Business Management

Explore how organisations are managed and how they operate in today’s fast-changing global environment. You will have opportunities to develop fresh ways of thinking, gain practical skills, and apply your learning to real-world business challenges through projects, industry briefs and practical scenarios.

Not only does this course teach you about business, it puts you at the heart of business. You can build the agility, creativity and resilience needed to thrive in a rapidly evolving world, while exploring emerging technologies like AI and virtual reality and how they can be used ethically in the workplaces of the future.

You can also study our BA (Hons) Business Management with a Placement Year.

Real business, real results

You will bring business theory to life by working on real projects with real companies. From guest speakers to live briefs and site visits, you will be encouraged to build industry experience, develop practical skills, and make valuable connections that boost your career prospects. Examples of recent projects include:

• Working with the NHS Wye Valley Trust Hospitals to review HR Strategy and implement best practice and efficiencies
• Working with the Matlock Town Football Club, consulting on all aspects of business strategy to derive competitive advantage
• Working with the Football Association to tackle the issue of discrimination and increase participation in sport
• Working with The Natasha Allergy Research Foundation (NARF) to explore how higher education institutions can improve awareness, understanding, and support for students living with food allergies
• A project with TECH:SQUAD at the QUAD focused on introducing virtual reality software into heritage sites to increase revenue streams
• A project with Valley CiDS to promote brand awareness

Choose your pathway

All our Business Management degrees have a common first year. After that you can continue on the core Business Management degree, or you can choose one of our specialist pathways:

• Business Management, Supply Chain and Logistics BA (Hons)
• Business Management and Entrepreneurship BA (Hons)
• Business Management and Finance BA (Hons)
• Business Management and Human Resource Management BA (Hons)
• Business Management and Marketing BA (Hons)
• Business Management, Analytics and Technology BA (Hons)
• Business Management and Sustainable Practice BA (Hons)

Professionally approved

Chartered Management Institute accreditation means the CMI has independently assessed that the course meets its own high standards and priorities. The CMI is a UK professional body dedicated to promoting excellence in management and leadership. CMI accreditation is, therefore, a sign of a high-quality degree. 

And, because the course is 'dual accredited', you will also automatically receive a CMI professional qualification when you graduate, on top of your BA (Hons) from us! Find out more about the benefits of CMI accreditation.

Please note that our modules are subject to change - we review the content of our courses regularly, making changes where necessary to improve your experience and graduate prospects.

Our teaching methods are varied, interactive and engaging. You will take part in:

• formal lectures
• tutor-led and student-led seminars
• one-to-one and small group tutorials
• work experience and consultancy projects
• self-directed study
• optional placement and internship opportunities
• joint projects with overseas students

Business Consultancy Project

In your final year, you will undertake one of the most important parts of the course: the Business Consultancy Project. After learning the project management and research skills that are essential to any business professional, you will then apply these to solve a real problem for a business.

This is a fantastic opportunity to use all your newly acquired knowledge and skills and prove what you can do. Not only will you have opportunities to gain valuable experience, but you can also become much more confident in your abilities.

Placement year or internships

You can choose to apply for BA (Hons) Business Management with Placement Year which would super-charge your employability and improve your prospects after graduation. We can help you to find a placement and provide support throughout your year away. If that is not for you, you can choose to complete internships during the summer breaks instead.

How you are assessed

We mostly assess you through practical coursework assignments - the sort of tasks you might undertake in a workplace. Sometimes these will be individual tasks and at other times, you will need to work in a group. Assignments could include:

• business reports
• research and consultancy projects
• presentations
• design of digital materials such as videos, blogs or augmented reality posters
• computer-based assessments

With a degree and CMI qualification under your belt, plus real-world experience, you could graduate ready to lead. As this is such a broad degree, lots of different job roles will be open to you in areas such as:

• project management
• analysis
• consultancy
• accountancy
• operations
• human resource management
• marketing
• sales
• logistics
• finance

Previous students have gone on to work for prominent employers - including Deloitte, PwC, Capita, the BBC, DHL, Barclays, Tata, Mott MacDonald and IBM - while others have set up their own businesses.

Further study

You could continue your studies with one of our masters programmes, including the MBA Global and MBA Global Finance or MSc International Business.

Contextual offers may apply to students who meet certain criteria.

Further information about our fees and support you may be entitled to

Additional costs and optional extras

Additional information about your studies

Teaching hours

Like most universities, we operate extended teaching hours at the University of Derby, so contact time with your lecturers and tutors could be anytime between 9am and 9pm. Your timetable will usually be available on the website 24 hours after enrolment on to your course.

Course updates

The information provided on this page is correct at the time of publication but course content, costs and other individual course details do change from time to time and are updated as often as possible, so please do check these pages again when making your final decision to apply for a course. Any updated course details will also be confirmed to you at application, enrolment and in your offer letter.

If you are thinking about transferring onto this course (into the second year for example), you should contact the programme leader for the relevant course information as modules may vary from those shown on this page.