Student Guide

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HELLENIC OPEN UNIVERSITY

MASTER’S DEGREE PROGRAMME IN BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

Student Guide 2014-2015

Editorial team

Assoc. Prof. Athanassios Mihiotis, MBA Programme Director, HOU Dr. Giannis T. Tsoulfas, Tutor, MBA Programme, HOU

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Introduction

The distance learning joint MBA programme is provided by the Hellenic Open

University (HOU), Greece and the Wroclaw University of Economics (WUE), Poland.

The academic year starts in October and ends in July. It has a duration of 30 study weeks, followed by final and resit written examinations (from around the 3rd week in May to the 3rd week in July).

The MBA programme aims at building the necessary skills and knowledge for students to become effective managers in businesses and organisations. It focuses on the performing the analysis of business data needed and developing the crucial strategic decision-making skills necessary in an international business environment.

In 2012 the E-xcellence label was awarded to the MBA programme by the European Association of Distance Teaching Universities (EADTU), which is Europe's leading body in lifelong open and flexible learning. This label has been so far awarded to 11 universities across Europe. This achievement demonstrates that the programme offers quality controlled e-learning and keeps up to date with the latest developments in the field.

This Student Guide presents the key aspects of the academic procedures related to this programme.

Academic governance

The MBA Programme Director is responsible for the proper functioning of the MBA programme.

The MBA Programme Director with the assistance of two academics, one from each university, forms a three member Academic Committee for the MBA programme. The Academic Committee monitors the complete educational process of the MBA programme, including administrative support, the formation of the programme evaluation criteria leading to the assurance of high quality in the knowledge and services offered, the formation of student selection criteria and their selection, the final appointment of teaching staff, the searching for external funding especially from EU sources, so that, certain activities as research grants, student scholarships and tuition fees waivers will be covered, and generally deals with the academic issues of the programme.

Module Coordinators are responsible for module specific aspects, i.e. they ensure the

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Programme Structure – Instructions for Module Selection

In order to obtain your MBA Degree, you need to successfully attend four (4) modules and write a dissertation. The modules are:

Module ECTS Module Title & Topics

MBA50 20

Economics for Managers

• International Economic Environment

• Managerial Economics

• European Business

MBA60 20

Advanced Quantitative Methods for Managers

• Advanced Quantitative Analysis

• Economic and Business Modelling

• Decision Making

ΜΒΑ51 20

Financial Management & Accounting

• Financial Accounting

• Financial Statement Analysis

• Corporate Finance

• Investment Analysis and Portfolio Management

ΜΒΑ61 20

Management of People & Organisations

• Management

• Human Resources

• Marketing Management

• Strategic Management

ΜΒΑDE 40 Dissertation

The MBA programme gives you the option of selecting one, two or three modules per year. Students have to enrol for the modules in a specific order: MBA50, MBA60, MBA51 and MBA61. In order to submit a Dissertation proposal, a student must have successfully completed MBA50, MBA60 and MBA51.

Your selection should be based on the time and effort you can realistically spend on your studies and not just according to when you wish to graduate. Experience shows that the selection of too many modules, and a subsequent lack of the necessary time and effort to study (on average 2 hours per day per module), is almost guaranteed to lead to failure, disappointment and a delayed graduation. A more realistic selection of modules which is better aligned with the abilities of the student has proven to be more effective. Furthermore, it is crucial to ask your family for their support and understanding so that you are able to find quality time for your studies.

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Online services

Throughout your studies you are given an email account, which should be used in all correspondence between you and the universities.

This programme is using Moodle (Modular Object-Oriented Dynamic Learning Environment) as its virtual learning environment. Moodle facilitates online course delivery through the following main features:

repository of resources (e.g. core education material, lecture notes, past written assignments, marking process, contact details, etc.)

announcements and discussion forums web conferencing

submission of written assignments (from students) submission of feedback (from Tutors).

Moreover, the e-library service provides access to a wide range of electronic resources to support you in your studies. The benefits of the time you invest in familiarising yourself with the virtual learning environment will become immediately obvious in various ways during your studies. You will see that apart from the opportunity of quicker access to information and more efficient communication, the use of the Internet facilitates the whole education process.

Communication with Tutors

The communication of students with their Tutor(s) is bilateral. Each Tutor contacts their class to establish initial contact. Over the course of the academic year, you can consult your class Tutor(s) during designated weekly time slots that will be allocated specifically for this purpose (e.g. Tuesdays 18:00-21:00). Regular communication with the academic staff not only benefits your study, but also provides the Tutor(s) the opportunity to understand any difficulties you may be experiencing and provide guidance in a more efficient way. You can contact your Tutor(s) for any of the following reasons:

1. Difficulties in understanding topics of the module. 2. Advice on possible ways of studying.

3. Notification of possible absences in a TM.

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Communication with Module Coordinator and Programme

Director

The Module Coordinator is the person who can be contacted via e-mail when you want to address issues that your Tutor cannot assist with. If the Module Coordinator cannot help you either, then you can address your concerns to the Programme Director and provide then with a detailed description of your problem. It is essential that your queries either to the Module Coordinator or to the Programme Director are not expressed at the last minute. Make sure that you give a reasonable time period in order for them to respond. It is also advisable to ensure that prior to your contact with the Module Coordinator, extensive communication has already taken place with your Tutor on the matter. The Module Coordinator is only to be contacted in the case that there was no satisfactory outcome after contacting your Tutor. Likewise, the Programme Director should be contacted by e-mail or telephone unless communication between the student and the Module Coordinator was not fruitful.

Tutorial Meetings (TMs)

During the academic year, for each module (except for MBADE), five 4-hour in-class TMs or ten 2-hour online TMs will be arranged (by decision of the Academic Committee) with your class Tutor for the purpose of guidance, advice and consultation. The aim of a TM is discussion and in-depth analysis of the issues you are expected to deal with during the academic year. In our experience student attendance at TMs significantly benefits their training experience.

The level of effectiveness of the outcomes stemming from these meetings depends on the level of your own preparation beforehand. Therefore, it is important to inform your Tutor on subjects or areas of interest you would like to discuss in any of the TMs, in order to give them the opportunity to prepare more effectively. A useful tactic for you to employ is to keep notes of any difficulties that you may experience during the course of your study. Notes can be kept on any obscure points in the theory or any typographic errors so that the Tutor can then be informed accordingly. This aids improvement of the textbooks and the academic process in general.

Networking amongst students is particularly encouraged, experience shows that the exchange of ideas and opinion amongst students in a group is just as beneficial as personal study. Access to the contact information of your fellow classmates can be obtained during the TMs or can be arranged by your Tutor.

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the procedure of scientific/academic writing and also to give them an incentive to study the module content in depth. Additionally, each assignment is considered to be a useful written exercise that will prepare students for the equivalent on their final exams.

Students have the right not to submit one (1) written assignment. In order for a student to be able to participate in the final and resit examinations they should have secured a minimum of 20 points from all the submitted written assignments. The average is calculated as a simple average of the 4 written assignments (students who have chosen to do only 3 out of the 4 written assignments will get a zero (0) grade for the assignment they did not submit). The average grade of the written assignments is worth 30% of the final grade and is valid only for students who have successfully passed the final or the resit exam. The remaining 70% of the module grade is obtained from the final or the resit exam.

Written Exams

Written assignments along with systematic study of the theory, prepare you for the written examinations at the end of the academic year. Since the written examinations require you to prove your critical and analytical skills on the various aspects of each module, it is essential that from the beginning of the course you aim to gain an in-depth understanding of the theory. Students with special needs are examined orally by two examiners.

Contact Information

MBA Programme Director

Assoc. Professor Athanassios Mihiotis [email protected]; [email protected]

Administration

General Information [email protected]; [email protected] Registration Department [email protected]; [email protected]