Business and Management

Marketing sits at the heart of modern business, connecting what organisations offer with the people who might want it. It draws on psychology to understand how people make decisions, on data to identify where opportunities lie, and on creativity to design communications that engage and persuade. Business and management provides the broader context, covering strategy, finance, operations, and the management of people and organisations, ensuring that marketing decisions are grounded in commercial reality.

Together, the two disciplines develop graduates who can think both creatively and analytically, and who understand how businesses work from the inside.

The University of Reading's BSc Business and Management (Marketing) is a three-year full-time degree taught by Henley Business School, which has a strong reputation in management education. The programme includes a sandwich year option, a year abroad option, and work placement opportunities, giving you the chance to gain substantial professional experience in a marketing or business role before you graduate. The typical entry tariff is 120 points.

You will develop the fundamental skills of business, from theory and practice to their real-world applications, as the course describes, with a particular focus on building marketing expertise alongside commercial awareness. Topics include consumer behaviour, brand management, digital marketing, market research, strategy, and the analytical approaches that underpin data-driven marketing decisions.

Graduates pursue careers in marketing management, digital marketing, brand management, advertising, market research, public relations, sales management, and general management. Many enter graduate schemes with consumer goods companies, retailers, media organisations, agencies, and financial services firms. Others build careers in entrepreneurship or the charity and public sectors, where marketing skills are just as important.

Postgraduate study in marketing, data analytics, or management is an option for those wishing to specialise, and professional qualifications such as those from the Chartered Institute of Marketing complement the degree well.