You’ll like this study if you…

• like discussing politics and current affairs
• enjoy analysing problems in business and economics
• like working on practical problems in an international team

Your first year

All students will follow the same courses in the first year. These cover a broad range of business and economics topics such as finance, accounting, international economic relations, micro and macroeconomics, organisation and marketing as well as skills such as presentation, communication and quantitative skills. This will allow you to make a well-informed decision about which specialisation you’re interested in pursuing in your second and third years.

What you’ll actually do:

• Learn by doing in small, intercultural teams
• Address the sorts of problems you’ll face in your career, in a study setting designed to resemble a real working environment
• Develop your knowledge of marketing, economics, finance and management
• Enhance your practical skills in mathematics, statistics and computer science
• Learn how to apply the insights you gain to run businesses more effectively

Problem Based Learning

Problem-Based Learning (PBL) is an innovative, student-centred instructional method widely used at Maastricht University. You will work in small tutorial groups of 12 to 15 students, and collaboratively seek practical solutions to real-world problems. Instructors act as facilitators, giving help as it’s needed. This allows you to build independence and develop research skills. As opposed to lectures – which are still the primary teaching method at most universities – PBL is dynamic, requiring active participation in a variety of tasks such as:

• deciding how to approach a given problem
• setting learning goals
• organising tasks to achieve those goals
• sharing your findings with one another

With PBL, you’ll develop the practical skills you need in the workplace by taking skills trainings tailored to your courses.

Skill trainings you might take include:

• quantitative methods
• managing takeovers
• interview skills and techniques
• customer relations management
• country risk analysis

Specialisation Economics

To study or to work? By the time you’ve finished this bachelor’s programme, you’ll have spent three years sharpening your academic skills and mastering the theoretical content. At the same time, you’ll have gotten a taste of working life, too, given the emphasis placed on practical experience and making contacts within the IES Network. Whether it’s further study or the labour market, you’ll have the right foundation and tools to pursue your highest goals.

Master's programmes

Your specialisation in Economics provides a strong foundation for the following master’s programmes:

• Economics
• Global Supply Chain Management and Change
• Learning and Development in Organisations
• Financial Economics
• International Business

Feel like branching out? Other Maastricht programmes will welcome you as well, provided you fulfil any additional admission requirements. Or what about something even more adventurous? The good news is that SBE is highly regarded across Europe and around the world, and your bachelor’s specialisation will open doors to programmes you’ve not yet imagined.

Career prospects

Sound theoretical and practical knowledge? Check. Critical thinking and communication skills? Check. International experience? Check. With this degree, you tick the boxes on just about every employer’s checklist.

Our graduates go on to work in:

• multinational organisations, such as the EU and the OECD
• major financial institutions, like national banks, the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank
• university research departments
• the private sector, such as telecommunications companies
• strategic, advisory or consultancy roles, e.g. in mergers and acquisitions

Specialisation Economics and Management of Information

With your specialisation in Economics and Business Economics, you might want to further develop your expertise in this field. Or you might prefer to spread your wings to another area, to become a well-rounded professional. Either way, there are plenty of master’s programmes at your fingertips, both in the Netherlands and abroad.

Master’s programmes

Among these are some of Maastricht University’s own master’s programmes:

• Global Supply Chain Management and Change
• Learning and Development in Organisations
• Financial Economics
• International Business
• Economics

Career prospects

These days, you simply can’t go wrong with IT. And combined with your general knowledge in economics and business, you’ll have employers knocking down your door. Along with the big players like Microsoft and Google, just about every decent-sized company needs people who can translate new technologies into business returns.

Our graduates work in:

• IT planning and policymaking
• IT consultancy
• the EU and other government institutions
• research and academia
• IT project management, working their way up to key positions in large multinationals, such as Cap Gemini, Accenture, SAP, Business Objects, Shell and Vodafone

Specialisation Emerging Markets

Master’s programmes

Within the Emerging Markets specialisation, you’ll have the freedom to choose many of your courses and design your own path. You can ensure that you’ll be well prepared for many of the master’s programmes in business and economics at Maastricht University, including:

• Economics
• Global Supply Chain Management and Change
• Learning and Development in Organisations
• Financial Economics
• International Business

You’ll also be well positioned to apply to master’s programmes at other universities that focus on the business or economics of emerging markets, as well as related areas such as development studies, global studies and international relations.

Career prospects

The challenging structure of this specialisation is designed to make you an attractive candidate for a broad range of employers in business or economics such as:

• international (multinational) companies
• international development organisations
• global financial institutions
• trade promotion offices and ministries of national governments
• business and economics consultancies
• market research companies
• start-ups

Specialisation International Business Economics

Employers are understandably eager to get graduates of this programme on board:

• You’re familiar with how organisations work.
• You’ve got the tools to solve their problems and improve their performance.
• You understand the impact of government policies and global events.
• And you know how to sell your innovative solutions to the right players.
• Your next step depends entirely on your own ambitions.

Master's programmes

If you’re keen to keep on studying, you’re safe in the knowledge that your bachelor’s degree prepares you well for six Maastricht master’s:

• Global Supply Chain Management and Change
• Learning and Development in Organisations
• Financial Economics
• International Business
• Economics

Of course, Maastricht University also has a range of other reputable programmes, and for some of these you may need to fulfil additional requirements. And beyond our doorstep, there’s a whole world of programmes waiting for you.

Career prospects

Academic theory, practical skills, and international experience: all this sets you apart from other graduates. This programme is well known in the business world of the Euregion and beyond, opening doors to graduates for management and market research positions in:

• large multinationals, such as Shell and Daimler
• accounting firms, like Ernst & Young and KPMG
• pension funds and financial institutions, like Fortis and Deutsche Bank
• consulting firms, such as Cap Gemini and Accenture
• government and non-profit organisations, like the European Central Bank and United Nations