BA (Hons) Rural Business Management Top-Up Degree

This course aims to give you a thorough knowledge of the fundamental principles of business management as it applies to the agricultural and rural industries.

Locations: Ayr, Barony
Study mode: Full time
Subject area: Business
Start date: September 2024
Additional info: You can enter the top-up degree course with a related HND or equivalent and study years 3 and 4 of our degree programme, graduating with an Honours degree.

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Course overview

The Rural Business Management BA/BA (Hons) degree is awarded by the University of Glasgow and provides you with a thorough knowledge of the fundamental concepts of business management as it applies to the rural sector. It is possible to follow the

The Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) accredited rural pathway, allowing you to pursue a career as a Chartered Rural Surveyor. Alternatively, you can follow the tourism pathway which is accredited by the Tourism Management Institute

Your academic study is underpinned by practical work on real-life case studies, business plans, study tours, and visiting professional speakers. By the end of the course, you will have a firm grasp of the fundamentals of running a successful business.

You enter the top-up degree course with a related HND or equivalent and study years 3 and 4 of our degree programme, graduating with an Honours degree.

Virtual Experience

Take a look around the SRUC Virtual Experience for lots of great student videos and examples of what it’s like to study our courses, along with campus and facility tours.

SRUC holds open days regularly. Visit our listings page for details of our up-coming events.

Student experience

Christina first studied HND Business with a local college. As a mature student and a parent to young children, when Christina was looking to continue her studies her local SRUC campus was the obvious choice.

"It’s a great team atmosphere. Staff are very supportive, encouraging and always there to answer any questions you may have. I made firm friendships that will last a lifetime. I loved meeting new people and also going on some fantastic field trips to highlight aspects of our course."

"My degree has helped me greatly - project management, data analysis, presentation skills, Scottish law and marketing."

Christina MacDonald

Course guide

Are you interested in studying business but want to do something a little bit different?

Do you want access to a variety of graduate careers where you can make a real contribution to the rural economy?

Then Rural Business Management is the course for you!

Click here to read the full Rural Business Management course guide.

Meet the lecturer

Bill Mackay

Programme Team Leader

Bill Mackay is Senior Lecturer for the BA [Hons] in Rural Business Management at SRUC Barony and Ayr [South and West Faculty]

Before becoming a lecturer, Bill’s career was in management, working with three multinational PLCs and three regional private limited companies, working in Glasgow, Edinburgh and London, including being an Operations Manager and Marketing Director. He then switched to an academic career in 2005 starting at Langside College lecturing mostly in financial management, business planning and marketing before joining SRUC in 2008.

Bill says “I have a huge interest in rural diversification, particularly rural recreation, and hospitality. I am also very interested in rural entrepreneurship and innovation. I enjoy the challenges of interacting with different types of students, from HNC though to Honours Degree and International Masters level. I am good at organising a teaching programme so that it fits with other aspects of students’ lives e.g., work and family, and I take great satisfaction from students graduating with excellent degrees and gaining entry to fulfilling careers.”

“SRUC is about creating and mobilising knowledge and talent to benefit Scotland’s natural economy. That is something that I buy into and take satisfaction from contributing to.

My style of teaching is experiential. I like to use a variety of activities in the classroom including games and simulations. My lecturing style suits active learners with a focus on visits to real rural businesses and taking those experiences back into the classroom. I’m lucky in that I work with terrific students and excellent colleagues.”

View Bill's Pure profile

Rachael Stark

Senior Lecturer

Rachael Stark is Senior Lecturer in Rural Business Management at SRUC Aberdeen

Rachael graduated from Robert Gordon University with a degree in Publishing where she particularly focussed on marketing during her work placement. Prior to SRUC, Rachael worked in marketing roles across various different industries including oil and gas, and as Faculty Marketing Officer for a Higher Education institution.

Rachael joined SRUC’s commercial arm (SAC Consulting) as Marketing Co-ordinator in 2012 and that’s where the interest in becoming a lecturer began and so joined the education arm of the organisation in 2015.

Rachael says: “The most rewarding thing in the world is attending graduation day and watching students who enrolled as nervous, shy first years accept their awards as the confident, accomplished professionals that they have matured into.”

“I am passionate about dynamic marketing and branding – I enjoy trying to understand consumer behaviour and what makes people tick. My teaching style involves using lots of case studies and examples to contextualise theory and to stimulate interactive debate. My most popular lecture involved analysing (and tasting) a variety of chocolate brands!”

Fiona Malone

Senior Lecturer

Fiona Malone is senior lecturer in Rural Business Management at SRUC Edinburgh.

Fiona graduated with a degree in commerce and accounting from Edinburgh University before working in the health service. After a role involving training new recruits, she then moved into education, completing a post graduate certificate in education at Strathclyde University. Before joining SRUC 12 years ago, she taught at Napier University and Edinburgh College while also delivering the teacher training and assessor courses for internal staff and writing many study packages for students and staff across Scotland.

Fiona developed an interest in delivering not only the theory involved in management but the practical application to specific contexts and moved into delivering commercial courses, vocational qualifications and professional training to a wide range of Scottish financial institutions including Baillie Gifford, Scottish Widows and Standard Life.

Fiona says “Over the years I developed an interest into teaching methods and learning styled which is reflected in my approach to teaching – making sometimes complex subjects as simple as possible. I am particularly focussed on the financial and business development subjects and teach in such a way that students gain the confidence to tackle subjects (like maths!) that they might have struggled with at school. I love seeing how students’ progress through their years with us and evolve into the successful graduates who can make a real contribution to the rural economy”.

Fees and funding

Eligible full-time students studying BA/BA (Hons) Rural Business Management should apply to SAAS for fees and funding. A student loan is also available to help students with living costs.

If you do not apply, you will have to pay your fees yourself and if you have studied at HNC/D/degree level before SAAS may not pay your fees.

More information about funding your course

Find out more about your payment options for this course in our fees and funding section

Fees & funding

Other possible routes to funding

Care experienced bursary: There are a number of bursaries available to care-experienced students studying full time. Find out more from our student funding teams at: registryfunding@SRUC.ac.uk
Discretionary fund
- SAAS student bursary
- Care Experienced Accommodation Grant
- Childcare
- Going further bursary
- RUK bursary (for students from outside Scotland)
- The Gregor Thomas Royan Lamb Bursary for Future Farmers
- Centenary bursary
- Change your path bursary

What you will learn

You'll study business skills like marketing, management strategy, research skills and economics, and learn how to apply them in context. You'll also complete modules relating directly to the rural industries.

Case studies, business plans, study tours, industry placements and professional experience give you the chance to put your learning into practice.

In your fourth year you'll undertake a research project drawing together everything you've learned.

You can also follow the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors accredited pathway, which delivers a group of modules that could lead to a career as a Chartered Rural Surveyor.

Alternatively, if you are interested in tourism, you can follow the pathway that is accredited by the Tourism Management Institute.

Modules

: In first year you will study the basic theories through modules Economic Issues: An Introduction and Economics 1: Micro and Macro Theory. The emphasis is on learning the basic principle of supply and demand and the way in which government policy and economic conditions affect business and identifying adequate responses.

In second year, this will be further developed to look at market structure and the influence on profitability. Other modules such a rural business diversification and environmental awareness strongly link to this.

This knowledge is further developed by the third year study of Economic rural policy where students will gain an appreciation of the evolving rural policy framework in the UK and devolved nations, including differences in approaches and priorities. They will also look at various non-EU countries' policies to appreciate how policies are affected by geographical as well as economic elements, such as, the differences between developed and developing countries.

There is a practical element with the use of simulation to allow students to see the impact of decision making. In fourth year this comes together with the other subject to aid completion of the honours project.
: Business success is dependent on continual development and updating. While many factors are common across all businesses, there are some specific challenges facing the rural sector.

In first year Business Management: An opportunity for students to start developing business plans. This is also supported by modules in marketing and entrepreneurial skills to provide further data for the process.

In second year this is taken a stage further with subjects such as graded units 2 and 3 which also give you an introduction to the level of study required for third year

In the third year modules advanced business development aims to put students in the shoes of business managers and encourages them to make decisions on a live brief. Working collaboratively in a manner reflective of the workplace environment, students must make decisions driven by customer, supplier and economic change within the wider context of the need for enhanced sustainability.

Further skills are developed in Rural business consultancy which develops students’ investigative and problem-solving skills through the use of integrative case studies.

Each of the case studies will usually focus on specified aspects of a business and involve the integration of technical knowledge and management skills. This will allow students to develop an understanding of professional problem-solving skills and appreciate their application in various business environments.

Finally, in fourth year we will consider ethical principles of decision making as the legal environment.
: Financial management is key for all businesses, and in first year we will start by looking at the basics of financial record keeping in Financial records for Small Businesses before moving on to budgeting and analysis of data in second year through modules such as Using financial Accounting Statements and Planning, budgeting and control.

These will give you the skills to create and interpret basic accounts and to use this information to recommend courses of action

In third year, Students are then able to complete business plans and assess the feasibility of diversification plans in other modules while also learning more about the implications of business structure on the financial success of the organisation.

In fourth year, students study company finance and taxation where they will explore business and financial structures at an advanced level.

The organisational structure that is selected can have an impact on decision-making, legal obligations, and financial responsibilities. Throughout this module students will deepen their knowledge of a variety of financial structures that a business can use, and the processes necessary to achieve a successful listing including valuing businesses and directors’ obligations.

The structure has tax implications and is a significant factor in selecting a business structure.
: In year 1 students study ‘Structure of the Travel and Tourism Industry’ which provides students with an understanding of the various sectors involved in the tourism industry. It focuses on the range of stakeholders and their interaction with wholesalers and retailers.

In year 2 the students focus on ‘Sustainable Tourism in Rural Communities’ whereby the gain an understanding of the sustainability issues of tourism in rural areas. This module focuses on environment, economy, and communities, positive and negative impacts of tourism as well best practice and discusses the issues surrounding business commitment to sustainable tourism principles.

Year 3 this is developed further with 2 modules; ‘Special Interest Tourism’ and ‘Rural Tourism’. Rural Tourism complements year 2 STRC by examining the demand for and the role of tourism within the development of rural areas. We address the specific issues and challenges when tourism is adopted as an economic regeneration tool. Students are encouraged to research into both past and present issues which are alive in the industry, thereby contributing to the vocational nature of the course. ‘Special interest tourism’ examines the growth and demand in SI tourism, exploring the challenges and issues raised in managing and delivering SI activities. We examine marketing strategies, considerations for environment, motivation, visitor, destination and risk management, and an in-depth analysis is conducted on the economic, social, cultural, and political impacts of SI tourism within the broader tourism market.

Year 4 along with students choosing to have a tourism focussed dissertation we offer ‘International Tourism Issues’ module.
: Surveying is introduced in first year through ‘Rural Land Use’. This unit takes a higher-level land use perspective as well as including up to date land surveying techniques including GIS methods and is designed to satisfy the needs of candidates seeking Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors accreditation. It is important that business students at this level are aware of the range of land capabilities in Scotland, including farmland, hill, mountain, estates and forestry, so that they can make appraisals of land capability in a wide range of situations for specified statutory and commercial interests.

In second year students look at farm buildings and their values, use etc with a view to maximising usage of these assets and also the legislative requirements regarding safety and ownership. They will also learn how to use GIS.

This feeds into the third year module, rural surveying and land use which starts to look at the different aspects of land use and how to survey properties.

In fourth year you will study the planning system and land law in detail, alongside learning how to carry out valuations. Students gain an understanding of key legal and planning regulation and policy issues as they relate to all rural property. This will include the importance of land use, ownership and occupation, rural planning law and the law relating to agricultural tenancies in Scotland.

This will equip students to make estimates of the likely purchase price or appraisal for specified statutory and commercial interests, appreciate the mathematics of valuation and an awareness of tenant rights, improvements, compensation, compulsory purchase and valuation for tax purposes.
: The fourth year module aims to introduce the principles of planning and designing a research project and interpreting the results of such projects.

The module will introduce students to the basic quantitative and qualitative analysis skills needed to underpin good design and interpretation of research projects, so that students have the tools to undertake research in their fourth year of study. Research skills

The Honours Project functions as the culmination of a student’s learning on the RBM programme. This double-credit module takes the form of a research, investigation or consultancy-based project to encourage the development of investigative skills and to enable the critical evaluation and presentation of information.

The project builds on disciplinary and inter-disciplinary knowledge, skills and resources that students have gained during their degree, regardless of where the research takes place.

The module aims to develop the skills desired by employers to aid transition into the student’s chosen profession. The focus is on in-depth, well-researched applied information with original insights that leads to real world decision making.