Main courses Business specialisation (20 ec)
Curriculum
The specialisation consists of 40-60 ECTS and comprises the following elements:
The mandatory courses are Strategy and Technology, Marketing Science, Strategic Financial Management, Operations Management, and Research Methods (20 ECTS). These courses are taught as a block and offered twice per year starting in September and in February. These courses are designed to familiarise students with the basic managerial toolbox and to provide an introduction to key concepts and frameworks across management subfields.
In addition to these mandatory courses, students can take courses from the SBB electives course portfolio, or of approved courses that are offered as electives elsewhere.
Teaching method and participation
The core of this track consists of “practicals” in the form of both individual and group assignments (case analysis, essay and report writing), case discussions, presentations, etc. These “practicals” are linked to and deal with the formal knowledge which is in the books, readers and notes you need to study. A typical day involves reading a case, analyzing it, also based on knowledge provided in articles and books, with your group preparing an answer (short essay or powerpoint presentation) to deal with the case issues and then finally a full group case discussion conducted by the lecturer who will also elaborae further on the formal knowledge you can extract from the case.
Because the “practicals” are the basis for the learning in this course, participation in all sessions is mandatory.
Exams and Grading
There are four formal individual tests for which you need to reach passing level to get a grade for the course. In addition, assessment of the group work, case preparation, participation in case discussions and the final report and presentation to be delivered are part of the grade . The final (relative) grading of this course is based on a weighted average of the grades of all tests and assignments.
Brightspace
For each course a separate Brightspace page is created. Students are automatically enrolled in this course if they enroll themselves for the course in MyStudyMap. Lecture notes, assignments, important announcements etc can be found at Brightspace.
Application
Students have to register for the courses within the Business specialisation via MyStudyMap
Organisation
This specialisation is organised by Science Based Business.
For questions please contact info@sbb.leidenuniv.nl.
Business Electives (0-20 ec)
The Business Studies specialisation comprises at least 40 EC, of which 20* EC should consist of the main master courses from the Business Studies programme (as listed in the overview) and minimally 20 EC of the business internship.
An additional maximum of 20 EC of electives can be chosen from the listed electives, or from the main MSc programme of the student. The choice of electives from the main MSc program should be made in consultation with a study adviser (* For Biomedical Sciences only 15 EC is required.)
Students that have followed the SBB minor can choose courses from the business electives to replace the already completed courses within their track.
Electives within the Business Studies specialisation:
Systems Optimisation (3 E, semester 2)
Leading & Managing People (5 EC, semester 1)
Machine Learning for Business Analytics (3 EC, semester 1)
Entrepreneurship (3 EC, semester 1)
Management Science (3 EC, semester 1)
Accounting (3 EC, semester 2)
Lean Six Sigma (3 EC, semester 2)
Financing Technology Ventures (3 EC, semester 2)
AI for Strategy (3 EC, semester 1)
Marketing Analytics (3 EC, semester 2)
Digital Transformation (5 EC, semester 2)
Note: These electives have limited places available and are offered only once per academic year.
Students that are interested in following one or more of these business electives, are asked to follow these steps:
Step 1: Check the (preliminary) schedule for the course(s) in the e-Prospectus and/or the SBB website to see which courses fit within your own schedule. Attendance for these classes is mandatory. If you need consultation about your schedule, please send an e-mail to info@sbb.leidenuniv.nl to make an appointment.
Step 2: Register for the course(s) in MyStudyMap.
Business Internship (20-40 ec)
- During the Business Studies Internship (20-40 ECTS) students put into practice and further develop knowledge and skills learned in class. Students also become a subject matter expert in the field of the internship, and gain valuable experience towards the job market. Internships last between 3-6 months and can be done in the Netherlands or abroad. Examples of recent internship projects can be found on the SBB website.
Business Specialisation (MSc) after Minor SBB
Students that have followed the previous SBB can also follow the Business Studies master specialisation.
If you have followed the SBB minor, students can replace the 15 EC of the 'management courses' (Strategy, Marketing Science, Strategic Financial Management, Operations Management*) with Business Electives (see other tab). Next to that, students will need to follow the course Research Methods (5 EC), which is not part of the minor.
In addition to the 20 EC worth of business courses, students will need to perform a business internship of 20-40 EC.
In total, by following both the former minor SBB and the Business Studies master specialisation, students can take more business related courses than if they were to follow either the minor or master specialisation. For students who would like to supplement their science knowledge with business knowledge, it is therefore an interesting option to choose both the minor and master specialisation.
If you have followed the SBI minor, students can't replace courses anymore and need to follow the whole Business Studies program.
*The course Technology and Operations Management is part of the minor since September 2017. Students that have done the SBB minor before that, will have to follow this course as part of the master programme.
Career Perspective
Career Orientation
During the Business Studies master specialization program we want to provide you with the best possible preparation for the job market. In addition to knowledge, it is important that you develop skills, gain practical experience, orientate on positions & careers, and reflect on your own profile and development.
How can you use the knowledge and skills you are acquiring during your study program and apply your learnings in the job market? Which direction do you choose within your study and why? Which capabilities do you have, and what skills do you still want to learn? How do you translate the courses you choose into something you would like to do later?
These and other questions may come up at various times during your studies. You may have already discussed this with the study advisor, mentor, tutor, the Science Career Service, fellow students or made use of the Leiden University Career Zone.
All kinds of activities are organized where you get the chance to orientate yourself on the job market and gives opportunities to reflect on your own development, possibilities and (study) career profile as well. Central to this are the questions: "What are my capabilities?", "What do I want?" and "How do I achieve my goals?".
Not only is the substantive knowledge you acquired during your studies important for future employers, they also pay attention to the so-called transferable skills. These are, for example, your cognitive skills such as critical thinking, reasoning and argumentation, innovation, flexibility, initiative, appreciation of diversity, communication, responsibility and conflict resolution. Transferable skills, such as cognitive skills, are usually developed unconsciously during and outside your studies. Awareness of these and all other skills contributes to the development of yourself as a professional to the best of your capabilities.
In the e-prospectus, learning objectives have been formulated for each subject to inform you which subjects are offered to you that contribute to the development of your (study) career profile and preparation for the job market.
In addition to the assortment of activities related to career choices, various workshops and courses are organized as well that should help you to develop your skills or reflect on them. You then will be given the opportunity to think about subjects such as:
Which skills do I already have and which ones can I still learn?
In which subjects do I want to specialize further?
Which subject do I choose for my Master Research Project?
Which electives suit my wishes for the future
What else do I want to learn besides my studies
Where do I want to work later?
What are my work values?
How do I present myself when applying and at networking events?
How do I build a network and how do you do that, networking?
Activities
Business Studies Specialization year
Company guest lectures and presentations
Colloquia Nights
Workshops and Career Colleges Science Career Service
De Leidsche Flesch meetings
Master Career Orientation Day via De Leidsche Flesch
Science Career Event
Master's Open day (Leiden University)
Next to the above activities, an important part of the master specialization is the mandatory Business Internship. By doing this Business Internship you can put your learned knowledge into practice, discover the work life at a company and at the same time it helps you as a good preparation for the job market.
LU Career Zone
The Leiden University Career Zone is the website for students and alumni of Leiden University to support their (study) career planning. You will find advice, information, video recordings of webinars and tools such as professional tests to get an idea of your personal profile. You can also explore positions and sectors, you will find tips about CV, job application, LinkedIn and there is a vacancy platform that you can make use of.
Mentornetwerk
Leiden University likes to prepare students and young alumni well for the job market. For this we use the knowledge and experience of Leiden alumni. To bring students and young alumni with questions about their careers into contact with experienced alumni, Leiden University has established the Mentornetwerk. Students and young alumni can register for free.
Contact
Do you have questions about your (study) career choices and has the above information not been able to help you further? Please contact the study advisor Business Studies.
