Full Time MBA

Core courses
Autumn term (September - December)
Economics
Microeconomics concentrates on individual parts of the economy - consumers, business markets and industries. Examining the issues surrounding these units allows you to assess their influence on managerial decision-making.
Macroeconomics helps you evaluate macroeconomic policy and economic prospects within economies - so that you can analyse the future path of microeconomic variables which are important to a firm.
Marketing
Through case studies and lectures this course examines marketing objectives, organisation and budgeting, together with market segmentation and positioning. This enables participants to analyse business situations and formulate coherent marketing plans.
Accounting (Financial and Management)
The first part of financial accounting provides an introduction to accounts preparation and analysis which encourages participants to develop skills in the analysis and interpretation of financial information.
The second part of this course advances student's knowledge concerning management accounting. The behavioural implications of the various management accounting practices studied, for example product costing (the balanced scorecard), are discussed.
Corporate Finance
This course examines corporate investment and financing decisions. You will study capital funding instruments and the theory and practice behind how firms choose which instruments to use. The course examines the capital markets and investigates risk and return.
Soft Management Skills 1
This course focuses on 'soft skills' such as communication and negotiation, and includes career support, such as career coaching, job hunting and networking strategies, and industry sector workshops.
Winter term (January - March)
Strategy
This course considers how organisations deploy resources in a complex competitive environment to achieve their objectives. Participants develop the skills to clarify an organisation's objectives and implement appropriate strategic plans.
Operations Management and Decision Modelling
Covering how organisations produce goods and services from a managerial perspective, this course introduces participants to different aspects of operations and their role within the competitive positioning of the organisation.
Management Information Systems
From managerial perspective, this course considers computerised information systems in organisations and markets. This enables participants to appreciate how IT can achieve competitive advantage, to contribute to new information systems strategies, and to understand the relationship between new management structures and information systems.
People, Management and Organisation (plus workshop)
Combining practice and theory this course develops an understanding of the influences on human resource management, a knowledge of its techniques and an awareness of current issues.
Soft Management Skills 2
This course focuses on 'soft skills' such as communication and negotiation, and includes career support, such as career coaching, job hunting and networking strategies, and industry sector workshops.
Spring term (April - May)
Business Research Methods
Focusing on the production and use of accounting data in the management of an organisation, participants examine planning, budgeting and reporting systems and the use of financial information in management decisions.
Managing Internationally Across Business Systems
Management increasingly involves organising activities across different kinds of business systems. This course explores the different types of industrialial captialism, including major differences in the nature of competition, regulation, firms and their capabilities helping you to understand how and why business systems vary and change.
Soft Management Skills 3
This course focuses on 'soft skills' such as communication and negotiation and includes career support, such as career coaching, job hunting and networking strategies, and industry sector workshops. By the time you choose electives, you will have built up a clearer picture of your post-MBA goals. A selection of electives allows you to tailor the MBA to meet your own needs.
recent electives have included:

• Advanced Corporate Finance
• Corporate Recovery and Turnaround
• Derivatives for Quants and Investment Bankers
• Global Banking: Crisis, Financial Innovation and Future Trends
• Individuals, Change & Transition
• International Financial Management
• Management Control
• Managing Projects
• Media Society and Business
• Portfolio Investment
• Risk Management
• Service Management
• Strategic Finance, Governance, Financialisation and Firm Performance
• Supply Chain Management
• Strategic Retail Management

• Advanced Internatonal Management
• Advanced Strategic Management
• Business to Business Relationship Marketing
• Corporate Reputations and Competitiveness
• Financial Analysis and Communications
• Individuals, Change & Transition
• Leadership
• Marketing Communications and Branding
• Marketing Management in a Technology Led Environment
• National Competitiveness and Country Reputation
• Organisational Dynamics and Clinical Management
• Real Options in Corporate Finance

These are examples of electives offered in the current academic year and are subject to change.
Projects
Project 1 - Mergers and acquisitions project - autumn and winter term (1st year)
Your team will take on the role of the acquisition function of a company to develop a tailored growth strategy. It provides practical experience in identifying strategic and financial acquisitions and the issues involved in corporate valuation during the acquisition process.
Project 2 - spring term (1st year)
The Spring Project is a 'live' assessed project with a primary focus, depending on the client's requirements. Students will work in teams and will generally work on projects in the following areas:

• Creativity project
  You will work on a real issue with businesses based in the North West of England, using the creativity techniques taught during the project. This will give you valuable experience of supporting the creative and innovative aspirations of firms. This project involves teams working on real issues with businesses in the North West and using creativity techniques taught during the project to develop innovative business solutions.
• Entrepreneurship project
  This involves teams working with a new or developing business, normally local, to develop a feasibility study of a new business venture. The project involves researching markets for new products and services; producing a business plan with projected financial statements and identifying the non-financial resources required to implement the plan.
• Interdisciplinary project
  This project is designed to synthesise the knowledge and skills you have acquired in individual disciplines and apply an inter-disciplinary approach to the solution of a complex business problem.
• Marketing project
  Introducing pragmatic aspects of marketing, this involves team work in the analysis of a particular industry, using marketing data to expose trends, projections and forecasts.

Personal project - summer or winter term (2nd year)
During the personal project you will choose which area of business and management you wish to concentrate on. You will work with your faculty supervisor to define the project's objectives, methods and assessment. Assessment is through a 7,500 word report.
Dissertation/Assessed Internship - summer or autumn term (2nd year)
This is an individual report closely supervised by a member of faculty. It may be based on any aspect of business and management. Assessment is through a 15,000 word project.
Strategic Business Development - summer or autumn term (2nd year)
Following lecture inputs, the elective offers a project that gives the students the opportunity to deal with start-up entrepreneurs. The aim of the project is to enhance students' skills in working as a consultant with start-up businesses.
International Business Project - winter term (2nd year)
During this consultancy project your team investigates a particular aspect of your client's overseas strategy. It exposes you to the unstructured, often multi-dimensional international business problems increasingly faced by senior managers. It involves extensive primary research, including international travel, plus a high level of project organisation and client contact. Many projects are with multi-nationals. Recent projects have included market entry strategies, assessing the viability of commercial information services, product support strategies, and determining the location for new operations. It is not unusual for you to find yourself presenting at board level.

International exchange
At Manchester Business School we take pride in having an international exchange programme that is one of the strongest and largest in the world.

Students benefit from a 12-15 week stay at a major overseas business school. Our exchange programme has many advantages, including:

• first hand experience of different business cultures
• contact with potential employers in the country you choose
• specialist courses that complement those we offer at Manchester
• access to a broader network of contacts
• enjoying and learning from the experience of living in another country

To be eligible for the international exchange programme students must successfully pass all diploma stage course units. Exchange places are competitive and decided via an application/interview process. Places are limited and students may not obtain their first choice. Partner schools can also withhold places at any time.
Internships
The assessed internship is a chance to gain further real business experience, often in a new sector and role - helping you confirm your career choices before you apply for permanent posts. For career progression or to help you change career - an internship provides live company experience during the programme and adds value to your CV.
Internships are also an opportunity to earn money whilst on the programme. Salaries will vary according to the industry, the company, the role and your experience. On average you can earn £600 per week, and up to £1,400 per week in the Finance and Consulting sectors.
You will spend about ten weeks working on a project within a company under the direction of the company and a faculty supervisor.
Assessment is through a 15,000 word report. Internships are an opportunity to earn money and many interns are offered full-time opportunities after graduation.