Business and Management (Marketing) BSc

About the Course

This degree is designed for forward thinkers who want the flexibility to become high achievers in both traditional marketing roles and the world of eCommerce. The course deals with internet marketing and using new technologies as well as traditional marketing approaches.

Aims

Marketing is an essential element of business and management for both commercial and non-profit organisations. This degree is for students who intend to specialise in this important and swiftly developing field. It is designed for forward thinkers who want the flexibility to become high achievers in both traditional marketing roles and the world of eCommerce.

Enquiries

Course Enquiries
For questions about the degree itself or Home/EU enquiries prior to application.
Contact: Katie Moore
Email: bachelorbbs@brunel.ac.uk
Tel: +44 (0)1895 265278 or 267124

Application Enquiries (Home/EU)
For Home/EU applications already submitted.
Email: admissions@brunel.ac.uk
Tel. +44 (0)1895 265265

International Students
For all questions about this degree:
Fill out our Webform
Email: brunel-international@brunel.ac.uk
Tel. +44 (0)1895 265519

Special Features

• Our students have excellent employment prospects – graduates have gone on to work for prestigious companies such as Merrill Lynch, Abbey, Lloyds, Price WaterhouseCoopers, Deloitte & Touche, Coca cola, Ernst & Young, Virgin Trains, Accenture, HSBC, BT, Deutsche Bank and the BBC.
   
• The School hosts three world-renowned research centres in the areas of Emotion Work, Enterprise, Sustainability and Ethics, and Organisation and System Design.
   
• Emphasis is on gaining "employable knowledge" which is highly up-to-date. We aim to provide you with an education which will prepare you for the future needs of the working world, not simply to cope with its present preoccupations.
   
• The School's specialist areas include: marketing, small business management; human resource management; organisational change; technology and business; copy right and property rights; business computing; accounting; entrepreneurialism; gender; the culture and leisure industries; business ethics and management thinking and learning. Students also benefit from University-wide expertise in eCommerce and multimedia.
   
• High quality teaching from lecturers with 'hands-on' experience in business and commerce.
   
• You will have the opportunity to gain paid professional experience working in prominent companies or organisations. These are high-quality placements with graduate-like responsibilities. Many students get offered full-time graduate posts at the companies where they carried out their work placements.
   
• Good links with business. This means:
  • Better work placements
  • Up-to-date course content
  • Help finding a good job after you graduate.

Accreditation

• Accredited by The Chartered Institute of Marketing

Facts and Figures

Brunel Business School

The School offers a range of single honours undergraduate programmes, Master's courses and the prestigious MBA programme.

Our courses will give you several advantages. Firstly, our degrees will equip you with the conceptual and analytical means for understanding business and management enabling you to progress with the future needs of the working world, not simply to cope with its present preoccupations.

Secondly, you will learn about the world of business and management and develop the skills to get a good job when you graduate. Thirdly, you will enhance your ability to communicate your ideas and to take responsibility for your learning. All these skills will be essential once you enter the world of employment.

Our range of degree programmes offers you the opportunity to specialise in a variety of areas. At Level 2, you will be able to specialise in Accounting, Computing or Marketing, or remain on the general management pathway. We also contribute to a number of courses elsewhere in the University.

If you opt for a sandwich course, you will have the added bonus of putting your academic study into practice and developing ideas about future careers.

Our staff are at the forefront of their subjects both through research activity -  our research interests are reflected in some of the specialist modules offered as options - and via close links with the business community.

Elizabeth is in the final year of a Business and Management (Marketing) course, and has recently completed a year’s ‘thick sandwich’ work placement at IBM.

“When deciding on a university I wanted to be close to Central London, so for me Brunel was conveniently located. Another defining factor was the course itself. The first year provides a great insight into many aspects of business – I was able to gain an understanding of the foundations of accounting, marketing, management and IT within my first year. This emphasised the broadness of business, reinforcing the variety of possible career paths open to me.

"I chose to undertake the Marketing pathway as I have always had a great interest in the area, and during my second year, the course did not disappoint. We covered a number of marketing topics, which I have been able to relate to everyday life – for example, when shopping I can pick up on aspects of consumer behaviour that were covered within the course. I have taken part in a number of group projects, and as someone who wants to work within a business environment on completion of my degree, I know that group work is very beneficial. I have also had the opportunity to practise presentation skills.

"Securing my work placement was one of my most important achievements at University. My placement was within IBM’s hardware department as a Sales Operations Analyst. My role involved liaising with sales representatives and providing them with the market intelligence to do their job efficiently. One of my main duties was forecasting. This required me to consolidate the team’s sales figures on a weekly basis and then to undertake data analysis, drawing attention to key sections of the data to aid management decisions. I also had the opportunity to work on projects within the wider Systems and Technology Group, such as being responsible for the design, distribution and analysis of questionnaires to help in making relevant changes within the business.

"My placement experience was invaluable. It helped me to gain a better understanding of how a blue chip company such as IBM operates, and gave me great insight into Sales and Operations, igniting my interest in the area. The placement provided me with a great opportunity to network with people in the industry, of all different levels. Several interns of IBM have returned as graduates, helped by having proved their quality and having obtained good references from managers within the business.

"I would strongly recommend students to consider undertaking a placement. The Placement and Careers team at Brunel were a great help, providing expertise in areas such as my CV and interview skills. A placement is an excellent addition to your CV, considering the increasing number of graduates competing for jobs each year, and I know that I will return to University in my final year having developed immensely in terms of skills, and as an individual.”
 

Course Content

You will develop conceptual and analytical tools of value not just within the marketing function, but in many aspects of business and management. Areas of study will include finding out the wants of customers, understanding their behaviour, communicating, managing relationships, planning, strategy and eCommerce.

All business and management degrees have a common first year. During your first year you will take modules in the core areas of marketing, computing, accountancy, leisure, and general management concepts. This will give you the essential foundation from which to develop your knowledge and skills at levels 2 and 3. At levels 2 and 3 you will specialise in Marketing.

Typical Modules

Level 1 Core

• Introduction to Management Enquiry
• Managing Information with Technology
• Principles and Practice of Marketing
• Organisational Behaviour and Analysis
• Introduction to Accounting
• International Business Environment

Level 2 Core

• Marketing Research
• Marketing Communications
• Marketing Channels and Logistics
• Critical Perspectives in Management
• Consumer Behaviour
• Database and Customer Relationship Marketing

Level 3 core

• Strategic Marketing Issues and Controversies (Major Project)
• International Marketing
• Strategic Management

Level 3 Optional
Any two from the following: 

• Internet Marketing
• Business Ethics, Environmental Sustainability and Governance
• Entrepreneurship and Small Business Ventures
• The Management of Retailing

Teaching and Learning

Staff expertise
Many of our lecturers are:

• Internationally or nationally recognised for their innovative work & research
• Work as consultants for major companies world-wide
• Have practical and personal experience in business/have run their own companies

How will I be taught?

Lectures -These provide a broad overview of key concepts and ideas. They provide a framework from which to carry out more in-depth study.

Seminars - Small seminar groups allow students to make individual contributions. You will undertake in-depth analysis of issues and exchange and explore ideas with other students.

Workshops - You will practice using industry standard software, computing equipment, business, design and multimedia packages

One-to-one - In your final year you will receive one-to-one supervision for your dissertation. Throughout all levels you will have a personal tutor who is available to help you with academic or personal problems. If you choose to do the four-year sandwich course, you will also be allocated an industrial tutor who will provide you with support when you are on your work placement.

Other - There are email discussion groups, research talks on key management issues, presentations by outside speakers and external visits. Throughout the course, you will also be expected to undertake group work and individual projects and presentations.

Assessment

Each subject is assessed at the end of the term in which it was taken, either by a combination of continuous appraisal and examination or by coursework or examination alone. As a rough guide the split is approximately 50:50 exam to coursework but this amount varies depending on the options you select.

Level 1 does not count towards your final degree classification but you have to pass the first year to continue with the degree. Level 2 is worth a third of your final mark and Level 3 the rest. In your final year you will undertake an assessed dissertation of around 8,000 words. This is worth a third of your level 3 marks.

Employability

If you choose to follow either the four-year thick sandwich degree programme you will gain high quality professional experience in commercial, financial, or public sector organisations.

Students on four-year thick sandwich courses have undertaken high quality work placements with organisations such as Microsoft, IBM, British Airways, LLoyds TSB, The Walt Disney Company, and innocent Drinks.

Careers

Our graduates have excellent career prospects. Our combination of academic and professional expertise gives our graduates, especially those that have carried out a professional work placement, a significant advantage over those with comparable academic qualifications from other business and marketing courses. What is more, career advancement for our students is often faster.

Graduates have gone on to work for prestigious companies such as:

• British Gas
• Coca Cola
• Merrill Lynch
• Morgan Stanley
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• The BBC
• Price WaterhouseCoopers

Fees for 2012/13 entry

Home/EU students: £9,000 full-time, £6,750 part-time

International students: £12,650 full-time

Brunel is introducing over 1000 new scholarships for 2012, meaning that one in three applicants who join Brunel next year will receive financial support from the University. See our fees and funding page for full details

Fees quoted are per annum and are subject to an annual increase.

Entry Requirements for 2012 Entry

• GCE A-level BBB (Critical Thinking/General Studies accepted as a third A-level).
• Irish Leaving Certificate ABBBB.
• Scottish Advanced Highers BBB.
• Advanced Diploma Progression Diploma Grade B in Business, Administration and Finance or Public Services, plus an A-level at Grade B for Additional and Specialist Learning (for Public Services, this must be in a business-related or science subject).
• BTEC Level 3 Extended Diploma DDD in a business-related subject. BTEC Level 3 Diploma/National Certificate DD plus grade B in an Academic A-level. BTEC Level 3 Subsidary Diploma/National Award D plus grade B in two Academic A-levels.
• IBDP 32 points.
• Access Applicants offering Access courses in Business or a Business-related subject plus the equivalent of at least three years full time, relevant work experience will be considered on an individual basis.

For all of the above, 5 GCSEs or equivalent at Grade C or above are also required, to include English and Maths (please note that these must have been gained by the time you submit your UCAS application).

Entry Requirements for 2011 Entry (click to expand)

English Language Requirements

Brunel also offers our own BrunELT English Test and accept a range of other language courses. We also have a range of Pre-sessional English language courses, for students who do not meet these requirements, or who wish to improve their English.