Business
Head of Department: Mr M Osborne
Syllabus Title: A-Level Business
Examination Board: AQA
Length of Course: 2 Years
Entry Requirements: All students wishing to study A levels must have a minimum grade 5 in English Language and Maths, along with 3 additional GCSE subjects at grade 5 or above.
Description:
Businesses are all around us in everyday life, so an understanding of how business works will give students relevant skills that they can use for a lifetime. There has never been a more interesting time to study A-Level Business, with unstable markets, inflation and other economic factors all creating the environment within which we live. Understanding basic economic principles, how markets are affected by world events and how businesses assess their financial health enables students to make better and more informed decisions. Other areas of study include Marketing, Operations and Human Resources, all of which provide valuable skills for the future.
Topics studied in this course:
Topics Studied:
3.1 Unit: What is Business? Managing marketing and finance
• 3.1.1 Business and objectives
• 3.1.2 Forms of business and stakeholders
• 3.1.3 Marketing management
• 3.1.4 Financial management
3.2 Unit: Managing people and operations
• 3.2.1 People management
• 3.2.2 Operations management
• 3.2.3 Managing business culture (A-level)
3.3 Unit: Business and society, business and the external environment, and business strategy (A-level only)
• 3.3.1 Business and society
• 3.3.2 Business and the external environment
• 3.3.3 Strategy
• 3.3.4 Change
Structure and assessment of the course:
Paper 1
What's assessed
Unit 3.1
How it's assessed
• Written exam: 2 hours
• 90 marks
• 33.3% of A-level
Questions Two case studies. Each case study will be followed by five compulsory questions worth 45 marks in total.
Paper 2
What's assessed
Unit 3.2 (with links to Unit 3.1)
How it's assessed
• Written exam: 2 hours
• 90 marks
• 33.3% of A-level
Questions Two case studies. Each case study will be followed by five compulsory questions worth 45 marks in total.
Paper 3
What's assessed
Unit 3.3 (with links to Unit 3.1 and Unit 3.2)
How it's assessed
• Written exam: 2 hours
• 90 marks
• 33.3% of A-level
Questions Two case studies. Each case study will be followed by five compulsory questions worth 45 marks in total.
Post A-Level:
Every aspect of life is a business, so learning about how these operate is naturally of great benefit. Students that study A-Level Business may consider continuing on to University to study Business Management, Operations Management, Financial Accounting or Marketing. Qualifying with a Business A-Level could lead to a career as a manager, accountant, human resource specialist, or production manager amongst many career pathways.
Students who have studied this qualification at Dene Magna have gone on to start their own businesses, join the family business, or move directly into the workplace. Others have chosen to continue their education through apprenticeships, degree apprenticeships or University.
What the students say about this course:
“I enjoy using Maths in my lessons.”
“I find it an enlightening course. I’ve learnt a lot about the real world"
“Business Studies helps me to understand what’s going on behind the scenes of a business.”