Undergraduate Qatar Business School 2026-2027

The Business, Culture and Society course is designed to cover broad issues and trends in business, and to do this in a way that encourages students to understand what is that makes up appropriate university level practice.

The students for this course come from a variety of backgrounds (international schools teaching to a number of different qualifications). With a diverse background some are prepared for the transition to be independent-critical thinkers better than others.  It should also be noted that for many on the course and programme English is not their first language.

This is an introduction to accounting which aims to provide an understanding of how organisations – particularly small and medium sized businesses – capture, create and use accounting information both to guide their activities internally within the management function and to communicate their financial performance and position to external users of the accounts.  This course allows students to develop practical and analytical skills through a problem-solving approach to accounting-related aspects of business performance reporting and control, particularly in relation to bookkeeping, accounts preparation, budgeting and management accounting.

This course extends the operational tools and techniques introduced in AC1514.  It develops more complex problem-solving techniques in the planning, control and decision-making process.  It shows how quantitative methods and analytical techniques can be applied in management accounting solutions to management problems.  It also emphasises the diverse industrial, commercial and not-for-profit settings in which management accountants work.  It seeks to develop in students an understanding the organisational context as well as the nature of management accounting information.  The focus is to enhance students' problem-solving and communication skills, and develop their ability to select and apply appropriate techniques in specific contexts.

This course provides students with an overview of the underpinning concepts of marketing, and the requirements for the development of a market oriented organisation. Specifically introduces the basic concepts of buyer behaviour, market research, the marketing mix and the strategic context of marketing. The linkages between marketing and other key functional areas of management, notably operations and human resource management are highlighted by this course, encouraging the adoption of a systems perspective.

The aim of this course is to provide an introduction and overview of contemporary business issues. Contemporary business issues are cultural, economic, political or technological factors in the business environment which have emerged as having an important impact on contemporary organisations. These may vary, over time, as new business issues emerge and become important.
Currently the course will focus on two contemporary issues: (1) environmental sustainability and climate change, and (2) the impact of new information and communication technologies such as mobile technologies (smartphones, computers etc) and artificial intelligence (algorithms, AI) technologies on work.

This course provides students with an understanding of the financial system, primarily from a UK perspective, introducing students to the reasons for, and nature of, financial markets and institutions before moving on to explore the need and importance of financial regulation, and investigating the causes and consequences of the recent global financial crisis. The course will introduce students to a variety of topics including the role of wholesale and retail banks, non-bank financial institutions, the debt and equity markets, and the derivative markets; market efficiency, UK and international regulation, consumer protection and market abuse.

This course aims to provide students with an understanding of statistical concepts and methods relevant to accounting, management, finance, real estate and economics. The course is intended to enable students

i) To understand the principles of descriptive statistics, index construction, statistical inference, correlation, regression and time series analysis

ii) To apply statistical techniques to the analysis of accounting, business and economic issues and interpret findings

iii) To identify important sources of data in accounting, business and economics

This course builds upon AC2530 Financial Accounting 2.  The aim is to further develop practical and analytical accounting skills through the knowledge and understanding of controversial financial accounting and reporting issues, facilitating the ability to critically appraise current financial and non-financial reporting practice.

What is Business Ethics and why should we care? There is an impression amongst many that Business and Ethics are opposed ideas. This course seeks to address these issues. Exploring Business Ethics and Corporate Social Responsibility, tracing its historical origins through to current practice within organizations and the impact on the wider world. The course covers the fundamental question of what ethics is, granting a context for wider discussion. It looks at why ethics is relevant in the business world today and does so through traditional lectures and interactive learning such as the debates that have proven popular with students.

Entrepreneurship skills are highly important to current economy and they are required to reach higher levels of economic growth and innovation. It is also widely believed that increased levels of entrepreneurship can be reached through, especially, entrepreneurship education. Therefore, this course help students build fundamental blocks that essential to embarking on an entrepreneurial venture.

This course is designed to equip students with a thorough understanding of corporate finance theory, enabling them to grasp the implications of corporate finance decisions comprehensively. It aims to deepen students' knowledge of the fundamental theories underpinning corporate finance while enhancing their intellectual capabilities. Through the course, students will gain insights into corporate financing choices and their interaction with financial markets, thereby solidifying their theoretical foundation for analysing and understanding corporate behaviour and performance.

Applied Corporate Finance provides students with the knowledge about the fundamental theories and emerging issues in corporate finance. The course introduces the issues facing a corporate manager and equip students with the analytical skills necessary for evaluating corporate financial policies. Important issues covered by the course such as cost of capital, value of debt and its associated risks, leasing, credit risk analysis, management of working capital, will be explored from both theoretical and practical perspectives.  

This theoretically informed and practical course aims to explore the key concepts and theories of consumer behaviour. Students will explore: the consumer as an individual (understanding motivations, psychographics, demographics and cognitive processes) and social and group aspects of consumer behaviour (the role of friends, family and reference groups). The course uses interactive lecture sessions and tutorial activities to encourage students to reflect both on theory and their own experiences as consumers. The course will be very useful for those interested in marketing and market research careers. 

This course introduces students to what is involved in undertaking research into business phenomena. It introduces philosophical issues in the theory of knowledge, ethical issues in research conduct, and considers quantitative and qualitative methods in turn, addressing issues in sampling and design, details of specific approaches, and considerations in data analysis. The course is taught through weekly lectures and an extended two hour tutorial every fortnight, with two pieces of coursework and a two hour written exam. The emphasis throughout is on understanding the conceptual underpinning of different methods, and their strengths and limitations in research.

This course aims to develop the students’ knowledge, understanding and critical awareness of the audit techniques, judgements and practical skills associated with a financial statement audit. The context of the course reflects both the UK and International legal, regulatory and ethical framework.

The course forms an introduction to the 4^th year Professional Audit & Assurance course which goes on to explore the historical context and current professional, regulatory, ethical and societal challenges and developments facing the audit and assurance profession.

This course is concerned with managing and understanding organisational behaviour. Organisational behaviour is one of the most complex and perhaps least understood academic elements of modern general management but since it concerns the behaviour of people within organisations it is also one of the most central. This course designed to prepare students for what lies within organisations, thus avoiding the 'reality shock'. The emphasis will be on real-life rather than theoretical examples although wherever appropriate theory will be grounded in practical examples.

Sustainability, both in its ecological and social dimensions, has now become a challenge that concerns all types of organisations across the world. The media coverage has raised awareness among the general public on different aspects of sustainability and new regulations are emerging on this issue. Thus, a well-structured accountability system capable of managing and disclosing sustainability impact of organisational practices is an essential element for the successful sustainable organisation. Disclosure is an important part of the accountability process. Social and environmental accounting explores how organisations can disclose information to various stakeholders pertaining to issues such as: socially responsible investments, human rights, climate change and other environmental matters. Reporting and auditing of information on sustainability issues are a relatively new practice in the accounting field but rapidly growing in relevance.  Managers will be required to deal with these issues on a frequent basis. Thus, this course will build up strong employability skills.

This course introduces the theory and practice of change management, a key area in consultancy. You will explore how individuals and organisations navigate transformation, gaining practical skills through case studies, group work, and presentations. Designed to build your consultancy competencies, the course helps you understand how to diagnose problems, develop strategies, and support change in today’s fast-paced and evolving business environment.

This course builds on the knowledge and understanding gained in Audit practice in year 3. It will explore the historical context and current professional, regulatory, ethical and societal challenges and developments facing the audit and assurance profession. As such it contextualises financial statement audit within the expanding audit universe. A main objective of the course is to provide an opportunity for students to think critically about the state and future direction of audit as a profession.

All Accountancy and Finance students must undertake a dissertation. Students taking a joint degree may undertake the dissertation in either discipline, but not both.  It is designed to show that you are able to:

Carry out a substantial piece of research on a chosen subject without close supervision

Critically analyse and evaluate work carried out by others

Reach your own conclusions based upon your analysis and evaluation of relevant evidence, whether this is prior research only or prior research coupled with your own research.  

Write-up the results of your work in a clear, coherent and logical way.

This course is about business strategy and covers a broad range of topics that come under the general heading of “Business Strategy” or “Strategic Management”. The course has been designed to help you gain an understanding of the key areas of strategic management including an understanding of: what strategic management is and why it is important; the different types of strategic analysis tools available; the difference between corporate, business and functional strategy;  the complex issues associated with the implementation of strategy;  the concept of strategic fit; and the role for strategic leadership in shaping and implementing strategy.