Program Overview

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BSc (Honours) Economics and Finance with Foundation Year

Course Summary

Develop technical and analytical economics skills while applying your knowledge to the financial services industry, preparing you to navigate through global economic challenges.

How You Learn

You learn through:

• Lectures
• Tutorials
• IT sessions
• Regular formative feedback
• Teamwork and group-based learning
• Practice-based applied learning
• Authentic learning experiences
• Engagement with guest lectures
• Discussions
• Self-managed study

Key Themes

The course starts by helping you develop a strong understanding of economics and finance – plus the practical skills for evaluating the impact of economic policies on financial markets and businesses.

As you progress, you refine these fundamentals through real-world projects, collaborating in teams to create reports, presentations, and recommendations inspired by real industry challenges. This hands-on approach prepares you for careers in professional accountancy, business, and finance within a supportive learning environment.

Course Support

You are supported in your learning journey towards highly-skilled, graduate-level employment. This includes:

• Access to specialist support services to help with your personal, academic, and career development.
• Access to our Skills Centre for support with one-to-ones, webinars, and online resources, where you can get help with planning and structuring your assignments and assessment preparation.
• Industry-specific employability activities, including work placements, live projects, simulated learning environments, and networking opportunities.

Applied Learning

Live Projects

This course enhances the communication and teamwork skills you need in the finance profession – providing a strong foundation for careers in finance, consulting, and public policy. You develop these skills through live projects and placements.

In the first and second years of your course, you have opportunities to work for real client-based projects. You carry out research and analysis to generate findings and recommendations that address clients' business problems – which in the past has included product development for Marks and Spencer. You present to the clients, gaining valuable experience of professional practice.

Students often find placements with their host company as a result of the excellent work they do for these live projects.

Throughout all the modules you study, we incorporate work-relevant content – including simulations, case studies, guest speakers, and experiential activities. These not only help you seek potential career opportunities but also feel confident in pursuing them.

Work Placements

Between your third and fourth years of the course, you have the opportunity to embark on a sandwich placement, a vital step in preparing for your future career within the industry you've been studying.

During this placement, you gain practical skills, including proficiency in new software, managing marketing campaigns, developing pricing strategies, optimizing business processes, achieving sales targets, and crafting financial reports. This hands-on experience equips you with valuable workplace insights to enhance your readiness for your future career – as well as an Applied Professional Diploma for your CV.

Our dedicated placement team provides guidance and support at every stage, from your initial application to the successful completion of your placement.

Previous students have secured positions at organizations such as Investec, Lloyds Bank, PwC, HSBC, and Santander.

Networking Opportunities

Throughout the course, there are numerous opportunities for you to engage with career planning and development, career fairs and workshops, employer presentations, field visits, and professional career advisers.

These are great chances to enhance your confidence, skills development, and future employability.

Modules

Year 1

• Accounting In Context (40 credits)
  • Develops your knowledge and understanding of the techniques and practice of accounting and finance.
  • Topics include corporate governance, forensic accounting, fraud investigation, UK tax system, audit and assurance, UK governance code, foundations of financial and management accounting, presenting financial information, basic financial statement analysis, and academic research.
• Economics, Finance And Investments (40 credits)
  • Gives you a foundational understanding of the fundamental concepts and principles related to economics, finance, and investments.
  • Topics include basic microeconomics, key macroeconomics indicators, time value of money, risk and return investment decision-making, financial markets, Bloomberg software, business ethics, and sustainability.
• Going Global (20 credits)
  • Introduces you to university life and the behaviors and knowledge you need to succeed internationally.
  • Topics include introduction to university study, career goal setting and professional behaviors, international business, tourism, sustainability and sustainable development, corporate social responsibility, business ethics, living and working with others, equality, diversity, and inclusion, and values.
• Preparing For Success (20 credits)
  • Prepares you for further success on the next level of your course, developing skills and knowledge to support your future career.
  • Topics include future sector trends, people resource planning, global labor markets, personal and organizational change, resilience, research and data analysis, digital literacy, life-wide and long-term career planning, professional accreditation and credibility, and your learning practice.

Year 2

• Data Analytics For Finance And Business (20 credits)
  • Develops your understanding of various quantitative processes for collecting, analyzing, managing, interpreting, and utilizing data within the context of business and economics.
  • Topics include summarizing data, analysis through measures of change and index numbers, examining relationships between variables, time series analysis, forecasting, creating future cash flows, and descriptive statistics.
• Investment Risk And Taxation (40 credits)
  • Provides a broad understanding of the main financial asset classes and investment products that a sophisticated investor may use.
  • Topics include analysis of the main asset classes, the macro-economic environment in relation to investing, principles of investment risk and return, taxation of investors and investments, investment products, portfolio construction and planning, and the process of giving investment advice.
• Maths For Economics (20 credits)
  • Examines the key mathematical concepts widely applied in modern business and economics.
  • Topics include linear equations, non-linear equations, financial mathematics, differentiation, partial differentiation, optimization, integration, and more.
• Principles Of Micro And Macro Economics (40 credits)
  • Provides a solid foundation in the fundamental concepts and theories of economics, introducing principles of micro and macroeconomics, market structures, and economic systems.
  • Topics include market forces and welfare, market efficiency and inefficient market allocations, consumer choice, firm behavior, factor markets, and market structures.

Year 3

• Economic Analysis And Policy (40 credits)
  • Focuses on advanced microeconomic theories and analysis, appreciating how introductory microeconomic theories can analyze the choices and constraints facing consumers and producers.
  • Topics include demand, supply, transaction cost theory, ethical externalities, game theory, and more.
• Economics Of Risk And Return (40 credits)
  • Enhances your understanding of financial markets to help you evaluate choices in funding and financing investment decisions.
  • Topics include risk, return, and the time value of money, business risk and financial risk, sources of finance, working capital management, and more.
• Introduction To Econometrics (20 credits)
  • Introduces the econometric methods generally used to analyze economic data.
  • Topics include econometrics and statistical concepts, simple linear regression modeling, multiple regression analysis, dummy variable regression models, and more.

Year 4

• Alternative Perspectives In Economics (20 credits)
  • Presents various heterodox views in economics as alternative approaches to the mainstream economics.
  • Topics include economic thinking in the ancient era, mercantilism, the classical economists, radical economics and Marxism, the neoclassical approach, Keynesian economics, and more.
• Banking And Fintech (20 credits)
  • Explores the latest technological trends and innovations in the financial industry.
  • Topics include banking and fintech history, evolution, and key concepts, fintech players, trends, and challenges, mobile payments, e-wallets, and contactless, and more.
• Cash Management And Treasury (20 credits)
  • Explores the principles and practices of managing corporate cash and liquidity.
  • Topics include cash management and treasury, cash forecasting techniques and models, working capital management, cash concentration and pooling techniques, and more.
• Study Abroad - Sheffield Business School (60 credits)
  • Allows you to spend a semester at one of the University's approved partner institutions worldwide.
  • You are awarded credits and grades at the partner institution, which are converted into Sheffield Hallam credits and grades on return and included in the Sheffield Hallam degree classification.

Final Year

• Behavioural Economics (20 credits)
  • Evaluates behavioral theories to help us better understand the world we live in.
  • Topics include basic consumer theory, expected utility theory, choice and risk, prospect theory, and more.
• Consultancy Project (40 credits)
  • Develops consultancy skills and transferable skills via real-world consultancy interventions.
  • You work in cross-discipline teams with students from other subject areas, reflecting real-life consultancy projects.
• Contemporary Issues In Finance (20 credits)
  • Explores the economic climate and financial market trends, including the global financial crisis of 2008.
  • Topics include the rise of fintech, the adoption of blockchain technology, sustainable finance, and more.
• Investment Management And Derivatives (40 credits)
  • Explores the advanced theory and practice of managing investments and using derivatives in financial markets.
  • Topics include asset allocation and portfolio rebalancing strategies, alternative investments, equity and fixed income securities analysis, and more.

Future Careers

Given the enduring aftermath of the financial crisis, there has never been a more exciting time to engage with this subject. This contemporary and highly relevant degree offers a comprehensive understanding of economics and finance, providing you with a profound grasp of economic and financial theories.

This course prepares you for a career in:

• Economic research and planning
• Financial planning
• Financial risk analysis
• Financial consultancy
• Economics research
• Insurance
• Financial analysis
• Data analysis

Previous graduates of this course have gone on to work for:

• Oxford Economics
• Morrisons Plc
• Lloyds Banking Group
• Anheuser-Busch InBev
• The Department for Transport

Equipment and Facilities

Construction of the new Sheffield Business School is underway – providing state-of-the-art teaching and learning facilities and social space to students.

On this course, you have access to:

• Our virtual learning environment – Blackboard sites
• Updated office software
• Accounting software
• Bloomberg terminals
• Our financial trading floor
• A physical and online library with databases and digital books, journals, newspapers, and magazines

Where Will I Study?

You study at City Campus through a structured mix of lectures, seminars, and practical sessions as well as access to digital and online resources to support your learning.

Entry Requirements

• UCAS points: 64
• GCSE: English Language at grade C or 4 or equivalent, Maths at grade C or 4 or equivalent, Science at grade C or 4
• Access to HE Diploma: from a QAA recognized Access to HE course in a science-based subject
• IELTS: 6.0 with a minimum of 5.5 in all skills or equivalent

Fees and Funding

• Home students: £5,760 for the foundation year and £9,535 per year for the degree (capped at a maximum of 20% of this during your placement year)
• International students: £17,155 per year (capped at a maximum of 20% of this during your placement year)