Why choose the Graduate School of Business
In the Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey 2025, our business and management courses rank in the top 10 in their subject field for teaching; skills development; organisation and feedback; sense of community; and dissertation experience.
Flexible courses designed to accommodate your work and life commitments with block delivery and different entry points through the year.
Course is aligned with the Principles of Responsible Management Education’s (PRME) sustainable development goals (SDG).
About the course
This practice-focused, 22-month Master’s provides you with the knowledge and skills you need to perform successfully at a senior management level. You study the management of challenging projects on a course developed with professional bodies and leading specialists, ensuring your learning reflects current and best practice. Your guaranteed placement offers you an academically supervised workplace experience, which also forms the basis for your dissertation project.
For further course information, contact Vahideh Bamshad at vahideh.bamshad@beds.ac.uk
Facilities and specialist equipment
- State-of-the-art business suite tailored to crucial management and data practices
- Industry-standard hardware and software to prepare you for the modern workplace
- Business pods, boardroom areas and IT suites designed to simulate a professional office environment
Your student experience
Study under the guidance of our industry-experienced academic team, actively involved in consultancy, research and engagement.
Tackle genuine business problems while building employment-focused skills through practice-led teaching, live assessments, case studies and industry collaboration.
Develop transferable skills including critical thinking, research analysis, leadership and self-management alongside specific subject expertise.
Apply your knowledge in an area of interest with your choice of Master’s business project.
Gain industry insights from high-profile academics and business leaders in our Global Guest Speaker series, which includes talks from TUI, Luton Borough Council and the Association of Project Management.
Extend your understanding of the workplace environment with regular field trips to prominent companies and national exhibitions.
Solve real-life problems working with the University’s Research and Innovation Service (RIS) where you can assist local businesses and SMEs to up-skill and innovate.
Course Leader - Vahideh Bamshad
I am a lecturer in Project Management and joined the Graduate School of Business in June 2023. Currently, I serve as the course coordinator for the MSc in Project Management, Project Management with Data Analytics, and Project Management with Placement. Additionally, I hold the position of unit leader at the postgraduate level.
What will you study?
Studying our Project Management (with Placement) MSc course will equip you with the knowledge and skills in the combined areas of planning and resource management alongside the interpersonal and leadership skills you need for placement. Through working with case studies and real project experiences, our unit in Project Management Theory and Practice will allow you to evaluate, adapt and apply project management principles to address complex challenges and optimise project outcomes. You will build on skills such as planning, communication, motivation, and initiative to meet demands in the field across various business contexts.
Digital projects and risk management are crucial in today’s business environment. Our Digital Projects and Risk Management unit teaches you how to apply advanced risk management techniques using industry-standard software, addressing risks such as environmental, social and governance (ESG), financial and security risks. Aside from this, you will develop a good understanding of supply chain and logistics concepts as you examine key issues in the design and management of contemporary supply chains in our Integrated Supply Chain and Logistics Management unit. With this information, you will learn to implement solutions for the design, control, operation and management of supply chains.
This course culminates in the Business Dissertation Placement unit, where you will bring theory and practice together by researching a topic of your choice. This placement provides a unique opportunity to explore a topic in-depth, emphasising the importance of a thorough literature review as part of the learning process. You will also reflect on research methodology, selecting and implementing the most appropriate approach for your research. Through this process, you will enhance your skills in time management, project organisation and decision-making, ensuring a successful research outcome. Additionally, you will gain practical experience in addressing the challenges of research, including accessing sources and considering ethical implications.
Project Management Practice
Project Management is essentially a practical discipline. Whilst the subject incorporates an eclectic mix of theoretical concepts and models from other disciplines, its fundamental nature is one of using models and techniques to achieve concrete outcomes. As such, practice is an essential part of acquiring the skills of project management.
This unit is informed by research-based knowledge and scholarship, emanating from a range of project management practices. It also provides you with that all-important real-life experience. The unit will enable you to learn from your experience of managing a real project by critically assessing a range of project management methodologies/bodies of knowledge, theories, tools and techniques. Project management involves a deliberate and reflective assumption of role, and you will be encouraged to reflect on you own performance as project manager or team member.
The unit aims to:
- develop your systematic understanding of project management and its diverse application in a number of contexts;
- enable you to evaluate commercially available tools and methodologies for their own applications, understanding the advantages and disadvantages of each;
- enable you to approach new projects equipped with all the necessary skills to bring projects to successful conclusions;
- provide you with an understanding of the dilemmas and issues inherent in managing client projects; and other contemporary project management issues
Project And Operations Management
Project Management has become increasingly important and is an essential skill in many business related careers today. Operations Management has always been one of the key functions in an organisation since it is concerned with the production and delivery of the organisation’s products and services.
The competitive environment for operations demands new ways of thinking about the way we approach the management of our own organisation and those we network with. Global sourcing and relocation are now commonplace for manufacturing and service organisations.
The unit first seeks to provide a fundamental understanding of operations management. This foundation is then developed into the new ways in which organisations should be managed in the global context.
The unit also explores the theory and principles of project management for a wide range of project types. It will consider the appropriate application of project management tools and techniques.
This unit is informed by research-based knowledge and scholarship, emanating from a range of operations and project management practices.
The aim of this unit is to enable you to:
- Evaluate the principles and techniques associated with Project and Operations Management both in manufacturing and service industries in the private and public sectors;
- Critically assess the relationship between operations and other functions within an organisation, and the need for integration between marketing, operations and human resources which is essential for modern business to meet customer needs;
- Evaluate the implications of taking a global perspective of project/ operations management.
- Consider the significance of project management and the role of a project manager in modern businesses.
- Select and use appropriate project management tools and techniques to plan a project.
Risk And Procurement Management
This unit explores the theory and principles of Risk and Procurement Management as well as quality issues in Engineering and Project Management contexts. The emphasis will be on managing the issues (risks, procurement and quality) and problems encountered within any project or operation and the difficulties of delivering projects and programmes within the agreed objectives.
The aim of this unit is to enable you:
- To understand and analyse the Risk and Quality Management using necessary tools and techniques to ensure a successful engineering or project management
- To understand and evaluate distinguished features of negotiation within contract and procurement management within variety of organisational settings
Performance Achievement Planning
This short course is a professional development course that is designed to support all PG students in the University of Bedfordshire Business School to enhance their employability and develop a professional profile through their journey in the Masters. The specific aims are to:
- Enhance students’ professional, personal development and communication skills.
- To support students to evidence how their experience at masters level has contributed to the development of their professional profile as required after graduation.
- To support students to develop the necessary academic skill required for successful completion of postgraduate research
Leading People In Creative Teams
This unit aims to provide you with a rigorous framework of knowledge and understanding concerning people management and leadership. The unit will have a strong focus on the links between people management practices and organisational/project outcomes. Major contemporary issues in people management will be highlighted to encourage you to engage with key developments in theory and practice.
Creativity and innovative skills are recognised widely as being useful in management and leadership and the unit aims to develop these skills to support enhancing leadership and management practice.
This unit aims to enable you to develop vital skills to become an effective leader of people; to manage others fairly and effectively and to increase levels of engagement, commitment, motivation and performance.
Business Placement Dissertation
Strategy
The aims of the Unit are:
- To enable students to develop a critical and informed understanding of the business environment in which organisations operate and of the business opportunities.
- To equip students with a range of tools and concepts of strategic analysis and business modelling that will enable them to assess the strategic position of business organisations.
- To develop strategic thinking and vision that can be utilised in formulating strategies, evaluating options and implementing strategic decisions
How will you be assessed?
The Course’s Assessment Strategy includes:
A number of different assessment methods will contribute to your development and will enhance your employability. We consider it essential that comprehensive feedback is provided in due time so it is integrated in your learning process. When group work is required, the marks given will be individual following the UoB's regulatory scheme. In some cases, different kind of assessment may be used in combination, making sure however that there are no hidden tasks.
The intensive character of this Course's delivery as it is outlined in its Teaching and Learning philosophy is consistent with the needs of this process in a way that is meaningful and comprehensive. Welcome and induction activities will be followed immediately by a week of intensive direct contact time followed by your own contribution through individual learning, which will take you to your first assessment point. At the end of your six-week block, your final assessment will be due.
The overall underpinning assessment strategy on this course tests the intended learning outcomes through exposing students to a range of assessment types. The aim is to develop both knowledge and skills to support students' entry to employment as confident project managers. The units on this course therefore use varied combination of types of assessments for both formative and summative purposes to enrich the learning experience. The types of assessments for this course includes:
- Individual Written Report or Essays: Your knowledge and skills are developed when you undertake the task of writing an individual report and the whole process contributes to your improvement when it comes to conducting postgraduate level research and developing your enterprise. The ability to perform literature informed research, to review and evaluate the relevant sources and to use an appropriate methodology in order to analyze and evaluate the relevant concepts is being assessed.
- Reflective Report: Evaluating your own contribution to a team is essential in the context of this course but in the workplace as well.
- Masters Practice Project: You will have to produce an individual, independent piece of work. You will be asked to identify the research question or problem under investigation from within the placement organisation, review the relevant literature, and develop a sound methodology in order to explore the problem, proceed with the analysis, discuss your findings and make recommendations. It is the capstone of this course and builds on the knowledge and skills acquired in all Units. It will be one of the most challenging but yet enjoyable and rewarding experiences you will encounter.
The use of a wide range of sources, both academic and other is a requirement for a postgraduate degree. The notions of accountability and academic integrity will be an integral part of your course. You will be supported in developing an understanding of academic integrity on this course. You will be informed about what plagiarism is and how to avoid it during the delivery of each Unit. Where an individual project is required you will be asked to show the different stages of your work or to present it in its entity upon completion. Where collaborative tasks are assigned, an individual reflective report will be necessary to indicate your contribution to the team. All coursework assignments will require a thorough evaluation of the sources used and referencing will be done according to the Harvard Referencing System.
Careers
By completing this MSc course, you will have the skills needed to find career opportunities in the following industries/areas: media; sport and leisure; government; financial services; construction; hospitality; engineering; electronics; IT; telecoms; the health services.
If you wish to continue your studies, you will also be well prepared for further research study at MPhil or PhD level.
Entry Requirements
Fees for this course
UK 2024/25
The total fee for a 2-year taught Master's degree for the Academic Year 2024/25 is £12,300. You can apply for a loan from the Government to help pay for your tuition fees and living costs. Visit www.gov.uk/postgraduate-loan
Alternatively if you have any questions around fees and funding, please email admission@beds.ac.uk
International 2024/25
The total international fee for a 2-year taught Master's degree for the Academic Year 2024/25 is £18,300.
If you have any questions around fees and funding, please email international@beds.ac.uk
Please note that this course is two years in duration. International students enrolling on this programme will not be permitted to switch to a one-year programme once they have been issued with their Certificate of Acceptance of Studies (CAS) unless requested by the University to do so.
