Business Economics

This module introduces the fundamental principles of economics and explores how they shape the decisions of individuals, businesses and governments. You will examine how markets function as the foundation of modern economic systems, considering how supply, demand and prices influence outcomes. 

The module also explores market efficiency, government intervention and how economic decisions impact business strategy and society. By developing an understanding of these core concepts, you will build the knowledge and analytical skills needed to lead, innovate and contribute to more sustainable economic and business practices in an ever-changing global environment.

This module will introduce you to some of the major challenges and debates shaping today’s global economy. It examines topics such as international trade, the role of emerging markets, digital economy, AI, geopolitical and economic security. You will explore how economics interacts with politics and society, gaining insight into the economic policies driving global change towards sustainable and inclusive economic growth. 

Through a blended learning approach, this module fosters critical thinking and informed debate on real-world economic issues. By the end of the module, you will understand key contemporary challenges and develop essential research, analytical, and communication skills that will prepare you to lead, innovate and sustain progress in addressing today’s global economic challenges.

This is the start of your professional career, and this module lays the foundation that will support you in being a successful graduate. In your first year, you will research potential career options and map-out skills and opportunities to be developed through your second and third years. By building a graduate portfolio, and demonstrating employability skills, you will identify your strengths and weaknesses to create a personalised and targeted plan alongside your programme pathway. Starting early will give you the confidence and adaptability as you progress through your undergraduate career.

This module examines the twin forces shaping the future of business: the urgent drive toward sustainability and the disruptive potential of emerging technologies. You will explore ecological economics, climate change and the global energy transition alongside the dynamics of digital transformation, including artificial intelligence, Industry 4.0 and 5.0, robotics, automation, 3D printing, the Internet of Things, blockchain and virtual reality. 

Through case studies and applied learning, you will develop the ability to lead and innovate responsibly in a rapidly changing world, applying creative and sustainable solutions to transform industries and shape next-generation business strategies.

Through an immersive and intensive delivery, this introductory module explores how businesses operate through core functions like people management, finance, marketing and operations. Via an organisational visit and case studies, you will learn how organisations work and respond to external change. 

You will compare business types alongside developing essential academic and professional skills in analysis, reporting and presentation of information to support future study and careers. The module will leave you with understanding of appropriate academic practice and expectations of professional behaviour alongside a strong foundation of business knowledge to build on for the remainder of your degree discipline.

This module explores core microeconomic theory and its applications, focusing on rational consumer choice, the theory of the firm and labour markets. It examines how models are shaped when agents face incomplete information, including adverse selection and moral hazard. The module introduces behavioural economics, highlighting how heuristics, bounded rationality and social preferences influence choices. By integrating standard microeconomic analysis with behavioural insights, you will develop tools to critically assess real-world issues, focusing on individual decision-making and its implications for sustainable policy solutions.

This module explores the economics of sustainable development by examining how countries pursue growth while addressing poverty, inequality and environmental challenges. It introduces global perspectives on economic development and compares experiences across regions. You will engage with theories of economic growth, the dynamics of poverty and inequality and the relationship between the environment and development. 

Understanding the principles of development economics is essential for designing effective policies and programmes that shape the future of inclusive and sustainable economic growth. Through the integration of theory and applied case studies, this module equips you to critically evaluate development strategies and to lead, innovate and sustain progress in achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

This module prepares you to lead an important analytical and strategic project by applying advanced macroeconomic ideas and principles. You will take charge of designing, implementing and evaluating policies that address real economic, social and environmental issues. Working on a consultancy project with a partner organisation, you will learn how to sustain long-term impact by creating strong, evidence-based solutions that can be put into practice and make a lasting difference. This practical experience helps you build the confidence and skills needed to lead change and maintain positive results in real-world situations.

This module enables you to develop advanced analytical skills essential for informed decision-making, empowering you to lead with data. Through a blend of theoretical foundations and hands-on practice, you will learn to collect, clean analyse, visualise, and interpret data to support strategic business insights. Emphasising innovation, the module nurtures curiosity and entrepreneurial thinking, encouraging you to interrogate data critically and creatively. With a focus on sustainability, you will explore how data-driven decisions can contribute to long-term value for both people and planet.

This module will examine various aspects of project management through a variety of means, including online content and practical seminars informed by research and industrial collaborations. It will focus on theoretical approaches, tools and techniques of planning and controlling projects. You will learn to appreciate project management as an important and integral part of a business whether product or service based.

This module will enable you to build on the embedded employability skills developed during year one of the programme. Through engaging in various professional development and reflection activities, you will be able to identify or realise, evaluate, plan and lead on the development of your future-focused knowledge, skills, behaviours and activities required to help secure your professional career aspirations, according to your programme of study. You will develop knowledge on how to access career-specific and professional graduate-level job opportunities through exploring graduate-level labour market trends, and job-specific employer requirements. 

You will also draw on the expertise of the school’s Career’s and Employability team, employer visits and workshops delivered by the academic team within the school. This will enable you to identify and engage in innovative development strategies to improve your work experience and employability, enabling you to further strengthen in a sustained way your career-focused digital footprint in relation to your professional career goals and around the graduate level employer selection process.

This module explores how game theory can be used to understand and predict human behaviour in economic and social contexts. You will study foundational concepts such as Nash equilibrium, sequential and mixed-strategy games, and repeated interactions, alongside classical examples like the Prisoner's Dilemma. The module covers evolutionary games, uncertainty, risk, auctions and signalling, highlighting how strategic choices influence outcomes. You will apply game-theoretic models to real-world situations, developing skills to lead strategic decision-making and design innovative solutions in both competitive and cooperative settings.

This module explores how firms and markets operate, with a focus on competition, strategy and policy. You will examine competitive and concentrated markets, mergers and acquisitions, regulation and the role of competition authorities. The module also introduces alternatives to the neoclassical theory of the firm and analyses topics such as market power, price discrimination, product differentiation, innovation and network effects. 

By combining theory with real-world applications, it develops your ability to critically evaluate economic models, apply them to business and policy problems and understand how to lead in the development of policies and strategies that promote fair, efficient, resilient and sustainable markets. 

This module provides you with in depth understanding of strategy and leadership. Using scenarios, you will be equipped to lead transformational change, make evidence-based strategic decisions and contribute meaningfully to sustainable organisational performance in complex, dynamic environments. You will examine and critique the underlying principles of key leadership theories and critically evaluate how effective leaders embed a culture of innovation in organisations. Finally, you will review and critically examine the strategic role of leaders within organisations.

In this forward-thinking module, you will critically examine the impact of local business decisions across globalised value chains. The module builds on prior learning and integrates multi-disciplinary themes, including ethical leadership, innovation and digital transformation, to explore how businesses can accelerate progress towards the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Through case-studies, co-creation activities and student research, you will critically reflect on the assumptions and systems that underpin business as usual before examining the role of managers and leaders in leading change to address the complex challenges of environmental sustainability and social inequalities. The module prepares you for your final year of study and future as an independent learner, by developing your academic skills and problem-solving mindset as you investigate, present and recommend innovative solutions to inspire positive change in both local and global communities.

This module enables you to step confidently into your future as a professional graduate. Building on your development at Levels 4 and 5, you will critically reflect on who you are, what you offer, and how you will make your contribution. You will deepen your emotional intelligence, evaluate workplace behaviours, and identify strengths and aspirations to shape a compelling professional identity. Using strengths-based diagnostics and simulated recruitment environments, you will learn to lead through critical thinking and data-driven decisions, innovate with curiosity and entrepreneurial skills, and sustain positive impact for people and planet while building a lifelong learning plan.

This module examines how economic principles can be applied to understand and address key social problems in contemporary society. You will explore issues such as crime, housing, welfare, inequality, health and education, analysing how markets, government policies and social institutions interact. Through critical evaluation and applied case studies, you will learn how to design and assess effective policy responses. The module develops the ability to lead and innovate in tackling real-world challenges while promoting sustainable economic and social outcomes, equipping you with the analytical and problem-solving skills needed for policy and business decision making.

This module develops the skills to lead evidence-based economic and policy analysis through rigorous causal evaluation. You will learn to innovate using econometric techniques such as social and natural experiments, propensity score matching, difference-in-differences, instrumental variables and regression discontinuity design. 

Emphasising both theory and application, the module explores real-world cases including education, regulation and social programmes. By the end, you will be able to lead critical assessments of causal relationships, innovate in research design and sustain high standards of analytical integrity in addressing complex economic and policy challenges.