University of Manchester

The course covers analyzing market demand; factors affecting firms; cost, profit analysis, pricing, competition in various kinds of market structure, strategic behavior, firm growth (mergers and acquisitions); the impact of governments on company policies; interpreting economic data; and the macroeconomic environment.  In analyzing all these topics, the course relies heavily on, and where practical, current examples and case studies, rather than mathematical modelling. 

This course begins by exploring the intellectual interventions and traditions that have emerged in the anthropology in and of Britain over the last 50 years, and then swiftly moves into exploring the ways in which interdisciplinary ethnographic research has been conducted across Britain. While reading ethnographies in cross cultural, global contexts, in this course students place a particular emphasis on the urban context of Greater Manchester. Students explore ethnographies that have been based on ethnographic research across Greater Manchester, and which raise and address urgent questions of social, political, and economic change in Manchester and beyond. The course tackles the concept of "the urban’" by exploring ethnographic examples from anthropology, sociology, human geography, and business studies that focus on social and cultural lives and relations. Students take two fieldtrips (Cheetham’s Library and Manchester Airport) and two walking tours (Fallowfield and Rusholme) to visit and reflect on the ethnographic locations of the materials and readings they engage with. 

This course is intended to introduce students having no previous experience of project investment appraisal to the ways in which such investments can be analyzed. Students who wish to enter the business world, either working for companies or for themselves, are required to conduct formal assessments of a proposed project (or business) and present these to decision-makers. The course equips students to conduct such analyses, by describing a case study (chosen by the student), modelling it using formal techniques and indicators, and to present the results in a well-structured document. In the past a variety of projects have been examined, including sports centers, restaurants, new products, renewable energy schemes, an escort agency, theme park, retail businesses, driving school, hotels and hostels, a company take- over, etc. 

The course develops students’ understanding of key marketing terminology and conceptual frameworks; provides students with an understanding of the role marketing plays in businesses and not-for-profit organizations and its importance for individuals within a society; provides students with: a) an understanding of buyer behavior and b) a skill to apply this knowledge for building firms’ competitive advantage; develops students’ understanding of how different organizations develop their marketing mix strategies while also paying attention to quality, ethical behavior, and social responsibility; and develops students’ knowledge of marketing tools and procedures used to analyze a variety of business situations.

This course explores the development of ancient science and technology and its interrelation with Greco-Roman societies and the environment. The course encompasses the ancient Mediterranean area and the Near and Middle East and range from the Bronze age to the early Middle Ages, with a focus on the Roman period. It takes a wide view of technology, ranging from primitive tools and agriculture to automata (robots), aquaducts, and catapults. The course uses texts and archaeological evidence, and incorporates field and museum learning experiences as well as explaining the latest scientific advances.

This is an introduction to the fundamental importance of law in everyday commerce in the common law world. The course deals with the common law approach to law, its creation, dynamic development, and practical application to business, focusing on two of the most important areas regulating business obligations: contract law and negligence. It also deals with risk evaluation and the capacity to influence, develop, and change the law itself. 

In this course students develop writing skills through a series of focused writing exercises that are critiqued in class. Students are introduced to some of the major theories of story design, and are taught how to develop their work draft by draft. Weekly classes cover (among other issues) the classic three act structure, beginnings and endings, the importance of genre, universal themes and their audience relevance, and dialogue.