Business and Management (Tourism Management)
BA (Hons)
Undergraduate degree - single honours
- UCAS codes: Institution B20, Course N832 or 11W3 (with professional placement year)
- Business and Management - Programme Document
- Award
- BA (Hons) Business and Management (Tourism Management)
- School/s
- Bath Business School
- Campus or location
- Newton Park
- Course length
- Three years full-time. Four years full time (with year placement). Part-time available.
- UCAS codes
- Institution Code: B20
- Course Code: N832 or 11W3
- Campus Code: A,BSU
Entry requirements
We accept a wide range of qualifications for entry to our undergraduate programmes. The main ones are listed under 'Typical offers' in the main column below. For combined courses, please check both subjects. If your qualification is not listed, please email admissions@bathspa.ac.uk with your specific details.
Discover new ways of thinking about the tourism industry with this practical degree in Business and Tourism.
- Explore tourism management from a broader business perspective.
- Go beyond theory and learn from industry experts.
- Take advantage of our professional accreditation opportunities from the Institute of Hospitality.
University of the Year for Social Inclusion
Sunday Times Good University Guide, 2024
#8 in the UK
for Satisfied with Feedback in Business and Management (Guardian University Guide, 2024)
This Business and Management (Tourism Management) course gives you a grounding in the theory and practice of business in the context of contemporary tourism. You'll cover a broad range of topics including marketing strategy, and take a sociological approach to tourism. You’ll also open up your thinking to alternative visions of the tourism sector.
You'll make the most of the local and regional context of Bath and the South West as a busy tourist destination. The region is a rich cultural destination with internationally renowned attractions, from coasts to heritage sites, to bustling cities and quaint villages. You'll develop your network by working with hotels and public sector organisations, such as local councils or tourism boards, on real-life client briefs, giving you a solid basis on which to build your career.
You'll look at tourism management in an international context, discussing contemporary issues such as sustainability, globalisation, innovations and creativity in the industry. You'll benefit from the views, knowledge and ideas of our international community of students, speakers and educators.
This course will enable you to become a confident professional in both a local and a global context. Your future career prospects could include roles in airlines and travel organisations, jobs promoting or marketing tourist attractions, and key positions in hospitality management.
“The Bath Business School team are very knowledgeable, enthusiastic and dedicated to helping you achieve your potential.”
Alex Appleton, Business and Management graduate
What you'll learn
Following our tourism management pathway, you’ll develop specialist skills. You’ll learn to:
- Evaluate different approaches to destination management
- Understand contemporary social changes as they relate to tourism
- Demonstrate your knowledge of a range of emerging tourism forms.
In addition to this, you’ll develop the key skills and knowledge of business and management that will enable you to thrive in a variety of business settings. You’ll cover a range of disciplines across tourism, hospitality, the public sector, destination organisation and management. With a global mindset, hands-on experience in working with real-life briefs and specialist knowledge of the UK and international travel sector, you’ll be well positioned to kick start your career in a travel and destination business.
You can also bring in modules from areas outside of the Tourism Management pathway if you want to explore issues around a particular theme, such as sustainability or global affairs.
Year one
Gain a broad understanding of today's business environment – from the context in which organisations operate through to trends in economic thinking and the importance of data in business. Modules will cover topics such as:
- organisations and the business environment
- economics and globalisation
- managing data.
Year two
Focus on the inner workings of businesses. Use business techniques to solve problems and start developing the skills that employers look for. Modules cover key themes including creativity and innovation in business. At the end of the year, you can choose to embark on a ten-month business placement or a ten-week summer placement - applying what you've learned so far in the real world.
Year 3
Develop and explore your business learning and focusing on contemporary tourism issues. Undertake an in-depth business research project in tourism management. You'll also have a chance to set up a business on your own or with fellow students. Other topics to explore include:
- managing sustainability
- organisational strategy
- new trends in management
- creating and hosting festivals and events
- strategic human resource management.
You'll be assessed in a wide range of ways that will test your business knowledge and management skills. These could include presentations, work related projects, group work, computer based simulations, podcasts, exams, essays, videos and business reports.
We offer variety in the way we teach: sometimes we’ll set you problems so that you can find the answers for yourself; sometimes we’ll lecture. Most modules use a mix of lectures and small group seminars. There’s a good blend of online activities using our Virtual Learning Environment, Ultra. We invite business leaders in to talk about their experiences, and we arrange visits to local businesses. All of our teaching methods facilitate your development as a self-directed learner.
You’ll be given personal support in your studies – we’re a friendly team of academics who are committed to helping you achieve your goals.
To find out more about how we teach and how you'll learn, please read our Learning and Teaching Delivery Statement.
Course modules
This programme enables some choice, depending on your interests. There are core, required and optional modules within the programme.
Core modules are taken by all students whereas required modules depend on your chosen pathway and you can choose optional modules to complement or diversify your core skill-set.
The modules that are available to you will depend on your pathway, but the full list of modules is shown below. You should consult the programme document for further detail about available modules for your pathway.
- The Business Environment
- Organisational Behaviour and Management
- Economics and Globalisation
- Managing Data
- Design Thinking for Enterprise
- Professional Practice
- Creativity for Business
- Innovation Management
- The Marketing Business
- Human Resource Management
- Financial Accounting
- Operations and Project Management
- Destination Management
- International Business
- Entrepreneurship
- Applying Economics
- Festival and Events Management
- Law for Business Enterprise
- Fashion Marketing and Management
- Work Placement
- Professional Placement Year
- Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages
- Business and Management Project
- Economics Project
- Fashion Project
- International Marketing
- Management Accounting
- Strategic Human Resource Management
- Enterprise: Creating your Business
- Organisational Strategy
- Managing Sustainability
- New Trends in Management
- Cross Cultural Management in International Business
- Summer Placement
- Tourism: Contemporary Issues
- Creating and Hosting Festivals and Events
- Advanced Economics Issues
- Exploring Law in Business
- Business and Academic Skills
- Fashion Marketing Visualisation
- Successful Freelancing
- Leadership and Management
Opportunities
As part of your degree, you could study abroad on a placement at one of Bath Spa’s partner universities.
We give you the opportunity to work with regional and national businesses. You’ll be working on live project briefs, helping organisations find creative solutions to their business issues.
Depending on your pathway and the modules you study, you can gain accreditation by professional bodies and get exemption from professional exams.
In addition to the business community projects mentioned above, you’ll have fantastic opportunities to work closely with business and industry through placements, projects and internships.
Employers such as Logica, NHS, Liberty, Ocado, IBM, Marks and Spencer, American Express, Sky and Numatic International have recruited graduates from this course. After completing this course, graduates can progress to roles and areas such as:
- Hotel/hospitality management
- Tourism hospitality
- Social media
- Travel trade
- Public sector work
- Destination organisation
- Local tourism.
If you’re a full-time undergraduate student starting your first year at Bath Spa University, you can apply for the Certificate in Global Citizenship, which you’ll study alongside your degree.
You’ll gain global awareness and add an international dimension to your student experience, and funding is available. On successful completion of the programme, you’ll be awarded a Certificate in Global Citizenship. This is in addition to your degree; it doesn’t change your degree title or results.
Develop a wealth of indispensable digital skills that you can take into your future career. One of only three Adobe Creative Campuses in the UK, we provide all Bath Spa students with access to the full Adobe Creative Suite, giving you the tools to communicate creatively, whatever your course or chosen professional field.
Facilities and resources
You'll have access to excellent facilities at our Newton Park campus and city centre studios as well as online resources. These include:
- Commons building
- Newton Park library
- Academic Skills support (ASk)
- Specialist resources and subject librarian
- Our Virtual Learning Environment
- Free access to courses via LinkedIn Learning
- Support from the English Language Unit if English isn't your first language
- The Studio in Bath
Fees
Student | Annual tuition fee |
---|---|
UK full time | £9,250 |
UK part time | £4,625 |
Professional Placement Year
During the placement year, the fee is reduced to 20% of the full time fee. This applies to UK and EU/International students.
- UK: £1,850
- International: £3,150
Additional course costs
You may need to pay additional course costs over and above your tuition fees, for example, for specialist equipment or trips and visits. Please check the course Programme Document (linked under the main image on this page) for details of any additional costs. You can also read our Additional Course Costs Policy for further information.
Interested in applying?
We’re looking for individuals who are enterprising and creative. You’ll need to have drive, motivation and the get-up-and-go to achieve in a challenging environment.
We accept a wide range of qualifications for entry to our undergraduate programmes. The main ones are listed below:
- A Level – grades BBB-BCC preferred.
- BTEC – Extended Diploma grades from Distinction Distinction Merit (DDM) to Distinction Merit Merit (DMM) accepted in any subject.
- T Levels – grade Merit preferred.
- International Baccalaureate – a minimum of 32 points are required.
- Access to HE courses – typical offers for applicants with Access to HE will be the Access to HE Diploma or Access to HE Certificate (60 credits, 45 of which must be Level 3, at Merit or higher).
If you don’t meet the entry requirements above, we may be able to accept your prior learning or experience from outside of formal education. See our Accreditation of Prior Learning (APL) page to learn more.
English Language Requirements for International and EU Applicants
IELTS 6.0 - for visa nationals, with a minimum score of IELTS 5.5 in each element.
Course enquiries
For further information about the programme or entry requirements, please email us at admissions@bathspa.ac.uk.
Ready to apply? Click the 'apply now' button in the centre of this page.
Need more guidance? Head to our how to apply webpages.
You’ll already be actively interested in business through activities such as looking at business news and relevant specialist online journals e.g. Marketing Week.
Course leader: Marc Leverton
Email: m.leverton@bathspa.ac.uk