Careers Brief - Retail Management FdA
Overview
The Foundation degree in Retail Management offers you the opportunity of transferring into an Honours degree programme and direct job entry.
The retail sector is one of the largest employers in the UK. Although, the industry is currently buoyant, it is very dependent on economic trends.
Within this sector, graduates take up posts in retail store and branch management, buying and merchandising, marketing, logistics, human resources, e-retailing and customer research. Mail order remains significant and increasingly new developments in online shopping, TV shopping and WAP phones.
Although, academic success is important, recruiters are also looking for evidence of people skills and the ability to be flexible and adaptable, good organisational skills, able to multi-task and being prepared to work unsocial or longer hours. On your course you will have demonstrated the key transferable skills and competencies in demand by employers, such as team working, written and verbal communication, problem-solving, IT, numeracy and time management.
You can improve your prospects by gaining relevant work experience (or an industrial placement).
Use the links below for job profiles and further information.
You should be aware that many of the multinationals recruit honours graduate trainees from the Autumn Term of the final year. If you plan to continue onto one-year top-up honours degree courses, you should be prepared for job-hunting before you start your final year. Go to the Job Applications and Job Search sections of this Careers Guide.
Further Study
Top-up degrees are designed as a progression from a Foundation degree to qualify with an Honours degree.
Institutions offering related top-up honours degrees:
Bournemouth University 'International Retail Marketing'; University of Brighton 'Retail Management' 'Retail Marketing'; University of Greenwich 'Business (Retail Management)'; University of Huddersfield 'Exhibition and Retail Design'; Nottingham Trent University 'Marketing and Retail Management'.
You can also transfer into a third year industrial placement or final year of a similar degree. Entry point would depend on your grades, experience and overlap between courses.
Use www.ucas.com/search (the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service for the UK) and the university/college links for course details.
You will need to use UCAS to apply for courses. Contact the Course Tutor of your chosen course to find out your position, before you make your formal application.
Find out how much this will cost you. Where is the funding coming from? Go to www.aimhigher.ac.uk for information on student support.
Go to the main section on Further Study of this Guide for more information and help.
Resources
www.prospects.ac.uk
Graduate Prospects is the careers site for higher education students in the UK:
- Drop down 'Careers advice' and click on 'Use your qualification; for 'Your Foundation degree...what next?'
- Drop down 'Communities' and click on 'Retail and Leisure'
- Drop down 'My Prospects' and click on 'What jobs would suit me?' for Prospects Planner
Hobsons (publisher) Graduate Employment and Training - go to 'Career advice/advice by career area' and click on 'Retail'
GTI (publisher) graduate jobs and careers
www.learndirect-advice.co.uk/helpwithyourcareer/jobprofiles
Learn Direct - national learning advice
www.connexions-direct.com/jobs4u
Jobs4U Careers Database - click on 'Job Families & Articles' or Quick Search by typing in job title
Recruitment agency website for the retail industry - click on 'GRADUATES'
http://jobseekers.direct.gov.uk
Careers database and links to jobs nationally. Search by either clicking on 'careers' and 'choosing a category' or type in a job title.
