Effective management enables businesses and organisations to achieve their goals. Management is more than just the leadership and control exercised by senior executives – management skills are practised by people in all roles and are valuable at every stage of your career.

Regardless of your primary profession, you will probably take on management responsibilities at some point, usually sooner rather than later. Studying management equips you with the leadership, analysis, planning and decision-making skills to succeed from day one. Key management responsibilities include:

  • Providing direction through leadership, strategic planning and decision-making
  • Recruiting, training and managing staff, and developing the capabilities of the organisation
  • Developing efficiency, quality and innovation in operations in a global context

To fulfil these responsibilities successfully, managers need specialised knowledge. They need to know what makes organisations successful, and how to analyse, manage and improve performance in a range of organisational areas.

Management studies are an ideal starting point for students seeking careers in the fields of human resource management, international management, operations management and organisational development. They are also a valuable complement to studies in another area, such as accounting or finance.

Students are able to study subjects from the following management specialist areas:

  • Human resource management
  • International business
  • Business management
  • Operations management

Gabrielle LimI chose to study a Bachelor of Commerce at Melbourne because of the reputation of the University. The course has been challenging and fulfilling, and I have enjoyed the ability to compliment my studies in finance and management with breadth in politics and law. The wider opportunities presented to me have been invaluable, and I feel that I have developed the professional and analytical skills that will be critical to my career development at NAB, where I have secured a graduate role.


Gabrielle Lim
Bachelor of Commerce student

Management subjects as breadth

Majoring in management

The minimum subject requirements for a major in management are listed below, with elective subjects also listed. Click on a subject to view the subject listing in the University Handbook, including information about prerequisite studies and assessment.

Sample course plan#

Major in management with a specialisation in international business and a breadth sequence in civil systems. Click on the subjects below to see the relevant description in the Undergraduate Handbook. Each subject is worth 12.5 points unless otherwise specified.

Year 1 Sem 1 Introductory Microeconomics (compulsory) Managing and Leading Organisations Core program elective, e.g. Finance 1 Calculus 2
Sem 2 Introductory Macroeconomics (compulsory) Quantitative Methods 1 (compulsory) Engineering Systems Design 2 Linear Algebra
Year 2 Sem 1 Organisational Behaviour (compulsory) Business Decision Analysis (compulsory) Project Management Engineering Mathematics
Sem 2 Managing the Multinational Core program elective, e.g. Business Finance Engineering Materials Engineering Mechanics
Year 3 Sem 1 International Corporate Governance Chinese Business and Economy Core program elective, e.g. Corporate Finance

Fluid Mechanics & Thermodynamics
Sem 2 Global Consulting Project Managing Conflict in Global Workplaces Earth Processes for Engineering Structural Theory and Design

#This is a sample course plan only. Subjects offered may change from year to year.

Key

Compulsory subjects Finance subjects Management subjects Breadth component