By experiencing business in action through their involvement in business enterprises and workshops, through visits to businesses and through the use of real life case studies, students have the opportunity to learn entrepreneurial skills and experience the challenges, successes and, indeed, failures that result from their decisions.
We live in a fast changing world where disruptive innovation has become the norm. Ideas and structures that we were key to the world we lived in are frequently challenged. Think of how iTunes and others have impacted the music and video market, how Trip Advisor has affected hotels and restaurants and how Uber has challenged the iconic Blacks Cabs in London. Our students need to be resilient in the face of change and learn to embrace it.
At Buckswood we are uniquely placed to discuss approaches to business and economic growth and development in a global context as our diverse student body bring experiences and ideas from all over the globe.
With over 75% of Buckswood students studying business or a related subject, we are one of the largest departments at Buckswood. Our six members of staff have a wealth of teaching, examining and business experience.Business encompasses a breadth of disciplines such as psychology, marketing, economics, finance, accounting, operations, human resources, leadership and management and communication. Students have access to a wide range of resources and a well developed VLE library.
Courses on offer
At Buckswood offers business at IGCSE, A level and IB and the individual disciplines of Economics and Accounting at A level. We have developed our own University Foundation Course in Business Management (see separate page).
Visits
Students see businesses in action through visiting BMW, Coca Cola, Brighton and Hove Albion, Chessington or Thorpe Park, Cadbury, Jaguar Landrover, Denby Pottery and JCB in the UK and we organise business trips to other European cities such as Paris (Disneyland Paris) and Florence (Lamborghini and other Italian businesses).
Workshops, competitions and other activities
We run a range of business and enterprise workshops, take part in national competitions such as Student Investor, the Real Business Challenge, Young Enterprise, the School Business Challenge and the Tenner Challenge. We have an active Business Society. Our students have the opportunity to visit JP Morgan and to participate in the London Academy of Trading.
To encourage independent learning and thoughtful engagement we have a monthly journal encouraging students to make submissions on business/economics related news issues.
Economics
Our A level Economics students have the same opportunity to participate in the wide range of visits, workshops and activities on offer.
Economics is a more abstract subject than business in many ways. It focusses on microeconomic concepts: scarcity, choice and opportunity cost, supply, demand and elasticity, externalities and competition, and macroeconomic concepts: economic growth, inflation, unemployment, international trade; and macroeconomic policies: interest rates, exchanges rates, government taxes and spending and trade policy.
Economics students may often choose to study it in combination with Government and Politics. A level Mathematics is recommended and is essential for applying to study Economics at a good University in the UK.
Accounting
Our A level Accounting students have the opportunity to participate in our departmental programme of activities and workshops. They participate in the annual BASE Accounting competition. Many Accounting students also do A level Business or A level Mathematics. Whilst Business and Economics involve discussion, debate and case studies, Accounting is more of a process subject requiring students to familiarise themselves with, and become proficient in, the application of accounting concepts and the use of internationally accepted accounting methods.