Bachelor International Business and Management Studies | Avans University of Applied Sciences

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Start month

September

Duration

4 years, fulltime bachelor

Language

English

Location

Breda, 's-Hertogenbosch

You will become an expert in doing business in a cross-cultural setting and learn how companies can grow internationally. International Business is taught in English.

A Dutch company produces cereals for people with food allergies and exports its products to various countries in Europe. Unfortunately, its market share in Eastern Europe is not growing as planned. As the company's international market intelligence officer, you analyse the current market, the cereal industry and the economic environment to identify factors that could be limiting its growth.

As an enterprising individual, you like to set your own learning goals. You are open-minded, independent, self-motivated and adventurous. You take an interest in international businesses, how they are organised and how they can improve. Your work makes an impact and also respects people and planet. Discerning and creative, you are a born communicator. And you embrace challenges and enjoy working in an international team.

You will acquire broad knowledge of international management, marketing, organisations, finance and sustainability. And you will develop relevant professional skills, such as intercultural teamwork, leadership, languages and business communication. You will work on real case studies involving real companies.

You will graduate with a Bachelor of Business Administration degree (BBA).

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Meet us

Join our Campus Tours or Q&A sessions.

Discover this programme

Learn more about the programme International Business

What will you be trained to do

Your job

The world of international business offers many opportunities, both in the Netherlands and abroad. These can be at multinational corporations with subsidiaries in the Netherlands, or with family-owned, mid-sized companies with ambitious goals in developing their international sales. Governmental institutions that promote trade or development, regional development agencies or large cities also offer opportunities for young international business professionals.

Depending on your talents and which areas you choose to specialise in during your studies, you may go on to a career in the fields of Sales and Marketing, Organisation management, Finance or Operations and Supply Chain Management. You could join an existing company or start a business of your own.

When recruiting, international companies often prefer candidates with experience abroad. Your solid foundation in International Business, combined with the experience that you will acquire abroad during your studies, will help you to stand out as a candidate.

Potential careers after the programme

Brand Manager

Brand managers develop strategies that determine how people perceive the brand. This can involve advertising, design and events. Brand managers are also responsible for making sure that branding is consistent across advertising and campaigns.

Market Researcher

A market researcher is responsible for collecting and analysing data to make informed political, social and economic decisions.

Buyer

Buyers are responsible for planning, selecting and purchasing merchandise for retail establishments. Their work includes researching the market, competitor analysis, product evaluations and testing, monitoring purchase orders and producing reports for the management team.

Business Development Manager

A business development manager helps to grow a business by finding new opportunities, researching leads, establishing relationships with potential clients and arranging appointments for sales executives.

International Trade Officer

An international trade officer coordinates credit and financial activities and obtains payments for import/export operations. They act as advisors regarding tariffs, markets, and federal and foreign regulations.

Export Manager

An export manager plans and coordinates the shipment of goods across international borders.

Country Manager

A country manager oversees operations in a specific country or region of the world, developing the business and increasing profitability for a company.

What is expected of you

You take an interest in international businesses, how they are organised and how they can improve. As an enterprising individual, you like to set your own learning goals. You are open-minded, independent, self-motivated and adventurous. Your work makes an impact and also respects people and planet. Discerning and creative, you are a born communicator. And you embrace challenges and enjoy working in an international team.

Differences between the two locations

In Den Bosch you can create your own learning path by choosing specialisation profiles. The programme is fully project-based and you will have the opportunity to build your own professional profile. The lecturers act as coaches who will guide you in your learning development. You will focus on marketing, (intercultural) communication and sales. Assessments are integrated in projects.

In Breda you focus on international trade, supply chain design and marketing. The structure of the programme is predetermined. You attend classes and apply the knowledge in group projects. The international community is large with over 40 nationalities.

Follow-up education

After you graduate, you can choose to complete a Master's degree at a Dutch research university or a university abroad. Such as International Management, Master of Science in Management, Marketing Management, Financial Management, Logistics or Supply Chain Management. Or you can take a post-graduate MBA programme.

For Den Bosch, you could also consider the Master's in International Business at Tilburg University. This enables you to complete the pre-Master's programme as a minor.

Stories about the programme

Alumnus

Philip-Peter Dietz

Living and studying abroad turned out to be such an enriching experience.

Student story

Work placement in Valencia

Living with a Spanish family was a great experience for me.

Breda

's-Hertogenbosch

Study programme

The IB programme takes 4 years. Year 1 is divided into 4 quarters of 10 weeks each. Years 2, 3 and 4 consist of 2 semesters, each semester lasts 20 weeks. In semester 1 of these years you will study at Avans. You will spend the second semesters of these years on an internship or study exchange. You have a lot of options to choose from, based on your personal goals, interests, capacities and ideals. This contributes to your personal learning path.

Year 1

In year 1 you will gain basic knowledge on the central themes of the programme. You will study the basics of global marketing, supply chain management, international trade and identifying business opportunities. You will practise your professional skills such as business communication and negotiation skills. In quarter 1, you will attend taster sessions in Chinese, French, German or Spanish and you will then choose your preferred language, which you will study from quarter 2 onwards.

Important courses:

International Business Design
Supply Chain Mapping
Marketing Mix
Financial aspects of International Business
Import & Export Operations
Foreign Languages (English and Chinese, French, German or Spanish)

Year 2

In year 2 you will focus on supply chain management, global and local marketing and trade activities. Like in year 1, you will attend classes and work on group projects. Additionally, you will further improve the language skills of the chosen foreign language and develop your personal and professional skills. In the second half of the year you will do your first internship at an international organisation in the Netherlands or abroad. An ideal chance to get exposure to the world of business.

Important courses:

Managing international marketing projects
Setting up sustainable trade activities
Managing international supply chain processes
Business communication
Elective course of your preference
Foreign languages

Year 3

During the first semester of year 3 you will work on the central topics Business Expansion and Business Opportunities. Like in the first two years, you attend classes and will work on group projects. You also further develop your professional skills and you improve your language skills in the language that you chose in year 1.

In the second half of year 3 you will do a minor programme at Avans or another university in the Netherlands or abroad.

We have partners all over the world, have a look at the overview and get excited. Where will you go?

Important courses:

Identify business opportunities
Manage international business expansion
International business expansion projects
Foreign languages
Elective course of your preference

Year 4

Year 4 is about graduation. In the first semester you will prepare the graduation project, that you will execute in the second half of the year. Your graduation project is about a problem for a real organization, related to at least two of the central themes: solving or redesigning supply chain issues, identifying international business opportunities, setting up and executing international trade activities or developing strategies for global or local delivery.

Important courses:

Masterclasses
Personal branding
Consultancy skills
Electives

Specialisations

Studying at Avans offers you the opportunity to specialise. Some programmes require you to choose your major before you start. All study programmes give you the chance to follow a minor in year 3 or 4. This will help you broaden or deepen your knowledge. Below you find the majors and minors for this study programme. You can also opt for a minor from a different programme, unless your programme has a compulsory minor.

This minor deals with setting-up, running and managing a start-up in an international setting.

If you are interested in finding out if you are a young entrepreneur, you are invited to come and start your business as part of the International Entrepreneurship minor. You will set up, run and manage a start-up in an international setting. You are expected to show a high level of proactivity and independence in this programme, as these are essential entrepreneurial behaviour characteristics. At the end of this 20-week programme, you will know if you have created a sustainable business.

This minor focuses on how businesses should organise their international operations.

International business is characterised by rapid changes and the growing importance of international markets. The continuous removal of barriers to trade and investment, the growth of international strategic alliances, major technological advances and falling communications costs, the growth of e-commerce, improvements in transportation and logistics, and the increasing globalisation of business are opening up new opportunities for businesses ranging from one-person operations to corporate giants. With a viable product or service, even the smallest business can now find potential customers and means of distribution across the globe. This programme will focus on how businesses should organise their international operations. You will analyse their environment and learn how and where companies can expand their activities. You will learn to take economic, legal, financial and management processes and decisions into account.

This minor deals with the application of processes, methods, skills, knowledge and experience to achieve specific project objectives according to the project criteria within agreed upon parameters.

A key factor that distinguishes project management from just 'management' is that it has this final deliverable and a finite timespan, unlike management which is an ongoing process. Because of this a project professional needs a wide range of skills; often technical skills, and certainly people management skills and good business awareness.

Public Affairs is used to describe an organisation's relationship with stakeholders. These are individuals or groups with an interest in the organisation's affairs, such as politicians, civil servants, customers and local communities, clients, shareholders, trade associations, think tanks, business groups, charities, unions and the media. Public affairs practitioners engage stakeholders in order to explain organisational policies and views on public policy issues, assisting policy makers and legislators in amending or laying down better policy and legislation.

This is how project managers and public affairs professionals describe their work. This exchange programme lets you step into this exciting world.

Study programme

The 4-year programme consists of professional achievements to complete to become an IB professional. The main focus of the programme is on international Marketing and Sales. You can develop your individual learning path by choosing specialization profiles. You will work on real-life projects, which you carry out with fellow students and professional field representatives. You will choose and decide which learning resources will help you to obtain the expected results in order to graduate.

Contact

Do you have any questions? Feel free to contact student Annelieke about the IB study programme via WhatsApp 06 - 82 70 50 58.

Year 1

The first year is a general introduction to international business topics. There are 4 specialization profiles and each profile is linked to a project. Therefore you will complete 4 projects based on real-life assignments for companies. You will increase and develop your professional knowledge base, cross-cultural capabilities and professional and personal skills. You can also choose 1 foreign language besides English. At the end of year 1 you will complete a discovery internship.

Important courses:

Specialisation Creation
Specialisation Dealmaking
Specialisation Identification
Specialisation Connection
Personal Leadership
Foreign languages (English and French, German, Spanish or Dutch)

Year 2

In year 2 you have the opportunity to choose 2 out of the 4 specialisation profiles. This will enable you to develop your personal international business focus area. The year is divided in 2 semesters of each 20 weeks. In this year you will complete 2 more in depth projects related to the 2 chosen specialisation profiles. You will also have the ability to continue with your choice of year 1 foreign language or switch to another foreign languages.

Important courses:

Specialisation Creation
Specialisation Dealmaking
Specialisation Identification
Specialisation Connection
Personal Leadership Coaching
Foreign languages

Year 3

In year 3 you will have your internship in the first semester. In the second semester you will be able to choose between a minor or the semester “Future-Proof IB”. You can do your minor at Avans or another university in the Netherlands or abroad. We have partners all over the world. Also your internship can be abroad if preferred. You need to spend at least 2 out of 3 semesters abroad.

Year 4

Before you start your graduation internship you will complete your last semester at Avans “Future-Proof IB”. This semester consists of 2 modules to prepare you for graduation. Or you can do your minor if you did the “Future-Proof IB” in year 3. Your graduation internship is in your chosen specialization profile. You will complete a business research project as well as an implementation project for your internship organisation. You can do your graduation internship abroad.

Specialisations

If you are interested in finding out whether you are a young entrepreneur, you are invited to join the International Entrepreneurship minor. We offer this programme in Breda and 's-Hertogenbosch.

You will set up, run and manage a start-up in an international setting. You are expected to show a high level of proactivity and independence in this programme, as these are essential entrepreneurial characteristics.

At the end of this 20-week programme, you will know whether you have created a sustainable business. You will develop a business concept and then carry it out in a team of 5 to 6 students: your Student Company. Together, you will look for opportunities in the market, think of a solution and find a service or product that matches the needs of your target audience. Your team will pitch an idea in front of a panel, write a business plan, acquire seed money, purchase and/or sell products abroad and provide a financial overview. You will learn about Law, Finance, Sustainability and Ethics.

As a business owner, you will need to explain, convey, convince and persuade – both orally and in writing. Communication and sales skills are essential. As today's companies all have an online identity, social media and online marketing will also be addressed. You will discover your entrepreneurial talents in an intercultural setting and find out which role suits you best.

This minor will help you enhance your international business skills. You will learn how to conduct international market research and help a company draw up a strategy for entering an overseas market.

You will gain knowledge of and develop skills in areas related to international business such as international market research and international marketing. You will learn how to create an export plan and you will advise small and medium-sized businesses on entering overseas markets.

The goal of this programme is to learn how to advise companies on opportunities in a particular industry in a specific country or region. To this end, you will learn how to draw up an international export plan. This plan describes a company's strategies for internationalisation and entry and the implementation of these. It also includes strategic and tactical advice on entering the new market abroad.

You will produce this plan with a small group of fellow students. The minor's other modules, such as International Finance, International Research, English and International Marketing, will help you to develop the plan.

IELTS overall band

6
TOEFL computer based

213
TOEFL internet based

80

Read the detailed information on English language admissions requirements.

Prior education

The level of your prior education has to be equivalent to the Dutch havo, vwo or mbo 4 level. English must have been one of your courses. If your prior education is equivalent to the Dutch HAVO, you should have graduated in mathematics, accounting or economics. If we are not familiar with your foreign diploma, NUFFIC, the Dutch organisation for international recognition of diploma, will check the level for us.

Read more about international secondary education diplomas.

Apply

If you have decided to pursue this study programme you will need to register for it. Before you do, make sure you have informed yourself about our rules and regulations.

Please apply via our Dutch website if you are a Dutch student.

Application procedure

You must apply for this bachelor's degree programme via the Studielink website.

In addition to the application procedure via Studielink you must also send us several documents.

Be sure to keep an eye on the enrolment deadline. You will find the deadline on the page 'Admissions requirements' of this programme.

Start month	Location	Application deadline
September	EU	31 August 2023
September	Non EU	1 May 2023

Please note: applicants with a Dutch diploma must have applied by the 1st of May. Non-EEA students with a non-Dutch diploma also apply by the 1st of May. The deadline for EU students with a non-Dutch diploma is 31 August. When you meet the deadline you give Avans enough time to process your application and, if applicable, apply for a visa.

After application we will contact you to inform you on the further procedure.

Scholarships

Scholarships are much sought after nowadays: nearly every student who decides to study abroad considers applying for one. Information about scholarships specific to Avans University of Applied Sciences can be found on our scholarship page.

More information

For more information please contact Student Info on +31 (0) 88 525 75 50 or via this contact form.

Tuition fees

In the overview below you will find the tuition fee amounts that have been set for new students at Avans University of Applied Sciences.

Which of these 3 fees applies to you depends on the category you are in. In general, students from the European Economic Area (EEA) pay the statutory fee, while other students pay the institutional or non-EEA fee. Exchange students generally pay their tuition fees to their home institution and not to Avans.

Please check the tuition fees page for detailed information.

Fee	Amount	Year
Statutory fee	€ 2,209,-	2022 - 2023
Non-EER fee	€ 8,452,-	2022 - 2023
Institution fee	€ 8,452,-	2022 - 2023
Statutory fee	€ 2,314,-	2023 - 2024
Non-EER fee	€ 8,852,-	2023 - 2024
Institution fee	€ 8,852,-	2023 - 2024

Location

Breda

's-Hertogenbosch

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Hogeschoollaan 1

4818 CR Breda

Tel 088 - 525 75 00

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Stationsplein 50

5211 AP 's-Hertogenbosch

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International Business fulltime programme

Meet us

Start month

Duration

Language

Location

Meet us

Discover this programme

Programme features

More about this study programme

What will you be trained to do

Your job

Potential careers after the programme

Brand Manager

Market Researcher

Buyer

Business Development Manager

International Trade Officer

Export Manager

Country Manager

What is expected of you

Differences between the two locations

Follow-up education

Stories about the programme

Philip-Peter Dietz

Work placement in Valencia

Programme structure

Study programme

Year 1

Important courses:

Year 2

Important courses:

Year 3

Important courses:

Year 4

Important courses:

Specialisations

Minor International Entrepreneurship

Minor International Business Operations

Minor International Project Management & Stakeholder Engagement

Programme structure

Study programme

Year 1

Important courses:

Year 2

Important courses:

Year 3

Year 4

Specialisations

Minor International Entrepreneurship

Minor International Business

Admissions requirements

Exam

Score

IELTS overall band

TOEFL computer based

TOEFL internet based

More about admission requirements

Prior education

Practical Information

Apply

Application procedure

Scholarships

More information

Tuition fees

Location

Discover location Hogeschoollaan

Hogeschoollaan

Study in Breda

Discover location Stationsplein

Study in 's-Hertogenbosch

Contact

Student Support

Other options for you

Finance & Control (international)

Environmental Science for Sustainability, Ecosystems and Technology

Industrial Engineering & Management