BTEC Business - Mr J Dhesi (Key Stage 4 Co-ordinator)

The full title of this course is: BTEC Level 2 Extended Certificate in Business. This is a vocational course and is equivalent to 2 GCSE’s grades A*-C. You will be able to gain 2 GCSE’s in the same time as all other single GCSE courses although some students will be able to do this course in a double option and hence have twice the time to complete the course.

What will you study during the course?

During the course, you will study two mandatory units: Business Purposes and Business Organisations. These units begin to develop your knowledge and understanding of the importance of businesses and how they operate. You will learn about business ownership, aims and objectives of businesses in different sectors and the main departments that operate in a business, such as, marketing, production, human resources and finance. There are two optional units that we will select; Business Online and Starting a Small Business. The former unit introduces you to online business activity where you analyse basic websites to those offering interactive online buying facilities and the costs and benefits of having an online presence. The latter unit asks you to think of a business idea and then produce a business plan that will help to make your venture successful. As you can see, you will be encouraged to use your own initiative and make decisions and help solve realistic problems.

How will the course be taught?

A variety of approaches will be used. There will be some formal teaching, but there will also be lots of opportunities for you to work in groups and to carry out individual research.

How will your work be assessed?

Each pupil will produce four pieces of coursework on the four units. There are no external examinations on this course.

You will use computers to produce the work and use a range of software packages such as Word, Excel, Publisher and PowerPoint. Each coursework will be graded as Pass, Merit or Distinction.

What other subjects go well with BTEC Business?

The course links well with most other subjects and will build upon the skills you develop in the Arts, Humanities and the Sciences

What about jobs?

This is a vocational course and provides an excellent preparation for any career.

Further Study

There are many opportunities open to you for further study including BTEC Level 2 Diploma in Business, BTEC Level 3 National Diploma, the Applied Business Studies course at ‘A’ Level and ‘A’ Level Economics.