Business Administration (Professional Placement) MBA

Gain the skills and experience to succeed in the business world through our course dedicated to aspiring leaders. You will have the opportunity to gain hands-on industry experience in place of a traditional dissertation.

For the MBA, you’ll complete a series of taught modules and then spend a year in a professional placement, applying your knowledge to a real business. Whether you’re getting hands-on with marketing, finance, supply chains, sustainability or international business, it will help you explore your career ambitions.

Our careers team can support you in finding the right placement. At the end of the placement, you’ll write an 8,000-word reflection and do a 15-minute presentation.

The course covers core competencies in strategy, risk management, leadership, innovation and entrepreneurship. It is taught through real-world challenges and practical problem-solving, using dynamic case studies. The aim is to help you navigate the rapidly-changing business environment.

You could be exploring anything from how to expand a company overseas, sell off a loss-making operation or tackle trade issues. You will also develop your understanding of strategic decision-making and how to deliver against key drivers of quality, cost and timescale.

We offer different start dates for the course and you’ll be able to draw on the varied expertise of our well-established Business School. The MBA may particularly appeal to international students looking to gain leadership and management skills.

You will complete six core modules and a professional placement, which forms an integral part of the MBA.

You’ll explore entrepreneurship and innovation in practice, how management strategies can improve organisational performance, and how to create a sustained competitive advantage. We also cover how to develop marketing plans across a range of international environments, along with making ethical and socially responsible decisions.

You’ll learn about risk management and sustainable global supply chain management as well.

The professional placement is likely to involve a role equivalent to being a management trainee, where you can apply skills you’ve learnt on the course. You will be expected to keep a reflective journal during the placement, which will inform your final assessment.