Course Spotlight - NQ Business and Administration
There is a strong demand for business and administrative professionals in Perth and Kinross – with support, clerical and administrative positions being in the ‘Top 20’ employing occupations. Perth College UHI is supporting this growth by helping students gain the right qualifications, skills and expertise to succeed in this field. On the blog this week, our Business, Administration and Accounting department talk you through our new NQ in Business and Administration (SCQF level 5) course.
This introductory course is suitable for all types of people - regardless of qualifications, age or work experience. You may be a mature returner - who has decided on a change of career; a school-leaver interested in this area; or a non-native English speaker - one of our optional units is ESOL based. This course will allow you to gain practical skills and a formal qualification in Business and Administration. It is an ideal introduction to office-based or customer facing roles and, on successful completion, students can progress onto higher education - on courses such as: HNC Business, or HNC Administration and Information Technology.
With a growing economy, and a requirement for a skilled workforce, the NQ Business and Administration programme provides an opportunity to develop practical and theoretical skills in a range of key subject areas. The impact of the COVID-19 global pandemic has highlighted even further the need for organisations to be able to work digitally while customers engage far more with online shopping, communicate using online platforms and the workforce being based at home and working remotely – all of these require people with not only the IT skills, but also the ‘soft skills’ necessary to support this huge shift.
The course covers a wide range of units such as: Word Processing, Spreadsheets, Database, Powerpoint, Customer Care, Event Planning, Marketing, HR, and Economics. These are all key areas and provide the underpinning knowledge and skills required in today’s world of work.
You will also get the opportunity to take part in a Work Placement Unit. We work closely with a number of local employers - e.g. Perth & Kinross Council, Perth Royal Infirmary, Stagecoach, Balhousie Care Group, Aviva, St Johnstone FC, Lantra, and Persimmon Homes - to ensure our students get the best possible experience.
The NQ Business and Administration teaching team are very experienced and knowledgeable, but also - and importantly - supportive and friendly. The class size is usually around 20-24 students and you will have plenty of time to get to know your tutors and receive the vital support that you need. We also use a Virtual Learning Environment called Brightspace and your tutors provide learning and teaching materials within this space for you along with key communications. You will have a college email account, which means you can keep in close contact with the team. You are also allocated a Personal Academic Tutor from day 1, and they are a vital source of advice and support in relation to your studies. You will meet them as a group, but also on an individual basis, and they will help you set your goals for the year and beyond.
In addition to the support of your Personal Academic Tutor, Perth College UHI has a wide range of services available to support you within Student Services. If you need advice on funding, learning and teaching, career advice - or actually anything at all – the list is endless, so get in touch.
We are currently planning to welcome our NQ Business and Administration students onto campus in September 2021, and are following Government guidance very closely to ensure all is safe. We are also really experienced at delivering online, so should we once again find ourselves in a lockdown situation - and we fervently hope not - we can switch to this environment easily. We would ensure that every student would have the correct hardware and software should this situation occur.
If you have any questions before you apply, then drop the Personal Academic Tutor an email at kathryn.lyneborg.perth@uhi.ac.uk and she will get back to you.
Or if you are ready to #FindYourFuture at Perth College UHI, you can #ApplyNow
