Gain a comprehensive knowledge and understanding of modern business subjects and establish a firm foundation for the development of a career in business.

Course Type: Undergraduate Accredited by: QQI
Delivery: In-class & Blended Learning Fees: From February 2025 Annual tuition fee: €5,100 Irish & EU Students, €7,200 International Students. September 2025 Annual tuition fee: €5,300 Irish & EU Students, €7,900 International Students.
Duration: 3 Years Location: Independent College, Foley Street, Dublin 1
NFQ: Level 8 Next Intake: Enrolling now for February & September 2025 intakes.
  • Overview
  • Details
  • Entry Requirements
  • How to Apply
  • View Testimonial
  • Aims & Objectives

What is this Course?

Core Modules covered include Finance, Marketing and Management, along with general business areas such as Economics and Human Resources. Students will understand how these areas are inter-related with other functional areas in order to enable effective strategic business decisions. The programme is structured in a way which provides each student with the opportunity to study for either a general or a specialist Honours degree in Business Studies. The programme offers students the choice of four options for the completion of their Honours Degree.

These pathway study options are:

Bachelor of Arts (Honours) Business Studies – (with Accounting and Finance specialism)
Bachelor of Arts (Honours) Business Studies – (with Marketing specialism)
Bachelor of Arts (Honours) Business Studies – (with Management specialism)
Bachelor of Arts (Honours) Business Studies – (with IT specialism)

Each student has the opportunity to emphasis their choice of study as they progress from the first to the second and to the third year of studies. Individuals therefore have great flexibility in their choice of business studies subjects and in planning the development of their own individual undergraduate business education.

As they progress through the programme each student is able to make informed decisions about their growing personal areas of business interest and business expertise and is able to match these to their selection of business studies subjects and to their professional career intentions

EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES

• Small Medium Enterprises

• The Public Sector

• Digital Marketing Agencies

• Major Technical Marketing Hubs

• Financial Services

Previous Graduates are Employed in:

• State Street

• Oracle

• Air BnB

• Google

• PWC Group

• Procter & Gamble

Accreditation

This is a three year honours degree programme and is QQI accredited. Students will graduate with an internationally recognised Bachelor of Arts (Hons) degree in Business Studies.

 

 

Stage 1 – Semester 1 Introduction to Financial Accounting
Information Systems in Business
Introduction to Marketing Perspectives
Global Organisations & HRM
Introduction to Economics
Learning to Learn
Stage 1 – Semester 2 Financial Accounting
Introduction to Statistics & Data Analysis
Marketing Tools & Analysis
Organisational Behaviour
Leadership and Management
Legal issues in Business
Stage 2 - Semester 3 Management
Employability and Enterprise Skills
Management Accounting
Consumer Behaviour
Contemporary Management
Systems Analysis and Design
Stage 2 - Semester 4 Managerial and Decision Economics
Management in Practice
Corporate Finance
Marketing Communications and CRM
Operations Management
Databases in Organisations
Stage 3 - Semester 5 Applied Project 1
Strategic Management
Organisational Change
Project Management Tools and Concepts
Accounting & Finance Pathway Performance Management (Accounting)
Strategic Financial Management
IT Pathway Contemporary Issues in Information Technology
Strategic Management of Information Systems
Marketing Pathway Marketing Contexts
Services Marketing
Stage 3 - Semester 6 Applied Project 2
Strategic Management in Practice
Entrepreneurial Development
Leadership Ethics & Corporate Social Governance
Accounting & Finance Pathway Performance Audit & Assurance for Business
Taxation for Business
IT Pathway Information Systems Security & Protection
Enterprise Systems
Management Pathway Finance for Business
International Business
Marketing Pathway Marketing Contexts & Marketing Channel Management: Etail, Retail
Implementation of Digital Strategies

What do you need?

Applicants for any Level 7 or Level 8 QQI-validated degree programme at the college may qualify for entry through their Irish Leaving Certificate or other international qualifications as follows:

• Leaving Certificate: the candidate must have obtained a minimum of grade H5 or above in two higher-level subjects together with a minimum of grade O6/H7 in four other subjects. A minimum of grade O6/H7 must be obtained in a language. A grade O6/H7 must be obtained in Mathematics.

• Pre-2017 Leaving Certificate Grading Scheme: the candidate must have obtained a minimum of grade C3 in at least two higher-level papers together with a minimum of four grade D3s in ordinary level subjects which must include Mathematics and a language.

• A-Level/GCSE: the candidate must have obtained a minimum of grade C or higher in at least two A-Level papers, together with a minimum of four GCSEs which must include Mathematics and a language.

• BTEC: the candidate must have obtained a minimum of a BTEC National Diploma in which four distinctions are required.

• QQI Level 5: Independent College Dublin will accept applications onto its Level 8 Honours Degree programmes from any applicant holding a QQI Level 5 qualification where a minimum of three distinctions have been obtained as part of their QQI award. To obtain an overall award, learners must have completed eight modules successfully. This does not have to be achieved in one year but can be accumulated over several years.

• Leaving Certificate Applied Programme (LCAP): the College does not recognise LCAP subjects as meeting its minimum entry requirements. However, if combined with a Grade 2 in any QQI certificate course, applicants may apply for any undergraduate course in the college.

• Mature applicants are welcome and can discuss entry based on professional work experience and academic qualifications with our Admissions Manager.

 

ENGLISH LANGUAGE REQUIREMENTS:

If English is not your first language, you must provide evidence that you will be able to study at degree level English. Applicants for whom English is a second language are required to meet the following minimum requirements (or equivalent):

• Common European Framework B2+
• IELTS6.0 or equivalent

  • Cambridge (FCE, CAE, CPE) 170
  • TOEFL (IBT) 79
  • TOEFL (CBT) 213
  • TOEFL (PBT) 550
  • Duolingo (Before 31st Dec 2022) 90
  • Duolingo (From 1st Jan 2023) 105
  • Pearson Test of English (PTE) 51.6

We offer a free online English test which can be taken during the admissions process.

How to Apply?

Apply by clicking our Apply for September or Apply for February button

During your application process you will be asked to supply the following documents:

• Original copy and English translations of degree and transcript of results from previous courses

• Copy of applicant’s passport

• Copies of any other previous academic qualifications

• Copy of GNIB card if already resident in Ireland

• Copy of English certificate – IELTS score of 6.0 or equivalent test is required

For further information email admissions@independentcollege.ie or phone +353 1 877 3903

Learn all about it

“The lecturers really took the time out to get to know everyone in the class and went above and beyond to make sure you really understand the course work that is being prescribed to you. They used their own examples to establish a real understanding to the topics and how to use that knowledge and apply it to the working world.” Nadine O’Connor, BA Business Studies Graduate

“I graduated with a first and that would not have been possible without the constant guidance and encouragement from the faculty”, Laura Dennigan, BA Business Studies Graduate

Aims & Objectives

The Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Business Studies (BABS) is a three academic year full-time level 8 programme providing theory, knowledge, research skills and practical skills to those who wish to develop their knowledge in and around the areas of business, management, IT, accounting and finance, and marketing. Business studies as a field of learning continues to grow in the educational sector. 

The general programme aims are as follows:

• To provide learners with a strong base of contemporary business knowledge through theory, concepts and methods constituting academic grounding in the core disciplines and skills required for a career in general business

• To provide learners the environment in which to develop and confirm expertise in the major business disciplines

• To develop in learners a methodical and rational approach to business problem solving and decision making, with the capability to apply acquired knowledge and skills to practical business situations

• To develop in learners a range of intellectual skills, encompassing reasoning and evaluative skills and communication skills that develop as fully as possible their interpersonal abilities.

• To develop learner capacity to organise information, argue, negotiate and defend conclusions and to present them in a clear and coherent fashion

• To encourage learners to deal with knowledge in a critical and analytical way, with the capacity and confidence to evaluate ideas and opinions underpinned by qualitative and quantitative research findings

• To provide learners with the opportunity to also specialise in a sub-field of business learning and to increase their knowledge and skills in this specialised area of Management, Accounting and Finance, Marketing and IT

• To provide learners with the knowledge and foundation to pursue further postgraduate study

Programme Learning Outcomes

At the conclusion of the programme, students should be able to:

-Demonstrate an in-depth knowledge of essential business knowledge, theoretical models and principles within the core aspects of business.

-Assess knowledge and information, tools and techniques in a critical manner to effectively adapt to changing business environments.

-Critically assess the fundamental elements of business in particular accountancy and finance, IT and management and marketing how they are inter-related with other functional areas in order to enable effective strategic business decisions.

-Be able to identify and harness new business models in pursuit of business objectives and to optimise personal productivity.

-Evaluate the responsibilities of business professionals in a professional manner, identifying potential ethical dilemmas and the evaluation of possible solutions.

-Demonstrate an extensive set of the acquired business skills, including the capability to participate creatively and responsibly in teams.

-Exhibit a command of research processes, and the ability to successfully apply this in an applied business project in a professional setting.

-Reflect on and demonstrate a level of academic ability at Level 8, allowing further academic or professional development.

Teaching & Assessment

The programme teaching and learning strategy is designed to allow the learner to progress through the theoretical and practical concepts in an orderly and logical fashion. The assessment strategy is planned to ensure practical application of the core principles of the module and facilitates feedback, which underpins the overall learning experience.

The primary purpose of Independent College Dublin’s strategy is that teaching and assessment support learning. In addition, assessment supports standards based on appropriate learning outcomes. The programme teaching and assessment strategy is informed by the QQI Business Award Standards. The programme learning outcomes (PLO), the module learning outcomes (MLO), and the graduate attributes also inform this process.

Throughout the programme, learners will experience a varied range of teaching and learning strategies, which are selectively chosen, based on level, module content and suitability to assessment. Most modules will primarily be delivered through a mix of lectures and practical workshops, with tutorials in place to support where necessary. Typically, material will be presented during lectures and workshops, with supporting documentation available via Moodle to learners.

It is envisaged that the learners will assimilate much of the material through problem solving and practical exercises. Emphasis will be placed on allowing the learners to examine the exercise problem descriptions and try possible solutions in the workshops. Tutorials will be used to allow the learners to get help, reinforce more difficult subject matter and provide learners with the opportunity for assistance to a specific problem.

Teaching will focus on the learner applying problem solving skills to existing programme material. Skills will be developed through a variety of mechanisms, for example:

• Integrated tutorials with industry engagement.

• Problem based learning exercises with trade practitioners.

• Co-delivering and guest lecturing on focused syllabus content.

• Application workshop sessions, diagnostic and troubleshooting skills.

• Case study analysis, review, critiquing – reflective learning and writing skills.

• Blended learning and Flipped Classroom delivery

• Online synchronous and asynchronous delivery of lecturers.

• Directed e-learning

Formative assessment will from an integral part of the learning journey or the learner with feedback being provided on the solutions to problems posed in class and through assignment being critiqued and challenged in the educational environment. This will allow for risk assessment and a continuous improvement process to become part of their solution design.

Additionally, the teaching and learning strategy is informed by Independent College Dublin’s overall teaching and learning strategy, the scheme of assessment and the module specific teaching and learning strategy.