MSc, 1 year full time/2 years part time
Subject overview
Our degrees are taught by world-renowned faculty with a strong background in relevant areas of research. Our research was highly rated in the 2008 Research Assessment Exercise (RAE). On average 80 per cent of our research was rated as recognised internationally or higher, and half rated as internationally excellent or higher.
Business studies at Sussex was ranked in the top 25 in the UK in The Times Good University Guide 2013.
Our range of business, management and finance degrees builds on Sussex’s strong foundation of interdisciplinary study.
Our part-time MBA builds on Sussex’s extensive research reputation including that of SPRU – Science and Technology Policy Research, ranked 1st science and policy think tank in the UK and 6th in the world (University of Pennsylvania: Global Go To Think Tanks Report 2011). The MBA focuses on the application of acquired knowledge and skills to practical and strategic challenges within the management of public- and private-sector organisations.
Our American Express-sponsored MSc in Technology and Innovation Management has a strong record of employment opportunities and many graduates go on to work with American Express.
The University of Sussex offers opportunities encompassing corporate risk management, entrepreneurship, international finance, and international and innovation management.
Our teaching is designed to provide you with the knowledge and skills to compete effectively in the fast-paced world of work. We are tailoring our taught degrees to meet current and future employer demands, and will continue to adapt to the changing employment market.
Our degrees offer a choice between practice- and research-oriented study opportunities. They have been developed drawing on the expertise and input of experienced practitioners from industry and professional bodies. These experts complement our own expertise in research, and help to enrich the learning experience for all our students.
Programme outline
People are increasingly likely to work within the small- and medium-sized enterprises (SME) sector and to start their own businesses, while those within the corporate, public and third sectors are increasingly expected to work in project-based venture teams. Entrepreneurial skills are essential for career success.
This is an intensive degree designed to provide you with an in-depth understanding of entrepreneurship, enterprise and small business in different organisational, sectoral and geographical contexts. It also helps you to build practical skills related to identification of opportunities and conceptualising, designing, managing and growing new ventures (eg writing an entrepreneurial business plan for a new venture).
We continue to develop and update our modules for 2013 entry to ensure you have the best student experience. In addition to the course structure below, you may find it helpful to refer to the 2012 modules tab.
Autumn term: you take Managing Innovation • Perspectives on Entrepreneurship and Small Business. You also choose one from Accounting and Finance for Managers • Global Business • Marketing Management.
Spring term: you take Entrepreneurship. You also choose two from Corporate Governance • Entrepreneurial Finance • Global Marketing Management • Managing Intellectual Property.
Summer term: you carry out your research project.
A research methods module runs throughout the academic year.
Assessment
Modules are assessed by a combination of coursework, essays, group and individual reports, and presentations. There are also unseen examinations.
Current modules
Please note that these are the core modules and options (subject to availability) for students starting in the academic year 2012.
Accounting and Finance for Managers
15 credits
Autumn teaching, year 1
This module is designed as an introduction for non-financial managers to comparative international accounting and financial reporting and analysis within the context of converging standards. No prior knowledge of accounting procedures is assumed or required. As part of the module, you will produce a business financial analysis report.
Design Thinking for Entrepreneurship, Management and Organisation
15 credits
Autumn teaching, year 1
This module will introduce students to 'design thinking as driver of innovation, i.e. a set of problem-solving tools and problem-finding frameworks that lead to innovation and strategic leadership. Visual thinking, conceptual block-busting, user-Centered design, and user-driven innovation are not just tools for designers but can be harnessed by people to transform their organizations and society. It will teach you concepts and methodologies for incorporating innovation into your everyday practices.
Entrepreneurial Finance
15 credits
Spring teaching, year 1
This module provides you with an understanding of the role finance plays in the survival and growth of small firms. It begins by discussing the challenges of characterising firm growth and how firms use capital to grow, drawing upon empirical evidence on the topic. It then covers the variety of sources firms may use for external capital, including (but not limited to) banks, business angels, venture capitalists and small cap stock markets, and how these investments are valued. It concludes by discussing differences in funding environments for small firms in different countries, and covers the challenges faced by policymakers in developing policy tools to provide support for small firms.
Entrepreneurship
30 credits
Spring teaching, year 1
This module provides you with a comprehensive understanding of the entrepreneurial process and the development of new ventures, with equal attention paid to the private, public and third sectors.
Entrepreneurship is viewed as a process to provide sustainable economic, social and institutional change that starts with the conception of an idea and leads to the creation and management of an entrepreneurial venture.
Conceptual foundations are matched with practical training to enable you to formulate and explore entrepreneurial ideas and opportunities, and designing and creating new ventures.
Global Business
15 credits
Autumn teaching, year 1
The module will widen the perspective of aspiring managers regarding the strategic implications of global change and facilitate more informed strategic planning and implementation within companies. The module is introductory and wide ranging in scope. A balance is sought between theory and practice with seminars placing an emphasis on contemporary case studies.
Global Marketing Management
15 credits
Spring teaching, year 1
The task of marketing managers is to discover new markets and opportunities in the global market place. This module is intended to provide you with a global perspective and understanding of international marketing as a context for domestic and international business and management. In addition, it will enable you to become conversant with the theoretical background for international marketing activities as well as an overall perspective of these theories within the context of an organisation. Moreover, the module takes a practical, marketing-management approach: concepts that are applied through countless examples of situations in which international companies assess and solve their global marketing problems. This module will also provide coverage of the new marketing technologies that are revolutionising the way companies bring value to their customers such as direct and on-line marketing. Finally the module will develop a number of tools of analysis with which you can analyse and interpret the role and functions of marketing, in both internal and external environments.
International Entrepreneurship
15 credits
Spring teaching, year 1
The focus of this module is on the development and growth of new firms from establishment to the early stages of international development. Much of the core teaching in international business relates to the strategic decisions made by established large firms, but SMEs are increasingly engaged in both foreign trade and investment - as is evidenced by the phenomena of born-global firms, international new ventures, and rapidly internationalising firms. In this context, the links between entrepreneurship, innovation, and internationalisation are crucial.
Managing Intellectual Property
15 credits
Spring teaching, year 1
Protecting intellectual assets has become a key success factor for organisations in the knowledge-based economy.This module provides the knowledge and tools for managing intellectual property (IP), and how best to deploy and appropriate these to create value from the perspective of both private and public-sector organisations.
More specifically, you will gain an understanding of IP strategies and approaches in multinational corporations, small and medium-sized enterprises, as well as universities and research institutes. You will learn about patents and copyrights as instruments to protect IP, as well as develop an understanding of less formal, alternative approaches.
Marketing Management
15 credits
Autumn teaching, year 1
Gone are the stable markets of yesteryear. Today's markets are characterised by rapidly changing customers' wants, accelerating pace of technological advances, and intensifying competition, presenting major challenges for both incumbent and upstart enterprises alike. For most organisations, marketing is a major determinant of success. This module is designed to help you develop an appreciation of the role of marketing and the management of marketing functions in the modern organisation. The impact of marketing and the contribution of marketing to organisational performance in the dynamic, globally competitive markets of today will be addressed. The module will also focus on what being market-oriented really means in practice to organisations operating in manufacturing and service industries, as well as in profit and non-profit enterprises.
The module will introduce you to the theories, concepts, models, techniques and current best-practices for developing and implementing marketing strategies and actions. Marketing decision-making should not take place in a vacuum, and this course will familiarise you with the components of market analysis and strategy development with respect to the organisation, its customers, competitors and collaborators. There will also be indepth coverage of marketing implementation and control issues through the concept of the integrated marketing mix: the product/service offering and customer service, communications, pricing and channels.
Perspectives on Entrepreneurship and Small Business
30 credits
Autumn teaching, year 1
The module provides you with up-to-date and relevant insights into contemporary academic thinking on entrepreneurship and small business, emerging and cutting edge themes in entrepreneurship theory and practice and exposure to emerging trends that will shape the future entrepreneurial landscape. It draws on a wide range of perspectives and examples to cover core themes and topics in the area including: the formation and growth of new ventures; working and managing in small businesses; entrepreneurial management in small firms; public policy, entrepreneurship and small business; entrepreneurship in the private, public and third sector and contemporary issues in entrepreneurship and small business research.
Research Methods
15 credits
Spring teaching, year 1
The main aims of this module are to introduce a range of research methods for the collection and analysis of both quantitative and qualitative data, to advance your analytic research skills through practical experience, and to develop your skills in reading and evaluating journal articles and research papers.
The main topics to be covered are: literature reviews, searches and referencing; social science research; case study research - comparative and longitudinal methods; survey research; basic concepts in statistical analysis; goodness-of-fit tests & contingency tables - correlation analysis; simple comparative tests; ANOVA: one-way and RCB designs; two-variable regression and multiple regression.
Research Project (Management & Entrepreneurship)
30 credits
Summer teaching, year 1
You undertake an independent Business Analysis Report, offering you the opportunity to pursue selected issues in greater depth, and to integrate these with broader theoretical and analytical work.
Entry requirements
UK entrance requirements
A first- or upper second-class undergraduate honours degree.
Overseas entrance requirements
Please refer to column A on the Overseas qualifications.
If you have any questions about your qualifications after consulting our overseas
qualifications table, contact the University.
E pg.enquiries@sussex.ac.uk
Visas and immigration
Find out more about Visas and immigration.
English language requirements
IELTS 7.0, with not less than 6.5 in each section. Internet TOEFL with 95 overall, with at least 22 in Listening, 23 in Reading, 23 in Speaking and 24 in Writing.
For more information, refer to English language requirements.
Additional admissions information
You are strongly advised to submit your application by 31 March.
If you are a non-EU student and your qualifications (including English language) do not yet meet our entry requirements for admission directly to this degree, we offer a Pre-Masters entry route. For more information, refer to Pre-Masters.
For more information about the admissions process at Sussex
For pre-application enquiries:
Student Recruitment Services
T +44 (0)1273 876787
E pg.enquiries@sussex.ac.uk
For post-application enquiries:
Postgraduate Admissions,
University of Sussex,
Sussex House, Falmer,
Brighton BN1 9RH, UK
T +44 (0)1273 877773
F +44 (0)1273 678545
E pg.applicants@sussex.ac.uk
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- Human-Computer Interaction MSc
- Information Technology with Business and Management MSc
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- Scientific Computation MSc
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Fees and funding
Fees
Home UK/EU students: £6,9501
Channel Island and Isle of Man students: £6,9502
Overseas students: £14,1003
1
The fee shown is for the academic year 2013.
2
The fee shown is for the academic year 2013.
3
The fee shown is for the academic year 2013.
To find out about your fee status, living expenses and other costs, visit further financial information.
Funding
The funding sources listed below are for the subject area you are viewing and may not apply to all degrees listed within it. Please check the description of the individual funding source to make sure it is relevant to your chosen degree.
To find out more about funding and part-time work, visit further financial information.
Leverhulme Trade Charities Trust for Postgraduate Study (2013)
Region: UK
Level: PG (taught), PG (research)
Application deadline: 1 October 2013
The Leverhulme Trade Charities Trust are offering bursaries to Postgraduate students following any postgraduate degree courses in any subject.
Sussex Graduate Scholarship (2013)
Region: UK, Europe (Non UK), International (Non UK/EU)
Level: PG (taught)
Application deadline: 16 August 2013
Open to final year Sussex students who graduate with a 1st or 2:1 degree and who are offered a F/T place on an eligible Masters course in 2013.
Faculty interests
The research interests of selected faculty are briefly described below. For more details, visit the Department of Business and Management, the Department of Economics, the Department of Mathematics, and SPRU – Science and Technology Policy Research.
Professor Carol Alexander Mathematical finance, financial econometrics, market risk analysis.
Mike Barrow Public-sector economics, local government, efficiency and value for money.
Lisa Blatch Delivers the Negotiation module on the MSc in Global Supply Chain and Logistics Management.
Dr Odul Bozkurt International human resource management.
Dr Ioanna Chini Social study of ICT, ICT policy.
Professor Ian Davidson Financial markets and instruments, application of quantum mechanics.
Dr Des Doran Supply chain management, modularisation, service operations.
Dr Bertram Düring Applied and financial mathematics.
Rob Eastwood Demographic change and economic development.
Dr Sonja Fagernas Development economics.
Professor John Forker Financial accounting and reporting, earnings quality, equity pricing.
Dr Bruce Hearn Emerging financial markets of Asia and Africa.
Dr Michael Hopkins Biomedical innovation systems, for products (eg drugs) or services (eg diagnostic testing).
Dr Surendranath Jory Mergers and acquisitions.
Dr Norifumi Kawai Internationalisation of Asian firms, strategic human resource management.
Dr Marv Khammash Interactive marketing, consumer behaviour, marketing communication.
Dr Andreas Kornelakis Globalisation and models of capitalism, outsourcing, training policies.
Dr Omar Lakkis Numerical analysis and scientific computing.
Dr Rebecca Liu New product development.
Professor Robert Livingston Intergroup relations, managing cultural and ethnic diversity, conflict resolution.
Dr Michelle Luke Self/identity, attitudes and values, positive psychology and risk perception.
Dr Anotida Madzvamuse Bio-membranes.
Professor Emmanuel Mamatzakis Banking and finance, forecasting, public finance.
Dr Monica Masucci Strategy and entrepreneurship.
Professor Roman Matousek Bank efficiency, microeconomics of banking, monetary policy.
Royston Morgan Consultant who delivers the Outsourcing module on the MSc in Global Supply Chain and Logistics Management.
Dr Piera Morlacchi New technological, organisational and institutional forms.
Dr Mike Osborne Applications in economic theory.
Dr Dimitra Petrakaki Implications of technology in organisational change.
Dr Matias Ramirez Relationship between labour mobility, knowledge flows.
Professor Barry Reilly Applied econometrics.
Dr Vikrant Shirodkar International business, strategy.
Dr Josh Siepel Development of the venture capital sectors in the US and the UK.
Dr Malcolm Stewart Global marketing, digital marketing, advertising and branding strategy.
Professor David Storey OBE The economic environment in which small firms operate.
Professor Roger Strange Corporate governance and FDI decisions.
Professor Mike Sumner Macroeconomics and public finance.
Richard Sykes Working for a range of clients in the public and private sectors.
Dr Qi Tang Mathematical and statistical modelling of financial, corporate and technological risks.
Dr Shqiponja Telhaj Economics of education.
Professor Joe Tidd Innovation strategy.
Dr Joana Vassilopoulou Organisational behaviour, employment studies.
Dr Jie Wen Banking and finance.
Dr Mirela Xheneti Entrepreneurship in post-communist countries.
Dr Biao Yang Logistics and supply chain management, service operations management, mass customisation.
Dr Yong Yang International business, applied economics, technology outsourcing.
Dr Xiaoxiang Zhang Corporate governance, corporate finance, information efficiency.
Careers and profiles
Our MSc may be attractive if you aim to work in:
- self-employment, or manage your own venture
- an entrepreneurial position in an international organisation
- entrepreneurial ventures in the public/private/third sector (eg universities and research institutes)
- business development consultancy.
For more information, visit Careers and alumni.
School and contacts
School of Business, Management and Economics
The School of School of Business, Management and Economics is a unique, research-focused business school, which takes a strong policy-directed view on business practices while also developing the underlying core disciplines.
School of Business, Management and Economics,
Jubilee Building,
University of Sussex, Falmer,
Brighton BN1 9SL, UK
T +44 (0)1273 872668
E bmec@sussex.ac.uk
Department of Business and Managament
Department of Economics
Discover Postgraduate Study information sessions
You’re welcome to attend one of our Discover Postgraduate Study information sessions. These are held in the spring and summer terms and enable you to find out more about postgraduate study and the opportunities Sussex has to offer.
Visit Discover Postgraduate study to book your place.
Other ways to visit Sussex
We run weekly guided campus tours every Wednesday afternoon, year round. Book a place online at Visit us and Open Days.
You are also welcome to visit the University independently without any pre-arrangement.
