Global Business BA (Hons) top-up

Top-up courses

Young man sitting at a table smiling at a young woman

Learn how successful businesses operate on a local and global level to prepare you for wide-ranging careers in business management.

Year of entry

2025-26 2026-27

Location

Coventry University London (City of London)

Study mode

Full-time

Duration

1 year full-time (Entry at level 6)
2 years full-time (Entry at level 5)

Course code

N190

Start date

September 2025
January 2026

How to apply

Book an Open Day

Download a prospectus

Course overview

Gain a holistic understanding of management through core subjects such as strategy, marketing, finance, sustainability, project management, entrepreneurship and human resource management. 

Think like a manager from the offset by enhancing your knowledge and skills, which may make you more attractive to future employers. 
Improve your communication, interpersonal and life-long learning skills designed to increase both your academic proficiency and employability.

Global ready

An international outlook, with global opportunities

Icon of human figure in front of whiteboard

Teaching excellence

Taught by lecturers who are experts in their field

Employability

Career-ready graduates, with the skills to succeed

Why you should study this course

Opportunity to choose a one-year or a two-year top-up 
This course is aimed at students who want to complete their undergraduate studies at Coventry University London and have completed one or two years of a subject-related degree (see entry requirements section for further information).
London location
A university in the City of London, one of the world’s premier business locations and a leading financial centre. You will find a diverse range of exciting businesses, from innovative start-ups to huge multi-nationals.  
Industry insight 
Evaluate real-life business challenges with industry professionals at guest lectures (subject to availability), simulations and live projects².
Global learning experience 
This course is considered from a global perspective to help you understand international management issues, with the aim of preparing you for your career prospects upon successful completion. 
Prepare for your future
The course aims to develop you as career-ready, globally aware graduate with management, communication, numerical and information technology skills. If you’re interested in starting your own business, you could get business start-up advice and support from our Enterprise Hub.

What you'll study

The first year (level 5) of this course aims to help you develop key skills in business management. It also reinforces the main concepts and skills in business and communication, global business, business sustainability, human resource, accounting and finance. You will be encouraged to develop your knowledge, and business English and communication skills especially in report writing, critical thinking, evidence gathering and interpretation; employability and work-based skills.

Modules

Academic and Professional Skills - 20 credits

This module aims to help you develop various academic and professional skills such as structure, presenting arguments, and writing in a clear style. These skills will support your studies in the global business course and help you become a more effective learner on your own.

Compulsory

Global Business Issues - 20 credits

Cultural Management in Business - 20 credits

Business Sustainability - 20 credits

Accounting and Finance for Business - 20 credits

Human Resource Management - 20 credits

Modules

Global Business Strategy - 20 credits

This module introduces you to concepts, theories and frameworks that will support your understanding of strategic decision-making and its impact on global businesses. It is designed to give you a critical appreciation of the core drivers that impact the strategic position of organisations in a dynamic business environment.

Compulsory

Digital Marketing for International Business - 20 credits

The main aim of this module is to provide you with a thorough understanding of the main theories and principles of Digital Marketing. Therefore, the module will mainly focus on areas such as Digital Marketing Micro and Macro environments, Digital Marketing Strategies and the Implementation and Practice of Digital Marketing.

Compulsory

Business Research Methods – 20 credits

The aim of this module is to provide you with an understanding of business research methodology and a range of research skills. As a result of this module, you will have developed a comprehensive research proposal on a subject of their choice that could be developed into an original independent research project.

Compulsory

Project Management in Practice - 20 credits

This module is designed to introduce students to the processes of project management in a business environment. It aims to develop students’ understanding and skills in project management tools and technique, and the impact of effective people skills on the outcomes of projects.

Compulsory

Innovation Management and Entrepreneurship - 20 credits

Choose one of these two options:

Business Research Project - 20 credits

In this module, you will critically review the literature and help develop a thorough understanding of previous research that relates to a set of specific research questions and objectives. This module will help you understand business research in context by critically discussing and referencing work that has already been done. You will learn how to highlight key points for discussion, and how to present and address fresh insights.

Work Placement² - 20 credits

You will be required to reflect critically on your experience of working with an employer, as if you were a new manager entering the workplace. You will draw on feedback sought from key stakeholders from this module. This will normally include the employer, colleagues at the employer organisation, and supervisor. The critical reflection will enable you to produce a tailored Personal Development Plan for your future career².

Optional

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.

How you'll learn

We designed the teaching and learning for this course to give you a strong academic knowledge of key theories and concepts to help you understand and appreciate current and relevant research in this subject area. You also have the opportunity to apply the theories and concepts to current practice through real-life scenarios, case studies and a variety of class activities. The course will also give you the opportunity to develop and demonstrate your essential analytical skills and respond to employer-related problems by making a set of clearly evaluated recommendations.

Teaching contact hours

As a full-time undergraduate student, you will study modules totalling 120 credits each academic year. A typical 20 credit module requires a total of 200 hours study. This is made up of teaching contact hours, guided and independent study.

Teaching hours:

If joining in year 2:
Teaching hours vary each semester, year of study and due to module selection. You can expect 12-15 teaching hours each week during the second year of a degree course. You will also have the option to attend optional sessions including time with a progress coach or to meet with staff for advice and feedback. As you progress through your studies, teaching hours may reduce.

For 1 year (final year) top-ups:
Teaching hours vary each semester, year of study and due to module selection. During your top-up year you can expect 9-12 teaching hours each week. You will also have the option to attend optional sessions including time with a progress coach or to meet with staff for advice and feedback. As you progress through your studies, teaching hours may reduce.

Guided and independent study:

Throughout your studies, you will be expected to spend time in guided and independent study to make up the required study hours per module. You'll be digging deeper into topics, review what you've learnt and complete assignments. This can be completed around your personal commitments. As you progress through your studies, you'll spend more time in independent study.

Online learning:

As an innovative university, we use different teaching methods including online tools and emerging technologies. So, some of your teaching hours and assessments may be delivered online.

Assessment

This course will be assessed using a variety of methods which will vary depending upon the module.

Assessment methods include:

coursework
presentations
digital posters
essays and reports.

The Coventry University Group assessment strategy ensures that our courses are fairly assessed and allows us to monitor student progression towards achieving the intended learning outcomes.

International experience opportunities

This course takes a globalised approach to the curriculum, placing your learning in the context of international challenges, opportunities and regulatory frameworks. It will prepare you for working globally, whether overseas, for a multi-national, or for a firm which trades internationally. You may benefit from studying alongside a typically international cohort of students, learning from the perspectives they bring while developing your ability to work cross-culturally.

There are opportunities to visit, study or work in the UK or overseas². You could get the chance to visit advertising agencies, financial institutions, manufacturers and small businesses. Past students have visited Paris, Berlin, Helsinki, Rotterdam and Dubai.

Please note that all international experience opportunities may be subject to additional costs, competitive application, availability, and meeting applicable visa and travel requirements, and are therefore not guaranteed².

The Global Business top-up aims to provide you with an in-depth understanding of various business-related subjects. Each year the course is taught across two semesters and gives the learner the opportunity to gain employability skills and knowledge to grow further in the field of business.
Orhan Demirovski, course director, quoted in 2022

Kaveri joined Coventry University London in 2016 to study for her Global Business top-up BA, hoping that her time studying with us would give her valuable insights into the business world. After graduating in 2017, she established successful e-commerce start-up, My Pooja Box. Find out how Kaveri applies what she learnt at Coventry University London to her business even today.

Kaveri's story

Entry requirements

Typical entry requirements:

For entry at Level 5 - 120 credits (Accreditation of Prior Learning with 120 credits at level 4) obtained in a business related subject area.

For entry at Level 6 - 240 credits (Accreditation of Prior Learning with 120 credits at level 4 and 120 credits at level 5) obtained in a business related area. A HND in a business related area with 240 credits awarded may also be considered for entry into the one-year programme, this is subject to approval from the course director.

A combination of professional and academic qualifications and work experience may also be considered.

Other qualifications and experience

Our students come from a variety of backgrounds, each with a unique story. We recognise a breadth of qualifications. If your qualifications differ from the above, contact our Admissions Team who will be happy to discuss your qualifications and routes into your chosen course.

Contextual offers and Fair Access Scheme

If you meet the criteria for our Fair Access Scheme, you could automatically receive a contextual offer that may be up to 24 UCAS points lower than our standard entry requirements. View the criteria for our Fair Access Scheme.

For entry at Level 5 - 120 credits (Accreditation of Prior Learning with 120 credits at level 4) obtained in a business related subject area.

Alternatively, visit our International hub for further advice and guidance on finding in-country agents and representatives, joining our in-country events and how to apply.

English language requirements

Applicants must possess a minimum IELTS of 6.0 with at least 5.5 in each component area.

If you don't meet the English language requirements, you can achieve the level you need by successfully completing a pre-sessional English programme before you start your course.

For more information on our approved English language tests visit our English language requirements page.

Fees and funding

Student	Full-time	Part-time
UK, Ireland*, Channel Islands or Isle of Man	£9,535 per year	Not available
EU	£9,535 per year with EU Support Bursary £16,800 per year without EU Support Bursary	Not available
International	£16,800 per year	Not available

If you choose to study this course with a professional placement² or study abroad year, you will need to pay a tuition fee³ to cover your academic support throughout your placement year. Students commencing their professional placement in the academic year 2027/28 will pay £1,500 if they are paying UK fees, or £1,800 if they are paying international fees.

For advice and guidance on tuition fees and student loans visit our Undergraduate Finance page and see the university’s Tuition Fee and Refund Terms and Conditions.

The University will charge the tuition fees that are stated in the above table for the first Academic Year of study. The University will review tuition fees each year. For UK (home) students, if Parliament permits 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 is expected to be in line with inflation.

If you choose to study this course with a professional placement, the University will charge the tuition fees stated above for those on a placement during Academic Year 2027/28. The University will review professional placement tuition fees each year. For UK (home) students, the University may increase fees for each subsequent year of study, but such that it will be no more than 5% above inflation.

For international students, we may increase fees each year, but such increases will be no more than 5% above inflation. If you defer your course start date or have to extend your studies beyond the normal duration of the course (e.g. to repeat a year or resit examinations) the University reserves the right to charge you fees at a higher rate and/or in accordance with any legislative changes during the additional period of study.

We offer a range of International scholarships to students all over the world. For more information, visit our International Scholarships page.

Tuition fees cover the cost of your teaching, assessments, facilities and support services. There may be additional costs not covered by this fee such as accommodation and living costs, recommended reading books, stationery, printing and re-assessments should you need them. Find out what's included in your tuition costs.

The following are additional costs not included in the tuition fees:

Any optional overseas ﬁeld trips or visits: £400+ per trip.
Any costs associated with securing, attending or completing a placement (whether in the UK or abroad).

*Irish student fees

The rights of Irish residents to study in the UK are preserved under the Common Travel Area arrangement. If you are an Irish student and meet the residency criteria, you can study in England, pay the same level of tuition fees as English students and utilise the Tuition Fee Loan.

**EU Support Bursary

Following the UK's exit from the European Union, we are offering financial support to all eligible EU students who wish to study an undergraduate or a postgraduate degree with us full-time. This bursary will be used to offset the cost of your tuition fees to bring them in line with that of UK students. Students studying a degree with a foundation year with us are not eligible for the bursary.

How do you know if you need to pay UK or international tuition fees?

We carry out an initial fee status assessment based on the information you provide in your application. Your fee status determines your tuition fees, and what financial support and scholarships may be available to you. The rules about who pays UK (home) or international (overseas) fees for higher education courses in England are set by the Department for Education. The regulations identify all the different categories of student who can insist on paying the home rate. The regulations can be difficult to understand, so the UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA) has provided fee status guidance to help you identify whether you are eligible to pay the home or overseas rate.

If you meet all the criteria required by any one category, including any residence requirements, your institution must charge you the home rate. You only need to find one category that you fit into.

Facilities

Our Global Business top-up BA (Hons) students have access to a wide range of facilities⁴ to help you prepare for a successful career in events management.

Take a virtual tour of our campus to explore all of the facilities available to you.

Enterprise Hub

Our Enterprise Hub supports student entrepreneurs by providing extensive industry knowledge and guidance to help develop ideas into viable ventures. It is a dedicated space for enterprising students and professionals to solve problems, network professionally and collaborate on projects.

recruitment session two ladies and one man

The Talent Team

Need employability support? Our dedicated Talent Team is on hand to help. It can assist you in applying for work placements, graduate level jobs and offer skills development workshops. It also organises networking events to introduce you to potential employers and industry contacts.

Careers and opportunities

This course aims to give the flexibility to help you build a career in one or more of a wide range of business functions, and to work confidently internationally. It will also aim to help you develop the entrepreneurial skills you will need to start your own business or run an innovative project within a large organisation.

On successful completion of this course, you will:

be able to understand and apply core business functions and processes in the global context.
develop knowledge, skills and experience necessary to manage people, physical and financial resources.
evaluate and provide data in order to make informed business management decisions and manage complex strategic and management issues of global and local businesses.
be equipped with investigative and analytical skills in order to examine impact of risk on global companies.
develop international management competencies required to operate in multicultural environment and diverse community.
be able to appraise, critically analyse and apply contemporary theories to real-world scenarios.
be able to analyse specific global business situations in to identify areas of good practice and use creative solutions.

Where our graduates work

Our previous graduates have gone on to work at NatWest, Jaguar, Nestle and Amazon.

Upon successful completion of our Global Business top-up BA (Hons) course, you may wish to continue to further your studies at postgraduate level. You can do that here at Coventry University London, with our Global Business MBA.  You could continue to build on what you have learnt, further preparing you for a successful high-flying career in business leadership and management roles within an international context.

We also offer alternative postgraduate degrees if you decide to take a slightly different route. You can explore all of your options, including other locations within the Coventry University Group, using our postgraduate course search. You may be entitled to an alumni discount on your fees if you decide to extend your time with us by progressing from undergraduate to postgraduate study.

Thanks to the Coventry University London Talent Team, for my final module I was able to acquire an internship with a company in London that organised workshops, exhibitions and events to connect entrepreneurs with investors. During my 3-month internship, I met numerous investors, networked with entrepreneurs from multiple verticals, and gained first-hand experience of the corporate world.
Kaveri Sachdev, BA Global Business top-up graduate, quoted in 2022

How to apply

View our courses on UCAS

Visit UCAS

UK students

Full-time UK students should apply for this course through UCAS.

If this course has a part-time option you will need to apply directly to the university. Read our application pages to find out your next steps to apply.

How to apply

For further support or more information about your course get in touch with us today.

(+44) 024 7765 2222

ukadmissions@coventry.ac.uk

Complete our contact form.

International students

International codes:
LONU049

Full-time students applying to start in 2025/26 should apply directly to the university.

How to apply

For further support for international applicants applying for an undergraduate degree view our International hub.

Disclaimers

Coventry University together with Coventry University London, Coventry University Wrocław, CU Coventry, CU London, CU Scarborough, and Coventry University Online come together to form part of the Coventry University Group (the University) with all degrees awarded by Coventry University.

¹Accreditations

The majority of our courses have been formally recognised by professional bodies, which means the courses have been reviewed and tested to ensure they reach a set standard. In some instances, studying on an accredited course can give you additional benefits such as exemptions from professional exams (subject to availability, fees may apply). Accreditations, partnerships, exemptions and memberships shall be renewed in accordance with the relevant bodies’ standard review process and subject to the university maintaining the same high standards of course delivery.

²UK and international opportunities

Please note that we are unable to guarantee any UK or international opportunities (whether required or optional) such as internships, work experience, field trips, conferences, placements or study abroad opportunities and that all such opportunities may be unpaid and/or subject to additional costs (which could include, but is not limited to, equipment, materials, bench fees, studio or facilities hire, travel, accommodation and visas), competitive application, availability and/or meeting any applicable travel, public authority guidance, decisions or orders and visa requirements. To ensure that you fully understand any visa requirements, please contact the International Office.

³Tuition fees

The University will charge the tuition fees that are stated in the above table for the first Academic Year of study. The University will review tuition fees each year. For UK (home) 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 is expected to be in line with inflation.

⁴Facilities

Facilities are subject to availability. Access to some facilities (including some teaching and learning spaces) may vary from those advertised and/or may have reduced availability or restrictions where the university is following public authority guidance, decisions or orders.

Student Contract

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 current 2025/2026 contract is available on the website. 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.