Business and Management
At Medway, you’ll gain the skills to aspire, grow and lead.
At Medway, you’ll gain the skills to aspire, grow and lead.
If your ambitions include leading a business or building your own, choose this course. As a graduate made at Kent Business School, you’ll have the skills and confidence to lead and inspire others, be innovative, and manage sustainably.
Kent Business School is a supportive community, where you’ll work closely with your academic adviser and other academic staff. They are experts in all areas of business who will expose you to the right mix of detailed theory and hands-on experience.
You’ll gain important leadership skills across a variety of business areas and learn how businesses operate. Topics covered include management principles, marketing, accounting and the international business environment. As you progress, you’ll be introduced to the advanced concepts of many business and management disciplines with the flexibility to tailor your course to suit your interests.
Love the sound of this course, but want a traditional self-contained campus? Our course at Canterbury might be for you.
Gain work experience with a paid year in industry.
Study at a ‘Triple Crown’ business school accredited by AACSB, AMBA, and EQUIS.
Take a ‘selfie year’ and bring your business ideas to life at our aspire centre.
in the UK for Business and Management (The Guardian University Guide 2024).
Providing an excellent student experience at Medway.
Our typical offer levels are listed below and include indicative contextual offers. If you hold alternative qualifications just get in touch and we'll be glad to discuss these with you.
If you don't meet the academic requirements for direct entry, our Business and Management with a Foundation Year course offers one year of full-time study prior to the start of the BSc degree.
ABB
DDM
128 Tariff points from your IB Diploma, Typically H5, H6, H6 or equivalent
Mathematics grade 4 / C and English grade 4 / C.
Pass the University of Kent International Foundation Programme.
The University will consider applicants holding T level qualifications in subjects closely aligned to the course.
Access to HE Diploma with 45 Credits at level 3 with 30 credits at Distinction and 15 credits at Merit
In today's interconnected world, businesses operate across borders, facing challenges and opportunities in a dynamic global environment. You’ll develop expertise in the complexities of international business and acquire the skills to analyse the impact of globalisation, trade, investment, political systems, and ethics on business operations. You’ll understand the global business world and develop analytical skills to turn data into valuable information for business decisions and position yourself for success in international business.
Excel is a highly demanded skill by employers, in both starting your career and making rapid progress throughout it. You’ll master the fundamentals of this powerful tool and also be introduced to some more advanced technologies that will give you an even greater edge in the workplace. Learn to think creatively through the application of analytics and Excel techniques to real world business problems.
What are the best ways to manage people in organisations? How are decisions made about the design of work, the structure of an organisation, and who is accountable or responsible for different activities? What are the best ways to manage people in organisations? How are decisions made about the design of work, the structure of an organisation, and who is accountable or responsible for different activities? You’ll understand the practices of contemporary organisations by looking at a wide range of different theories of management, starting with classical management perspectives like scientific management or human relations theory and then considering more contemporary issues like culture management and leadership styles. Using case studies, you'll develop key skills like critical thinking and be able to reflect on the ethics and fairness of contemporary forms of work.
Marketing is an exciting and dynamic field that offers endless opportunities for innovation, creativity and growth. With advancements in technology, shifts in consumer behaviour and emerging trends, marketers have the opportunity to explore new strategies and tactics to help firms effectively reach and communicate with their target customers.
Creating brand awareness, engagement, satisfaction and loyalty is vital for sales growth in competitive and dynamic markets. You'll learn how to develop and implement effective marketing plans and strategies as well as exploring how key elements of the marketing mix can be used to create and communicate a distinctive value proposition that helps a product or service stand out from the competition. You'll gain the skills, knowledge and confidence needed to develop, deliver and refine digital marketing strategies that make employers sit up and take notice.
Data analytics are a fundamental tool for any organisation that plans to make strategic use of their data assets and enable data-driven decision-making. You cover the core concepts of data analytics (descriptive, predictive, and prescriptive) including: data management; descriptive statistics; inferential statistics; exploratory data analysis; regression modelling; machine learning; programming data-driven solutions; and developing data-driven recommendations.
Our workshops give you experience in using an industry standard programming language, as well as Graphical User Interface - based tools. This gives you the opportunity to choose the most appropriate method for you own future employability needs. You'll learn and develop employability skills in selecting and using appropriate statistical tools to analyse data, effective use of data visualisation techniques and the formulation of data management strategies for business data analytics. You’ll be able to critically analyse a problem domain and apply the data analytics approach to support data-driven decision making and facilitate strategy implementation and position your business for growth.
What are the major challenges that businesses face today? How are ways of managing, organizing, and conducting business changing because of the rise of artificial intelligence and prevalence of large data systems, or because the challenges that we currently face around the ageing population of our society? How are we innovating and creating new sustainable systems to respond to global ecological crisis with "clean growth"? How are we developing our infrastructure or adapting our systems of production and consumption in order to respond to the challenges of mobility and transport?
On this module we seek to explore answers to these kinds of questions by drawing on the latest research in management and organization studies. We will take a case study-based approach to evaluating the grand challenges, looking at different case study examples every week in order to understand how different organizations are mobilizing people and resources to innovate and respond to these big-picture challenges in impactful ways.
This module also explores the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals and how they contribute to a global perspective on addressing the challenges.
Who do you want to be when you graduate? What are you career ambitions? This module seeks to help new KBS students to start thinking about their emerging professional identity and future career goals. It helps students to begin to take a reflective approach to their career development and supports them to see the relevance of their learning to the graduate labour market. It encourages students to see the importance of gaining relevant work experience prior to graduating and what they need to do to secure this. It also introduces them to the employability enhancing opportunities and the support available to them from across the University, professional bodies, and external organizations. Medway version.
The module is designed to teach students how to prepare, read and interpret financial information with a view to their being future business managers rather than accountants.
The module will begin with a brief demonstration of bookkeeping using an easy understandable approach. Students will be shown how to prepare financial statements from a trial balance and make adjustments to the figures given by acting on information given in a short scenario.
The regulatory framework of financial reporting will be considered with annual reports and accounts of a variety of organisations. The module will end with an analysis of financial statements with students shown how to interpret data and make sensible recommendations.
Every lecturer we had was an expert in their field – we had some of the best people teaching us.Zaid Mahmood
In order to thrive, every organisation needs to achieve its objectives and strong operations management tactics are crucial. You’ll jump into operations management, discovering how to transform company resources into outputs that deliver results. Through exploring systematic ways to manage operations, you'll quickly level up your skills and gain the employability edge you need to launch a career in all types of businesses and organisations.
Why are entrepreneurs important? You'll learn about the diverse nature of entrepreneurs, their characteristics and motivations and the barriers and issues facing them when planning and establishing a new venture. Understand the barriers to start-up enterprise growth and success, and evaluate and apply a range of strategic decisions to maximise the viability of the enterprise. You'll apply theory to practice, using your theoretical insights to develop an innovative enterprise of your own.
Explore the significance of aligning right and wrong with the evolving societal understanding of social issues. By studying socially responsible management you'll learn to embrace reflection as a core skill making sense of societal changes and its deeper meaning for you and your future in business.
You'll gain a strong understanding of the ethical concerns in business through the study of example cases and key issues such as shareholder activism, employee discrimination, working conditions, ethical issues in marketing such as consumer protection, accountability and collaboration with civil society organisations. You'll begin to see the importance of a collaborative approach with internal and external stakeholder groups as you apply key concepts, theories and frameworks related to social responsibility in different contexts.
Project Management is a fast-growing discipline that helps businesses in any industry to achieve their strategic and sustainable goals.
You'll develop a deep knowledge and understanding of the key concepts, principal applications and impacts of project management on the strategic management and development of organisations in our changing world. You'll also learn the essential approaches, tools and techniques used in managing projects, as well as the analytical, critical and reflective thinking skills used in multidisciplinary workplaces.
Learn how to use the project management skills, knowledge and independent learning practices you acquire to thrive as a project or non-project professional in any career you pursue.
What are the challenges of managing people? Understand the key concepts, from planning and recruiting through to effective performance and reward management, employee relations and ethical treatment of staff. You’ll have highly developed skills and increased awareness in effective management of yourself and others. This skill set is crucial as you progress in your career in HR management, and this module sets you up to thrive.
The law affects the commercial world in many ways. This module focuses on the importance of law in governing transactions between individuals and businesses; what is required for legally compliant contracts; what the law expects of organisations in terms of protecting the consumer, and how businesses manage and avoid disputes. By enabling students to become familiar with those parts of the law they are most likely to encounter in their careers and in business the module helps them better understand the obligations that parties have to each other in law.
Indicative topic areas are:
• The English Legal System
• The Legal Process and Dispute Resolution
• Law of Contract – including:
• Formation
• Contract terms
• Vitiating elements, such as misrepresentation and economic duress
• Performance and discharge of contract, including frustration
• Common law and equitable remedies, including damages
• Consumer Protection
Many contemporary businesses claim to champion "ethical business" and list it as one of their core values, but what does it mean for a business to act “ethically” and how can managers work to ensure that ethical decision making is embedded throughout their organizations?
This module will grapple with and address philosophical questions relevant to practical business problems and the work of managing in contemporary organisations. For example, how does “the person” fit within “the corporation” and can either act as a morally responsible agent? Do organizations have a responsibility to protect their customers from harmful products or is caveat emptor a sound governing principle? Does an organization have a responsibility to be sustainable and monitor its wider social and environmental impact, or are natural resources simply those that it can use as it sees fit within the bounds of the law? Should a business pay fair wages, source products from trusted supply chains, and protect whistle-blowers? Is there a “business of business ethics”, that is to say, is ethical business just a tool for furthering profitability?
This module will take a case study based approach to understanding and critically assaying the ethical dilemmas that contemporary businesses and managers face, looking at different examples each week in order to develop an appreciation of different ethical perspectives. It contributes to employability by supporting students to develop their critical thinking and reasoning skills.
This module explores the ever-changing trends of retailers both in the UK and globally. It will explore the dynamics of multi-channel retailing following the development of on-line retailing. It will also consider the store design and visual merchandising techniques that influence the characteristics of the retail brand and environment, which encourage a satisfying retail experience. The learner will understand how to analyse and interpret how the location of products in line with store purchasing and marketing policies influences sales and profit. The complexities of store management will further be explored.
Indicative topics are:
The dynamics of retail management and the macro environment
Retail theories and strategic approaches
Store formats
Store location and international factors
E-Retail
Store design and visual merchandising
Store operational management
Customer service and the customer experience
Commercial management and selling skills
Case Studies of Food and Fashion retailing
A synopsis of the curriculum:
This module aims to enable students to understand the social and economic changes that have raised the status of enterprise, small business and entrepreneurial ventures in the global economy. It examines the diverse nature of entrepreneurs, their characteristics and motivations, as well as the barriers and issues facing entrepreneurs when planning and establishing a new venture.
The indicative topics of the module are:
• Factors that have influenced the growth of the enterprise culture in the UK.
• The role and relevance of SMEs in the UK economy; definitions of SMEs; statistical information; Government policies and initiatives, and support agencies.
• Whether entrepreneurs are born or made; whether enterprise skills can be taught or learned, and whether entrepreneurs differ from business owners and other managers.
• Enterprise and innovation development in organisations.
• Differences in attitudes, objectives, skill requirements and business strategies between small and large firms.
• Surviving the early stages of business development, including failure rates in new and small enterprises and barriers to growth and development.
• The planning process for starting a new venture – including risks and liabilities; problems and pitfalls, and potential profit and success.
• The protection of ideas and intellectual capital.
• Funding a new enterprise, including via 'friends, family and fools', business angels and venture capitalists.
• Enterprise in different contexts, including corporate enterprise, public sector enterprise and social enterprise.
The law affects the commercial world in many ways. This module focuses on how businesses fulfil their legal obligations to customers, suppliers and their workforce. As well as exploring how businesses are structured and the duties on directors and partners it also considers the legal obligations individuals and organisations have over those to whom they have a duty of care. The module further covers the main laws governing the employment of staff and contractors. By applying the law to real-world business situations students are able to fine-tune their problem solving skills and their ability to construct well-reasoned and persuasive arguments.
The module covers the following topic areas:
• The English Legal System, Legal Process and Dispute Resolution;
• Law of Negligence – including general principles and negligent mis-statement
• Law of Business Organisations - classification of business organisations; main principles applying to general and limited liability partnerships and registered companies, and directors' duties
• Employment Law - the general scope of the legal obligations owed by employers to employees, including the employment contract, discrimination and dismissal
This module will cover the core principles of macroeconomics; including the measurement of key macroeconomic variables and limitations to existing practices. Students will consider competing theories related to the macro economy in the short and long run and their overall consequences for the business environment. This will be underpinned by existing evidence on past and current levels of macroeconomic indicators in the UK, Europe and the rest of the world. Indicative topics are:
• The Macro economy – as a system: the circular flow (including injections and withdrawals), national income measurement, economic growth and
international comparisons
• Macroeconomic variables: GDP, unemployment, inflation, money supply and balance of payments
• The open macro economy; including imports and exports; the role of exchange rates and trade theory.
• Macroeconomic theories: including the classical approach, the Keynesian demand management approach and monetarism
• Macroeconomic policies: demand versus supply side economic management
In an era marked by relentless evolution, how can businesses harness innovation to thrive and stay ahead? Through a mixture of theoretical insights, practical applications and interactive discussions, you’ll cultivate a deep understanding of how to foster and lead innovation in a rapidly changing business environment.
You'll emerge equipped with the strategic mindset and practical skills necessary to spearhead innovation within organisations. This crucial expertise not only enhances your employability but positions you as a catalyst for positive change in the business landscape.
This module extends students' knowledge and understanding of strategic management and strategic issues. It introduces a range of contemporary issues associated with the formulation and implementation of corporate and business strategies with an emphasis on identifying and implementing strategic change within the organisation, building dynamic capabilities and developing coherent strategies. Issues might include strategies in the face of uncertainty, global strategies, knowledge-based strategies, strategies where profit is of secondary (or no) importance.
The law affects the commercial world in many ways. This module focuses on the importance of law in governing transactions between individuals and businesses; what is required for legally compliant contracts; what the law expects of organisations in terms of protecting the consumer, and how businesses manage and avoid disputes. By enabling students to become familiar with those parts of the law they are most likely to encounter in their careers and in business the module helps them better understand the obligations that parties have to each other in law.
Indicative topic areas are:
• The English Legal System
• The Legal Process and Dispute Resolution
• Law of Contract – including:
• Formation
• Contract terms
• Vitiating elements, such as misrepresentation and economic duress
• Performance and discharge of contract, including frustration
• Common law and equitable remedies, including damages
• Consumer Protection
Many contemporary businesses claim to champion "ethical business" and list it as one of their core values, but what does it mean for a business to act “ethically” and how can managers work to ensure that ethical decision making is embedded throughout their organizations?
This module will grapple with and address philosophical questions relevant to practical business problems and the work of managing in contemporary organisations. For example, how does “the person” fit within “the corporation” and can either act as a morally responsible agent? Do organizations have a responsibility to protect their customers from harmful products or is caveat emptor a sound governing principle? Does an organization have a responsibility to be sustainable and monitor its wider social and environmental impact, or are natural resources simply those that it can use as it sees fit within the bounds of the law? Should a business pay fair wages, source products from trusted supply chains, and protect whistle-blowers? Is there a “business of business ethics”, that is to say, is ethical business just a tool for furthering profitability?
This module will take a case study based approach to understanding and critically assaying the ethical dilemmas that contemporary businesses and managers face, looking at different examples each week in order to develop an appreciation of different ethical perspectives. It contributes to employability by supporting students to develop their critical thinking and reasoning skills.
Indicative areas to be covered are:
Introduction to Business/Management Projects
Research Methodologies
Literature search and Literature Review
Data collection and questionnaire
Structuring a Project Report
Data Analysis
Presentations
This module investigates the importance of having a dynamic buying function in retailing to meet the ever-changing needs of the consumer and maintain a profitable business. It explores both Fashion and Food retailing, and the differences between these industries. It considers how different strategic approaches influence new product design and purchasing, as well as the importance of economic, legal and financial issues. Students will acquire expertise in how to plan and develop a range of products; how to develop pricing strategies, and how to work with strategic suppliers and partners to get a product that exceeds consumer needs to market ahead of the competition.
The key elements of the curriculum are as follows:
• Organisational approaches to buying and the impact on the brand
• Process models of buying
• Competitor analysis
• Impact of trends and fashion on new product development
• Impact of innovation and technology on new product development
• Range planning
• Quality strategies and quality assurance
• Supplier selection and management
• Sustainability of product sourcing
The understanding and application of enterprise knowledge is seen as a transferable skill that can have cross-division application within the University, in that it has relevance to students from a broad range of academic disciplines who might be considering self-employment after graduation.
The curriculum is based on the Small Firms Enterprise Development Initiative (National Standards-setting body for small business) Standards for Business Start-up but has been expanded to include contemporary issues such as Intellectual Property and recent legislation.
Indicative areas of study are:
• Why firms become insolvent – economic financial and operational reasons for business failure; risks & liabilities; skills requirements for business ownership; self-development planning; sources of advice, and support for businesses.
• The new business planning process and format - developing and evaluating the business idea and producing a business plan for potential lenders.
• Financial aspects – budgetary planning and control; cash-flow and working capital; understanding financial accounting and key financial documents; break-even analysis; credit control, and debt recovery.
• Market research, competition and barriers to market entry - identifying customers; market segmentation; planning the sales and marketing processes; customer perceptions and customer care, and developing quality standards for the business
• Legal issues - reporting requirements; UK & EU law relevant to small businesses; business formats and trading status and their respective risks and liabilities; insurance; insolvency, and intellectual property rights such as patents and copyright.
• Planning and employing staff - planning and obtaining premises; physical and financial resources, and the phased implementation of the business plan.
• Commercial Presentation – prepare and facilitate a commercial business presentation on a newly created venture
• Financing of the venture- Understanding different sources of financing start-ups, understanding the benefits, shortcomings, and requirement of each method
The law affects the commercial world in many ways. This module focuses on how businesses fulfil their legal obligations to customers, suppliers and their workforce. As well as exploring how businesses are structured and the duties on directors and partners it also considers the legal obligations individuals and organisations have over those to whom they have a duty of care. The module further covers the main laws governing the employment of staff and contractors. By applying the law to real-world business situations students are able to fine-tune their problem solving skills and their ability to construct well-reasoned and persuasive arguments.
The module covers the following topic areas:
• The English Legal System, Legal Process and Dispute Resolution;
• Law of Negligence – including general principles and negligent mis-statement
• Law of Business Organisations - classification of business organisations; main principles applying to general and limited liability partnerships and registered companies, and directors' duties
• Employment Law - the general scope of the legal obligations owed by employers to employees, including the employment contract, discrimination and dismissal
Students will be expected to develop the ability to use appropriate techniques of analysis and enquiry within supply chain and service management, and to learn how to evaluate the alternatives and make recommendations. Topics include:
• The nature of services and service strategy
• Supply chain management
• Managing quality within supply chains
• Service development and technology
• Service quality and the service encounter
• Project/Event management and control
• Managing capacity and demand in services
The aim of the module is to develop an understanding of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and sustainability informed by ethical theory and stakeholder perspectives. Students will have the opportunity to familiarise with essential readings and cases in CSR to enable them to recognise key issues raised by stakeholder groups. such as shareholder activism; socially responsible investment; employee discrimination; working conditions; ethical issues in marketing; management; consumer protection; gifts/ bribes; accountability; collaboration with civil society organisations, and corruption of governmental actors. The module will therefore contribute in building an understanding of contemporary social issues in business by highlighting the importance of a collaborative approach with internal and external stakeholder groups.
Indicative topics are:
- Business Ethics
- Corporate Social Responsibility
- Sustainability
- Social responsibilities of sectors and industries
- Stakeholders of organisations, including:
Employees
Suppliers
Competitors
Shareholders
Civil society
Government
- Implementation of socially responsible and sustainable programmes and initiatives
Learn from our enthusiastic team of expert staff who come from all walks of life. They’ll guide and support your learning, bringing their subject to life and drawing you into conversation through lectures, seminars, presentations and computer-based simulations.
Your progress is assessed in different ways to help you build different skills. You’ll do coursework like multiple choice-tests, reports, essays, and presentations, as well as exams at the end of the year.
As part of your studies it is also possible to take a foreign language module in stage 1 and for students going on a Year Abroad in year 1 and 2 subject to programme requirements.
For a student studying full time, each academic year involve 1200 learning hours, which include both direct contact hours and independent study hours.
Kent Business School undergraduate students typically have 8-10 contact hours per week. It varies depending on which modules you’re doing (you can learn more about individual module details under Course structure). The remainder of the working week consists of independent study, where you’ll work through case studies, do problem sets, and carry out your own research with direction from your lecturers.
For programme aims and learning outcomes please see the programme specification.
Our graduates look to make their mark on the organisations they join, whether they are large multinational companies or small local firms in Kent.
Kent Business School students make their ambitions known, working at companies like:
Medway campus might be small, but it’s big in character and close-knit charm!
The 2024/25 annual tuition fees for this course are:
For details of when and how to pay fees and charges, please see our Student Finance Guide.
For students continuing on this programme, fees will increase year on year by no more than RPI + 3% in each academic year of study except where regulated.*
The University will assess your fee status as part of the application process. If you are uncertain about your fee status you may wish to seek advice from UKCISA before applying.
Find out more about accommodation and living costs, plus general additional costs that you may pay when studying at Kent.
Kent offers generous financial support schemes to assist eligible undergraduate students during their studies. See our funding page for more details.
We have a range of subject-specific awards and scholarships for academic, sporting and musical achievement.
We welcome applications from students all around the world with a wide range of international qualifications.
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Kent has risen 11 places in THE’s REF 2021 ranking, confirming us as a leading research university.
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