 Aims of the Programme
The overall aim of our MBA programme is to provide you with a comprehensive education and postgraduate qualification in all aspects of management. Its structure gives you the flexibility to influence your own learning outcomes through your choice of elective modules.
As you study, you will develop a thorough understanding of current theories and issues regarding the management of people, resources, change and organisations – and the practical skills to apply it.
You can personalise your MBA programme by choosing from a wide variety of electives or by following a pre-defined Specialisation Track in Marketing or Finance & Accounting.
Your classmates are highly motivated professionals from all over the world. Through study and collaboration with them you will acquire the management skills that are essential in today’s global economy. Students with diverse backgrounds, cultures and business experience all bring different perspectives and a wealth of expertise to the virtual classroom. This unique peer network, along with the academics and business experts who are your instructors, will expose you to intercultural management skills and global best practices that will help you stand out in any organisation.
You will work independently and in groups to develop greater confidence and improve your team-building skills. Further, you will strengthen your communication and critical thinking abilities as you subject your work and that of your classmates to ongoing analysis and evaluation. Armed with new skills and tools, including financial, strategic, IT, HR and marketing competencies, you will see the business world in a new light and broaden the scope of career development opportunities available to you.
Learning Outcomes
At the end of the programme, you will understand how marketing can help you identify, analyse and exploit world markets and have an appreciation of the management processes involved in making major strategic decisions. You will appreciate how theoretical models and accounting frameworks can support financial decision-making and will know how to map and model business processes using computer-based simulation tools. Your understanding of the latest theories and best practices in people management will include a firm grounding in psychology and an awareness of how human behaviour affects leadership. In addition, your new portfolio of analytical and strategic skills will help you better implement informed management decisions.
Programme Structure
The programme comprises four core modules and four electives, culminating in a dissertation. Each module lasts eight weeks. By taking one module at a time you can explore a specific subject in depth without distractions.
Core modules
Managing People
Managing Resources
Managing the Environment
Managing Change
Elective modules (students choose four)
Investment Strategies
Financial Reporting
Advanced Managerial Accounting
Quantitative Business Analysis
Marketing in a Global Environment
Marketing Research
Services Marketing
Consumer Behaviour
Human Resource Management
Business Leadership
Entrepreneurship
Advanced Concepts of e-Business
Business Finance
Module Abstracts
Core modules
Managing People
Aim
To provide an understanding of the principal research, practices, and concepts surrounding managing people in complex organisations.
Description
This module introduces students to the dynamic field of organisational behaviour. Students will gain a scholarly foundation through reading the textbook and learn to apply the various concepts to managing people in their own workplace.
Managing People is a required core module for all MBA tracks.
Not an elective module.
Managing Resources
Aim
To provide a sound theoretical and practical foundation in accounting, finance and operations management.
Description
This module equips students to apply accounting and operations management concepts to real-life business situations and gain an understanding of accounting and finance terminology. Students will gain an appreciation of the nature and value of the resources available to an organisation and how best to managed them to increase efficiency, competitiveness and investment returns.
Managing Resoruces is a required core module for all MBA tracks.
Not an elective module.
Managing the Environment
Aim
To provide managers with the strategic outlook necessary for organisations to succeed in modern international market environments.
Description
The Managing the Environment module draws from the closely related disciplines of strategy and marketing. The module provides students with the tools necessary for the analysis of micro and macro business environments and prepare marketing plans adapted to the varying environmental requirements. The module has been developed to complement the related core modules of Managing People, Managing Resources, and Managing Change.
Managing the Environment is a required core module for all MBA tracks.
Not an elective module.
Managing Change (Final core module after Elective period)
Aim
To provide an understanding of how organisations change and enable you to develop appropriate strategies to manage change to the benefit of the business.
Description
This module reveals the potential for change in organisations and prepares you to develop change management strategies and processes in pursuit of business goals. With response to change a key success factor, this module does not offer quick fixes, but helps you develop a holistic philosophy that brings sustained business advantage.
Managing Change is a required core module for all MBA tracks.
Not an elective module.
Elective modules (students choose four)
Investment Strategies
Aim
To provide the knowledge and skills you need to assess investment decisions consistent with an organisation’s financial objectives.
Description
You will gain the knowledge and skills required to assess investment vehicles, for a firm's current investment portfolio and strategic growth philosophy. You will develop an understanding of the securities market through real world observation and analysis and study how to evaluate, select and manage a portfolio to meet investment objectives.
Elective for: MBA programme and its Specialisation Tracks; particularly MBA (Finance & Accounting)
Business Finance
Aim
To provide an overview of business finance in the global context, familiarising you with modern finance techniques and equipping you to apply them.
Description
This module introduces students to the terminology of business finance, the financial environment and the role of the finance manager. You will examine issues such as raising finance, capital structure, dividend policy and the risk-return relationship, as well as short term financing, working capital management, mergers and acquisition, and corporate restructuring and governance, giving you an understanding of business decisions from a financial professional’s perspective.
Elective for: MBA programme and its Specialisation Tracks (particularly MBA Finance & Accounting).
Financial Reporting
Aim
To give you an understanding of the functions of regulatory financial reporting, for your own organisation and in corporate governance and capital markets.
Description
Provides an understanding of the role of Financial Reporting, from the standpoint of a user, rather than a technical expert. You will be introduced to regulatory reporting requirements, corporate governance and international accounting standards, enabling you to understand and use the Annual Reports from your own and other companies.
Elective for: MBA programme and its Specialisation Tracks; particularly MBA (Finance & Accounting)
Advanced Managerial Accounting
Aim
To provide an understanding of the complex accounting functions that inform strategic business decisions within the company.
Description
You will discover how to use advanced accounting to inform management decisions. This module is aimed at the high level executive, not the technical expert, with a focus on international best practices in cost management, the consideration of management accounting in e-Commerce and methods for measuring public sector performance.
Elective for: MBA programme and its Specialisation Tracks; particularly MBA (Finance & Accounting)
Quantitative Business Analysis
Aim
This is a review of quantitative research methods as they are applied in the decision making environment of business.
Description
You will become proficient in the concepts used to analyse business problems and gain an understanding of research methodologies, sampling techniques, primary and secondary data and other related issues. You will be introduced to quantitative tools that will help you enhance the operation, growth and performance of your business.
Elective for: MBA programme and its Specialisation Tracks
Marketing in a Global Environment
Aim
To build upon the basic marketing knowledge gained in the core modules by introducing more advanced issues relating to a global context.
Description
This module investigates advanced management concepts in the areas of market segmentation, multiple market channels, competitive intelligence, integrated marketing, and e-Business. In particular, this module introduces students to marketing concepts used by domestic and foreign companies seeking to market products globally. This module also provides an in-depth experience of the process of developing effective marketing plans, strategies, and tactics in terms of theoretical as well as 'real life' perspectives.
Elective for: MBA programme and its Specialisation Tracks; particularly MBA (Marketing)
Marketing Research
Aim
To provide you with techniques for conducting marketing research, then analysing and applying the resultant data as a decision-making tool.
Description
An overview of the methods by which marketing data is obtained. You will master a range of market research techniques, then discover how best to collect, analyse and use the data. The module also addresses issues such as data mining, data privacy and ethics. You do not need advanced knowledge of statistics to take this module.
Elective for: MBA programme and its Specialisation Tracks; particularly MBA (Marketing)
Services Marketing
Aim
To provide an understanding of the unique marketing challenges of services as opposed to tangible goods.
Description
You will gain an appreciation of the theoretical concepts used by a variety of global service providers and evaluate their practical application across a range of businesses. You will develop greater understanding of many issues that are unique to the marketing of services, including how to sustain competitive advantage and implement service management.
Elective for: MBA programme and its Specialisation Tracks; particularly MBA (Marketing)
Consumer Behaviour
Aim
To provide an understanding of the many complex factors that influence the consumer purchasing behaviour.
Description
This module explains how to evaluate and analyse the cultural, social, personal, and psychological factors that affect customer behaviour. You will come to understand the importance of cognitive psychology, external influences (such as culture) and consumer research and discover how to apply such knowledge to the development of marketing strategies.
Elective for: MBA programme and its Specialisation Tracks; particularly MBA (Marketing)
Human Resource Management
Aim
To provide an understanding of the principal themes of HRM and its contribution to organisational goals.
Description
Covers the fundamentals of HRM and its key issues and trends, including increased dependence on human capital and the shift to commoditisation. You will gain the knowledge and skills necessary to balance the needs of the organisation, the employee and organisational legislation. You will understand organisational structure, culture and strategy, with a special focus on international HRM.
Elective for: MBA programme and its Specialisation Tracks
Business Leadership
Aim
To provide a theoretical and practical approach to understanding issues affecting leadership in the workplace.
Description
You will analyse the theories and techniques of leadership and/or followership and their practical application. Your study includes supervision, performance management, stress management, problem solving, concepts of human behaviour, discipline, counselling techniques and the current social issues facing the workforce.
Elective for: MBA programme and its Specialisation Tracks; particularly MBA (Marketing)
Entrepreneurship
Aim
To provide the knowledge and skills needed for a strategic business plan to launch innovative new business ventures.
Description
By developing a business plan, you will explore approaches to creating, organising, financing and nurturing an external entrepreneurial or internal 'entrepreneurial' venture in either the public or private sector. You will gain an appreciation of the importance of innovation and entrepreneurship in national and corporate competitiveness and the success factors involved.
Elective for: MBA programme and its Specialisation Tracks.
Advanced Concepts of e-Business
Aim
To provide an understanding of the key issues and overall impact of e-Business.
Description
Explains the theory and concepts of e-Business, and reflects on the new industrial order it is creating. As you examine the inherent opportunities and risks, you will gain a practical understanding of the importance of strategy and management in implementing successful Web-based commerce.
Elective for: MBA programme and its Specialisation Tracks
Dissertation
Aim
To provide an opportunity for you to produce a final, original piece of written work that demonstrates your originality in the application of theory gained during your study
Description
The culmination of your programme, this written project demonstrates your mastery and integration of all your previous learning.
The dissertation is the cornerstone of the UK university system. It is an original, scholarly work that applies your new knowledge and experience and allows you to prove your mastery of the techniques you have studied. It must have merit beyond the scope of your particular need. If you follow a Specialisation Track, it must be on an appropriate topic.
Required for: MBA programme and all its Specialisation Tracks.
Prerequisites
 A Bachelors degree from an accredited college or university or a degree from a recognised institution comparable and/or equivalent to a British Honours degree.*
Two years working experience related to the degree program (practical background knowledge of business).
English Language skills relevant to an online program and comparable to IELTS 6.5, TOEFL 600, or GCSE C.
* Applicants that do not directly meet the educational requirements will be evaluated on an individual basis.
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