications and the responsibilities which organsiations have to society and other stakeholders. You’ll also begin to consider how there may be significant gaps between management theory and real life.
Join experts from our Department of Economics for your essential introduction to economics that business managers and leaders need to know. How are firms organised? What are the economic implications of this? And how does it affect the markets in which they operate? Develop an understanding of the central concepts of economics, then learn how to apply these principles to economic problems.
Research and Study Skills for Professional Development
Studying at university may be very different to your previous experiences. This module encourages you to become an active, independent learner, with the ability to reflect on business situations and form your own opinions, ensuring you can perform to your full academic and professional potential. We explore the importance of referencing, constructing a coherent argument and developing writing skills for a variety of purposes, such as academic essays, exams and reports. We develop your analytical skills, critical thinking, presentation and communication skills to help you get the most from your time at university.
At Essex Business School we offer all our students a wide variety of support throughout your time with us. In this module we’ll introduce you to effective study techniques and tools, including letting you know about the study skills support and resources available to you. You receive guidance on your academic progress, as well as your personal and professional development. These sessions offer you the opportunity to meet and develop networks and connections within the School and provide key support throughout your first year by helping you to develop the skills and learning strategies needed throughout your degree.
Management accounting enables you to provide three key areas of information to any business: costing, decision-making, and planning and control. In this module you focus on costing, but also see how this area overlaps with the other two, as all three areas always interact. You also develop your knowledge and understanding of management accounting and the context in which it operates.
This module builds on your understanding of management, work and organisation, exploring how these concepts have evolved over time and how they are understood now. You look at how management theory relates to organisational practice, examine the social dynamics underpinning the field of organisation studies and analyse some of the most important themes affecting management today.
Operations Management is concerned with how organisations produce goods and/or services. Since the production of goods and/or services is the reason why organisations exist, it is clear that the effective and efficient management of operations is a central concern for all managers, regardless of the size or sector location of their organisation.
This module outlines the stages involved in creating a marketing plan and explains the tools and concepts used by marketing managers when developing strategies. To apply your learning, you undertake a consultancy project for a real-world business in response to a marketing brief. You demonstrate your grasp of segmentation, targeting and positioning, as well as a range of marketing communications tools.
Gain a more advanced understanding of the international context which helps to shape the strategies and operations of organisations, and explore some of the current issues and challenges facing organisations within the international business environment. In particular, you focus on international political economy, covering the major economic systems in the world, and tracing the historical evolution of the global order.
The business world is increasingly global, complex and fast changing. While some organisations are consistently successful over a long period of time, many fail and are forgotten forever. In theory it should become consecutively easier to imitate the strategies of winning companies and dissipate their profits. In practice, however, only a few firms become long-term leaders. In this course, you explore why that is.
This compulsory module equips you with effective study practices to excel in your second year at Essex Business School. It gives your guidance on how to use feedback effectively to improve and develop your academic skills and improve your performance. It provides the opportunity to create an action plan for your personal and professional development whilst at university.
This module introduces quantitative and qualitative methods used in management and marketing research and demonstrates how they are applied in different settings. We explore the methodological, ethical and practical elements of designing business research and learn how to gather, review and analyse data from a variety of sources. You develop your presentation skills and learn how to plan, organise, manage and share research projects.
This module links subject understanding to employability, ensuring you’re prepared to take advantage of graduate opportunities at the point they’re advertised. You gain an understanding of the graduate labour market and recruitment processes, as well as timelines for recruitment and interview and assessment centre techniques. You also learn about options for postgraduate study.
Marketing practices have dramatically changed with the rise of social media and new technological developments in devices, platforms, and applications. The digital environment presents new opportunities and challenges for marketers. Through a combination of theory, case studies, best practice examples, current news items, and assignments, you learn how the internet is now integrated into all the marketing functions and activities of modern businesses.
This module aims to develop your understanding of leadership in organisations. You explore a range of traditional and current leadership theories and relate these to business and managerial practice. You also examine business ethics and develop your team working, critical thinking and problem solving skills.
Since the 1980's, Human Resource Management (HRM) has promoted the view that it is the people (rather that the technology, products or marketing strategies) of the organisation that are the key to organisational success. You question the assumptions made within HRM as a philosophy and practice, and how this approach has implications for the way that employees are conceptualised, managed and treated within organisations.
This module builds on your understanding of management and organisation by considering the ethics of business activity. You are introduced to the origins, practice and theory of business ethics and corporate social responsibility (CSR). You consider a range of perspectives and use business literature to critically examine organisational ethics and analyse its constraints.
This module evaluates the opportunities and challenges of conducting businesses online. You develop your critical and analytical skills by exploring key concepts in ecommerce and electronic business and examining their effects on society and the economy. Topics include e-business infrastructure, online revenue, payment systems, digital marketing and online security. You also debate the ethical, moral and legal issues of trading online, including areas such as spatial unboundedness, ‘the digital divide’, privacy and security breaches.
Discover the psychology of organising. You investigate the role of the individual in the organisation, the construction of meaning, bureaucratic and technological consciousness, organisational socialisation and secondary adjustments, and the significance of organising principles such as time, gender and motive. Use film and video material to explore the issues raised and to provide contextual support for the ideas, including feature films such as GI Jane, She Stood Alone and Vertigo.
Emerging as a sub discipline of marketing in the early 1930s consumer behaviour is now seen as a vibrant subject in its own right. The study of consumer behaviour is of central importance for marketing managers. This is due to the long term requirement that organisations should satisfy their consumers’ needs, wants and desires if they are to make sufficient profit to remain in business. This module provides you with an introduction to the subject of contemporary culture.
Discover the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), an internationally recognised model of personality. You learn about the fundamental structure and concepts used in the MBTI, as well as developing an understanding of their own personality type according to the theory, and exploring how this theory can be applied to a variety of work issues.
This module offers the chance to put your knowledge into practice by undertaking an independent research project on a management or marketing issue. You develop your research skills, time management and critical thinking ability to prepare you for the world of work beyond graduation.
On a placement year you gain relevant work experience within an external business or organisation, giving you a competitive edge in the graduate job market and providing you with key contacts within the industry. The rest of your course remains identical to the three-year degree.
Year abroad
On your year abroad, you have the opportunity to experience other cultures and languages, to broaden your degree socially and academically, and to demonstrate to employers that you are mature, adaptable, and organised. The rest of your course remains identical to the three-year degree.
Teaching
Teaching includes a combination of lectures, seminars and computer-based lab sessions
Modules delivered by experts in the field as well as guest speakers
Contribute and interact in lectures through the use of smart technology
Lecture presentations and notes are uploaded online beforehand to help you prepare in advance
Complete your final-year project in consultation with a personal supervisor
If you are starting in January 2021, we will deliver your teaching using the flipped classroom model so you will have notes, materials and reading lists to study in advance of each teaching session
Assessment
Assessed through traditional methods of end-of-year exams and multiple choice questions in class tests and essays
Plus more innovative and creative assessments include laboratory work, poster presentations, real-business case problems and group presentations
Your first year marks do not count towards your final degree
Fees and funding
Home/UK fee
£9,250
EU students commencing their course in the 2020-21 academic year will be liable for the Home/UK fee.
International fee
£16,860
Fees will increase for each academic year of study.
Our events are a great way to find out more about studying at Essex. We run a number of Open Days throughout the year which enable you to discover what our campus has to offer.
You have the chance to:
tour our campus and accommodation
find out answers to your questions about our courses, student finance, graduate employability, student support and more
meet our students and staff
Check out our Visit Us pages to find out more information about booking onto one of our events. And if the dates aren’t suitable for you, feel free to book a campus tour here.
Applying
Applications for our full-time undergraduate courses should be made through the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS). Applications are online at: www.ucas.com. Full details on this process can be obtained from the UCAS website in the how to apply section.
Our UK students, and some of our EU and international students, who are still at school or college, can apply through their school. Your school will be able to check and then submit your completed application to UCAS. Our other international applicants (EU or worldwide) or independent applicants in the UK can also apply online through UCAS Apply.
The UCAS code for our University of Essex is ESSEX E70. The individual campus codes for our Loughton and Southend Campuses are 'L' and 'S' respectively.
For information on transferring from another university, applying when you are not at school or college, and applying for readmission, please see How to apply and entry requirements
Applicant Days and interviews
Resident in the UK? If your application is successful, we will invite you to attend one of our applicant days. These run from January to April and give you the chance to explore the campus, meet our students and really get a feel for life as an Essex student.
Some of our courses also hold interviews and if you're invited to one, this will take place during your applicant day. Don't panic, they're nothing to worry about and it's a great way for us to find out more about you and for you to find out more about the course. Some of our interviews are one-to-one with an academic, others are group activities, but we'll send you all the information you need beforehand.
If you're outside the UK and are planning a trip, feel free to email applicantdays@essex.ac.uk so we can help you plan a visit to the University.
Visit Colchester Campus
Home to 15,000 students from more than 130 countries, our Colchester Campus is the largest of our three sites, making us one of the most internationally diverse campuses on the planet - we like to think of ourselves as the world in one place.
The Campus is set within 200 acres of beautiful parkland, located two miles from the historic town centre of Colchester – England's oldest recorded town. Our Colchester Campus is also easily reached from London and Stansted Airport in under one hour.
If you live too far away to come to Essex (or have a busy lifestyle), no problem. Our 360 degree virtual tours allows you to explore our University from the comfort of your home. Check out our Colchester virtual tour and Southend virtual tour to see accommodation options, facilities and social spaces.
Exhibitions
Our staff travel the world to speak to people about the courses on offer at Essex. Take a look at our list of exhibition dates to see if we’ll be near you in the future.
At Essex we pride ourselves on being a welcoming and inclusive student community. We offer a wide range of support to individuals and groups of student members who may have specific requirements, interests or responsibilities.
The University makes every effort to ensure that this information on its programme specification is accurate and up-to-date. Exceptionally it can be necessary to make changes, for example to courses, facilities or fees. Examples of such reasons might include, but are not limited to: strikes, other industrial action, staff illness, severe weather, fire, civil commotion, riot, invasion, terrorist attack or threat of terrorist attack (whether declared or not), natural disaster, restrictions imposed by government or public authorities, epidemic or pandemic disease, failure of public utilities or transport systems or the withdrawal/reduction of funding. Changes to courses may for example consist of variations to the content and method of delivery of programmes, courses and other services, to discontinue programmes, courses and other services and to merge or combine programmes or courses. The University will endeavour to keep such changes to a minimum, and will also keep students informed appropriately by updating our programme specifications.
The full Procedures, Rules and Regulations of the University governing how it operates are set out in the Charter, Statutes and
Ordinances and in the University Regulations, Policy and Procedures.
