The Award in Business Management and Study Skills provides an academic and professional foundation to students in essential and contemporary areas related to business and management together with the essential study skills needed to succeed in higher education. Students will be supported in their career plans.
The Award in Business Management and Study Skills provides an academic and professional foundation to students in essential areas related to contemporary business and management. This includes theories, practices and applications to different types of business, approaches to management and contemporary topics in business and management. Students will also be introduced to the area of project management in a business-related context.
In addition, the Award covers the academic writing, communication and digital skills as well as study practice that are necessary for successful achievement in higher education. Students will also explore their career aspirations and develop a career plan.
The Award in Business Management and Study Skills provides a solid foundation in both business and management, supplemented by a broader base of knowledge and skills to enable students to study business and management at higher education levels (MQF/EQF Levels 5 and 6) and so pursue a career in business organisations.
The overall objectives of the programme are to provide students with the following:
| Intakes | February/April/October |
| Duration | One year full-time |
| Mode of Delivery | Face-to-face learning and Online |
| Awarding Institution | GBS Malta |
| Awarded Qualification | Award in Business, Management and Study Skills; Pre-Tertiary Certificate in Business, Management and Study Skills |
| Level | MQF Level 4 (UK Level 3) |
| MQRIC Accredited Status | Accredited |
| Locations | Malta |
| Fees | €5,000 per year |
GBS Malta is offering students access to the Malta Get Qualified Scheme, enabling students to benefit from tax credits that help lower overall study costs. This scheme is highly valuable, giving back 70% of tuition fees after graduation.
Credits needed to earn the degree:
| ECTS Credits | UK Credits |
| 60 ECTS | 120 Credits |
The Award in Business Management and Study Skills consists of six compulsory 10 ECTS modules as follows:
This module is designed to provide students with a range of academic literacy skills required for studies at MQF/EQF levels 4, 5 and 6. This module will focus on equipping students with academic language and academic writing, academic literacy and skills needed to be successful in the other modules in the Award in Business and Management and support their progression to studies in higher education (MQF/EQF Level 5 and 6).
The module will provide students with a thorough grounding in the following key academic skills: reading and comprehension, notetaking, paraphrasing, referencing, English language skills, basic research skills, listening skills, presentation skills, referencing, academic integrity and good academic practice and appraisal of published sources.
This module provides an introductory context to and understanding of the different forms of business and the functions of management in coordinating and managing business resources. This module also provides an introduction to various types of businesses alongside establishing key management and organisational functions. In addition, the module will develop an understanding of the key skills important to students’ future career development. The module also enables students to put management in the context of its component parts. This module will also provide an understanding of the principles of analysing the business environment.
This module is designed to equip students with essential communication and digital literacy skills necessary for success in both academic and professional contexts. Students will examine a range of theories of communication whilst acquiring the skills necessary to engage in succinct, effective communication suitable for professional audiences, about themselves and their chosen subject of study.
In recognition of the demand for digital know-how amongst employers, this module seeks to equip students with digital employability skills to support them in life, learning and work. This module will equip students with the essential communication and digital tools required to communicate effectively as well as providing a baseline from which to apply these tools to professional settings. Students will learn about different types of digital skills and platforms, and how they can be used to communicate a message within and outside organisations as required in the contemporary interconnected and technology driven world.
Students will also understand the impact of cultural diversity on communication, as well as an understanding of how to adapt communication styles appropriately to respect and take account of cultural differences in academic, personal and business settings.
This module will introduce students to a range of contemporary topics in business and management. Contemporary topics covered in this include: business strategy, sustainability, climate change and carbon neutral, responsible business and business ethics, the growth and importance of e-business, entrepreneurial business and characteristics of entrepreneurs, management of quality and continuous improvement, economics and finance and wellbeing in the workplace.
A range of different types of international businesses will be used as case studies to highlight the contemporary topics given above.
This module will enable students to identify study practices, personal qualities, and attributes that are necessary for successful studying and achievement in higher education. This module complements the Developing Academic Skills module. Students will develop self-awareness, reflect on their existing abilities and enhance abilities to enable successful studying and achievement in higher education. This module will also engage students with career planning and identifying career aspirations in a structured and personalised manner.
The overall aim of this module is to develop in students an understanding of how to create and deliver specific project objectives in business and management, together with the necessary resources to deliver a project on time and budget.
This module will provide students with a sound understanding and insights into undertaking a project in business and management. This module will provide students with skills and knowledge required for setting up a clear and informed project rationale with specific objectives and associated measurable project tasks. Students will be introduced to the importance of set a budget for a project and how to monitor as a project progresses. This practical introduction to how to manage a project will allow students to identify how to communicate progress at each stage of the project.
Assessment will be through a range of different types of coursework, including essays, case studies, group and individual presentations, posters, teamwork, project proposals and a project report.
Continual and summative approaches to assessment will be employed. Continual assessment tasks will be used in all modules and will be aimed at supporting students in understanding and preparing for the assignments. In this way, students with different learning styles and abilities will be able to gain a good understanding of the requirements and be confident on their journey to their finals.
Briefs will be set for each of the final assignments required by each of the modules on this programme. These will set out the learning outcomes being assessed, appropriate material, context, etc. Suggested reading will include book chapters, published articles, weblinks to companies, and case studies, as appropriate. Each assignment brief will include marking/grading criteria so that participants have a clear understanding of what is required to pass the assessment and what is required to achieve higher grades. Grading of a participant’s assessment will be made using the pass, merit, distinction and fail criteria common to MQF/EQF Level 4 programmes.
Feedback will be provided to each student on their assessed work identifying both areas of strength and areas that could be improved. Where a fail grade is awarded the student will receive detailed feedback on the reasons for awarding such a grade and the areas that would need to be addressed for improement.
The learner will be able to:
a) Describe different types of business and identify different approaches to management in international and global contexts.
b) Understand and appreciate business and management in international/global organisations (public, private and voluntary).
a) Describe and identify different theories, concepts and ideas in business and management.
b) Identify different types of business organisations including private, public and voluntary.
c) Identify the importance of project management from inception, implementation and completion in different types of businesses and through developing own project.
d) Understand, demonstrate and improve upon a range of academic and writing skills necessary to study effectively in higher education.
e) Identify study practices and personal qualities and attributes, necessary for progression to higher education.
f) Identify career aspirations and develop a written career plan.
g) Identify communication and digital skills, including e-business and digitalisation, required to support studies and learning in business and management.
This MQF/EQF Level 4 Award in Business Management and Study Skills is for students who want to progress to a higher education course, for example, an undergraduate honours degree (MQF/EQF Levels 5 and 6) in business and management, and thereafter pursue a career in that area.
Award graduates could also be qualified to take up junior management positions in business organisations.
It is envisaged that there would be a range of different backgrounds of learners holding at least MQF/EQF Level 2 certificates in business and/or management related subjects who would be interested in study for the Award in Business Management and Study Skills.
These include the following:
English Language requirements: In addition, to be offered a place, students would be required to meet English language requirements of a minimum IELTS score of 5.0 overall or equivalent English language abilities at this level.
| Test | Overall |
| IELTS Academic | 5.0 |
| TOEFL IBT | 35 |
| PTE | 41 |
| Duolingo | 80 |
Other requirements: Commitment to study.
This programme is designed to prepare students for a wide range of occupations in general management across all industry sectors and the international environment. This course is also designed to provide progression to an honours degree programme in business and management or related subjects.
