NCI Course Details

Join us at one of our CAO Open Day events for Leaving Certificate students where you will be able to chat with our lecturers and talk to students about their course experiences.

• Wednesday, 18th November 2026, 11am-2pm - Register Here
• Saturday, 23rd January 2027, 10am-1pm - Register Here

Graduates of this course have a great foundation in all aspects of the modern business world, understand how to analyse and solve business problems and are highly employable in areas such as management, marketing, industrial relations, economics and international trade.

Students of this course may also be able to take advantage of an opportunity to engage in a year-long, accredited work placement between years two and three. This placement is credit-bearing and comprises an extra year in the degree. Access to such placements is limited and highly competitive

This course is ideal if you want a broad understanding of business or you don’t yet know in which area of business you would like to specialise. The course is for school leavers, mature students and graduates of QQI level 5/6 programmes who wish to embark on a course of full-time study.

Graduates of the BA (Honours) in Business course at NCI are now employed at huge employers including LinkedIn, Accenture, AIB, Arvato, Citi, Bord Gáis, Deutsche Bank, IBM, State Street, Willis Towers Watson and UPS.

Read more about the career pathways of NCI business students.

This undergraduate business course is a three-year honours degree (four years with the option of a placement*). The main course is run over six semesters with continuous assessment held throughout the course and examinations at the end of each semester. In each year of the degree, any student with an overall average of 70+ will win a Dean’s Award. On completion, you will receive a QQI BA (Honours) Degree in Business at level 8 on the National Framework of Qualifications.

*Students are eligible (subject to availability) to complete a work placement on year three of the programme and graduate after four years with 240 ECTS credits.

Upon successful completion of the BA (Honours) in Business, graduates with the appropriate entry requirements can progress to postgraduate business courses at level 9 on the National Framework of Qualifications including MSc in Management, MSc in International Business or MA in HRM, all available at National College of Ireland.

Business students may choose to undertake an 8–12-month work placement between Year 2 and Year 3, giving them the opportunity to connect their academic learning with the world of work before returning to complete their final year.

Placement allows you to gain meaningful professional experience, apply your knowledge in a real workplace, develop practical and transferable skills, and build confidence in a business environment. It also helps you explore different career paths, grow your professional network and strengthen your profile for graduate recruitment.

In recent years, NCI’s Business students have secured placements with Arthur Cox, the Commission for Communications Regulation, Ding, Dublin Port, Enterprise Mobility, ESB, ESW, HLB Ireland, Musgrave, the Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General, Ryanair, SAP, Trane Technologies and Uniphar.

Minimum entry requirements are a grade H5 and above in two higher level subjects together with a minimum of O6/H7 in four other subjects. A minimum of grade O6/H7 must be obtained in English. A grade O6/H7 must be obtained in Mathematics. Applicants from a PLC/further education course must have a full level 5/6 award, three distinctions and meet the CAO points requirement.

For applicants whose first language is not English, please note the English language entry requirements.

For international students, please visit NCI's Your Country section to view the specific entry requirements for your region.

Mature applicants, applicants with a disability or those applying through the DARE or HEAR access schemes can find out more information on the application process.

Please note that exams can be scheduled during the morning, afternoon or evening Monday to Saturday.

National College of Ireland has implemented a Bring Your Own Device policy for all courses. Specifically, students are expected to successfully participate in lectures, laboratories and projects using a portable computer (laptop/notebook) with a substantial hardware configuration.

The recommended configuration is as follows:

Processor:

• Intel 11th Gen or newer, Core i3 / i5 /i7 or Ultra 3 / 5 /7
  Or
• AMD 5000 Series or newer, Rzyen 3 / 5 /7

Random Access Memory (RAM):
16GB or greater

Storage:
SSD (Solid State Drive) 256GB or greater

Wireless Card:
802.11 n/ac/ax capability

Recommended Operating Systems:
Windows 11
Later Version of MAC OS should also be fine.
Chromebook’s are not recommended.

It is the responsibility of the student to ensure their computer is functioning correctly and that they have full administrator rights. NCI cannot provide support for these personal devices.

Year 1

• Academic Management Skills
• Business Law
• Economics for the 21st Century
• Financial Accounting
• Human Resource Management
• Individual Behaviour in The Organisation
• Marketing in the Digital Age
• Quantitative Methods

Year 2

• Financial Management
• Management
• Project Management
• Social and Organisational Behaviour
• Technologies for Business
• Career Management Skills
• Entrepreneurship
• Global Business Environment
• Macroenvironment Policy and Sustainability
• Professional Development Skills

Year 3

• Business Statistics and Analytics
• Economic and Social Policy
• Marketing Management
• Strategic Management
• Sustainability and Business Ethics

Year 3 Elective Modules

• Capstone Project Preparation
• Change Management and Organisational Development
• Financial Management Tools for the Enterprise
• Public Relations and Social Media
• Applied Behavioural Economics
• Capstone Project
• Corporate Environmentalism
• Data Analytics
• Essentials of Employment Law
• Global Operations, Planning and Design
• Sales Management
• Financial Services Regulation (QFA aligned)*
• Saving and Investments (QFA aligned)*

*Pending QQI approval

Electives may include prerequisites, are subject to change, and availability is subject to class sizes.

Your final year capstone project allows you to apply the qualitative and quantitative methodologies and analytic techniques you’ve acquired throughout your degree programme to deliver a dissertation on an aspect of business practice.

For more information on the electives and specialisations of this course, please download the BA (Honours) in Business brochure.

For information on the modules taught on this course view our module descriptors.

This course qualifies under the Free Fees Initiative and Student Grant Scheme.

Did you know you can apply for a Sports Scholarship at NCI?

Watch this video to hear from our current sports scholars Stephen Achukwu (basketball) and Adam Leonard (football):

2026 CAO Points Guide :* 300

*For each course we have given a guideline based on our points over the past 3 years. This is a guide only, points vary each year.

The CAO course code is NC009.

Students must obtain a minimum of 3 distinctions and a full award and meet the CAO points requirements to apply for this Level 8 course. 

Visit our QQI Applicants page for further information.

Please note that effective from September 2026, the programme fee for International students is €12,000 per year.

For more information on international fees, please visit International Fees & Funding and International Scholarships.

Learn more about studying at NCI as an international student.

For domestic students applying through the CAO, this course applies under the free fees initiative. For further information, please see Free Fees Initiative.