HR-related and specific courses: MA Human Resource Management, part-time, one year; Diploma in Human Resource Management, part-time, two years, which leads to graduate membership of the CIPD (the first year consists of the Certificate in Management course and leads to licentiate CIPD membership). Customised short courses are also available for corporates.
Founded: Became a university in 1992, but its roots go back to 1865, when it operated out of a single room as the Oxford School of Art. It became Oxford Polytechnic in 1970 and is now named after its first principal John Brookes.
College CV: In 2001 the university joined the elite top 50 universities in The Times Good University Guide and has remained one of the top ranked modern universities. In 2000, its Business School received the maximum marks from the Quality Assurance Agency for the quality of its teaching and learning for Business Management and Economics. The Oxford Brookes Business School has recently become a Centre of Excellence for Teaching and Learning for Business (awarded by HEFCE) and has also been awarded a contract to become The Higher Education Academy for Business.
Research expertise in the Business School includes The Centre for Diversity Policy Research which brings together academic and practitioner expertise to carry out research into equality and diversity issues in employment; undertaking projects that will underpin policy development and inform best practice in the workplace and two research groups: the Organisational Theory and Practice Group, concerned with both developing organisational theory and assessing how it informs management practice; and the International Development Group, which looks at the management challenges faced by the staff of public, private and non-governmental organisations in the developing world.
Star HR academics: Dr Denise Skinner, whose research interests include the management of change, the end-user experience of HR initiatives and diversity issues, particularly those relating to work-life balance. She is co-author of Experiencing HRM: The Inside Story.
Dr Mark Saunders whose main research and teaching interests are research methods, organisational change and employee recruitment and mobility. In recent years, his research has included developing a diagnostic tool to help organisations explore and understand the reactions of employees to organisational change such as downsizing. He has a number of published works, and is co-author of Managing the Employment Relationship.
Entry: For the MA, a minimum of three years’ relevant experience and membership of the CIPD are normally required (GradCIPD, MCIPD, FCIPD), but mature candidates with substantial relevant experience may enter the course via an Accreditation of Prior Learning and/or experience. Applicants using this route are advised to apply early and will be expected to take part in an accreditation process.
For the diploma, the course is open to graduates and non-graduates with relevant experience in personnel management. Direct entry to the second year of the course is possible for students who have relevant qualifications, such as the CIPD’s Core Management or the university’s Certificate in Management.
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Alumni: The Business School has an active alumni network and a website for its graduates at www.business.brookes.ac.uk/alumni
