BSc (Hons) Economics

Core units:

• Fundamentals of Business & Management: This unit aims to develop your understanding of the business context across industry and sectors globally. You will cover the key issues and challenges facing businesses going forward and the essential role of people in dynamic, resilient and complex organisations. You will explore key functional business areas including marketing, finance, accounting, economics, people management, and organisational behaviour.  
• Academic & Professional Practice: You will build your confidence in both academic and professional skills. This unit will cover the academic skills which will be required at degree level study and you’ll practice them throughout the unit with support from key university services including the library and study skills team. There will also be the opportunity for you to reflect on and develop your own professional skills through interactions with employers, careers services and online resources. 
• Fusion Business Project: You will undertake a business project based on a real issue or problem. The Fundamentals of Business & Management unit will support you in understanding key issues and challenges which could form the basis for your project.  Projects will be undertaken in workplaces, community settings or as part of research processes related to your chosen field of study. You will be allocated an academic mentor who will support you in developing and undertaking the project.  

Core units:

• History of Economic Thought: You will cover the major historic contributions in economics in the early days of the discipline up to the 1980s. The unit will trace the evolution of economic thought including Mercantilism and classical economists, Marxist theory and market institutionalism, Keynes and the role of the state in economic downturns.
• Introductory Mathematics for Economic Analysis: You will be provided with the mathematics to take you from GCSE standard to that required for the remainder of the economics degree.
• Principles of Microeconomics: The unit will develop a rigorous understanding of the behaviour of individual agents (individuals, firms, government) and the ways in which they interact in a market economy. The unit builds upon core theories of microeconomics (consumer demand, the theory of the firm, pricing and output in competitive and uncompetitive markets) and it aims to enhance the understanding of microeconomic models and their applications in a variety of contexts. 
• Principles of Macroeconomics: The unit will cover macroeconomic theory, enabling you to apply macroeconomic principles in the analysis of contemporary issues and problems. You will be given in-depth knowledge of Keynesian and Classical Macroeconomics, IS-LM model, Aggregate Demand and Aggregate Supply, Phillips curve, unemployment and inflation, growth and business cycle.
• Introduction to Financial Markets: You will be provided with an introduction to the institutions, markets and securities that form the basis of modern financial and monetary systems. It will cover the main types of products used in the financial markets, including debt and equity instruments used in both retail and wholesale markets. The module also evaluates the risk-reward considerations of institutional investors and how these are met through the use of the different financial instrument types available. You will also consider the investment environment, including regulation affecting financial markets and investment; ethics and professional codes of conduct.
• Basic Statistical Techniques: By the end of this unit you'll be able to calculate a range of basic statistical techniques and interpret the results and perform various significance tests.

You will be required to complete five core units and one option unit.

 Core units:

• Mathematics for Economists: This unit will extend your knowledge of the fundamental mathematical processes, techniques and ideas used in economic analysis.
• Intermediate Microeconomics: The unit will enable you to apply Microeconomic principles in the analysis of contemporary issues and problems. You will gain further understanding of the theory of demand, factors’ markets, general equilibrium analysis and welfare economics and the tools needed to analyse the effects of imperfect competition, externalities and environmental issues. It will develop your understanding of the risk and uncertainty and the theory of games.
• Econometric Techniques: This unit will extend your knowledge of the fundamental statistical processes, techniques and ideas used in the analysis and interpretation of economic data.
• Intermediate Macroeconomics: This unit aims to develop knowledge and the ability to critically analyse macroeconomic problems and issues in the context of the global economy. It seeks to provide you with the theoretical and empirical foundations to understand macroeconomic activity and policy in a global context.
• Industry, Region & Environment: The focus of this unit is on three inter-related specialist areas of economics: industrial organisation, regional development and the environment.

Option units (choose one):

• Money, Banking & Financial Services: This unit aims to provide a solid grounding in monetary economics and the financial system, seeking to provide a basis for understanding and analysing the working of financial markets.

• Corporate Financial Management: This unit presents and discusses the importance of financial management to a corporate entity based on the relevant theories. It analyses the business environment in which the financial management decisions are taken both in the short-run and also in the long-run. Further, it demonstrates how capital and risk are linked to financial management and applies key principles, techniques, tools, and instruments to assist in corporate decision-making.

You may choose to complete an optional (minimum) 30-week work placement which can be carried out anywhere in the world. The placement year offers a chance to gain experience and make contacts for the future.

You will be required to complete four core units and two option units.

Core units:

• Quantitative Economic Applications: This unit exposes you to economic data and to the varied quantitative approaches used in different specialist areas of economics.
• Global Markets, Development & Labour: The unit aims to develop your knowledge of economic theory and your ability to apply it to an inter-related set of specialist areas of economics: global markets, national labour markets and economic development.
• International Economics: Providing you with a comprehensive and broad introduction to international trade, finance, and trade policy and trade institutions, you will gain a basic understanding of international trade economics and rules, as well as the politics and institutions that go behind the economics.
• Research Study: The aim of the unit is to provide you with the opportunity to develop skills in conducting effectively a research project, and acquire specialist knowledge within an area relevant to your programme of study.

Option units (choose two):

• Perspectives on Business Strategy: You'll gain insights into the differing perspectives used to develop and implement business strategy.
• Investment Management: You'll explore the current features of capital markets and savings products which will prepare you for business and personal investment.
• Financial Regulation: The unit provides insight and understanding into key financial regulatory theories, forms and rationale of regulation that are highly relevant to those seeking to operate within the financial services sector.
• Microeconomics & the Digital Economy: Following the exposure to the theory of the game, this unit will aim to further the understanding of those concepts as the modern microeconomics heavily dependent on the game-theoretic tools. The microeconomic techniques are also utilised in developing many web and internet-based products, therefore the unit also aims to give exposure to those concepts. 
• Risk Modelling & Management: You will gain a broad awareness and understanding of the risks faced within a modern business environment, alongside the risk management processes necessary to control such risks.  You will develop the skills to model and analyse risk scenarios, with the application of such techniques allowing for critical analysis and informed decision making.
• Public Finance & Policy: As Nation-States begin to raise taxes to address unprecedented levels of public debt, we will consider their decisions, targets, and taboos. We will debate the underlying principles and theories on which our tax policies have evolved. This unit aims to provide a technically and academically challenging examination of public finance, in theory and in practice. 
• Managing Crises and Disaster Resilience: The unit will introduce you to the key concepts and theories that underpin effective crisis management and disaster resilience. The unit will develop your understanding of the necessary processes relevant to the handling of crises and disasters affecting wider stakeholders in both the public and private sector. 

Please note that option units require minimum numbers in order to run and may only be available on a semester by semester basis. They may also change from year to year.

Programme specifications provide definitive records of the University's taught degrees in line with Quality Assurance Agency requirements. Every taught course leading to a BU Award has a programme specification which describes its aims, structure, content and learning outcomes, plus the teaching, learning and assessment methods used.

Whilst every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the programme specification, the information is liable to change to take advantage of exciting new approaches to teaching and learning as well as developments in industry. If you have been unable to locate the programme specification for the course you are interested in, it will be available as soon as the latest version is ready. Alternatively please contact us for assistance.

A placement should be a highly rewarding experience for you and the employing company and we do our best to ensure that everyone involved feels that they have got the most that they can from the experience.

Placements provide a great opportunity to make your first career steps and enhance your employability while you’re completing your studies. You’ll get the opportunity to:

• Put the theory learnt throughout the course into professional practice
• Enhance your study and help you decide on subject options (where appropriate)
• Learn a wide range of skills such as time management, problem solving and team work (all of these are important to succeed in any career)
• Make contacts, as it is not uncommon for our students to be offered permanent positions to return to after graduating
• Gain a real insight into how the industry operates in roles that would be almost impossible to achieve for an outsider
• Many of our students, during their placement, are given responsibilities normally associated with graduate trainees.

The faculty running your course will offer the support of a Placement Co-ordinator.  

Through timetabled sessions and one-to-one appointments, they’ll help support you in your placement search including advice on finding a placement, information and advice on all aspects of job searching and job applications, as well as ensuring your proposed placement meets the requirements of your course.  

Our CareersBU service is also available throughout your time at BU, offering services like CV checking and careers fairs to meet employers.  

Placement Development Advisors will support you once you have started your sandwich placement – so you will be able to maintain contact with the university throughout.  

• Mazars
• IBM
• CC Young
• Charles Stanley
• GE
• FP Wealth Management
• EDF Trading
• Morgan Stanley
• JP Morgan
• Prescient
• Norwegian Cruise Lines.

AccessBU: AccessBU provides you with the opportunity to tell us about your circumstances that are not always evident in your UCAS application. This widening access initiative also considers relevant criteria such as being in care or if you live in an area with a low participation rate in Higher Education - if you are eligible, your offer could be up to 16 UCAS tariff points below the published tariff.

Apprenticeships: We recognise the transferable knowledge and skills gained through apprenticeships and welcome applications from students with a Level 3 Advanced Apprenticeship recognised by the Institute for Apprenticeships. Each application will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

Deferred entry: We are happy to consider eligible applicants for deferred entry. If you have already submitted your application, please submit your deferral request through our website.

Direct entry: We welcome applications from students who have previously studied at degree level at other institutions and wish to transfer onto a BU course. Our Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) procedure enables credit awarded from one institution to contribute to a BU award, subject to an application process. Please visit our RPL webpage for more information.

Mature applicants: We recognise that mature applicants may have a wealth of experience rather than formal qualifications, so we’ll consider your application on these merits if included in your application. You’ll need to apply to BU in the usual way through UCAS and you may be invited to an interview to discuss your suitability for the course based on the experience you tell us about in your application.

We encourage applicants who have a real interest in accounting principles and concepts.

Students on this course will have a proven ability to work effectively in teams as well as individually when completing assignments.

We select candidates for this course by looking at your application; there are usually no interviews or selection activities needed. For that reason, make sure your application really stands out from the crowd, and leave us in no doubt as to why you should be joining BU. You can find some handy hints about filling in your UCAS form on our how to apply web pages.

We look at individual applications and make a tailored offer based on your potential to succeed on the course considering a range of factors, including your academic achievements, work and other experience, reference and personal statement, and in some cases, your performance at an interview or a portfolio review. Typically, we make an offer at the bottom of the tariff range.

If you are unable to meet the entry requirements, we may be able to make you an offer through AccessBU if you meet certain criteria e.g. you have been in care or live in an area where fewer people typically progress to Higher Education. If you don't meet our published tariff, we will accept you at least 8 points below if your personal circumstances match our AccessBU criteria. 

Our offer-making will typically be based on your most recent qualifications, including any required subjects where applicable. We'll consider all qualifications when assessing your application, although these may not be part of our offer.

If you do not meet the criteria of your original offer, we may still offer you a place. We will review your whole application and consider all academic qualifications (including those not in the offer) to see if you have the academic potential to succeed on the course. If we feel the answer is yes, we will confirm your place.

The breadth of your learning means this course can open up a wide variety of opportunities.

Among the jobs you can take on after graduation are:

• Management accountant
• Political risk analyst
• Financial Executive/Advisor
• Business Development Adviser
• Data Analyst
• Research Economist
• Investment Banker.

The skills you’ll learn will stand you in good stead for your continuing professional development too – giving you more control over your career direction.

Our graduates typically work in business or corporate roles across sectors such as economics, accountancy and finance.

However, the spectrum of content on the course should prepare you to apply your learning in any context requiring your economic skills – giving you control over your career direction.

Once you have completed an undergraduate Honours degree, you can further develop your education by studying for a postgraduate degree. Please visit our postgraduate section for further details about our range of Master’s degrees.

Research degrees 

If you are a BU graduate you are eligible for a 20% ‘loyalty’ discount on the published fees for further programmes with us!  

Depending on your qualifications and experiences, you can choose to undertake a MRes or PhD level research degree. Bournemouth University has a strong economics research foundation within our Department of Accounting, Finance & Economics through a number of research centres, which explores theory, education and professional practice. 

Visit our postgraduate research courses for further details about research degree options with the Bournemouth University Business School and the funding options available. 

What’s included in your tuition fee?

Your tuition fee covers expenses associated with your course including tuition materials, access to facilities, mandatory field trips and the following:

• Materials for laboratory and mandatory field-based teaching activity
• Support for finding placements (UK or abroad) and fieldwork, and non-financial support whilst on placement if this is part of your course of study
• A range of student services – advisors, help desks, counsellors, placement support and careers service
• The Library – access to a wide range of electronic resources (databases, e-journals and e-books), print and multimedia collections, subject librarians and study spaces.
• Access to Brightspace, our virtual learning environment, which offers a responsive and personalised learning experience with powerful learning analytics capabilities, integrated social media and advanced video features
• IT labs (some open 24/7), wireless network, AV equipment to borrow
• Free software download to your personal device of Microsoft Office 365 ProPlus while you are studying, as well as access to applications provided on AppsAnywhere, subject to licensing and compatibility restrictions
• Peer Assisted Learning (PAL) scheme
• Disability and additional learning support, according to individual circumstances
• The BU Language Centre to help you develop/improve foreign or English language skills
• 24 hours a day, 365 days a year security team

Additional costs

We are committed to offering you value for money and ensuring there are no hidden costs while you are studying with us, therefore we have listed below any additional costs you may incur that are not covered by your tuition fee:

• Laptops, tablets and mobile devices and any software used on personal devices. Access to a personal computer is strongly recommended for your study. If you are experiencing financial difficulty, visit our website for information regarding hardship funds.
• Textbooks, general stationery and other supplies. Our award-winning library is stocked with a large range of textbooks and online resources, free of charge. The Students’ Union shop stocks a wide range of stationery supplies.
• Accommodation and living costs. Our accommodation price guide can be found on our website. 
• Travel costs to and from the University campus. An annual bus pass is included in your rent if you are living in halls of residence/Unilet accommodation or may be purchased separately.
• Travel costs to and from your placement (both in the UK and overseas). Information about funding your placement year can be found on our website.
• You will need to meet the cost of any Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check if required by your placement setting, including any Post Office verification changes. 
• Clothing or equipment costs required for your placement if this is part of your course of study.
• SportBU membership.

While all aspects of the programme, including required field trips, are included in the fee, additional, optional or extra curricula activities may be available for which a student contribution is required.

If you need to repeat one or more units during your studies (with or without attendance) the pricing will be pro-rata of the full-time fee.

Dr Khurshid Djalilov arrived at BU in spring 2011 after completing his PhD funded by the Studentship from School of Social Sciences and Public Policy as well as Overseas Research Studentship at King’s College London (University of London). Previously he taught at King’s College London and University of Greenwich. Dr Djalilov held visiting scholarship at the University of Colorado (USA) funded by US Department of State.

He is interested in emerging markets, transition economics and strategic management, in which he published books and research papers. Dr Djalilov is the assistant to the editors of Palgrave’s Dictionary on Emerging Markets and Transition Economies funded by Fusion Investment Fund (BU). He is the reviewer for SASPRO programme of Slovak Academy of Sciences, Acta Oeconomica (a peer-review journal) and for research grant applications of National Centre of Science and Technology Evaluation of Kazakhstan.

Dr Djalilov is interested to supervise PhD dissertations in emerging markets, transition economics and strategic management.

Dr Mehdi is the Deputy Head of the Department of Accounting, Finance and Economics, Business School at Bournemouth University. He joined as a Lecturer in Economics in September 2011 after obtaining his PhD from the School of Economics of the University of Nottingham. Mehdi has received Master's degrees in Economics from Ritsumeikan University, Kyoto, Japan and the University of Dhaka, Bangladesh. He worked as a Teaching Assistant in Economics at the Department of Economics at the University of Bristol from 2009-2011 and his current research interest included the refugee crisis, international migration, education and human capital development.

Professor Davide Parrilli is a full Professor of Regional Economic Development and Coordinator of the PhD in 'Econs & Mgmt'. His areas of research specialisation are:

• SME Clusters and industrial districts

• Regional innovation systems and business innovation modes

• Global value chains and global innovation networks

• Social capital and diasporas

Professor Parrilli has published in high-ranked journals such as Research Policy, Technovation, Regional Studies, European Planning Studies, Entrepreneurship, and Regional Development, Small Business Economics, Revue d’Economie Industrielle, Journal of Technology Transfer, Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Review of International Political Economy, among others. D has also published a number of volumes for Elgar, Routledge, and Palgrave-Macmillan.

Allan Webster has previously worked as a lecturer in economics at the University of Reading (1984-1996), as a Professor of International Business Economics at what is now Anglia Ruskin University and Professor of Economics at the University of the West Indies in Barbados. He has also spent time outside the academic world with periods of employment as an associate director of an economic consultancy firm and in government. He has advised governments in a large number of emerging economies through consultancy projects funded by, amongst others, the World Bank, the European Union and the UN Development Programme. Countries which he has advised include Abu Dhabi, Azerbaijan, Barbados, Cameroon, Kazakhstan, Namibia and Trinidad and Tobago.

His core research interests are in the interaction between trade and FDI on the one hand and labour markets on the other. In recent years this has spilled over into an interest in tourism and labour market aspects of tourism in particular.

Allan Webster is currently the Director of the PhD programme for the Businesss School and is first supervisor of four research students.

Adam Blake is a Professor of Economics in the Department of Tourism and Hospitality, Bournemouth University, and Head of the International Centre for Tourism and Hospitality Research. He is a specialist in computable general equilibrium (CGE) modelling and has used this modelling technique to examine the economic interrelationships between tourism and other sectors of the economies of the UK, USA, Scotland, the Canary Islands, Malta, Cyprus, Mauritius and Brazil. His research has provided both theoretical advances and research based evidence for government organisations.

With articles in journals such as Annals of Tourism Research, Tourism Management and Tourism Economics, Adam is a well known researcher in the field of tourism economics. He is also a former President of the International Association for Tourism Economics. His research articles have addressed issues such as the economic effects of tourism crises (Foot and Mouth disease in the UK in 2001; September 11th in the US) and analysis of public policy measures in response to such crises; the economic impact of tourism taxation; and the economic impact of tourism in developing countries. More recently, this has included modelling and analysis of the economic effects that tourism has on poor households in developing countries, and the suitability of tourism promotion as a means of alleviating poverty.

Dr Conor O'Kane is a Senior Lecturer in Economics in the Department of Accounting, Finance and Economics with the Faculty of Management at Bournemouth University. In the 2021-2022 academic year he is unit leader for 5 units across all undergraduate levels. Prior to working in academia, Conor worked for over 15 years in IT industry where he mostly worked as a Business Analyst.

Research: Conor completed his PhD in 2020 and his research examines the impact technology is having on personal information disclosure in online environments. Specifically, he examines information privacy from an economics perspective and carries out experimental research to examine how proposed Data Protection regulations impact on personal information disclosure.

Dr Dermot McCarthy was born in Kerry (Ireland) in 1980 and studied at the University of Limerick. He graduated with a bachelor of business studies in 2003, majoring in economics and finance and doing a minor in econometrics. He continued my studies at the University of Limerick, graduating with a PhD in 2007 and remaining as a post-doctorate research fellow with the university until January 2010. Since that time he has held the position of lecturer in economics at Bournemouth University.

His research interests are cross-disciplinary, encapsulating areas of economics and employee relations. More specifically, his research focuses on public-sector economics, theory of the firm, public-sector industrial relations, employee share-ownership, and employee psychology. He has published a number of papers relating to the impact of privatisation and employee share-ownership on employee attitudes and commitment in the workplace.

Jens Hӧlscher is an economist. Before coming to Bournemouth he taught at the Universities of Berlin, Swansea, Birmingham, Chemnitz and Brighton. He held Visiting Professorships at the Universities of Halle (Institute of Economic Research IWH), Perugia, East Europe Institute Regensburg, Danube University, Bonn (ZEI), Bolzano-Bozen, Frankfurt (Viadrina), New Brunswick in Cairo, Almaty (KIMEP and KBTU) and the Centre of Economic Research at the Deutsche Bundesbank. In Bournemouth he acted as Head of Department for over 6 years and Trustee of the Board of Governors for 2 years.He is interested in institutional and transition economics, both areas in which he published widely. He is the co-editor of Palgrave's (Macmillan's Global Publishing) book series "Studies in Economic Transition". His latest completed third party funded project sponsored by the Open Society Foundation was entitled "Wealth, Poverty and Life Satisfaction in Transition societies" and another one was entitled “Variety of institutional settings and socio-economic inequalities in the process of European integration“ was funded by the EU’s Jean Monnet Programme. The latest awards have been granted by the ESRC for a project on 'Access to Finance for SMEs' and by Poole Borough Council on 'Poole Marine Supply Chain Management. His inaugural public lecture at Barclay's HQ in Poole on Brexit attracted a large audience and won considerable media interest.