MSc Business and Management

Our MSc Business and Management course gives you the knowledge and skills you need to be an inspiring, effective and resilient manager. We combine management theory with development of practical skills, and our course is taught by internationally recognised subject experts. It can be taken on a 12-month full-time basis or part time over 24 months.

The course focuses on key areas of business and management activity. You will explore the need for managing limited resources effectively, with maximum business impact. This is the ideal Masters if you're looking to take your first steps into management. We cover the major functions of organisations – accounting, marketing, operations, people management and strategy. Finance and economics are integrated through our strategic orientation. 

We aim to create industry leaders, managers and entrepreneurs, who're confident in the use of business analytics tools and critical thinking abilities. This allows for better and more informed decision making in your management career. There’s an emphasis on entrepreneurship, innovation and strategic management. You’ll also develop an appreciation of corporate social responsibility, ethical decision making and managing change.

Degree pathways

As part of our commitment to flexible learning this postgraduate course in Business and Management also offers two pathways, MSc Management and Marketing, and MSc Management with New Venture Creation and Innovation. To graduate with one of these degrees, students choose from a selection of tailored modules.

Dual Degree – University of Porto

Students studying this course are offered the opportunity to gain two Masters degrees by undertaking additional study in Portugal with our partner Porto Business School. Further information will be shared with students when they join Stirling. There are scholarships available for students studying at Porto to reduce course fees.

Enhance your employability

You’ll have the chance to take part in industry visits, as well as undertaking consultancy projects with businesses across the public, private and non-profit sectors. This allows you to integrate the knowledge and skills from your Masters degree to solve a real company's business challenge. Your best-practice knowledge will put you in the perfect position to help a business looking for a solution to a problem or a new perspective on a strategy. Places on these projects are competitive and involve interviews with the host company. At the end of the project you’ll be able to present your recommendations and a high-quality piece of research or consultancy.

Learn from the experts

You’ll be taught by internationally recognised subject experts, who also teach Stirling’s prestigious MBA. Throughout the course you’ll also be able to engage with senior executives from the private, public and third sectors, as well as entrepreneurs. This provides you with a practical perspective on contemporary business topics. We have a series of guest lectures and workshops, giving you many networking opportunities with potential employers.

Hear from our students

We know your time at Stirling will be a dynamic and vibrant experience where you’ll be able to engage with a wide range of business leaders and experts as they share their secrets of success. Hear from one of our students:

Developing business leaders of the future

Postgraduate education at the University of Stirling Management School goes beyond text books and lectures. We understand the importance of your postgraduate degree to help you with your career choices. We know the skills and personal qualities that recruiters look for in an individual so we focus on your personal and professional development to foster your group and team management, organisational analysis and communications and influencing skills.

Our unique Flying Start Leadership Programme equips you with the awareness, knowledge and techniques essential for building a successful career. These range from practical skills, like effective public speaking, to developing ways to work under pressure in difficult situations and manage conflict.

Find out more about Flying Start.

The MSc Business and Management consists of two 11-week semesters of taught modules and a three-month dissertation period.

When you successfully complete (pass) one semester of the taught element of the course, you are eligible for the Postgraduate Certificate. After completing two semesters of the taught element of the course, you are eligible for the Postgraduate Diploma. You can then continue for the award of the MSc by completing a dissertation or undertaking a consultancy project with a business.

Degree pathways

As part of our commitment to flexible learning this postgraduate course in Business and Management also offers two pathways, MSc Management and Marketing, and MSc Management with New Venture Creation and Innovation. To graduate with one of these degree students choose from a selection of modules, detailed below.

MSc Management and Marketing

What do marketing professionals really do? How can you use marketing in non-commercial contexts for social good? What new challenges and opportunities arising from the online and global stage? In this specialist MSc pathway, you will develop an interdisciplinary perspective on the management of business organisations while building specialised knowledge and skills in marketing. You will undertake modules in Personal and Professional Development, Economics, Accountancy and Finance, Global Perspectives in People Management, Responsible Business and Marketing, Brand Marketing, Digital Marketing and Advertising, Multi-Channel Marketing and Retail, and Social Marketing. Following completion of the taught modules you will have the opportunity to work with business undertaking a consultancy project. When you graduate, you will have the knowledge and skills to strategically analyse and evaluate organisations, and to develop and implement competitive marketing strategies. This opens up the opportunity to develop a career in marketing at the end of the course.    

MSc Management with New Venture Creation and Innovation

New businesses are essential to both developed and developing economies. Innovation is key to the growth and development of business and whether you want to launch your own business or change an existing organisation, the MSc Management with New Venture Creation will immerse you in the world of creative business to prepare for employment. The MSc Management with New Venture Creation and Innovation provides an innovative gateway to understanding how a new business is started, while providing a grounding in core business and management principles.  You will undertake modules in Personal and Professional Development, Economics, Accountancy and Finance, Global Perspectives in People Management, Responsible Business and Marketing, New Venture Creation, Business Growth and Managing Entrepreneurship and Family Business. Following completion of the taught modules, you will have the opportunity to work with business undertaking a consultancy project. The course will develop your understanding of the business environment and the challenges experienced in different entrepreneurial contexts including family and social enterprises.