Business Administration (International Business)

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Why choose the School of Leadership and Management

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Over 95% of full-time UK business and management graduates are in employment or further study, 15 months after graduating (source: HESA Graduate Outcomes for 2020/21, pub 2023).

Over 1,000 Business School students worked on live knowledge-exchange projects 2022/23 (KEF, 2023).

We are 1st in the UK for successful graduate social-enterprise start-ups still trading after three years; 3rd in the UK for all business start-ups (HESA, 2023).

About the course

This one-year course is for those who have already completed two years of degree-equivalent study in a related subject (Level 4 and 5 or 240 credits) or have experience in the field of international business administration. It offers a global business perspective, spanning various industries and organisations, and equips you with the knowledge and skills to address international business challenges, providing proactive and creative solutions.

Facilities and specialist equipment

New business analytics suite to support data analytics, 'big-data', data mining, digital marketing, SEO and other management skills needed in today's workplace
Access to Sage, Refinitiv Workspace, the econometrics software STATA and Vensim simulation software for analysing complex and messy business problems
Harvard Business Publishing - learning resources providing advanced business simulations
Reuters trading room give you the chance to react to live ‘stock-market’ data and building investment portfolios using data on listed international companies
Gain competencies in key digital skills such as Excel through SIMnet, our Microsoft Office training platform

Your student experience

Develop a strong foundation in business management, accounting and business modelling.

Your specialty studies in international banking cover international business practices; global marketing; expansion strategies; trade relations; strategic management; and future trends like automation.

Benefit from regular engagement with industry and authentic assessment opportunities, dealing with real-world problems and issues.

Learn from academic teams who are either industry experienced or still working in their field; involved in consultancy on real-world projects; active in research; and keep at the leading edge through regular CPD, conferences and industry events.

Attend masterclasses from industry experts so learn from their experience and keep at the leading edge in your field of business.

Take the opportunity offered by our annual conference to learn from professionals and explore the latest thinking in the sector.

Benefit from field trips to see finance and business in action at companies and organisations such as the Bank of England, John Lewis, Volvo, PW Gates Logistics, Luton Recycling and RAJA Packaging.

with Professional Practice Year

This course has the option to be taken over four years which includes a year placement in industry. Undertaking a year in industry has many benefits. You gain practical experience and build your CV, as well as being a great opportunity to sample a profession and network with potential future employers.

There is no tuition fee for the placement year enabling you to gain an extra year of experience for free.

*Only available to UK/EU students.

with Foundation Year

A Degree with a Foundation Year gives you guaranteed entry to an Undergraduate course.

Whether you’re returning to learning and require additional help and support to up-skill, or if you didn’t quite meet the grades to pursue an Undergraduate course, our Degrees with Foundation Year provide a fantastic entry route for you to work towards a degree level qualification.

With our guidance and support you’ll get up to speed within one year, and will be ready to seamlessly progress on to undergraduate study at Bedfordshire.

The Foundation Year provides an opportunity to build up your academic writing skills and numeracy, and will also cover a range of subject specific content to fully prepare you for entry to an Undergraduate degree.

This is an integrated four-year degree, with the foundation year as a key part of the course. You will need to successfully complete the Foundation Year to progress on to the first year of your bachelor’s degree.

Why study a degree with a Foundation Year?

Broad-based yet enough depth to give you credible vocational skills
Coverage of a variety of areas typically delivered by an expert in this area
Gain an understanding of a subject before choosing which route you wish to specialise in
Great introduction to further study, and guaranteed progression on to one of our Undergraduate degrees

The degrees offering a Foundation Year provide excellent preparation for your future studies.

During your Foundation Year you will get the opportunity to talk to tutors about your degree study and future career aspirations, and receive guidance on the most appropriate Undergraduate course to help you achieve this; providing you meet the entry requirements and pass the Foundation Year.

What will you study?

Studying our Business Administration (International Business) BA (Hons) course will provide you with in-depth skills and knowledge around business, operations and events. To introduce you to the world of international business, you will develop core knowledge around managing such organisations while considering the nature of business from a global perspective in our International Business Management unit. Moreover, you will discover the complexity of international business environments and its relationship with society, culture and governance.

From this international perspective, you will also look at the impact of globalisation on business and marketing decisions in our Global Marketing Strategy unit. Upon closer examination, you will discover how businesses enter various markets, price their products worldwide, communicate with customers – all in cost-effective ways. Furthermore, you will conduct market research and analysis based on cross-cultural marketing theories and frameworks.

Furthermore, you will discover the role strategy plays within organisational success in our Strategic Management for Business unit. Here, you will learn how to develop, evaluate and implement realistic and practical strategies for businesses while developing your employability skills to ease your transition into the workplace.

Finally, you will be equipped with the skills required to produce an excellent dissertation in our New Advancements in Business unit. Here, you will be taught to apply various research techniques and to source and reference information correctly based on a topic of your interest.

How will you be assessed?

The underpinning philosophy of all assessments is to develop both your knowledge and skills to enter employment as a confidently with a strong base from which to meet your own aspirations. The aim is for you to become an independent and self-directed lifelong learner. Apart from the formal assessments there will be an emphasis on self peer and group assessment.

Tutors will provide feedback on formative assessments to support your development of good academic practice.All assessments are rooted in authentic and practical scenarios are designed to ensure that no credit can be awarded for work that cannot be confirmed to be that of the student submitting.

To facilitate learning for all students a range of assessment methods are used throughout the course including:Business Reports to demonstrate contextual insight and professional practice;Individual written reports based on gathering and analysing information using a subject specific methodology are used to assess case studies or group work.

Formative group presentationAt level 6 you are treated as an independent learner and both the dissertation unit (New Advances in Business) and the Strategic Management unit provide opportunities for you to draw together your business knowledge in an individual and more independent manner. In all units you will find assessment support in terms of careful briefing and the completion of formative stages with detailed feedback designed not only to benchmark your performance but also to give you insights into how you can improve your work.

Careers

You will focus on employability throughout your studies starting with working on real life case studies in your first few weeks. The practice-based part of the curriculum continues throughout your studies with guest lecturers optional weekly discussion groups and case studies in seminars to help you develop your knowledge and understanding of a wide range of industry sectors.

The approach adopted in this course helps you to develop and enhance your transferable skills as well as interpersonal skills and in turn enhance your employability. This means that whilst you are gaining academic knowledge in addition you are also developing practise expertise.