The popularity of reality TV shows such as The Apprentice and Dragons’ Den have raised the profile of the country’s business success stories and provided a real insight into the ups and downs of following your business dream. whether you’re a budding entrepreneur, the next e-commerce innovator, or an aspiring marketing whiz, business at degree level can open a lot of doors.

Passion and drive are as important as ever in the modern business world, but a degree is becoming a necessity. Many employers and large companies offer graduate-entry jobs, which fast-track able business students into management positions. If you think you have what it takes to succeed in the business arena, with good problem solving skills and an inquisitive nature, then studying a business-related degree could be your way in to a world of opportunity.

Studying business and administrative studies at an undergraduate level will give you a broad education on theoretical and practical business practices. Even if you don’t intend to pursue a career in a traditional business field like accounting, the communication skills and analytical capabilities you will learn will prove invaluable in a variety of career paths.

 

Studying business and management

Business is one of the most popular subjects on offer at undergraduate level in the UK, in terms of both student demand and provision. In 2007/08, almost 88,000 students studied for full-time undergraduate business and management qualifications at UK institutions (source: HESA). Business courses can focus on management issues or on specialised areas of business. Many courses combine two or more areas, and business subject modules are included in most management studies courses.

Management degrees are designed to train students for future management positions. In general, courses start by covering areas such as economics, finance, law, organisational behaviour, human resources, computing systems, terminology, marketing and statistics. A business degree will have similar modules, but the emphasis may be on preparing students for the business field of their choice. As the course progresses, students will develop specialised knowledge in areas such as employment law, European integration, international marketing or Japanese business. Click the links to browse Undergraduate Business and Management degree courses

 

Studying accountancy

Accounting is a combination of skills, training and financial knowledge, and is another popular subject, with over 28,000 students enrolled on undergraduate accountancy courses in 2007/08 (HESA). Degrees concentrate on the disciplines that form the essential base of an accountant’s skills: economics, statistics and financial law. As accountancy deals with processing information and giving detailed advice to clients, successful accountants will need to be able to think logically and explain complex information in simple terms. Click the links to browse Undergraduate Accounting courses

 

Studying marketing and public relations (PR)

Marketing and PR are almost always incorporated, in some form, into management and business degrees, but dedicated marketing courses are also available. They cover areas such as market research, product design, advertising, promotion and distribution, along with supporting disciplines such as IT and economics. Skills develop as the course progresses; second- and third-year modules may include customer behaviour, sales management, marketing and PR, advertising, internet marketing and management consultancy. Click the links to browse Undergraduate Marketing and Undergraduate PR courses

 

Studying human resources management

Human resources management is becoming increasingly important, and courses are constantly being developed to enable students to specialise right from the beginning of their course. Human resources courses can include elements of company law and psychology as well as general business practices. Click the link to browse Human resources degrees