Get the business, management and leadership skills employers are looking for.
Summary
The success of any business depends heavily on the effectiveness of its managers. Good managers need to make the right decisions for businesses and recognise and exploit any opportunities open to it.
The BSc (Hons) Management course at Ulster is an innovative and exciting degree that puts a major emphasis on personal and skills development in relation to management and leadership.
You will learn what to do, and crucially how to do it. Designed to give you the relevant knowledge and professional skills valued in today's workplace you will learn via live consultancy projects based in real life organisations. This will not only ensure that you have the practical know how to make an impact in organisations as soon as you graduate but also will allow you to network with top organisations leading to future employment prospects.
You will study the important aspects of leadership, management and business, including strategy, marketing, finance, human resource management, operations management, entrepreneurship and personal development. You will also develop key skills beneficial to your own personal development including presenting, critical analysis, problem solving, team building, communication and decision-making.
If you want to inspire, manage and lead teams to success, have aspirations of managing global brands and businesses or want to find more efficient and new ways of working this course is for you. Join us and get ready to graduate with the skills needed to succeed in the fast-paced business environment.
We’d love to hear from you!
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Course specific information
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Admissions
For any queries regarding getting help with your application, please select Admissions in the drop down below.
For queries related to course content, including modules and placements, please select Course specific information.
Diploma in Professional Practice International DPPI
Diploma in International Academic Studies DIAS
Attendance
This is a full-time course completed over three years.
You will normally complete three modules per semester, with class contact time approximately three hours per week per module. You will be expected to undertake independent study of around 10 hours per week per module and you will have on average 9-10 class contact hours per week.
Additionally, you will be expected to devote some of your study time to working with local employers on a specific issue as part of your 'live' project modules in Year 2 and Year 3.
Start dates
September 2024
Teaching, Learning and Assessment
You will attend lectures, seminars, tutorials as well as listening to talks from guest speakers from business and industry and our visiting professors, all of whom have a wealth of experience in business, management and leadership roles.
You will also be assessed using a range of techniques including written exams, presentations, debates, essays and reports.
Attendance and Independent Study
The content for each course is summarised on the relevant course page, along with an overview of the modules that make up the course.
Each course is approved by the University and meets the expectations of:
As part of your course induction, you will be provided with details of the organisation and management of the course, including attendance and assessment requirements - usually in the form of a timetable. For full-time courses, the precise timetable for each semester is not confirmed until close to the start date and may be subject to some change in the early weeks as all courses settle into their planned patterns. For part-time courses which require attendance on particular days and times, an expectation of the days and periods of attendance will be included in the letter of offer. A course handbook is also made available.
Courses comprise modules for which the notional effort involved is indicated by its credit rating. Each credit point represents 10 hours of student effort. Undergraduate courses typically contain 10, 20, or 40 credit modules (more usually 20) and postgraduate courses typically 15 or 30 credit modules.
The normal study load expectation for an undergraduate full-time course of study in the standard academic year is 120 credit points. This amounts to around 36-42 hours of expected teaching and learning per week, inclusive of attendance requirements for lectures, seminars, tutorials, practical work, fieldwork or other scheduled classes, private study, and assessment. Teaching and learning activities will be in-person and/or online depending on the nature of the course. Part-time study load is the same as full-time pro-rata, with each credit point representing 10 hours of student effort.
Postgraduate Master’s courses typically comprise 180 credits, taken in three semesters when studied full-time. A Postgraduate Certificate (PGCert) comprises 60 credits and can usually be completed on a part-time basis in one year. A 120-credit Postgraduate Diploma (PGDip) can usually be completed on a part-time basis in two years.
Class contact times vary by course and type of module. Typically, for a module predominantly delivered through lectures you can expect at least 3 contact hours per week (lectures/seminars/tutorials). Laboratory classes often require a greater intensity of attendance in blocks. Some modules may combine lecture and laboratory. The precise model will depend on the course you apply for and may be subject to change from year to year for quality or enhancement reasons. Prospective students will be consulted about any significant changes.
Assessment methods vary and are defined explicitly in each module. Assessment can be a combination of examination and coursework but may also be only one of these methods. Assessment is designed to assess your achievement of the module’s stated learning outcomes. You can expect to receive timely feedback on all coursework assessments. This feedback may be issued individually and/or issued to the group and you will be encouraged to act on this feedback for your own development.
Coursework can take many forms, for example: essay, report, seminar paper, test, presentation, dissertation, design, artefacts, portfolio, journal, group work. The precise form and combination of assessment will depend on the course you apply for and the module. Details will be made available in advance through induction, the course handbook, the module specification, the assessment timetable and the assessment brief. The details are subject to change from year to year for quality or enhancement reasons. You will be consulted about any significant changes.
Normally, a module will have 4 learning outcomes, and no more than 2 items of assessment. An item of assessment can comprise more than one task. The notional workload and the equivalence across types of assessment is standardised. The module pass mark for undergraduate courses is 40%. The module pass mark for postgraduate courses is 50%.
The class of Honours awarded in Bachelor’s degrees is usually determined by calculation of an aggregate mark based on performance across the modules at Levels 5 and 6, (which correspond to the second and third year of full-time attendance).
Level 6 modules contribute 70% of the aggregate mark and Level 5 contributes 30% to the calculation of the class of the award. Classification of integrated Master’s degrees with Honours include a Level 7 component. The calculation in this case is: 50% Level 7, 30% Level 6, 20% Level 5. At least half the Level 5 modules must be studied at the University for Level 5 to be included in the calculation of the class.
All other qualifications have an overall grade determined by results in modules from the final level of study.
In Masters degrees of more than 200 credit points the final 120 points usually determine the overall grading.
Figures from the academic year 2022-2023.
Academic profile
The University employs over 1,000 suitably qualified and experienced academic staff - 60% have PhDs in their subject field and many have professional body recognition.
Courses are taught by staff who are Professors (19%), Readers, Senior Lecturers (22%) or Lecturers (57%).
We require most academic staff to be qualified to teach in higher education: 82% hold either Postgraduate Certificates in Higher Education Practice or higher. Most academic and learning support staff (85%) are recognised as fellows of the Higher Education Academy (HEA) by Advance HE - the university sector professional body for teaching and learning. Many academic and technical staff hold other professional body designations related to their subject or scholarly practice.
The profiles of many academic staff can be found on the University’s departmental websites and give a detailed insight into the range of staffing and expertise. The precise staffing for a course will depend on the department(s) involved and the availability and management of staff. This is subject to change annually and is confirmed in the timetable issued at the start of the course.
Occasionally, teaching may be supplemented by suitably qualified part-time staff (usually qualified researchers) and specialist guest lecturers. In these cases, all staff are inducted, mostly through our staff development programme ‘First Steps to Teaching’. In some cases, usually for provision in one of our out-centres, Recognised University Teachers are involved, supported by the University in suitable professional development for teaching.
Here is a guide to the subjects studied on this course.
Courses are continually reviewed to take advantage of new teaching approaches and developments in research, industry and the professions. Please be aware that modules may change for your year of entry. The exact modules available and their order may vary depending on course updates, staff availability, timetabling and student demand. Please contact the course team for the most up to date module list.
This module aims to provide an introduction to the study of leadership and management. Students will be provided with knowledge and gain an understanding of the internal dynamics of an organisation, and the roles and functions which managers play in ensuring that it fulfills its mission or purpose. The module is applied in nature using real businesses and real managers and leaders in the assessment and content. Throughout the module, students will also be encouraged to self-evaluate and reflect on their own management and leadership skills and competences.
Creative Problem Solving for Managers
Year: 1
Status: C
For organisations to perform effectively within the rapidly evolving business environment, it is essential that managers are equipped with the necessary skills to effectively solve and implement solutions to business problems. This module provides students with a hands-on and interactive learning approach to allow the students to engage with real world business problems, helping them become equipped with the necessary foundation business skills for their future career.
Academic Foundations for Management
Year: 1
Status: C
This module provides students with the key foundational skills for their academic journey. It also develops students skills in their ability to analyse and organise quantitative data and an understanding of the core skills to communicate effectively with an emphasis on management and leadership / HRM issues.
Economic and Financial Awareness
Year: 1
Status: C
The overall aim of this module is to provide students with a knowledge and understanding of the concepts related to the financial aspects of businesses and to the economic environments in which they operate.
Business and Society
Year: 1
Status: C
This module helps students to develop an understanding of the relationships between business and society, exploring the ethical dimensions of global trade. Throughout the module students engage with critical inquiry, using questions as a tool to explore the concepts and issues that emerge from within the module. Students are actively encouraged to bring your own experiences as a citizen in to their discussion and inquiry. Assessment in this module comes in the form of a group debate and individual essay
Introduction to Marketing
Year: 1
Status: C
The purpose of this module is to provide students with an understanding of the array of issues, which must be considered in relation to marketing activities in the wider business and management context. It represents a key underpinning to subsequent management related modules within their degree programme.
Year two
Operations Improvement
Year: 2
Status: C
In the dynamic environment in which businesses operate the importance of operations improvement cannot be ignored. Customer focus through streamlining of value chains is imperative. It presents challenges in terms of how we classify, relate to and manage the internal and external chain of customers. The ability to remove costs, optimise value creation, understand the competencies, and effectively reconfigure the organisation in the context of a continuous improvement philosophy is crucial.
Innovation and Entrepreneurship
Year: 2
Status: C
Students will address real-world problems informed by the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In so doing to generate an SDG related innovative idea and explore how that idea can be taken to market such that it creates and captures value for the organization. This will require an understanding of the importance of innovation and entrepreneurship within an organizational setting and understanding of how a culture of innovation and entrepreneurship is effectively developed and successfully implemented within an organizational setting.
Managing and Developing People
Year: 2
Status: C
This module explores the changing nature of people management and development in organisations. The impact of changes within the economy, in demographics, in legislation and advances in technology will be considered. Taking a broadly employee life-cycle approach the module covers the core functional ares of HRM to include recruitment and selection; learning and development and performance management; pay and reward; the employment relationship and employee engagement. Also the fundamentals of employment law are explored together with equality, diversity and inclusion and the employee health and well being agenda. The topics are presented via an HRM lens but the importance of their understanding for aspiring managers is emphasised.
Business Awareness and Professional Development
Year: 2
Status: C
This module equips students with an understanding of the business environment and the skills required for a career in business and management.
Responsible Leadership and Sustainable Business
Year: 2
Status: C
This module will cover a range of topics relating to responsible leadership and sustainable business. These topics will develop student awareness of business impact on society and the environment, provide students with frameworks for implementing sustainable business at the organisational level and develop their skills to lead ethically, inclusively and sustainably in the workplace.
Digital Analytics Skills
Year: 2
Status: C
This module introduces students to Digital Business Skills concepts. The module aim is to enable students to study and develop digital literacy skills in order to collect, analyse and report on data from a variety of digital sources. It seeks to develop the student's ability to identify appropriate methods and techniques for analysis from different data sources in order to report on this and to develop and enhance their employability skills.
Year three
Professional Practice
Status: O
Year: 3
This module is optional
This module provides undergraduate students with an opportunity to gain structured and professional work experience, in a work-based learning environment, as part of their planned programme of study. This experience allows students to develop, refine and reflect on their key personal and professional skills. The placement should significantly support the development of the student's employability skills, preparation for final year and enhance their employability journey.
Study Abroad
Status: O
Year: 3
This module is optional
This module provides an opportunity to undertake an extended period of study outside the UK and Republic of Ireland. Students will develop an enhanced understanding of the academic discipline whilst generating educational and cultural networks.
Year four
Business Strategy
Year: 4
Status: C
This integrative core module, which places particular emphasis on achieving a balanced understanding of strategic management theory and practice, introduces the concept of Business Strategy. It aims to develop students' awareness and understanding of the means by which viable business strategies can be developed and implemented in a complex and challenging competitive climate.
New Directions in Management and Leadership
Year: 4
Status: C
This module equips students with an understanding of how leadership and management is evolving in organisations, the leadership challenges associated with a turbulent and unpredictable environment, and of the strategies and techniques to ensure effective leadership and management. The module will examine a range of theoretical approaches that will be used to help analyse and evaluate leadership situations.
Change Management
Year: 4
Status: C
This module equips students with an understanding of the pressures for change acting on organisations, the challenges associated with changing organisations, and of the strategies and techniques used to achieve organisational change. The module will examine a range of theoretical approaches that will be used to help analyse and evaluate change situations.
Management Project
Year: 4
Status: C
This module is aimed at providing students with a thorough understanding of the research process and steps involved in producing an applied management project. Specifically, this means establishing manageable aims and objectives, the ability to conduct a critical literature review, choice of appropriate methodology and collecting, analysing and presenting primary data collected for the project, ultimately resulting in the production of an applied management project. Additionally, students will be provided with the opportunity for work based learning that aims to further develop employability and research skills.
Digital Transformation
Year: 4
Status: C
This module will introduce and equip students with the key concepts, theories and approaches to Digital Transformation within the organisational context. Specifically, it will examine key organisational capabilities needed to examine digital transformation initiatives or programmes such as Digital Strategy, Business agility, People, Processes, Tools/Technologies, Culture and the focus on the Customer which are necessary for effective digitisation efforts.
Governance, Risk and Ethics
Status: O
Year: 4
This module is optional
The module informs and equips students to effectively respond to the corporate governance, risk management and ethical challenges organisations face today in the business environment.
Coaching and Mentoring
Status: O
Year: 4
This module is optional
This module equips students with an understanding of the coaching and mentoring interventions that can be employed to solve problems, consider options, set goals, self-reflect and to allow for enhancing one's personal brand. The module will examine a range of theoretical approaches that will be used to help analyse and evaluate coaching and mentoring for improving individual and organisational performance and will equip learners with the self-reflexive and practical life skills to purposefully seek out support from coaches and mentors, and to assume such roles in the future. Learners will be encouraged to be mindful of the strategies they can utilise in future individual goal setting and career planning.
Managing in a Global Business Environment
Status: O
Year: 4
This module is optional
The aim of this module is to prepare students to be effective managers in the area of global business. It addresses the potential and risk factors associated with global marketplaces, operational decision-making, strategy and succeeding in different cultural environments. It introduces a range of management concepts and ideas that provide the foundation for further (specialised) study of global business.
Standard entry conditions
We recognise a range of qualifications for admission to our courses. In addition to the specific entry conditions for this course you must also meet the University’s General Entrance Requirements.
We will also accept smaller BTEC/OCR qualifications (i.e. Diploma or Extended Certificate / Introductory Diploma / Subsidiary Diploma) in combination with A Levels or other acceptable level 3 qualifications.
To find out if the qualification you are applying with is a qualification we accept for entry, please check our Qualification Checker - our Equivalence Entry Checker.
We will also continue to accept QCF versions of these qualifications although grades asked for may differ. Check what grades you will be asked for by comparing the requirements above with the information under QCF in the Applied General and Tech Level Qualifications section of our Entry Requirements - View our Undergraduate Entry Requirements
Irish Leaving Certificate
104 UCAS tariff points to include a minimum of five subjects (four of which must be at higher level) to include English and Maths at H6 if studied at Higher level or O4 if studied at Ordinary Level.
The Scottish Highers requirement for this course is BCCCC.
Scottish Advanced Highers
The Scottish Advanced Highers requirement for this course is CDD
International Baccalaureate
Overall International Baccalaureate profile minimum 24 points (12 at higher level).
Access to Higher Education (HE)
Overall profile of 60% (120 credit Access Course) (NI Access Course). To include a 20 credit Level 2 Mathematics module, passed at 40% or successful completion of NICATS Mathematics as part of the pre-2021 Access Diploma.
Overall profile of 12 credits at distinction, 30 at merit and 3 at pass (60 credit Access Course) (GB Access Course)
GCSE
For full-time study, you must satisfy the General Entrance Requirements for admission to a first degree course and hold a GCSE pass at Grade C/4 or above in English Language and Mathematics.
Level 2 Certificate in Essential Skills - Communication will be accepted as equivalent to GCSE English.
Level 2 Certificate in Essential Skills - Application of Number will be accepted as equivalent to GCSE Maths.
English Language Requirements
English language requirements for international applicants The minimum requirement for this course is Academic IELTS 6.0 with no band score less than 5.5. Trinity ISE: Pass at level III also meets this requirement for Tier 4 visa purposes.
Ulster recognises a number of other English language tests and comparable IELTS equivalent scores.
Graduating from this course will have attractive opportunities to practice your skills in management and leadership in a variety of roles. With such a strong skillset gained you will have opportunities to apply to a wide spectrum of jobs across the business world. Our past graduates are now in successful roles in areas such as Operations Management, Consultancy and Business Development. Some of our graduates have also successfully secured positions with the companies they worked on live projects with as part of their modules.
Past graduates have also expressed how they have significantly benefited from the skills and knowledge obtained throughout the course. As one recent graduate said: “Thanks to the department .... for all the help over the last 3 years. I've managed to gain a promotion and am now an operations manager with team managers reporting into me. I had to do a presentation as part of my interview and really believe the skills I have learned in the last 3 years really helped.”
You may also wish to proceed to postgraduate study or research in business-related areas.
Work placement / study abroad
Optional placement year in third year.
You receive contact with real organisations through group and individual project work. In second year, you will undertake a group project in which you will work directly with a local employer on addressing an organisational issue.
In Final Year, as part of the Management Project module, you will also undertake an individual project in which you will work with a local employer on resolving an organisational issue. Students have worked with organisations such as the Grand Opera House, Coca Cola, Oxfam and Huhtamaki. You will be fully supported throughout this module as you will have a lecturer as a mentor and supervisor throughout the whole of final year.
Apply
Start dates
September 2024
Fees and funding
Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland and EU Settlement Status Fees
£4,750.00
England, Scotland, Wales and the Islands Fees
£9,250.00
International Fees
£16,320.00
Scholarships, awards and prizes
Staffline Best Final Year Project Prize (presented to the student with the highest score in the final year project).
Additional mandatory costs
It is important to remember that costs associated with accommodation, travel (including car parking charges) and normal living will need to be covered in addition to tuition fees.
Where a course has additional mandatory expenses (in addition to tuition fees) we make every effort to highlight them above. We aim to provide students with the learning materials needed to support their studies. Our libraries are a valuable resource with an extensive collection of books and journals, as well as first-class facilities and IT equipment. Computer suites and free Wi-Fi are also available on each of the campuses.
There are additional fees for graduation ceremonies, examination resits and library fines.
Students choosing a period of paid work placement or study abroad as a part of their course should be aware that there may be additional travel and living costs, as well as tuition fees.
The University endeavours to deliver courses and programmes of study in accordance with the description set out in this prospectus. The University’s prospectus is produced at the earliest possible date in order to provide maximum assistance to individuals considering applying for a course of study offered by the University. The University makes every effort to ensure that the information contained in the prospectus is accurate, but it is possible that some changes will occur between the date of printing and the start of the academic year to which it relates. Please note that the University’s website is the most up-to-date source of information regarding courses, campuses and facilities and we strongly recommend that you always visit the website before making any commitments.
Although the University at all times endeavours to provide the programmes and services described, the University cannot guarantee the provision of any course or facility and the University may make variations to the contents or methods of delivery of courses, discontinue, merge or combine courses, change the campus at which they are provided and introduce new courses if such action is considered necessary by the University (acting reasonably). Not all such circumstances are entirely foreseeable but changes may be required if matters such as the following arise: industrial action interferes with the University’s ability to teach the course as planned, lack of demand makes a course economically unviable for the University, departure of key staff renders the University unable to deliver the course, changes in legislation or government policy including changes, if any, resulting from the UK departing the European Union, withdrawal or reduction of funding specifically provided for the course or other unforeseeable circumstances beyond the University’s reasonable control.
If the University discontinues any courses, it will use its best endeavours to provide a suitable alternative course. In addition, courses may change during the course of study and in such circumstances the University will normally undertake a consultation process prior to any such changes being introduced and seek to ensure that no student is unreasonably prejudiced as a consequence of any such change.
Providing the University has complied with the requirements of all applicable consumer protection laws, the University does not accept responsibility for the consequences of any modification, relocation or cancellation of any course, or part of a course, offered by the University. The University will give due and proper consideration to the effects thereof on individual students and take the steps necessary to minimise the impact of such effects on those affected. 5. The University is not liable for disruption to its provision of educational or other services caused by circumstances beyond its reasonable control providing it takes all reasonable steps to minimise the resultant disruption to such services.
Testimonials
"Thanks to the department .... for all the help over the last 3 years. I've managed to gain a promotion and am now an operations manager with team managers reporting into me. I had to do a presentation as part of my interview and really believe the skills I have learned in the last 3 years really helped".
"Everything in that course is relevant to today's business world and my job. I'm really seeing the benefit of the applied nature of the course as I have those skills that my employer was looking for".
Sustainability at Ulster
Ulster continues to develop and support sustainability initiatives with our staff, students, and external partners across various aspects of teaching, research, professional services operations, and governance.
At Ulster every person, course, research project, and professional service area on every campus either does or can contribute in some way towards the global sustainability and climate change agenda.
We are guided by both our University Strategy People, Place and Partnerships: Delivering Sustainable Futures for All and the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
Our work in this area is already being recognised globally. Most recently by the 2024 Times Higher Education Impact rating where we were recognised as Joint 5th Globally for Outreach Activities and Joint Top 20 Globally for Sustainable Development Goal 17: Partnership for the Goals.
Visit our Sustainability at Ulster destination to learn more about how the University strategy and the activities of Ulster University support each of the Sustainable Development Goals.