Business studies is an academic discipline taught at schools, colleges, and universities. It belongs to social sciences group and is particularly important for future entrepreneurs, accountants, marketers, economists, people who will deal with financial and organizational issues.
In the UK, business studies are included in GRSE and A-level courses. In Scotland, this discipline relates to National 5 and Higher qualifications. At the University of Cambridge, it is not mandatory but optional. However, students are strongly encouraged to attend business studies classes to learn the main rules for running business, get knowledge and skills that will help them build a successful entrepreneurial career.
Why is business education so important?
The modern world undergoes constant changes. In the era of globalization, it is very difficult for young entrepreneurs to survive without a solid theoretical base, scientifically approved approaches, methods to oppose crisis effects and increase revenues.
Whether you are going to open a small shop or a huge holding, information leaned at business studies lectures and seminars will come in handy.
Communication skills
A good business person should know how to find a common language with different people, attract responsible contractors to a project, negotiate on terms of cooperation, interact with colleagues and inspire their enthusiasm. Communication skills are important even when it comes to such trifles as writing e-mails or presenting reports.
At a university, you will take part in many interesting projects and learn to work in a team. Also, professors will instruct you on the right behavior at business meetings and other important events. If there are international students in your group, their unique experience may help you start thinking outside the box.
It is possible that your opinions will confront, so you will learn to avoid conflicts, convey thoughts to other participants in a discussion without pressure, diplomatically and master the art of persuasion.
You will understand people better
It is not enough for an enterprise to just produce quality goods or services to become a market leader. Competition is tough in all areas, and companies should know how to attract clients. When a person wants other people to act in a certain way, one should understand who these people are, what are their facts of life, priorities, values, needs, desires, and dreams. Various social groups perceive information differently, which should be taken into account when developing marketing campaigns.
University professors know about it because they share certain ideas to inspire learners. Similarly, professional musicians, writers, and artists take into account fans’ preferences when working on new content. Politicians try to win support on the eve of elections by using targeted agitation.
When applying for a job, candidates strive to find out what employee a recruiter needs and adjust a resume in an appropriate way.
Even if you will not become an entrepreneur, skills formed during a business studies course may come in handy in any life area. Therefore, the ability to analyze people is very important. It will help to make your ideas and projects stand out and present them creatively.
Accounting and budgeting
You can have a genius concept for a startup, but there is no way to succeed without financial management. Running a serious enterprise means that you will deal with large sums of money, buy rough materials, equipment, pay wages to workers and contractors, calculate taxes, prices for goods manufactured, rent premises for a plant or an office for your staff.
Even if you are going to hire an accountant, it is very important to understand what is happening in your company, what for certain money was spend, be sure that nobody tries to cheat you. It is difficult to increase financial literacy alone, just reading articles on the Internet. Universities offer a well-established system of techniques and methods which will help you control your venture’s budget.
Developing entrepreneurial talents
Many people do not even suspect that they can become successful entrepreneurs. As a rule, they have a certain idea, for example, opening a restaurant, but think that it is just a dream because of inexperience and lack of tools for embodying it. In fact, such dreams are quite realizable if having a clear action plan and being prepared for possible challenges.
Some persons do not have a business idea when enrolling in a university, but different pieces of training and brainstorming sessions help them prioritize and understand what they want to achieve in life, reveal great creative potential, come up with original and promising projects, offer innovations to the society, launch their own firms instead of becoming a hired labor.
Professors’ support
University professors can become good business guides, tell students which ideas are viable and which ones need to be rethought, help with business plan writing and searching for organizations providing grants for startups, send young people to conferences and competitions which potential sponsors often attend.
Useful ties
It is logical to assume that people studying business will become entrepreneurs in the future. Some of your groupmates may reach great success, launch huge firms and look for business partners. If building friendly relationships at a university, you may be one of these partners. If your own startup fails, a friend may offer you a good position in one’s company.
Or on the contrary, you may hire a former groupmate because you know this person well, understand what tasks one will perform better, whether one is responsible and hard-working.
Investment
How do people know when an investment is going to pay off and when it is not? How do they decide on big purchases, understand that it is worth risking and taking a loan? There is something more than mere luck. Investment is the whole science which is studied in university lecture halls.
You have a chance to find out when it is safe to borrow or spend money, how to determine whether a project is promising or not, what factors and economic principles should be considered when purchasing something, what events and phenomena influence world markets, how to analyze company’s financial state.
As a result, you will make well thought out decisions and save money. One of such ways, while you study, is to use an online paper writing service to always be in time with your home assignments.
Project management
A company head should be able to organize work on collective projects. At a university, you will learn to handle challenging tasks, distribute responsibilities between departments, organize their cohesive operation. Big projects will no longer scare you because you will know how to divide them into stages and develop action plans for each stage.
