Are you curious about what’s going on in the business world? Do you wonder how companies determine their strategies? Are you interested in the way companies operate in the areas of human resources or marketing?

In the International Business programme, you’ll learn about the strategy, resources and management required to run a business. And you’ll also develop the professional skills to put business ideas into practice, including teamwork, conflict resolution, leadership and presentation skills.

What’s more, you’ll gain practical and international experience by spending a semester studying abroad, getting in touch with real companies at ‘business days’, doing research projects or following an internship. The programme will prepare you for a career in a variety of areas within international business, including marketing, management, human resources or even entrepreneurship.

Why this programme?

In the International Business programme, you'll discover the ins and outs of running international businesses, from the small details to a global perspective.

You'll look at issues such as:

• Where do you get your raw materials?
• How can you manage your people and your finances?
• How should you make, market and sell your product?
• What’s the best way to evaluate sales and adjust the strategy as needed?

You’ll cover topics from accounting to marketing, and supply chain management to information management. And you’ll also develop the personal qualities you’ll need to succeed in the international business world: adaptability, creativity, self-assurance and more. It’s little wonder that this programme tops the Dutch rankings year after year.

What you’ll actually do:

• learn by doing in small teams with students from around the world
• address the kinds of problems you’ll face in your career, in a study setting designed to resemble a real working environment
• examine the latest developments in international business and solve real-world cases
• find out how to make a business run, taking into account factors like law, taxation and globalisation
• develop skills such as teamwork, conflict resolution, leadership, presentation skills and intercultural communication

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

Study abroad:

During this bachelor programme you’ll be required to study abroad for at least half a year. This gives you the opportunity to expand your knowledge of other cultures and practices. The School has an extensive network of more than 130 partner universities around the world, in countries including Australia, Singapore, South Africa, the United States, and throughout Europe. The semester abroad at a partner university is a compulsory part of the curriculum. Depending on your study programme, you go on exchange either in the first or in the second semester of your third year of your bachelor’s.

On a yearly base, up to 750 SBE students spend part of their studies abroad within an exchange programme, and about 740 exchange students visit SBE.​