Welcome to your Business Management (Events) course

Welcome to University of Staffordshire

We know you're already passionate about your subject, which is why we're excited you've chosen University of Staffordshire as the place to turn possibility into reality.

To give you an insight into what life as a Business Management (Events) student is like, your course leaders have prepared introductions to the course and further activities.

Welcome to BSc (Hons) Business Management (Events)! We’re excited to meet you and begin the journey….

This course will immerse you in the world of business and management and provide you the skills and experience for your future career. You'll learn the principles of business and management along with subject specific modules such as event design and delivery, marketing and people and safety management. You'll also start thinking strategically and creatively about events and festivals, in a variety of commercial contexts.

First activity

The first semester is an opportunity to make new friends and build a support network of peers and mentors. This network can provide academic support, share experiences, and help you adjust to university life.

You'll attend lectures, discussions, and tutorials. This is a time to immerse yourself in the subjects you're passionate about and gain foundational knowledge.

In the first year, the course will provide the groundings of events management and business environments. You will cover modules such as: foundations of HRM, introduction to management accounting, marketing in the business environment and managerial economics.

Course delivery

You will be taught through a combination of lectures, seminars and workshops. Seminars enable you to discuss and develop your understanding of topics covered in lectures in smaller groups. In addition, you will have meetings with an academic mentor at least twice a year.

The course will provide you with opportunities to engage with formative modules and engagement activities to help us to gauge your understanding of your subject informally before you complete the formal assessments.

There is a formal or ‘summative’ assessment at the end of each module. This includes a range of coursework assessments, practical portfolio work, development logbooks, written reports, presentations, and independent supervised projects. The grades from formal assessments count towards your module mark, and ultimately to your degree classification.

You’ll often be given independent learning tasks (homework) that are designed to consolidate your learning and give you opportunities to complete tutorials or practice what you’ve learnt from your scheduled sessions. This is what we refer to as self-managed study time. Assignments are broken up into milestones throughout the semesters.

In terms of practical elements during the course you will also plan, deliver, and evaluate an event and learn to create unforgettable experiences and shape the events industry’s future – from music, sports and business events to fundraisers and weddings. There are various events taking place across the academic calendar separate to those highlighted within your timetable. You are actively encouraged to take part/volunteer at these to gain as much experience of the real-world events as possible.

In the final year you will take part in a consultancy module whereby you will develop collaborative management project with an organisation of your choice to identify an area of research beneficial to both you and the organisation. You will be involved in real-time problem solving, develop a set of recommendations based on your research findings and present those findings to the organisation. By collaborating with events professionals, you’ll gain valuable skills to help you develop your career.

Pre-learning

The university provides academic resources such as libraries, writing centres, tutoring services, and study groups. Get to know what is available to you and take advantage of these resources to enhance your learning experience.

Reference texts to familiarise yourself with:

Bowdin, G., Allen, J., O'Toole, W., Harris, R. and McDonnell, I. (2011) Events Management. 3rd Edition. Abingdon: Routledge.
Getz, D. and Page, S.J. (2016) Event Studies; Theory, Research and Policy for Planned Events. Third Edition. Abingdon: Routledge.

Foundation year semester one activities

On the foundation year you will cover modules such as: business performance, communication in the digital age, external business environments and managing for people and profit. You will also undertake a business simulation project.

This year will act as a steppingstone and will provide you confidence by strengthening your academic background. Beyond subject-specific knowledge, the foundation year will emphasise the development of transferable skills such as critical thinking, research, and communication, which are valuable in any academic or professional setting moving forward.

Foundation year pre-learning

The university provides academic resources such as libraries, writing centres, tutoring services, and study groups. Get to know what is available to you and take advantage of these resources to enhance your learning experience.

Reference texts to familiarise yourself with:

Porter, M (2004) Competitive Advantage : creating and sustaining superior performance. New York: Free Press
McDonald, M & Meldrum, M (2013) The Complete Marketer. London: Kogan Page
Paul, D. et al. (2020) Business Analysis. 4th edn. Swindon: BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT

Equipment and software

Essential equipment and facilities include:

A laptop computer
A reliable Broadband internet connection at your place of residence
Access to Staffordshire University’s Virtual Learning Environment ‘Blackboard’
Access to your Staffordshire University e-mail inbox
Access to key Staffordshire University websites
Access to the Staffordshire University online Library Portal for the Library Catalogue and links to e-Resources (such as subscribed e-books and journals)

Desirable equipment and facilities include:

A headset for listening to audio content
A microphone for creating audio content
A webcam
Access to Microsoft™ Office 365 products (such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Teams, etc.) which are provided by the university
Access to remote tutorials and Webinars (primarily using Blackboard Collaborate online video conferencing)

Software you will need to have on your computer includes:

Web browser (Google Chrome tends to work best with Blackboard)
A Word-processing programme
Adobe Acrobat – for reading on-line documents and electronic journals – this can be downloaded for free

You will need to be a proficient computer user, though technical help will be available if you have trouble with specific applications or tasks. The amount of time you will need to spend connected to the internet per week will be very variable. Most weeks it will be several hours. You can also download all the reading onto your own laptop and safely store it for future use.

Download software

Meet the team

Amanda Payne

Senior Lecturer

Amanda is an active researcher and Course Leader for the FdA Visitor Attraction and Resort Management. She is working towards A PhD and is currently researching poverty alleviation through art and cultural tourism in Cambodia.

Amanda's profile

What to expect on Welcome Week

We're so excited for you to join us on campus and to welcome you to where you matter. During your welcome week you'll be able to meet our friendly student services teams, connect with new friends, join societies, explore on-campus venues attend club nights and much more.

Your course leader is Amanda Payne – Amanda.payne@staffs.ac.uk

If you have any doubts or issues, do not hesitate to contact her.

We look forward to welcoming you to the campus in September.