Thirty years of BA Business Studies at BU

15 September 2009

BU celebrates 30th anniversary of its flagship Business Studies course.

Students past and present recently came together to celebrate 30 years of BU’s BA Business Studies (BABS) course.

The reunion event saw students return to reminisce and learn about the latest developments at the Business School. Guests also enjoyed a tour of the new Business Executive Centre, based on the Lansdowne Campus, that offers the latest in business accommodation, a paper-free e-library, bespoke study areas and executive dining facilities.

Since the course began in 1979, over 5,000 graduates have completed the course with a total of some 81,300 assignments having been marked. Eleven BABS former students have also gone on to teach on the course.

Former student Debbie Sadd, from the very first batch of BABS graduates in 1983, said: “Thirty years seems a long time but in many ways it seems like yesterday. I have clear memories of the campus being much smaller with Poole House being the home of the library as well as the lecture rooms. We had our seminars and tutorials, as we called them, in portacabins in the car park!

“The biggest change is the sheer size and number of students as there were only two degree courses in those days and only around 2,000 students.”

BA (Hons) Business Studies Course Leader Mark Ridolfo added: “It was great to catch-up with former students and see how the course has boosted their careers. The course has an impressive 80% employment rate, with average starting salaries which are £2,000 above the national average.

“We also had another reason to celebrate, having this year seen the highest ever results across each year of the course.”

As well as taking core business units, this BA (Hons) Business Studies degree features specialist pathways, each one concentrating on a particular aspect of business. Subjects include Economics, Enterprise, Finance, Human Resource Management, International Business, Law, Marketing and Operations and Project Management.