BA (Hons) Business and Management (Human Resource Management)

BA (Hons)

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UCAS Code

NG13

Start Date

September 2027

Location

Cardiff

Campus Code

UCAS Points

Course Overview

People are central to every organisation. The Human Resource Management pathway will help you understand how organisations attract, develop, support and retain their people, and how HR professionals respond to changing workplaces and employment relationships.

You’ll develop practical business knowledge and the confidence to succeed in today’s professional workplace. Working alongside real-world organisations, you’ll build core management skills while exploring business through ethical, global, and digital perspectives.

Why study this course?

Led by professionals

You’ll be taught by staff with experience in a range of business roles.

Informed by industry

Co-designed with local and international industry partners to reflect real workplace needs.

Flexible study pathways

At the end of your first year, choose to either continue developing your knowledge of data analytics, or switch to a focus on entrepreneurship, creative industries, HRM, logistics and supply chains, or management.

Work experience opportunities

Build real-world experience through optional placements and the opportunity for a UK or overseas sandwich year.

Career-ready skills

Gain leadership, teamwork, decision-making and AI skills to confidently navigate the post-AI business world.

What you'll study

Year One is about finding your feet and finding your voice.

You’ll build confidence, explore how businesses work in practice, and develop the skills, curiosity and mindset of a future leader.

Build confidence as a university student and future leader. Develop academic, teamwork and communication skills while exploring ethical leadership, sustainability and the realities of modern business.

Explore how workplaces really work. Examine ethics, fairness and wellbeing while learning how people management decisions shape organisations, communities and the future of work.

Experience the start-up journey from idea to growth. Work with others to solve a challenge set by USW and an industry partner and build the mindset, confidence and skills of an entrepreneur.

Learn how to make ideas stand out. Apply marketing thinking to real scenarios while building planning skills, creativity and a strong personal brand to support your future career.

Develop your skills, knowledge and confidence across both business and management and finance, as well as beginning to specialise in human resource management.

Explore how procurement, logistics and operations drive modern business. Apply carbon literacy and sustainability thinking to optimise supply chains while balancing efficiency, value and global responsibility.

Develop financial confidence to interpret, manage and influence business outcomes. Analyse real-world scenarios, make strategic decisions, and understand how finance drives both organisational and societal impact.

In this module, you will explore how organisations identify their workforce needs and attract, select, develop and retain people. Working with real organisational challenges, you will learn to make and justify responsible resourcing decisions.

This module examines how organisations support, assess and recognise employee contribution. You will explore performance expectations, feedback, development, reward and recognition while learning to use workplace information to support informed decisions.

Spend a full year in the UK or abroad gaining workplace or international experience. Build global perspective, develop professional networks, and reflect on your growth as a future leader.

Continue to develop your specialism in human resource management in year three.

Tackle real-world business problems, apply emerging technologies, explore ethical and sustainable strategies, and gain the confidence to launch your career.

Tackle complex societal and environmental challenges. Apply business knowledge to ethical, sustainable solutions, engage with stakeholders, and explore how decisions can positively impact people, planet and profit.

In this module, you will examine the rights, responsibilities and relationships that shape employment. You will apply relevant legal principles to workplace situations involving employee voice, equality, conflict, collective representation and organisational restructuring.

This module focuses on how developments such as restructuring, new technology and changing working arrangements affect employees. You will consider workforce skills, communication, participation, resistance and wellbeing before developing an informed HRM response.

Step into the shoes of a business consultant. Analyse client briefs, solve complex problems, present recommendations, and merge theory with practice to build consultancy and leadership skills – with the opportunity to specialise and focus specifically on putting your HRM knowledge into practice.

We regularly review our courses to keep pace with changing skills and employer needs. If a review leads to significant changes, we’ll contact you to explain what’s changing for the coming year.

Teaching and Assessment

Teaching is industry-informed and student-led, helping you build confidence, independence and professionalism.

You’ll learn through interactive sessions where you collaborate, share ideas and apply your learning to real situations. You’ll tackle live briefs, network with industry professionals and develop the skills to make an impact in business.

The pathway follows a clear progression. In your shared first year, you will explore why organisations manage people in particular ways. In your second year, you will examine how key HR practices operate. In your final year, you will evaluate complex workplace situations and decide what organisations should do.

Assessments are practical and purposeful, helping you learn by doing. You’ll work on real-world tasks such as pitching to management, developing business reports, creating websites and creating business plans, helping you to develop confidence, critical thinking, and digital skills.

The course is designed for a post-Generative AI workplace, so you’ll learn to use AI tools responsibly and effectively, preparing you to succeed in a rapidly changing business environment.

You’ll have opportunities to gain real-world experience through an optional sandwich year (in the UK or internationally) or a five-week placement in your second year. These options help you apply what you’ve learned in a professional setting, build confidence, and strengthen your employability, and there will be options for placements directly related to careers in human resource management.

Studying Business and Management means learning beyond the classroom. You’ll have opportunities to engage with industry partners, including visits to professional workplaces and occasional teaching in real workplaces in Wales. Alongside this, you’ll be supported by expert staff and have access to laptops, on-campus IT facilities and library resources to support your studies.

Course Leaders

Liam Newton
Liam comes from a marketing background, having worked in the marketing industry in Australia before moving into academia and teaching in several countries around Europe. He is passionate about making sure each student achieves their individual goals through the course - whether that is to become a business leader, work in a multinational company, develop a consultancy business, or start a new venture.

Kevin Brown
Kevin is an experienced HRM academic with many years of experience leading and developing professionally recognised programmes, including courses aligned with and accredited by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD). As Course Leader, he is committed to ensuring that students develop the knowledge, critical thinking and professional capabilities needed to respond to the changing demands of the people profession.

Career Prospects

Across the pathway, you will progress from questioning why people are managed in particular ways, to understanding how HR practices work, and ultimately to deciding what should be done when organisations face complex people-related challenges.

Your future career

The pathway can prepare you for graduate opportunities in human resources, recruitment, talent development, employee relations and wider people-management roles. It will also provide a strong foundation for postgraduate study, including progression to the MSc Human Resource Management at USW.

Potential career paths include:

Human Resource Manager
Training and development manager
Recruitment Consultant
General Manager
Diversity and inclusion specialist

"I worked in the HR department on real projects, including a major salary benchmarking exercise and benefits comparisons with similar organisations."

Joel Jones, Business and Management student

Learn more

Salary expectations

A Business and Management degree can open opportunities across Business and the wider sector. Business and Management careers offer strong earning potential:

Median wage
UK: £54.4k per annum
Wales: £44.6k per annum

Total jobs in 2025
UK: 5.45m
Wales: 173,409

Source: Lightcast Labour Market Data 2026

Industry partners

Strong industry connections sit at the heart of the course, with partners including Barclays, HOOP Recruitment and NSPCC shaping learning through live briefs, workshops and workplace visits. These connections offer real insight into professional practice, build confidence and grow your network.

Entry Requirements

Contextual offers

We may make you a lower offer based on a range of factors, including your background (where you live and the school or college that you attended, for example), your experiences and individual circumstances (as a care leaver, for example). This is referred to as a contextual offer, and we receive data from UCAS to support us in making these decisions.

USW prides itself on its student experience and we support our students to achieve their goals and become a successful graduate. This approach helps us to support students who have the potential to succeed and who may have faced barriers that make it more difficult to access university.

How to apply Contextual admissions policy Ask us a question

96 UCAS points or above

Typical qualification requirements

A Level:
CCC

Welsh BACC:
Advanced Skills Baccalaureate Wales Grade C and CC at A Level

BTEC:
BTEC Extended Diploma Merit Merit Merit

Access to HE:
Pass the Access to HE Diploma and obtain a minimum of 96 UCAS tariff points

T Level:
Pass (C and above)

Additional requirements include:
The University normally requires a minimum 5 GCSEs including Mathematics/Numeracy and English at Grade C or Grade 4 or above, or their equivalent, but consideration is given to individual circumstances.

International applications welcomed:

We welcome international applications with equivalent qualifications of our entry requirements. For more details related to your country of residence, please view our dedicated country pages.

International students Pre-Sessional English

English language requirements

International applicants will need to have achieved an overall of IELTS 6.0 with a minimum of 5.5 in each component/TOEFL 4 overall and a minimum of 4 in each component or equivalent.

Equivalents can be located on our English Language pages.

If you have previously studied through the medium of English, IELTS might not be required, please visit our country specific page for further details. If your country is not featured, please contact us.

If you do not meet the English entry criteria, please visit our Pre-Sessional course pages.

Fees and Funding

Fees and funding Scholarships and bursaries Cost of living support

Studying at university is one of the most significant investments you'll ever make. Whilst you’re studying, you’ll have two main financial obligations – tuition fees and living costs. There’s lots of financial help available from the University of South Wales and external funding sources, that may provide loans (which have to be paid back) and grants, scholarships and bursaries (that don't).

*Full-time fees are per year. Part-time fees are per 20 credits. Once enrolled, the fee is anticipated to remain at the same rate throughout the duration of your study on this course except as described below.

Please be aware that we may increase the maximum fee for home students on full-time undergraduate courses only where the Welsh Government increases the permitted level of inflation of fees. Fees for all students (including part-time, postgraduate and international students) may be amended in accordance with our applicable Fees and Debt Management Policy. We will ensure that students are given clear, intelligible, unambiguous and timely information about our courses and costs in good time, ahead of the next academic year.

As a student of USW, you’ll have access to lots of free resources to support your study and learning, such as textbooks, publications, online journals, laptops, and plenty of remote-access resources. Whilst in most cases these resources are more than sufficient in supporting you with completing your course, additional costs, both obligatory and optional, may be required or requested for the likes of travel, memberships, experience days, stationery, printing, or equipment.

Placement expenses: Internship
Students are offered the opportunity to complete an internship during their second year of study. Students undertaking an internship may incur costs associated with travel and expected workplace attire and this will vary according to the placement.
Cost: Up to £300

Other: Text books
Text books are provided via the USW library but students may wish to purchase their own private copies.
Cost: Up to £400

Laptop
The University has computers available on campus and laptops for loan. However, it is highly recommended that you have your own personal laptop, which will be capable of running Microsoft Office 365. As a student you will be able to download a free copy of any software relevant to the course.
Cost: Up to £250

Fees and funding Scholarships and bursaries Cost of living support

Other: Text books
Text books are provided via the USW library but students may wish to purchase their own private copies.
Cost: Up to £400

Top university in Wales and 24th out of 123 universities in the UK.

Guardian University Guide 2027

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10 subjects ranked in the Guardian University Guide 2027 Top 10, including two at #1.

Three students studying in a pod in the library at Cardiff campus

Top in Wales for new business startups and 7th in the UK.

How to apply

All applications for full-time undergraduate courses or foundation degrees should be made via UCAS. Take the next step: Apply through UCAS

You can apply to us directly for all part-time undergraduate courses, if you’re seeking advanced entry or you’re an international student. To apply directly, please choose the application form below for your preferred start date and mode of study (full-time or part-time).

Business and Management (Human Resource Management)
- Full-time, 3 years
- September
- Cardiff
Apply direct

If you already have a relevant qualification or experience related to the course you're applying for, you may be eligible to start at a later stage of the course. For example, students from partner colleges can ‘top up’ their qualifications to a degree by joining us in Year Two or Year Three of a course. This process is known as ‘advanced entry’, you can apply directly to the University for 'advanced entry' using the application forms provided above.

Applicants accepted through advanced entry may study a different combination of modules to those advertised, as they will be joining a course already in progress. You will be contacted and advised about these modules once your application has been processed and an offer made.

International applicants can apply to us directly. If the University has an in-country team in your region, your application will be assigned to them for assistance.

Student Stories

As part of the HRM course, Hassan was introduced to crucial industry interactions via guest lectures and live seminars. These experiences offered practical insights, thereby complementing his theoretical knowledge, and making him an all-rounded candidate for future employment.

Hassan Raza Human Resource Management student

View student profile

Student Stories

"I chose USW after experiencing a different university environment where lectures felt one-sided and disconnected. At USW, the emphasis on practical experience and smaller, more personal classes really appealed to me."

Joel Jones Business and Management Student

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Student Stories

"Keep an open mind and be willing to explore different areas within the field, there is no single path to success. Be prepared to step out of your comfort zone.”

Sumaya Khan Business and Management student

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Student Stories

"Studying at USW was an easy decision for me – I wanted to stay close to home for university, and USW has one of the best business schools in Wales. The University has also been ranked top in Wales for new graduate start-ups for five years running, so I knew it would be a great place to hone my entrepreneurial skills."

Alicia Smith Business and Management graduate

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Student Stories

"I knew I wanted to start my own business. It was then I decided to go to university and gain a business degree. I worked out a business plan and things went from there."

Shane Richard Jordan Business and Management student

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Student Stories

Chidinma chose USW for its renowned Postgraduate degree in Procurement, intending to build on her experience in a Nigerian FMCG firm. USW offered a perfect mix of practice and theory. “I needed a university with a proven track record of academic excellence and the University of South Wales ticked that box.”

Chidinma Fofah Business and Management graduate

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Business and Management (Human Resource Management)

Course Overview