General provisions

Master's Programme in Business and Management - specialisation 'International Business', 'Marketing', 'Organisation'.

Entry requirements

A Bachelor's degree, equivalent to a Swedish Kandidatexamen, from an internationally recognised university. Also required is 90 credits in business studies. Proficiency in English equivalent to the Swedish upper secondary course English 6. As all teaching takes place in English, very good language skills in English are a necessity to be able to partake in the course.

For incoming exchange students exceptions can be made from the requirement of 90 credits in business studies, provided that special reasons are considered to exist.

Learning outcomes

Upon completion of the course, the student should be able to:

• establish an understanding of what a theory is and the purpose of a theory,
• describe the development of theories in business and management,
• understand, compare and synthesize different theories in business and management,
• analyse and explain different empirical phenomena by distinguishing between, selecting and applying different theories,
• critically analyze, discuss and contrast central theories used in business and management studies,
• develop written and verbal argumentation and presentation skills.

Content

In this course students will learn what a theory is, the role and the purpose of using theories in business and management studies. Since there is no single meta theory that can explain how organizations' function but rather multiple theories and ways of theorizing, the course will provide students with the necessary analytical tools to reflect upon, understand and evaluate different theories in business and management, and to analyze different empirical phenomenon with the help of the theories. A number of common "root" theories as for example, Contingency theory, Institutional theory, Network theory, Decision-making, and Critical theories will be introduced during the course. Having completed the course students are expected to demonstrate a solid understanding of central theoretical ideas, concepts, mechanisms and critical issues of business and management in contemporary society. Students are also expected to be able to critically and comprehensively evaluate the applicability of different theories to independently explain different empirical contexts and phenomena.

Instruction

The course consists of a combination of activities and assignments such as lectures, seminars and group work and requires a significant portion of self-study on the part of students. Assessment for the course is continuous and is done in all the different activities of the course. The course language is English and all teaching and learning activities such as lectures, seminars, group work and assignments are in English.

Assessment

The student will get one single grade, equivalent to 7.5 credits.

The course contains the following examination parts:

1. Seminars
2. Individual written assignments

and the grade for the entire course is based on an assessment of all parts of the examination.

Grading criteria are presented in the study guide that applies to the course section. The following grades will be used: pass with distinction (VG), pass (G), and fail (U). Examinations handed in late will not be assessed except under special circumstances. Any remaining supplemental work must be completed and handed in by the deadline specified in the study guide. Otherwise the entire course (all examinations included) must be retaken during subsequent course sections.

If there are special reasons for doing so, an examiner may make an exception from the method of assessment indicated and allow a student to be assessed by another method. An example of special reasons might be a certificate regarding special pedagogical support from the University's disability coordinator.

Uppsala University does not accept cheating or plagiarism. Suspected incidents of cheating or plagiarism are reported to the Vice-Chancellor, which may issue a formal warning to the student or suspend the student from studies for a certain period.

NOTE: Only completed courses can count toward a degree.