Business Administration (MBA)

How will I be taught?

An active learning approach is embedded in the Cardiff MBA. We believe that effective learning is founded on two things – your involvement in diverse and challenging experiences, and the way you make sense of those experiences, both individually and with others. A team that includes academics from multiple disciplines, and practitioners representing a range of functions and sectors will facilitate each module. This will reflect workplace practice and encourage the cross-fertilisation of different perspectives.

In person teaching will take place approximately once per month during term time, with 3 days of intensive sessions including lectures, workshops, and roundtable discussions. Each session will be linked to a specific block of learning and, when combined with online sessions, help to build your knowledge as well as provide support and guidance for your assessments.

You will find that each block of learning involves a rich variety of activities including industry speakers, time-limited challenges, role-play, and simulations. These are all designed to reconsider your existing understanding and to explore issues from different perspectives. The diverse backgrounds within the student cohort make a valuable contribution here.

We will help you to enhance your higher order reflective skills, including observation, analysis, and synthesis to develop comprehensive conclusions about these experiences.

We will also encourage you to reflect collaboratively with peers, academics, and practitioners to challenge your existing knowledge structures, assumptions, values and skills. This will also enable you to negotiate and build new insights into the nature of leadership and business practice and develop creative responses to business problems. 

You will have opportunities to integrate and apply new understandings, together with skills from the Leadership Development workshops, in practical tasks embedded in each learning block, and formal coursework challenges around which each module is designed.

How will I be assessed?

The block programme structure provides plenty of opportunities for you to reflect on your learning and development informally.  Short knowledge/skill review activities are built into each module to help you check your progress and improve your approach to learning. This will build your confidence and enhance your approach to formal assessment tasks.

Realistic work problems form the basis of formal module assessments. You will be expected to show extended academic reflection on each task, and adopt typical business formats to present your findings, including oral presentations, and written reports.

Assessment tasks require you to work individually and as part of a team, just as you would in the workplace.

How will I be supported?

The university offers a wealth of support for postgraduate students.  These include:

Learning Central

Learning Central is the university’s virtual learning environment.  All programme and module materials are posted here for students to access before, during and after lectures.

Libraries

You will have access to libraries across campus which hold over 1.1 million printed books. You will also have access to more than 1.5 million online books, journals, resources and databases.

Personal Tutor System

Each student is allocated a personal tutor.  This member of academic staff will maintain an overview of your learning and educational experiences.  If you are experiencing difficulties, your personal tutor will be there to listen and where possible provide professional guidance or else direct you to the appropriate source of support.

The Student Advisory Service

A free, impartial, non-judgemental, and confidential service is offered to students on a wide range of personal, financial and academic matters.

Disability & Dyslexia Service

Confidential advice and support is provided for students who are disabled or who have a specific learning difficulty (e.g., dyslexia) or long-term medical condition.

Counselling Service

The Cardiff University Counselling Service provides members of the university community with an opportunity to examine issues that prevent them from maximising their full potential and to explore options for change. The Counselling Service is confidential and free of charge. It has had international recognition as a Centre for Excellence for individual and group counselling.

What skills will I practise and develop?

The Learning Outcomes for this Programme can be found below:

Knowledge & Understanding:

KU 1 Draw on discipline-based knowledge and management experience to design integrated solutions to complex organisational problems.

KU 2 Critically evaluate current management frameworks, models, debates and evidence and integrate with practice.

KU 3 Critically evaluate contrasting research and consultancy skills for engaging with multi-faceted business problems.

KU 4 Analyse the complex environmental context that informs strategic decision making in organisations and practice.

KU 5 Demonstrate a holistic awareness of challenges faced by businesses in making both an economic and social contribution.

Intellectual Skills:

IS 1 Find and discriminate between competing sources of research and consulting evidence.

IS 2 Analyse methods for generating primary data and management information.

IS 3 Critically analyse and synthesise contrasting perspectives and their supporting evidence

IS 4 Integrate theory and diverse workplace experiences.

IS 5 Develop compelling arguments to support viable and creative plans of action to convince and brief a range of audiences.

Professional Practical Skills:

PS 1 Evaluate the practical applications of theory and practice to generate practice-based solutions to unstructured problems.

PS 2 Demonstrate proactivity and the ability to take the initiative

PS 3 Demonstrate responsible and ethical leadership.

PS 4 Identify and address personal and professional development needs.

PS 5 Develop credible methods for gathering primary data.

PS 6 An ability to make decisions in challenging situations.

PS 7 Work effectively in a leadership team.

Transferable/Key Skills:

KS 1 Solve problems creatively.

KS 2 Communicate to diverse audiences through a range of media.

KS 3 Demonstrate self-reflection and self-awareness.

KS 4 Work independently and collaboratively.

KS 5 Use digital technology.

KS 6 Manage self and others.