BTH 9743 Bachelor Thesis - Small Business Development

BTH 9743 Bachelor Thesis - Small Business Development

Course code: 
BTH 9743
Department: 
Law and Governance
Credits: 
15
Course coordinator: 
Frode Solberg
Course name in Norwegian: 
Bacheloroppgave - Bedriftsutvikling for SMB
Product category: 
Bachelor
Portfolio: 
Bachelor Specialisations HSMI
Semester: 
2021 Spring
Active status: 
Active
Level of study: 
Bachelor
Teaching language: 
Norwegian
Course type: 
One semester
Introduction

This bachelor’s thesis in combination with the course BST 9742 Small Business Development, 15 ECTS, constitutes a specialisation of 30 ECTS. Students in the Bachelor of Business Administration or the Bachelor of Marketing programme who have chosen this combination will receive a final certificate stating that they have completed this specialisation.

The bachelor’s thesis is a significant independent piece of work in which the students are to show that they can examine a current problem and take overall responsibility for solving it in a suitable manner.
The bachelor’s thesis is a mandatory part of the programme. It is to be written in groups of 2-3 collaborating students. In special cases students may be permitted to write individually.

Learning outcomes - Knowledge
  • The students are to acquire an understanding of the operations of small businesses while working on their bachelor’s thesis.
  • They will also gain an understanding of the significance of management of small businesses and of the overall perspectives of small businesses.
Learning outcomes - Skills
  • The students should be able to prepare plans for growth in SMEs
  • They must be able to prepare budgets
  • They must be able to describe the collaboration within the group.
General Competence
  • The students are to develop critical reflection
  • They should develop ethical consciousness associated with business management.
Course content

The students are responsible for finding a topic or problem area that is suitable for the specialization in Small Business Development.

Teaching and learning activities

Students are expected to take personal responsibility for work on their bachelor’s thesis. Tutorials and seminars presuppose that students are prepared for discussions and tutoring. 

The students must fill in their chosen topic in a registration form. They will then be assigned a supervisor. The course duration is one semester and includes both seminars and tutorials. Guidelines for writing Bachelor thesis

are to be found on the student portal @BI.

The teaching includes 4 seminars. For each seminar the students must usually prepare and present, and/or hand in material beforehand. 

Up to 3 hours of individual tutoring for each student group is offered. The seminar teaching is mandatory. Students that have not taken part in seminars and/or have not handed in documentation must expect to be called in for an oral check.

The course is supported by BI’s learning platform and the students must have access to PCs with relevant software. The library offers courses and guidance in using the statistics program (SASJMP) and literature searches.

Software tools
SAS - JMP
Qualifications

Two years of college education in business administration or equivalent.

Covid-19

Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, there may be deviations in teaching and learning activities as well as exams, compared with what is described in this course description.

Required prerequisite knowledge

The students must have completed BST 9742 Small Business Development or have equivalent knowledge. In addition they must have basic knowledge of social science methodology.

Assessments
Assessments
Exam category: 
Submission
Form of assessment: 
Written submission
Weight: 
100
Grouping: 
Group/Individual (1 - 3)
Duration: 
1 Semester(s)
Exam code: 
BTH97431
Grading scale: 
ECTS
Resit: 
Examination when next scheduled course
Type of Assessment: 
Ordinary examination
Total weight: 
100
Student workload
ActivityDurationComment
Teaching
2 Hour(s)
Participation in introduction lecture
Teaching
2 Hour(s)
Participation in library information meeting
Seminar groups
8 Hour(s)
Participation in seminars, 4 x 2 hours
Prepare for teaching
40 Hour(s)
Preparation for seminars
Submission(s)
80 Hour(s)
Preparation of interim papers
Group work / Assignments
265 Hour(s)
Work on Bachelor Thesis
Feedback activities and counselling
3 Hour(s)
Guidance for the Bachelor Thesis
Sum workload: 
400

A course of 1 ECTS credit corresponds to a workload of 26-30 hours. Therefore a course of 15 ECTS credit corresponds to a workload of at least 400 hours.