Have your sights set on a graduate training scheme? Or looking to enter the world of marketing?

With our BA (Hons) Business and Marketing course, you’ll combine broader learning of business with specialist studies in marketing.

During the course, you’ll gain a comprehensive understanding of marketing research and planning, with further module options digging down into areas including retail marketing, relationship marketing, content marketing, buyer behaviour and customer experience.

How does this course enhance my employability?

Thanks to the 50-50 split between marketing and wider business studies, you’ll be well-placed to choose a career path in either discipline following your graduation – from specialist marketer to broader business roles.

You will be encouraged to undertake a work placement, study abroad or combine both. In the final year, you’ll have the option to carry out a group consultancy project in the Faculty Business Clinic, a management enquiry project or a dissertation depending on whether you completed a placement. The management enquiry project will allow for working individually to investigate a real business issue, and gaining critical practical experience.

Why choose Northumbria to study Business and Marketing?

The course content has been developed in partnership with industry bodies the Data and Marketing Association (DMA) and the Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM), providing professional-level knowledge that gives you exemptions from taking some of their official qualifications. It’s also covered by the prestigious Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) accreditation for Newcastle Business School.  

• Marketing at Northumbria is ranked Top 30 in the UK by the Complete University Guide for 2024.
• Marketing at Northumbria is ranked top 15 in the UK for Teaching Quality & Student Experience (Guardian University League Table, 2024).
• This degree is also dual accredited by the Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM) and the Institute of Data and Marketing (IDM).
• Business and Management is ranked 9th in the UK for research power (REF, 2021). This is a rise of 51 places, the largest rise in the sector.

How will I learn during this Business and Marketing BA course?

You’ll learn through a variety of teaching methods including lectures, seminars, problem-based workshops, webinars, case discussions, practical activities, group work and tutorials. To help you develop your independent learning skills, you’ll also complete directed tasks – assignments you undertake in your own time.  

We back up all our teaching with well-designed support systems to help you get the most from your opportunities. And we make sure that we build extensive feedback, from both tutors and peers, into the course. Throughout your studies, you’ll be able to discuss any academic or personal issues with your Personal Tutor.  

Assessments involve applying business principles to solve problems and then demonstrating your thinking through business reports, presentations, portfolios and more. In the final year, you’ll complete an assessed dissertation, management enquiry or consultancy project.

Chartered Institute of Marketing Qualification

Northumbria University has joined forces with the Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM) to give students the opportunity to gain professional qualifications through CIM Graduate Gateway. The CIM is the leading professional body for marketers worldwide and exists to develop the marketing profession, maintain professional standards and improve the skills of marketing practitioners. CIM qualifications are highly sought after by employers, and map alongside our own degrees which ensures we are equipping students with the best opportunities for a successful marketing career.

Where will I learn during my degree?

At Newcastle Business School you’ll experience a first-class education in a world-class environment. From our social spaces and hub areas to lecture theatres and exhibition spaces, our facilities are exceptional. For example, the 24/7 university library achieves some of the highest levels of student satisfaction in the UK and has held the Cabinet Office accreditation for Customer Service Excellence since 2010.

We’re also committed to helping you make the most of Technology Enhanced Learning (TEL) by embedding it throughout the course. Tools such as the ‘Blackboard’ eLearning Portal and electronic reading lists are there to help you efficiently and thoroughly prepare for seminars and independent research. Lecture capture software means you can revise previously lectured material online in your time, as well as at your speed.  

There are plenty of opportunities to put your learning into practice through volunteering, internships and placements. This includes the Business Clinic that enables you to participate in a ‘consultancy firm’ to provide advice for our region’s businesses – an initiative that’s seen our students work with almost 300 client organisations, providing free consultancy worth an estimated £1.2 million.

How does this course set me up for my future career?

Making your career happen is at the heart of all our Business courses – with every module designed to reinforce the transferable skills you’ll need in the workplace. We’ve also introduced two dedicated modules focusing on career-development skills: Marketing Study and Consultancy Skills, and Preparing for Professional Practice.

Beyond the classroom, you’ll have opportunities to develop your career through practical experience and wider learning. In your second year, you can spend a semester studying abroad, or take an extra year before your final year studying elsewhere in the EU, or further afield such as the USA, Australia or China.

There’s also the option of a work placement year, while our Marketing Internship Programme is on hand to help you gain hands-on marketing experience. And there’s our Business Clinic, offering you the chance to work with real clients to help solve their business challenges.  

Once you complete your studies, you’ll be ready to pursue career paths across a wide range of sectors – with a particular edge in roles such as a marketing executive or a branding strategist thanks to your specialist learning. Should you wish to push your knowledge even further, the course also prepares you for postgraduate study – for example, on our MSc in Digital Marketing.

Or, if your inner entrepreneur comes calling, you can take inspiration from our previous students’ outstanding track record, with the combined turnover of Northumbria graduate startups higher than any other UK university.

Whatever you decide to do, you’ll have strong employability as a Northumbria graduate as every module of Northumbria Business School courses reinforces what you need to succeed. This includes the transferable skills that really matter to employers such as critical reflection and self-learning, collaboration and curiosity, and the ability to solve problems in sustainable and ethical ways.