hnc business 2011 tcm44 41286

							      BUSINESS SCHOOL


BTEC Higher National Certificate
        (HNC) Business
      Student Handbook


           2011/2012




           Full-time
        STOKE CAMPUS
Welcome to the HNC Business
Award
This handbook gives you information about the HNC Business award. In it you will
find details on key personnel, the award structure, learning and teaching on the
award, communication between the school and students plus links to other useful
information contained within the University student handbook. .

This is for your reference and will be useful to you throughout your course. The
award is delivered at SURF partner colleges in addition to the University. SURF
partner students should refer to their College handbook for information specific to
their institution.

I hope you have an enjoyable, rewarding and stimulating time with us on your
chosen award.

Good luck and best wishes with your studies,


Sue Clews
Award Leader



Key personnel

Course Leader:                           Sue Clews
                                         Room: B251
                                         Tel: +44 (0)1782 298510
                                         Email: s.clews@staffs.ac.uk

Teaching and Learning Manager:           Anni Hollings
                                         Room B249
                                         Tel: +44 (0)1782 294202
                                         Email: e.a.hollings@staffs.ac.uk

Student Experience Manager:              Jim Pugh
                                         Room B358
                                         Tel: +44 (0)1782 294349
                                         Email: j.pugh@staffs.ac.uk

Student Guidance Advisor                 Lesley Mountford
                                         Room B239
                                         Tel: +44 (0)1782 294073
                                         Email: l.s.mountford@staffs.ac.uk
Award Administrator                      Pam Stephenson
                                         Room B227
                                         Tel: +44 (0)1782 294148
                                         Email: p.stephenson@staffs.ac.uk

Undergraduate Office Team                Room B227
                                         Tel: +44 (0)1782 294060
                                         Email: bs4060@staffs.ac.uk


Educational Aims of the HNC Business Award
     provide a coherent, broad based programme of study of business
      organisations and their management within the context of a changing,
      sustainable external environment
     develop self aware, reflective students that take responsibility for their own
      learning and demonstrate a responsibility to fellow learners
     provide a stimulating and accessible programme of study to develop a range
      of intellectual and practical transferable skills that will enable graduates to add
      value within the work place
     facilitate the development of a Personal Development Portfolio (PDP)
     provide contextualised assessment and project based tasks that allows
      students with different abilities and different educational experiences to apply
      knowledge and skills appropriately
     facilitate progression by providing the educational foundation that is relevant
      to further study and lifelong learning




What is distinctive about this programme?
BTEC Higher National Certificate (HNC) in Business
The BTEC HNC in Business is a part-time award designed for students who are
generally in employment or have appropriate work experience, and who wish to
develop their knowledge and understanding of business. A nationally-recognised
qualification on its own, the modules are selected from the Business Management
structure, and as such, enables seamless progression to the degree for those
students choosing to continue their studies upon completing the HNC.
PROGRAMME STRUCTURE, MODULES AND CREDITS

At the Stoke Campus:
Year 1


             BSB00117-4
                                                         BLB10109-4 Managing
TB1         Introduction to        BSB10229-4
                                                         People & Performance
         Business Accounting     Competences for
                                    Business
                                                                   BSB
           BSB00118-4               BLB10112-4           Independent Learning
TB2   Business Environment 1      Introduction to          & Critical Thought
                                     Marketing



Year 2

                                   BLL50140-5
TB1        BSB10192-5            Contractual and
      Operations Management    Business Regulation
                                                             BLB00008-5
                                                               Project
              BSB                   BSB10262-5
TB2   Managing Organisations   Effective Career Skills




The HNC comprises 120 credits and consists of the modules contained in the
shaded area. (Please note there may be some variation to this for the year 2
continuing students at SURF partner colleges).

Students wishing to progress to the top-up Business Management Honours degree
award are also required to achieve the modules in the non-shaded boxes (an
additional 60 credits)



How you will be taught and assessed
Teaching and Learning

The Business School’s commitment to promoting equality and valuing diversity
means that a range of teaching and learning methods are employed to suit the
various needs of diverse types of student learner. Subject knowledge and
intellectual, practical and transferable skills are developed through the curriculum by
supporting every business student within an inclusive and student-centred learning
culture.

Typically, lead lectures will be utilised to introduce key theories and concepts.
Lectures are supported by tutorials / seminars / workshops, project and group-based
activities, which are co-ordinated and led by academic staff and/or visiting speakers
as well as being student-centred. The active participation of students in the delivery
of the module content via these small group activities provides an excellent
opportunity to reflect upon underpinning theory and apply this to a variety of
business situations and contexts. This form of problem-based learning helps
students to acquire employability skills such as critical thinking, problem solving, an
ability to work in teams, effective communication and enquiry skills.

A key feature of the learning experience is the application of modes of teaching and
learning which aim to develop, challenge and extend knowledge, and links theory to
practice and employability which helps facilitate independence. Students are
therefore provided with guided independent learning activities to further influence
their educational growth and development in order to achieve the learning outcomes
of each module. The independent learning is facilitated through activities such as
direct reading and practical activities, and is co-ordinated with the tutorial, seminar or
workshop exercises.

Where appropriate, student learning is supported by materials, tasks and activities
provided online or via a virtual learning environment (VLE). Two of the modules
listed earlier are studied via the VLE and are an important part of the process of
managing your own learning and time. Business students are encouraged to
undertake their own personal development planning to enable them to reflect upon
their own progress and determine strategies to assist their learning. This will begin
during the Competencies module in year 1.

An Away Day is facilitated off campus in October of year 1, where students engage
in a number of team-building activities designed to contribute towards personal
development and as a confidence building exercise in preparation for assessments
during semesters 1 & 2.

A residential is also held off campus in November of year 2 for those who intend to
progress onto the top-up Honours award in Business Management.



Assessment


A range of assessment methods are used to assess the programme aims and
award-specific outcomes. The variety and flexibility of the assessment strategy is
designed to offer the student the opportunity to develop a number of intellectual,
research, practical and employability skills. In developing the assessment strategy
consideration has been given to the overall assessment workload in order to ensure
this is fair. Students will also obtain formative assessment via peer and tutorial
review of a number of theoretical and practical tasks. In order to provide formative
assessment and feedback award modules will employ one or more of the following
methods:

     Multiple choice tests
     Quizzes
     Essays
     Class presentations
     Exercises
     Peer assessment and/or discussions
     Case study discussions
     Workshop activities
     Self-assessment tests
     Class tests


Alternative assessments are usually available to students with particular
requirements.


Please note: you must attempt your module assessments first time around, as you
are not guaranteed a resit if you do not submit. This is very important and could
affect your ability to proceed on the award. If you have any exceptional
circumstances which affect your study or submission, then you should speak with
your personal tutor, or the Student Guidance Officer who may recommend that you
follow the Extenuating Circumstances procedure (see Section 4 of the University
student handbook
http://www.staffs.ac.uk/courses_and_study/student_life/student_handbook/ )

The same link contains guidance on what is considered to be academic misconduct,
e.g. copying someone else’s work, colluding with another student and submitting
identical work, cutting & pasting extracts from articles / text books and not
acknowledging the source. Please familiarise yourself with these details.


Assessment Results


Anyone enrolled onto the HNC Award year 1 in 2010/11and moving onto year 2 in
2011/12 will continue to have their modules marked as P, M, D, R3, R2, R1. The
award will not be classified. You will need to achieve a minimum of 120 credits to
attain the HNC award.

New students enrolling onto the award from September 2011 will have their modules
graded on a grading scale ranging from 0-15. Grade Point 4 is the level you need to
achieve to pass each module. The award will be classified overall.
For more information, please see the Undergraduate Regulations, p12 & 13 at
http://www.staffs.ac.uk/assets/ugrad_mod_fram_tcm44-26763.pdf
STUDENT TIP: MAKE THE TIME TO MEET WITH YOUR PERSONAL TUTOR




Communication: us to you, and you to us

 “Communication--the human connection--is the key to personal and career success.”
                                       Paul J. Meyer

Us to you

Your course team will be regularly contacting you regarding the course. This will be to
give you important information regarding the course, both in terms of teaching and
administration. This will mainly be in class announcements (verbally and through
Blackboard (our VLE), through e-mails and on noticeboards. Use MyPortal to keep your
contact details up to date – if you change address of phone number you must indicate
this via MyPortal (where you visited to enrol online). If you fail to keep you personal
details up to date, you may find that critical information, such as whether you have
passed at the end of each academic year, does not reach you.

Feedback on any assessed work will be made available to you within 20 working days
of submission.

Please note that you can arrange to have your student emails directed to another email
account – you may find this easier for home access. This arrangement must be
actioned using a PC on campus in the first instance.


STUDENT TIP: IT IS ESSENTIAL THAT YOU CHECK NOTICE BOARDS AND YOUR
STUDENT E-MAIL ACCOUNT REGULARLY.



You to us

 The staff responsible for your award actively seek your input regarding the course. This
can be via student surveys (like the National Student Survey and Viewfinder), feedback
regarding the evaluation of the modules you study, and via student representation on
course committees and the staff-student liaison meetings.


STUDENT TIP: GET INVOLVED – BECOME A STUDENT REPRESENTATIVE IT
LOOKS GOOD ON YOUR CV.


Your regular meetings with your personal tutor are also an opportunity for a two-way
discussion regarding your progress.
There is also a formal complaints procedure. Details are here but in the first
instance you should try to resolve any issues with either the module staff or anyone
from the key personnel list earlier in the handbook (award leader, administration
staff), or finally the School’s Director of Teaching and Learning. The full ‘Student
Complaints Procedure’ is available at:
www.staffs.ac.uk/images/complaints_tcm68-15862.pdf




Further important information which you should read and
become familiar with is available in the University student
handbook, at:
http://www.staffs.ac.uk/courses_and_study/student_life/stud
ent_handbook/


This includes details about the library and its resources, IT services, student office
functions (like careers, employability opportunities, counselling), other services
(catering, finance etc). There are also full details of the academic regulations and
marking /grading schemes applied.

Some of the most useful web pages you will make use of during your academic life will
be those developed by Information Services relating to the Library and Study Skills (see
http://www.staffs.ac.uk/uniservices/infoservices/studyskills/ )


There is much information and support available to help you. Please get in touch with
someone as soon as you need more information or assistance.
                                        APPENDIX


LEARNING OUTCOMES FOR EDEXCEL BTEC HNC in Business

The following table gives the learning outcomes for levels one and two for the BTEC HNC in
Business.

          On completion of each level of study BTEC HNC in Business students will be able to:-

       Common learning         CERTIFICATE
       outcome headings
       Knowledge and           Demonstrate a basic knowledge of the underlying
       Understanding           business functions, concepts and principles
                               associated with the environments in which
                               organisations operate.
       Learning                Begin to develop lines of argument and suggested
                               solutions to simple business scenarios.
       Enquiry                 Present, evaluate, and interpret qualitative and
                               quantitative business and financial data.
       Analysis                Interpret and evaluate basic concepts and principles
                               of business and management.
       Problem Solving         Demonstrate the ability to select and apply skills to
                               use and justify basic concepts and theories of
                               business and management for solving simulated
                               business problems.
       Communication           Communicate clearly in written and oral work.
                               Develop an appropriate use of business and
                               employability terminology.
       Application             Display an ability to use knowledge, understanding
                               and skills gained through the core modules from a
                               business management and employability perspective.
       Reflection              Begin to develop independent learning transferable
                               skills and take some responsibility for learning and
                               personal development planning.