BA (Hons) Business & Human Resource Management (with Foundation Year)

What you will study

YEAR 1 (Foundation Year)

The Foundation Year is an integrated year where you will study core modules with a broad range of students from across the Faculty of Social and Life Sciences, giving you access to different perspectives and networking opportunities.   

The modules will equip you with key skills needed for Higher Education and beyond. They will give you the chance to explore your subject area and available careers, allowing you to adapt your reading and assessments to be relevant to your degree pathway.  

Alongside teaching from the broader faculty staff, you will be able to meet with staff and other students from your main degree pathway and get involved with events and opportunities that they are running.  

• Study Skills for Success (core) will give you a solid foundation in academic conventions and time management skills to help you to progress through your degree.  
• Resilience in Higher Education and Beyond (Core) Personal development and resilience are as important as academic skills in the accomplishment on your journey towards graduation, and this exciting new module will equip you with the attributes needed for this. 
• A Day in the Life (core) This module allows you to explore the potential career options open to you on completion of you chosen degree. You will be exploring the professions linked to your degree and start preparing your graduate portfolio for employers.  
• Life and Work in the Welsh Context (core) will give you the opportunity to explore your subject area and/or desired career in relation to living and working in today’s Wales. 

The suite of optional modules are designed to enhance your skills base in relation to your career development. Your personal tutor from your degree will meet with you to help you decide which one of the available optional modules would be most suitable for you.  The optional modules are:   

• Welsh for First Time Learners provides an introduction to the Welsh language for those taking their first steps Numeracy where your degree requires a competent level of numeracy, you may be advised to choose this option. 
• Professional Communication in the Workplace in this module, you will begin to develop the skills and aptitude necessary to communicate effectively in a professional context. 
• Maths and Experimental Design if your degree pathway requires an understanding of numeracy and sciences, then this module is designed to provide the opportunity to achieve that. 

There are a variety of assessments across the foundation year – presentations, portfolios, electronic scrapbooking, and learning logs are just some. 

YEAR 2 (LEVEL 4)

MODULES

• Introduction to Management & Business: This module will introduce students to some of the fundamentals of business, including organisational structure and the nature of the modern business practices. It will also provide opportunities for the student to acquire a broad understanding of management by exploring
  the skills and characteristics of effective managers and leaders, and techniques to successfully manage a team.
• Introduction to Business Finance & Accounting: This module aims to introduce the contemporary concepts and principles of accounting and finance so as to enhance the abilities of the students, by applying relevant management accounting, financial accounting and financial management techniques, to determine the most appropriate operational financial decisions, and analyse the effects of those decisions on a firm’s performance and financial position.
• Understanding Human Resource Management: This module provides a comprehensive understanding of the role of human resource management (HRM) in organisations. The module covers the following HRM fundamentals:
  - Types of organisation prevalent in the business world
  - The importance of human resource management and the role of HR practitioners
  - HR activities in organisations
  - Impact of technology on human resource management
• Marketing Essentials: This module is about recognising the importance of marketing’s role in driving success and delivering results. Students will learn about the different functions of marketing in the 21st century and will study how an appreciation of consumer behaviour and the marketing environment can enable effective targeting and planning. By the end of this module students will have gained an awareness of the various tools available to the modern day marketer, and be capable of recognising their strengths and weaknesses, enabling them to use them both creatively and effectively in an operational context including commercial and non-profit sector organisations.
• Business Communication Skills: The module aim is to recognise the importance of effective integrated internal and external communications in building sustainable relationships and delivering customer value. Students will also learn how to communicate effectively in a business and academic settings understanding the fundamentals of presentation skills, written communication and professional communication.
• Business Analytics: This module aims to develop a critical and practical understanding of the concepts and principles of analytics and the ability to apply these concepts to the systematic analysis of data within the contemporary business world.

YEAR 3 (LEVEL 5)

MODULES

• Managing Corporate Risk and Crime: This module aims to develop a critical understanding of the concepts and principles of the management of corporate risk and crime and the ability to apply these concepts to the business world. Risk is an inherent part of business, and as part of this module you will explore the risk management process including the identification of organisational risk, analysis of the likely effect of those risks, design and selection of control measures and the monitoring and evaluation of these measures. You will investigate risk as it relates to finances, health and safety, corporate manslaughter, workplace theft, among others. You will also consider recent/topical business scandals, and of latest and forthcoming developments in corporate governance and responsibility.
• Digital Business Strategy: This module aims to equip students with the skills needed to build digital competitive advantage in a rapidly changing world. The rules of business have changed and why it is no longer enough for firms to be better or cheaper to gain competitive advantage. These new rules make it essential for companies to re-examine four fundamental aspects of their business to thrive in the digital era—their strategy, value chain, customer engagement, and organization structure.
• Agile Leadership: This module aims to develop a critical and practical understanding of the concepts and principles of agile leadership and the ability to apply these concepts within the contemporary business world, to create the right environment for agile teams to succeed within an organization.
• Professional Behaviours & Valuing People: This module provides a platform for students to develop and enhance their core professional behaviours and skills, including ethics, values and professionalism, that will help to build positive relations at workplace and improve employee performance, participation and wellbeing. The module will also enable students to understand continuing professional development and identify developmental needs.
• Organisational Performance & Culture in Practice: This module provides comprehensive knowledge on the links between organisational structure, strategy, culture and how it impacts organisational performance and change. Additionally, students will gain an understanding on the impacts of external factors and how HR practices support organisational strategies.
• Organisational Development: This module provides a comprehensive understanding of the key concepts of organisational development. The module covers the following organisational development fundamentals:
  - Key concepts in organisational development
  - Models, theories, tools and techniques used as part of organisational development and change management
  - Role of an OD practitioner
• Optional Industrial Placement: The module aims to provide students with the opportunity to gain valuable experience in the workplace, specifically related to the student’s specialism, via first-hand experience. This module allows students to undertake a sustained period, embedded with a host employer, to work on one or more defined projects or goals. The student will be expected to find and secure a suitable placement opportunity in collaboration with NWBS. The Industry Placement will typically take place during the normal academic year, over the two normal university semesters. However, where necessary, it may start earlier and finish earlier where required by industry. As such its duration should normally be in the region of 40 weeks dependent on working hours.

YEAR 4 (LEVEL 6)

MODULES

• Strategic Management: This module presents a systematic approach to the study of strategic management, building upon an array of ideas and theories ranging from industrial organization theory to institutional economics. This unit outlines the fundamentals of strategic management and gives students an introduction in this important area of business management. Students will gain an awareness of the issues involved and the techniques that managers adopt. The tools and techniques will help students understand how organisations achieve sustainable competitive advantage.
• Employment Law: This module will give students a critical understanding of the increasingly complex area of UK employment law. Students will learn how the law affects employers and workers from the initial stages of recruitment right through to dismissal and redundancy. The module will investigate key pieces of UK and EU legislation and codes of practice, presented alongside case studies that demonstrate the importance of employment law in the workplace. This module will provide students not only with a better understanding of their rights as an employee or worker within the workplace, but it will also be invaluable if they employ staff or work within a HR department. It will also be useful to those considering working as trade union representatives.
• Managing People in an International Context: This module provides comprehensive knowledge and understanding of managing people in an international context. The impact of national and cultural contexts, international human resource management approaches (IHRM) and the future of IHRM will be covered as part of this module.
• Talent Management in Organisations: This module provides an understanding of labour markets and its impact on workforce planning. Students will learn about managing talent in organisations through succession planning, creating talent pools by identifying, training and developing talent, retention strategies and the importance of managing contracts and onboarding process. The module also covers the impact of technology and trends on talent management
• Dissertation: The aim of the dissertation module is for students to demonstrate the application of knowledge and skills gained during the undergraduate programme of study in all programme routes in an independent, self-motivated, enquiring and problem-solving manner. This serves to extend, underpin and enhance learning through the identification of a business/management problem in either business, accounting & finance, HTEM, HRM, Marketing and any other business related area which requires theoretical research, structured data collection, subsequent analysis leading to conclusions and recommendations.

The information listed in this section is an overview of the academic content of the programme that will take the form of either core or option modules. Modules are designated as core or option in accordance with professional body requirements and internal academic framework review, so may be subject to change.

Entry requirements & applying

Our general requirement for the foundation year is 48-72 UCAS tariff points but all applications are considered individually and we consider work experience, vocational training/qualifications, as well as motivation and potential to succeed.

Teaching & Assessment

Students are assessed in a variety of ways over the course of their undergraduate studies. The balance between the different forms of assessment is determined by the different aims and learning outcomes of the core and option modules. Assessment methods include academic essays, presentations, reports, simulation exercises and examinations.

Independent learning is an important aspect of all modules, as it enables students to develop both their subject-specific and key skills. Independent learning is promoted through the feedback given to students, which takes several forms including small group and one-to-one discussions.

TEACHING AND LEARNING

In accordance with sound educational research and current best practice, the BA Business and HRM programme will be delivered through a broad range of learning and teaching strategies. The delivery of the programme and its assessment will reflect the spirit of Wrexham University’s Learning, Teaching and Assessment Strategy and Active Learning Framework, with particular emphasis on:

• The development of autonomous learners.
• Support flexible learning by providing synchronous and Asynchronous learning
• Provision of learning opportunities that are personally and professionally relevant and quality assured.
• The maintenance of a supportive learning environment.
• The promotion of the scholarship of teaching.

Wrexham University is committed to supporting our students to maximise their academic potential.

We offer workshops and support sessions in areas such as academic writing, effective note-making and preparing for assignments. Students can book appointments with academic skills tutors dedicated to helping deal with the practicalities of university work. Our Student Support section has more information on the help available.

In terms of particular needs, the University’s Inclusion Services can provide appropriate guidance and support should any students require reasonable adjustments to be made because of a recognised prevailing disability, medical condition, or specific learning difference.

Career prospects

Our Careers & Employability service is there to help you make decisions and plan the next steps towards a bright future. From finding work or further study to working out your interests, skills and aspirations, they can provide you with the expert information, advice and guidance you need.

Our Business & HRM degree can be applied to almost any organisation in any sector. It is a versatile qualification for dealing with hiring, training, development and general people skills.

A degree in Business and Human Resource Management provides a variety of future opportunities for graduates. Jobs include, but are not limited to: 

• Human Resources- Administrator, Officer, Generalist, Consultant, Manager, Project Manager, Head of HR, Director, Analyst
• Recruitment and Training Coordinator 
• Employee Relations Coordinator 
• Benefits and Rewards Specialist 
• People Business Partner 
• Recruitment consultant
• Pensions Manager 
• People Analyst or Workforce Analytics Manager 
• Human Resource Information Systems (HRIS) Manager
• Learning and Development Manager 

Fees & funding

You do not have to pay your tuition fees upfront.

The fees you pay and the support available will depend on a number of different factors. Full information can be found on our fees & finance pages. You will also find information about what your fees include in the fee FAQs.

All fees are subject to any changes in government policy, view our undergraduate fees.

Programme specification

View the full program specification here

Accommodation

If you’re looking for a place to stay while you study then take a look at our accommodation pages to get more information on your options, including our on-campus halls of residence Wrexham Village.

International

If you are applying as an European / International Student, and live outside of the UK, you should make your application through our online application system, Centurus.

For information about the university’s entry requirements for EU/international students, please visit our international section.