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Postgraduate Certificate in Business Administration - Learning Outcomes

Educational aims

The Postgraduate Certificate in Business Administration provides you with a comprehensive grounding in important areas of managerial work. You will be exposed to a diverse range of managerial challenges and contexts. You will learn why and how to employ a wide variety of managerial techniques and approaches. Your interpersonal skills and self-awareness will be enhanced. Particular benefits to be gained from the study programme are:

  • Your foundation management knowledge and competencies will increase.
  • You will better understand your individual management role, its context and the nature of interventions you make in your organisation.
  • You will be a more reflective practitioner, better able to apply independent learning and inquisitive thinking in the workplace.
  • You will increase your understanding of how management theories, concepts and techniques apply to your current work and organisation.
  • You will be able to demonstrate how different specialisms contribute to generic management tasks and projects.
  • You will develop analytical, reflective and decision-making skills.
  • You will be better at critical analysis and your intellectual curiosity will be aroused.
  • Your understanding of management problems will be extended beyond your own organisation or sector.
  • You will be better at holding informed conversations with functional specialists and drawing on their expertise effectively.
  • You will be better at making appropriate interventions and decisions in the management of teams, projects and departments.
  • You will be more aware of a strategic view of organisational objectives and be better at contributing to these.

Learning outcomes

Knowledge and understanding

When you have completed the qualification you will be able to:

  • demonstrate sound understanding of theories and concepts applicable in managing organisational performance, resource allocation, management of people and leading organisations
  • manage complex situations in business and other organisations based on knowledge of both the external and internal context of organisations; generating social and economic benefits
  • develop long term vision, goals and direction for organisations and develop strategies to deliver the goals, including through appropriate financial resource allocation.

Cognitive skills

On completion of this qualification you will be able to

  • critically collect and use valuable information and evaluate in the context of their application across different environments and settings
  • conduct professional inquiries in problem identification, and use and manage knowledge and evidence critically to solve problems and develop actionable solutions.

Practical and/or professional skills

When you complete this qualification you will be able to:

  • develop appropriate people-management skills and leadership style
  • devise and apply evidence-based approaches to management decision-making
  • develop as an independent and reflective management practitioner.

Key skills

When you complete this qualification you will be able to:

  • understand the ethical implications of management practice and respond to ethical issues as a socially responsible professional
  • engage and manage in digital and entrepreneurial work environments
  • communicate effectively using a wide range of media
  • provide effective and ethical leadership that transcends functional perspectives
  • reflect critically on learning from workplace practice.

Teaching, learning and assessment methods

As part of the entry criteria you are expected to have work experience in management. However, our certificate programme will enable you to develop and demonstrate your knowledge and understanding, cognitive skills, key skills as well as practical and professional skills through a range of methods.

In particular, the modules expect you to work largely under your own direction and initiative and to reflect on your own performance, identify your own learning needs and to develop appropriate learning strategies. Within one of the compulsory modules there is a residential schools which provides you with opportunities to network with students outside your tutor group and enables you to develop skills associated with working in groups and teams and collaborative learning.

The programme helps you to learn through a wide variety of specially-written study materials, case studies, original texts, study guides and assignments and through use of multi-media materials, online and/or face to face activities. In particular, relevant and topical case studies and residential school activities allow you to engage with real-life management issues enabling you to develop appropriate analysis, evaluation and problem-solving skills.

There are also regular informal self-assessed questions which allow you to assess your own progression and understanding as you study each module. You are also expected to participate in online forums and online or face to face tutorial events. These provide opportunities to network with fellow students and to share and discuss ideas and queries.

Your learning is supported by an allocated tutor. Your tutor is your first and main point of contact and will support your learning by answering queries on the materials and running online tutorial events and forums. He or she will also mark and comment on your assignments.

The tutor marked assignments (TMAs) are either formative or summative, i.e. they either do not or do count towards your module result. Preparing your assignments will enable you to evidence your skills development as well as demonstrate levels of knowledge and understanding throughout your studies. Feedback from your tutor will also help you to improve your performance in subsequent assessments. In addition to the tutor-marked assignments, modules have an end-of-module assessment.

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