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Business
Studying Business A Level is a fantastic choice for any student, no matter what future career you wish to pursue. It’s particularly ideal for those who want to one day run a company, or study university courses such as management, accounting or marketing. It gives every student fantastic real-life knowledge and skills that look impressive on UCAS applications or your CVs.
Studying Business at Sheffield Girls’ isn’t all about the results. We have a dynamic and thriving department and take pride in making lessons fun and engaging. Business studies is a subject so applicable to everyday life that all our students find it fascinating and interesting to study.
The A Level Course
While our GCSE option combines Business and Economics, when you reach Sixth Form, you have the opportunity to study the subject as a stand-alone A Level qualification.
Year 12
In the first year of the course, you will build your knowledge of core business concepts and will apply them to business contexts to develop a broad understanding of how businesses work. You will focus particularly on the core functional areas of any business such as marketing, people, finance and operations management.
Year 13
In the second year of the course, you will take a much more strategic view of business opportunities and issues. You will develop a breadth and depth of knowledge and understanding with applications to a wider range of contexts and more complex business information.
The business world is ever-changing and a constant presence in everybody’s lives. This unique characteristic allows us to bring this subject to life in the classroom with real-world examples and case studies to support all areas of the course.
Business A Level Extra-curricular opportunities
We help our A Level Business students to find opportunities to enrich their educational experience. These can also be extremely helpful for further education applications, such as personal statements, showing you have a thriving and engaged interest in pursuing this subject, or have a range of widely applicable skills.
Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales BASE Competition – Year 12 students take on the role of chartered accountants to solve a business problem with the help of a business expert.
National Student Investor Competition – this competition gives a team of four students the task of investing £100,000 (imaginary, unfortunately!) into the London Stock Exchange. The aim is to maximise their portfolio value against other teams around the country. It’s an excellent way to learn more about the stock market in a fun and interesting way. The prize is a trip to New York!
Business Prefects – our team of Business prefects is responsible for assisting with Enterprise days, mentoring Business students lower down the school, assisting with open days and helping to run the department's magazine. It’s an excellent opportunity for Business A level students to enrich their time at Sheffield Girls’ as well as improving their CV or personal statement for UCAS applications.
Departmental Magazine – students have the opportunity to contribute to the running of the Department's Business and Economics magazine in a variety of roles such as feature writer, editorial team, publishing and more. It’s a fantastic way to combine an interest in Business with other skills.
The Business Department
The staff in the Business and Economics department are experienced teachers with a rich knowledge of the subject and a passion for helping students to achieve while enjoying Business A Level.
Our teachers are also examiners for the examination boards of the specifications that are delivered to you in school. This means that they’re in the very best position to help you understand the exam specifications and achieve the best you can.
Mr Stephen Coote (Head of Department)
Mr Coote is the head of the Business and Economics department and he has an outstanding record of helping students get results. While his knowledge of Business and Economics is broad, he is a specialist in MicroEconomics and Finance. As well as teaching, Mr Coote has spent several years working outside of the classroom. He has worked with a variety of businesses and delivered a wide range of enrichment activities, achieving success at a national level.
Mr C Spick
Mr Spick specialises in the social science of Economics, but has a broad spectrum of knowledge across Business and Economics. He is an experienced teacher and also is a current examiner and team leader for OCR A-level Economics. Previously, he has worked in retail and marketing, and has taught at Durham High School for Girls and at Tapton School in Sheffield. He is Head of Year 12 and is responsible for monitoring the progress of students in this year group.
If you’re interested in studying Business A Level at a thriving Sixth Form in Sheffield, then find out more at our next open day.