MBA International

The MBA International is designed to bring reality into the classroom. The course ensures that formal sessions are interactive with an emphasis on discussion, debate and critique of theoretical concepts, and application to real-world business problems. The examples of professional practice are integrated in each module outline.

You will also have plenty of opportunities to hone your presentation skills and to work on group tasks. An important element of your learning process is a lively debate, and consideration of experiences and practices from different countries and cultural background is central to discovering more about the complexities of the fields of international business.

A range of teaching and blended learning strategies will be used, including lectures (on-line and offline), interactive workshops; independent study; guided study; focused readings; student presentations; tutorials and illustrative case-study analyses.

You will also have the opportunity to offer evidence from your own experiences where this is relevant and will critically examine strategic issues from other organisations.

We will make extensive use of the University’s virtual learning environment (Blackboard and Collaborate Ultra) and other, appropriate online resources for all aspects of teaching, learning, assessment, communication and administration.

One of the main assessment strategies used on the MBA International is group work. This is because we operate student-centred classrooms which encourages active learning allowing you to work together with other students on the programme.

Through discussion and group work in seminars, you will engage critically and directly with a range of contemporary business issues within international business, like globalisation, culture, and their implications for international business strategies.

Writing reports will demonstrate to future employers your ability to present and write in a professional manner. This applies to all business management subjects, and would be a core transferable skill you will need to possess.

Through independent study, you will learn to find, assimilate and organise information from a range of source (library books and journals, internet, etc.) and take responsibility for your own learning and skill development.

Written assignments will assess your applied knowledge and understanding of key business and management problems. You will be able to critically evaluate findings, and draw on mainstream business, finance, careers, and marketing journals as well as industry style reports.

Presentations and academic posters allow you to demonstrate your ability to integrate, contrast and evaluate ideas and findings and present them orally in a professional manner. It allows you to demonstrate your creative flare and further allows you to give a detailed summary of the research project or aims and objectives of the assessment.

The number of ways you can emphasise your key points in presentations is much greater than a written report. It will also help you practice the art of speaking and articulating publicly. Presentations and academic posters also help you practice a skill beneficial to employers and management within the international business.

Presentations and academic posters will address your postgraduate skills of communication in all its forms. Presentations in particular will demonstrate professional employability key skills and attributes such as ‘verbal communication skills’ and personal skills such as ‘creativity’ and ‘self-awareness’.

These skills are necessary to progress in the major international business fields at a management level.

What will I study?

Although this is much more than an English language course, it will still include work on relevant grammar and vocabulary, as well as speaking, listening, reading and writing skills. So, for example, you will develop your skills for

• researching and writing extended assignments
• reading large amounts of text in a short time
• developing critical and reflective understanding
• participating effectively in seminars & giving presentations.

You will learn through c.15 hours per week of interactive classes, with individual tutorials and additional induction sessions; but the course will also require work outside of class, as independent study will be an essential part of your Master's degree.

How will I be assessed?

The course is not formally assessed, but you will still complete a variety of tasks on which you will receive feedback as part of your academic and language development.

As well as the practical experience this gives you, the course will help identify your areas of difficulty needing further work, and give you guidance on the resources and help available throughout your masters degree.