Overview

The details

Course: MBM

Start date: October 2020

Study mode: Full-time

Duration: 1 year

Location: Southend Campus

Based in: Essex Business School

Do you want a fast-paced career in management? Are you looking for a business Masters to develop your operational management skills and strategic knowledge?

This is a broad business and applied management Masters degree, designed to give you the edge in applying for well-paid managerial positions. It is open to those without a degree in business, as well as those already in work, but without the necessary experience to undertake an MBA.

Our Master of Business Management (MBM) provides knowledge of the main functional areas within organisations, their structure and processes and the changing environments they operate in. We develop your quantitative skills in analysing financial data, so you can make informed decisions to solve complex business challenges.

You learn how to formulate strategies to meet performance objectives, as well as how to manage and allocate resources to sustain competitive advantage. You explore how to run business operations effectively in cross-cultural settings and explore the process of creating your own entrepreneurial venture.

Study areas may include:

strategic management and leadership
financial decision making for managers, including financial and management accounting
supply chain and operations management
international marketing
human resources management, organisational learning and collaboration
business research and consultancy
managerial economics
entrepreneurship

We help you to reach your leadership potential by developing your transferable employability skills in:

team work
negotiation
networking
problem solving
project management
critical thinking
communication, including engaging with different stakeholders

In the summer, you apply your business knowledge and strategic management skills to undertake a dissertation in an area of your choice.

This course can be studied on a full or part-time basis and you may be eligible for scholarships and discounts, including those for students joining us from overseas. Postgraduate loans for Masters courses are now available from the Student Loans Company, worth up to £10,000, for students from the UK and EU.

Why we're great.

We're ranked in the UK's top 25 for research excellence (REF 2014)
Develop a suite of practical management skills from leading data and business experts.
We’re just an hour from London, offering fantastic networking opportunities.

THE Awards 2018 - Winner University of the Year

Our expert staff

Master of Business Management (MBM) is taught at Essex Business School. We are in the top 25 in the UK for research excellence (REF 2014) and our students and staff join us from all over the world.

Our expert team of international academics specialise in:

management science and data analytics
leadership and strategy
international management
organisation studies

Many of our staff are members of the ESRC Business and Local Government Data Research Centre, which helps organisations in the private and public sectors to use their data more effectively to improve business performance. You are taught by academics actively involved in researching big data and collaborating with businesses to solve real-world issues.

Specialist facilities

You study at our Southend Campus, in a region which is home to a large number of Small to Medium Sized Enterprises (SME). These entrepreneurial organisations could potentially be used as case studies in your assessments, particularly your final business research project. London is an hour’s train journey from campus, offering potential networking opportunities, and London Southend Airport provides direct links to mainland Europe.

You have access to excellent facilities, including:

24-hour computer suites and study pods
an extensive library
employability support, events and initiatives
study skills advice
GP, dental practice and multi-faith chaplaincy
our cosy SU Longue, with pool tables and large-screen TV

Unlike our Colchester Campus, Essex Business School in Southend is a town centre campus, so you are amongst the buzz of the High Street, with its excellent bars, shops and restaurants and employment opportunities.

The University of Essex provides initiatives, including those for international students, to help you perform to your best academic potential, such as free academic English classes.

Your future

Our Master of Business Management (MBM) equips you with essential analytic and problem solving skills so you can launch a successful career as a manager or consultant in the private or public sectors. You may also decide to follow in the footsteps of our successful student entrepreneurs and launch your own business.

We have a dedicated employability team within our department, in addition to the University of Essex Employability and Careers Centre.

87% of our postgraduate taught students were in professional employment or postgraduate study within six months of graduating (DLHE 2016). Read our graduate profiles to find out the types of organisations our Masters students go on to work for.

Entry requirements

UK entry requirements

A 2:2 degree in any discipline

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.

English language requirements

If English is not your first language, we require IELTS 6.5 overall with a minimum component score of 5.5

Additional Notes

The University uses academic selection criteria to determine an applicant’s ability to successfully complete a course at the University of Essex. Where appropriate, we may ask for specific information relating to previous modules studied or work experience.

Structure

Example structure

Most of our courses combine compulsory and optional modules, giving you freedom to pursue your own interests. All of the modules listed below provide an example of what is on offer from the current academic year. Our Programme Specification provides further details of the course structure for the current academic year.

Our research-led teaching is continually evolving to address the latest challenges and breakthroughs in the field, therefore to ensure your course is as relevant and up-to-date as possible your core module structure may be subject to change.

The example structure below is representative of this course if taken full-time. If you choose to study part-time, the modules will be split across 2 years.

See full list of modules

Creating and Managing the New and Entrepreneurial Organisation

This module helps you to identify and understand the main business functions that can support an entrepreneur when determining whether there is sufficient opportunity to launch a new venture. You acquire the critical, transferable and practical skills required to create or manage a new or entrepreneurial organisation. You explore how new businesses are developed and managed, including spin-offs from large firms and social enterprises, and learn how to identify new business opportunities. Topics include: idea generation; the development of business models; networking; marketing; finance; human resource management; customer relationship management and driving growth.

View Creating and Managing the New and Entrepreneurial Organisation on our Module Directory

Managerial Economics

Managerial Economics applies economic theory to business management, decision making and forward planning. This module explores how economic concepts, such as profit, demand, cost, pricing production, competition and business cycles, can be used to solve business problems.

View Managerial Economics on our Module Directory

Global Supply Chain and Operations Management

Matching the ability to supply a product or service with customer demand is vital for any organisation. Excess supply can lead to wastage and increased costs, but too little can irritate customers and result in lost revenue. Supply chain management is a complex and challenging task, but, done right, it can create significant competitive advantage. This module explores how organisations manage their product range and operations to best align supply with demand in a global environment, categorised by expanding product variety, increasing outsourcing, and continuous advances in business analytics. You explore areas such as industry competition, resource allocation, organisational learning and competitive dynamics.

View Global Supply Chain and Operations Management on our Module Directory

Financial Analysis and Decision Making

This module equips you with a practical and critical understanding of financial analysis and the decision making of divisional and functional managers. You explore topics such as financial accounting, management accounting and financial management, including how to prepare financial accounts. You learn how accounting information is used to plan, monitor and make decisions and how financial statements can be used to infer business performance.

View Financial Analysis and Decision Making on our Module Directory

Strategic Management

This module explores how to develop profitable business strategies. You learn how to analyse a firm’s external environment, including examining the economy and its competitors, assess its internal resources and set objectives. You examine the differences between corporate, competitive and functional business strategies and develop your decision making and analytical skills. By the end of the module, you understand how a manger can shape a firm’s direction to meet its goals and stakeholder expectations.

View Strategic Management on our Module Directory

Organisation and Leadership in a Globalised World

Examine past and new approaches in relation to the study of organisations and draw relevant connections between organisational theory and practice and other sub-disciplines of management, sociology, and economics, where issues of learning, collaboration and networks are given particular attention. You explore the role of people and human behaviour alongside the study of systems, functions, and models.

View Organisation and Leadership in a Globalised World on our Module Directory

Principles of International Marketing

This module enables you to master important elements in marketing strategy implementation. You address cross cultural issues and perspectives on international marketing, focusing on buyer behaviour in both B2B and B2C contexts. You explore international market research, the implications for product and service management, marketing communications, channel management, new product development, services marketing and retailing.

View Principles of International Marketing on our Module Directory

Research Methods

Gain the key skills and competencies to carry out management research or prepare a comprehensive business plan, suitable for the completion of a Masters level programme. You address the philosophical issues underlying management research, and discover how to select methods and judge the quality and value of research outcomes.

View Research Methods on our Module Directory

Dissertation

This module develops your ability to conduct independent business and management research, using a range of methodologies for data collection and analysis. You learn how to plan, conduct and manage original research in an area of your choice and communicate your findings through a 12,000 word dissertation. The project gives you the chance to apply your business knowledge and strategic management skills.

View Dissertation on our Module Directory

Theories and Practice of Entrepreneurship

This module equips you with a critical understanding of a range of economic, sociological, psychological and managerial theories of enterprise creation and development. Live examples, case studies and journal articles show how these theories apply in practice to real business situations. Working in groups and individually, you have the opportunity to suggest strategies for responding to the issues raised in these case studies. Topics include new business creation, innovative growth and the impact of entrepreneurship on economic and social development.

View Theories and Practice of Entrepreneurship on our Module Directory

The International Business Environment

Gain an advanced understanding of the external context within which international businesses operate, and the opportunities and challenges this poses to entrepreneurial firms, large and small. You are introduced to key international trade theories and practices, and the application of these to the study of entrepreneurship. You also discuss the external challenges facing international firms, particularly economic, financial, political-legal, technological and cultural challenges.

View The International Business Environment on our Module Directory

International Business and Strategy

Achieve an advanced understanding of international business and strategy, and the content and processes of different international expansion modes. You examine why firms enter international markets, and explore different forms of international growth by observing current business practice, case study evidence and theory.

View International Business and Strategy on our Module Directory

Innovation Management

This module explores how organisations use innovation to gain a competitive advantage by capitalising on organisational, market and technological change. You examine how innovation strategies are developed and managed and acquire the knowledge and skills needed to manage innovation at operational and strategic levels.

View Innovation Management on our Module Directory

International Human Resource Management

Explore the impact of internationalization processes on human behaviour within organisations from an international perspective, identifying key aspects of human resource management in multinational firms. You gain an understanding of cross-cultural dimensions of international management, and comprehend trends and challenges in the global work environment

View International Human Resource Management on our Module Directory

Teaching

We develop your practical management skills and functional knowledge through:

lectures, seminars, lab sessions, group work and workshops
an optional research seminar series from our Management Science and Entrepreneurship Group, where you can hear from world-respected academics

Assessment

Coursework and exams.

Dissertation

You undertake a dissertation in an area of your choice.

Fees and funding

Home/EU fee

£11,820

International fee

£18,460

Fees will increase for each academic year of study.

What's next

We hold open days for all our applicants throughout the year. Our Southend Campus events are a great way to find out more about studying at Essex, and give you 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

If the dates of our organised events aren’t suitable for you, feel free to get in touch by emailing southend@essex.ac.uk and we’ll arrange an individual campus tour for you.

You can apply for our postgraduate courses online. You’ll need to provide us with your academic qualifications, as well as supporting documents such as transcripts, English language qualifications and certificates. You can find a list of necessary documents online, but please note we won’t be able to process your application until we have everything we need.

With its lively, state-of-the-art facilities and a close-knit international community, Southend is the perfect environment for living and learning.

If you're joining our School of Health and Social Care, East 15 Acting School, Department of Psychosocial and Psychoanalytic Studies, or Essex Business School, you may well be studying at our Southend Campus.

Famous for its beach resort and pier, Southend-on-Sea stretches along seven miles of award-winning coastline, providing plenty of opportunities for a wide range of water sports and leisure activities.

How to get to Southend Campus

Find out more

If you live too far away to come to Essex (or have a busy lifestyle), no problem. Check out our website to find out more information about our Southend Campus, watch videos and view our campuses.

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.

Find out more

The University makes every effort to ensure that this information on its course finder is accurate and up-to-date. Occasionally it can be necessary to make changes, for example to courses, facilities or fees. Examples of such reasons might include a change of law or regulatory requirements, industrial action, lack of demand, departure of key personnel, change in government policy, or 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 prospective 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.