Program Overview

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BSc Business Administration and Supply Chain Management (Including Foundation Year) is open to Home and EU students. It will be suitable for you if your academic qualifications do not yet meet our entrance requirements for the three-year version of this course and you want a programme that increases your subject knowledge as well as improves your academic skills. This four-year course includes a foundation year (Year Zero), followed by a further three years of study. During your Year Zero, you study four academic subjects relevant to your chosen course as well as a compulsory English language and academic skills module. You will spend Year Zero of your four year degree studying at our Colchester Campus. For your second, third and fourth year of study, you will be based at our Southend Campus. You are an Essex student from day one, a member of our global community based at the most internationally diverse campus university in the UK. After successful completion of Year Zero in our Essex Pathways Department , you progress to complete your course with Essex Business School . In the post-Covid-19 global business landscape, understanding main functional areas of an organisation and the relationship among these functional areas will play a crucial role in being able to efficiently manage an organisation. Effective co-ordination of internal processes and external partners (like suppliers) ensures smooth flow of goods and services to the right consumer at the right time. A dysfunctional supply chain could significantly impact performance and could lead to increased product cost, delayed deliveries and unsatisfied consumers. BSc Business Administration and Supply Chain Management is designed to develop your knowledge and skillset and you to critically understand different functions of an organisation and the role of supply chain in successfully managing an organisation. The course will provide comprehensive knowledge of both theoretical and practical aspects of business and supply chain management, and prepare students to apply this learning in context of real-world problems. Study areas include:

• business strategy
• operations and supply chain management
• business analytics
• quantitative analysis
• logistics management
• project management
• business research methods

Group work tasks develop your team working skills and our business simulation project puts you in charge of your own virtual venture. In competition with other students, you develop your skills in problem solving, analysis and creativity as you make decisions to optimise your business’ performance. In your final year, you'll put your knowledge into practice by producing a business plan, industry report or dissertation in an area of your choice. As well as developing the research and analytical skills needed for the workplace, you can benefit from the opportunity to make valuable business connections by gathering case studies and interviews. The University of Essex is one of just three UK universities to have received Q-Step Affiliate status, including for our BSc Business Administration and Supply Chain Management, to support the way we develop the quantitative skills of our graduates. Why we're great.

• We are uniquely located close to two of the new UK freeports, Thames Freeport and Freeport East, making us uniquely placed in the supply chain and logistics sector.
• Combine core knowledge of a business management degree with the specific knowledge and skills required to succeed in organisational management.
• We are ranked in the Top 150 for Business and Economics in THE World University Rankings by Subject 2023.

Our expert staff

You are taught by a highly qualified, enthusiastic team of academics and practitioners with wide-ranging research interests. Their research is used in lectures and seminars so you learn about the latest issues impacting the business world. Our staff specialise in areas including:

• internationalisation
• innovation
• ethics
• social responsibility
• sustainability
• supply chain management
• business analytics

At Essex Business School we are home to academic staff who are on the cutting edge of their research areas. Dr Debashree De , one of our undergraduate tutors, is a Lecturer in Supply Chain Management and is passionate about solving sustainability related issues. Her research encompasses green supply chain management, sustainability, low carbon strategies and operations management, meaning that she is able to stimulate our students with relevant and topical debate. Essex Business School is home to a number of research groups. Our Strategy, Operations and Entrepreneurship Group , based at our Southend Campus, are a group of international researchers with an entrepreneurial focus. This means that your teaching in business administration and supply chain management will cover the latest insights from research conducted in partnership with businesses from all over the world.

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Specialist facilities

Our BSc Business Administration and Supply Chain Management is based at our Southend Campus , in close proximity to two of the eight freeport locations in the UK, Thames Freeport and Freeport East, making us uniquely placed geographically in the supply chain and logistics sector. Our campus is conveniently located in the heart of Southend. Enjoy a host of restaurants, bars and shops on your doorstep.. You have access to our excellent, dedicated facilities , including:

• Learning hub with computer suites and study pods, open 24/7
• integrated public and academic library in the iconic modern Forum building
• employability support, events and initiatives
• study skills advice
• dedicated student services team
• dental practice
• faith centre
• our cosy SU Lounge, with pool tables and large-screen TV for socialising and relaxation!

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Your future

Business administration skills are critical to successful business operations and developing these skills will prepare you for a career in business and management. The essential supply chain management skills of being able to plan, source, make, deliver and return which you will learn will set you up for the challenges that a role in supply chain management may throw at you. Therefore, we embed a series of core and specific skills into our undergraduate curriculum for BSc Business Administration and Supply Chain Management to ensure that our graduates are suited to careers in business management and leadership roles. All of our taught modules embed elements of our skills map which emulate the skills which are required by employers of business graduates, these generally include:

• Academic and cognitive skills
• Research skills
• Technology skills
• Communication skills
• Data analysis skills
• Soft skills

We embed a structured approach to student development and skills support throughout the curriculum and through additional support from the Essex Business School Learning Team . Our students have gone on to become business analysts, successful entrepreneurs, account managers and management trainees, with recent graduate destinations including:

• Associate Professional Business Analyst at DXC Technology – an end-to-end IT services company
• Delivery Consultant at RED - The Global SAP Solutions Provider - a specialist recruitment firm
• iX Business Consultant at IBM – the multifunctional information technology conglomerate

Our management graduates enjoy successful careers in their fields. Additional to the skills development offered by Essex Business School, BSc Business Administration and Supply Chain Management students can also take advantage of the University of Essex Careers Service which focuses in particular on supporting the development of undergraduate employability , including: careers fairs, career mentoring, skills development, careers advice and guidance, placement year support, job opportunities, start-up support and more.