Overview
Our Business and Finance BSc focuses on teaching and training you, as well as ensuring you get work placement experience at home or abroad.
This degree aims to provide you with sound financial knowledge, placed in a business context. We hope to provide you with a firm understanding of the role of business in society and how finance can impact on and be used to improve business performance.
Professional experience and skills development are embedded throughout the course with different opportunities. You’ll hear from current practitioners, take part in trade games and discuss contemporary issues, such as sustainability, financial crisis and technological innovation.
Coventry has excellent links with national and international employers, like PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), Grant Thornton, Ernst & Young, IBM and Jaguar Land Rover. Our teaching is grounded in the corporate world, using real-life international case studies and providing a range of exciting work placement options.
Why Coventry University?
An award-winning university, we are committed to providing our students with the best possible experience. We continue to invest in both our facilities and our innovative approach to education. Our students benefit from industry-relevant teaching, and resources and support designed to help them succeed. These range from our modern library and computing facilities to dedicated careers advice and our impressive Students’ Union activities.
Global ready
An international outlook, with global opportunitiesEmployability
Career-ready graduates, with the skills to succeedTeaching Excellence
Taught by lecturers who are experts in their fieldCourse essentials
A degree which offers you more, at no extra costAccreditation and Professional Recognition
This course is accredited and recognised by the following bodies:
Chartered Management Institute (CMI)
This course is accredited by the Chartered Management Institute (CMI) offering you the option to register and gain a Level 5 Certificate, which can help to enhance your employability skills with a professional qualification (fees apply to become a registered CMI student).
European Foundation for Management Development (EFMD)
Chartered Association of Business Schools (CABS)
Chartered Insurance Institute (CII)
Our Facilities
Trading Floor
Students have opportunities to practice simulated trading and other finance-related activities using the various types of demo software available in the Trading Floor.
Business Simulation Suite
Coventry Business School's Business Simulation Suite utilises the latest business simulation software to give students the opportunity to improve their business skills.
DigiComm Lab
Designed to build creative minds, the DigiComm Lab is equipped with the latest industry-standard marketing and advertising software and devices to support your creative development.
What our alumni say
I enjoyed the challenging modules and the way the course related to real-life issues and situations. The social life was great too.
Course information
Do you have an interest in current financial and business issues? Do you find yourself asking questions about how the financial crisis impacted on businesses? Are you interested in the way businesses obtain and manage their financing?
Our degree has been designed to deepen your knowledge of the wider business and finance environment. You’ll explore innovative corporate practices and discover the implications and opportunities of globalisation, all the while developing key business, entrepreneurial and personal skills, such as team working, communication and problem solving.
Course specification
Download PDF
Modules
We regularly review our course content, to make it relevant and current for the benefit of our students. For these reasons, course modules may be updated.
We are ranked as the 15th best University in the United Kingdom
Guardian University Guide 2020
In more detail...
Throughout the course, teaching is designed to embed the professional skills required by business and finance sector employers. We draw on real-world case studies and use a range of innovative practical exercises, such as trade games. You may be tasked, for example, with advising a UK company with overseas subsidiaries to gain experience of international strategy and financial planning.
You’ll have access to one of largest academic trading floors in Europe, which incorporates analytical, news and data platforms to give you first-hand experience of these industry-standard tools. For example, previous students have used Bloomberg, Thomson Reuters Eikon, Thomson Reuters Datastream or Fitch Connect.
We enjoy close links with many professional accounting and finance bodies, such as the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW), Chartered Insurance Institute (CII), CFA Society of the UK (CFA UK) and Chartered Institute for Securities and Investment (CISI). Guest speakers often deliver sessions in commercial awareness, employability and working in the business sector. Past students have undertaken placements and gone on to work for prestigious companies including Microsoft, IBM, Tesco Graduate Scheme, Jaguar Land Rover and the NHS.
You’ll be taught by highly qualified staff with substantial experience in practice and industry, many with active research interests in areas such as auditing, banking, corporate finance and financial markets. They regularly bring contemporary practice into the classroom, for example, monitoring relevant news stories like the furore around public pensions or executive bonuses, to stimulate debate and discussion.
- Coventry Business School was ranked ‘excellent’ in 2018 by Eduniversal, an annual ranking of business schools in over 150 countries
- Facilities include our Trading Floor, one of the largest of its kind in Europe, featuring 42 dual screen Bloomberg terminals.
- Coventry Business School is an active member of the European Foundation for Management Development (EFMD) and Chartered Association of Business Schools (CABS).
- Course is recognised by the Chartered Financial Analyst Society of the UK (CFA UK) and provides exemptions from the Chartered Insurance Institute (CII).
- Opportunity for all students to apply for an internship or sandwich placement with national and international companies as well as a large number of small to medium-sized firms and organisations.
- Accredited by the Chartered Management Institute (CMI) this course gives you the option of registering and gaining a Level 5 Certificate, which can enhance your employability skills (registration fees apply).
Eduniversal, an annual ranking of business schools in over 150 countries, ranked Coventry Business School as 'excellent' in 2018.
Our main study themes are:
- Business policy and strategy: The development of appropriate policies and strategies within a changing global environment to meet stakeholder interests.
- Finance fundamentals: The basic principles, rationale and methods used in analysing, planning and managing finances.
- Operations: The management of projects and day-to-day business operations, including scheduling, resource planning, quality assurance and operations.
- Markets: The development and operation of international markets for resources, goods and services, including considerations of customers and their expectations.
- Statistical analysis and quantitative methods: Essential numeracy skills and analysis including the use of specialist software such as SPSS.
This course is available on a three-year full-time basis or a four-year sandwich basis, where between Years Two and Three there is one year of supervised work experience or a 12-month period studying abroad. The Business Futures team will assist you in applying for a suitable placement, preferably in a business- or finance-related position in a private, public or charitable organisation.
Wherever possible, we try to incorporate topical issues from the news and introduce professionally relevant coursework and experiences. An example includes a group coursework which student undertake that is based on a topic which is of current interest to the banking industry. Students take on the role as consultants who have been asked to complete a project for a client and are expected to present in front of a panel consisting of professional bankers and/or members of professional bodies which requires for them to carry out significant amounts of independent research.
The School has excellent links with employers including PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), Grant Thornton, Ernst & Young, IBM and Jaguar Land Rover. We offer various career development events, providing exposure to these and other local and national businesses. In the past, for example, ICAEW Coventry has held a workshop on employment, while PwC have provided guidance to students on the application process for graduate jobs.
Throughout your studies, you will have access to one of the Faculty’s Progress Coaches, who will be able review and discuss your progress with you and will be available for advice.
Teaching methods include: weekly lectures, small group seminars and tutorials.
Meet our staff
Dr. Jacek Niklewski
Jacek Niklewski is a senior lecturer in finance.
Read full profileThis course will be assessed using a variety of methods which will could vary depending upon the module. Assessment methods include formal examinations, coursework, tests, essays, group work, presentations and posters.
The Coventry University Group assessment strategy ensures that our courses are fairly assessed and allows us to monitor student progression towards the achieving the intended learning outcomes. Assessments may include exams, individual assignments or group work elements.
On successful completion, you should be able to:
- Understand and analyse the nature and context of business organisations.
- Formulate and suggest solutions to business problems.
- Analyse and produce financial solutions to complex business decisions.
- Critically evaluate relevant qualitative and quantitative data in the areas of business and finance.
- Apply numeracy and quantitative skills including data analysis, interpretation and extrapolation.
- Use effective communication, oral and in writing, using a range of media which are widely used in business, such as the preparation and presentation of business and financial reports.
- Identify assumptions, evaluate statements in terms of evidence, detect false logic or reasoning, identify implicit values, define terms adequately and generalise appropriately.
- Create, evaluate and assess a range of options together with the capacity to apply ideas and knowledge to a range of situations.
- Conduct research into business, finance and management issues, either individually or as part of a team for projects/dissertations/presentations.
We set out below the typical teaching contact hours that you will receive on this course. Teaching contact hours will vary in different semesters and years of study and may vary due to module selection. In addition to the contact hours below, we offer the opportunity to attend additional optional sessions, including sessions with the Faculty’s progress coaches, or to meet with staff during their advice and feedback hours.
Within your first and second year, you will have 12 contact hours of teaching which includes:
- Medium group teaching: 6 hours of practical classes, seminars or workshops per week.
- Large group teaching: 6 hours of lectures each week.
In your final year, if you are undertaking a project/dissertation, there is a greater emphasis placed on independent study and therefore total contact hours may be reduced.
In addition, you will be expected to undertake a significant amount of studying and revising in your own time each week, including some guided study using, for example, handouts or online activities.
There are opportunities to take part in a number of overseas field trips, some of which have previously been subsidised by the University. In the past, our students have visited universities in China and Malaysia to study alongside students, see how finance is taught internationally, appreciate the issues in different countries and broaden their perspectives. Future field trips are planned to India and Hong Kong.
You will also have the opportunity to study or work abroad and may be supported by schemes such as Erasmus, Marco Polo and Vasco da Gama.
Global ready
Did you know we help more students travel internationally than any other UK university according to data from the experts in higher education data and analysis, HESA?
In 2016/17, we were able to provide a total of 3,482 experiences abroad that lasted at least five days.
Much of this travel is made possible through our Global Leaders Programme, which enables students to prepare for the challenges of the global employment market, as well as strengthening and developing their broader personal and professional skills.
1st for
international experiences
Sending more students overseas than any other UK uni (HESA 2016/17)
3,482
Student experiences
The number of student trips abroad for at least 5 days in 2016/17
21,000
and counting
The number of students we’ve helped travel internationally so far
12
global programmes
As well as trips, we offer other opportunities like language courses
What our alumni say
I enjoyed the challenging modules and the way the course related to real-life issues and situations. The social life was great too.
Entry Requirements
What our alumni say
I enjoyed the challenging modules and the way the course related to real-life issues and situations. The social life was great too.
Tuition Fees
We pride ourselves on offering competitive tuition fees which we review on an annual basis and offer a wide range of scholarships to support students with their studies. Course fees are calculated on the basis of what it costs to teach each course and we aim for total financial transparency.
For more information, please visit our Finance pages.
Course essentials at no extra cost
We're committed to communicating study costs clearly to make sure you're not faced with having to make any unexpected payments.
This is why our ‘Flying Start’ package provides you with a few course essentials. Your full-time fee for an undergraduate degree will cover the following:
UK field trips
Any mandatory site visits and trips within the United Kingdom.Key material
This can include core textbooks, software and equipment.Laser prints
1,000 A4 sides of black and white laser printing credits per year.Optional year
Pay no tuition fees for optional work placements or study abroad trips.The following are additional costs not included in the fees:
- Any optional overseas field trips or visits: £400+ per trip
EU student fees
EU nationals and their family members starting in the 2019/20 academic year remain eligible for the same fees as home students and the same financial support. Financial support comes from Student Finance England, and covers undergraduate and postgraduate study for the duration of their course, providing they meet the residency requirement.
For tuition fee loans
EU nationals must have resided in the European Economic Area (EEA) or Switzerland for the three years prior to the start of their course. The purpose of that three year residency should not have been mainly for the purpose of receiving full time education.
For maintenance loans
EU nationals must have resided in the UK and Islands for the five years prior to the start of their course. The purpose of that five year residency should not have been mainly for the purpose of receiving full time education.
What our alumni say
I enjoyed the challenging modules and the way the course related to real-life issues and situations. The social life was great too.
Career prospects
Our close links with major employers ensure the course remains responsive to the need of potential employment sectors. A degree in business and finance gives you the opportunity to access a range of graduate positions around the world – in financial management, investment banking, advertising, marketing, e-commerce, human resources or project management.
The strong vocational element and use of case studies should give you a good grounding in real business situations. We aim for our students to benefit from a wide range of desirable professional skills, including: team working; critical evaluation; self-directed learning; problem-solving; action planning and organising; written and oral communication; presentation; questioning and listening. The following personal qualities will also be addressed in each of the skills modules: achievement orientation; initiative and creativity; self-confidence; decisiveness; reflectiveness; adaptability and flexibility.
Coventry University is committed to preparing you for your future career and giving you a competitive edge in the graduate job market. The University's Careers and Employability team provide a wide range of support services to help you plan and prepare for your career.
Where our graduates work
Our graduates have progressed to careers across a wide spectrum of industry sectors, from banking, accounting and finance to manufacturing and marketing. Alternatively, you may decide to continue your studies at postgraduate level to further enhance your employability. Here at Coventry, we offer the MSc Banking and Finance or MBA Finance, for example.
What our alumni say
I enjoyed the challenging modules and the way the course related to real-life issues and situations. The social life was great too.
Disclaimer
By accepting your offer of a place and enrolling with us, a Student Contract will be formed between you and the University. A copy of the 19/20 Contract can be found here. The Contract details your rights and the obligations you will be bound by during your time as a student and contains the obligations that the University will owe to you. You should read the Contract before you accept an offer of a place and before you enrol at the University.
The University will charge the tuition fees that are stated on the course webpage and in the prospectus for the first year of study. The University will review tuition fees each year. For UK and EU students, if Parliament permit an increase in tuition fees, the University may increase fees for each subsequent year of study in line with any such changes. Note that any increase for UK and EU Students is expected to be in line with inflation. For international students, the University may increase fees for each subsequent year of study but such increases will be no more than 5% above inflation.
*2020/2021 course fees have not yet been determined by the University or government legislation. Once the course fees have been determined, the course web page will be updated to reflect your first year course fee. Please continue to revisit the course web page to identify the fee before you accept an offer of a place on the course and/or before you enrol at the University.
