Human Resource Management MA

Wednesday 4 October 2023, 5:30-7PM(BST)

In a turbulent, rapidly changing business environment, the demand for HR professionals who can strategically manage and develop staff potential – while overcoming issues such as redundancy, flexible working and the recent challenges of furloughed staff and social distancing – has never been more fundamental to business success.

Our career-focused MA is fully accredited by the Chartered Institute of Personnel Development (CIPD) and is designed to build your understanding of the theory, practices and policies associated with evidence-based Human Resource Management (HRM) as they relate to real-world situations, equipping you with the knowledge, competencies and analytical skills to effectively manage organisational strategy and operations from an HR perspective.

Our problem-based approach to teaching means you’ll get to apply what you learn to manage problems through assignments and projects based on actual situations. We’ll draw on everyday HR issues in the news, case studies and current examples, at times addressing some of our own students’ workplace experiences. You’ll learn to collect and analyse relevant data and information, developing your ability to identify, evaluate and propose the most appropriate solutions looking at issues ranging from flexible working to employee engagement, managing change or reward management.

Our annual HRM conference offers you the chance to hear direct from a range of guest speakers who have previously covered issues such as immigration and labour supply and the impact of EU legislation on employee relations post-Brexit. You’ll also have the opportunity to develop essential HR practitioner skills through a series of practical workshops in areas such as finance, employment law, interviewing, disciplinary and grievance handling, counselling and negotiating. Working in teams, you might simulate dealing with a disciplinary hearing, for example, or conducting a job evaluation exercise. When studying people resourcing, you may participate in an assessment centre or practise your interviewing skills.

Whether you’re a graduate intending to work in HR or a current practitioner seeking to advance, our course, with its focus on professional practice, will help you progress your career. With working professionals in mind, this course can be studied both full-time or part-time. Part-time study is either evenings only or a combination of evening and half-day study. Past graduates have secured jobs as consultants (internal and external), HR managers, compensation and benefits managers, change management specialists, HR business partners/operations managers, civil servants and mediators.

Top reasons to study with us

• 100% satisfaction among full-time students (2019 Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey)
• Accredited by the Chartered Institute of Personnel Development (CIPD), the Human Resource Management MA maps and aligns to the CIPD Profession Map core knowledge and core behaviour standards at Chartered Level
• We pay your joining fee and initial CIPD membership fee, giving you student access to CIPD knowledge resources and professional networking events, part of a 160,000-strong worldwide member network
• Annual HRM Conference offers the chance to hear from leading experts, with past themes including making a difference at work, talent management and HRM in transition
• Taught by accomplished professionals with specialist HR knowledge and experience of academia, research and training, some as senior HR professionals and consultants
• Workshop series for essential skills in interviewing, negotiation, counselling and disciplinary handling
• Optional 8-12 week internship

Why study this course?

Build your analytical skills
Learn which human resources information and data to source and analyse as part of evidence-based practice.

Combine theory and practice
Link theory to global practice through real-life case studies, guest lectures, workshops and assignments.

Get industry insight
Annual HRM Conference gives you the chance to hear from experts on themes such as HRM in transition and talent management.

Accreditation

Westminster Business School is an accredited Chartered Institute of Personal Development (CIPD) centre. The Human Resource Management MA maps and aligns to the CIPD Profession Map core knowledge and core behaviour standards at the Chartered level. Students who graduate with a Diploma will need to have passed all core modules in order to gain an Associate level of CIPD membership. Both Masters and Diploma students have the eligibility to potentially upgrade their membership to Chartered Member depending on evidencing their experience via the CIPD upgrading process. There is no CIPD accreditation for a post-graduate certificate exit award. Westminster Business School will pay your CIPD joining fee and your initial membership fee.

This course will enhance your career prospects and marketability in the professional practice of HRM. As a postgraduate, you can look forward to excellent career prospects in managerial or organisational roles, either here in the UK or abroad, which focus on human resources or people development. You’ll be particularly well placed to pursue people-focused career opportunities in areas such as change management, industrial/employment relations and reward management.

Past students have become consultants (internal and external), HR managers, compensation and benefits managers, change management specialists, HR business partners/operations managers, civil servants and mediators. Employers of our students include the BBC, Capgemini, Linklaters, PricewaterhouseCoopers and the Royal Household.

With a growing global network of 3,000 employers, our Careers and Employability Service is here to support you in achieving your full potential.

• Build key skills
  Practical skills workshops develop essential HR practitioner skills.
• Develop your CQ
  Develop your cultural intelligence – or ‘CQ’ – by studying alongside students and staff representing more than 100 nationalities.
• Learn from experts
  Several members of staff are leading authorities in their respective fields, and many have practised at a senior level, often as HR consultants.

Industry links

We are a CIPD accredited centre. We have a long-established reputation for both leading-edge research and high-quality professional education for HR practitioners. We enjoy a close relationship with the HRM profession and recently collaborated on a research project investigating diversity and inclusion practices in organisations. Launched in October 2019, our joint report, Diversity management that works: an evidence-based review, identified six priority recommendations for practice.

We have been deeply involved at CIPD branch level for many years and also have close links with other professional bodies, such as the British Universities Industrial Relations Association. Several members of staff are leading authorities in their respective fields, and many have practised at a senior level, often as HR consultants.

Job roles

This course will prepare you for roles such as:

• Change management specialist
• Civil servant
• Coach/mentor
• Compensation and benefits manager
• HR business partner/operations manager
• HR consultant (internal and external)
• HR manager
• Mediator

Graduate employers

Graduates from this course have found employment at organisations including:

• BBC
• Capgemini
• EY
• Harrods
• HSBC
• Google
• KPMG
• Linklaters
• PWC
• The Royal Household
• Transport for London
• Visa

Westminster Employability Award

Employers value graduates who have invested in their personal and professional development – and our Westminster Employability Award gives you the chance to formally document and demonstrate these activities and achievements.

The award is flexible and can be completed in your own time, comprising a set of core and optional extracurricular activities.

Activities might include gaining experience through a part-time job or placement, signing up to a University-run scheme – such as mentoring or teaching in a school – or completing online exercises.

We cover a range of core topics, including human resource management, organisational analysis and development; leadership; learning and development; employee engagement; management skills; analytical and diagnostic techniques, and ethical requirements within the workplace.

You will also choose two optional modules each semester from a large range of subject areas, which allows you to tailor your studies to match your interests. If you are interested in human resource development, for example, you can choose to focus on learning and development and designing and delivering training. Alternatively, if you wish to broaden the scope of your studies, you can incorporate anything from employment law and international HRM to reward management and employee relations.

Please note that if you are studying part-time, your studies will be split over four semesters instead of two.

Semester 1

The core Managing Human Resources module is designed to give you a solid overview of HRM theory and practice, exploring approaches to human resource practice and the implications for organisational success. We’ll also examine the theory and practice of leadership and management and give you a greater insight into how businesses operate and the economic, social, political and governance issues that affect how managers make key decisions.

You’ll participate in two one-day workshops on disciplinary handling and counselling as part of our commitment to developing essential practitioner skills. You’ll also be introduced to research methods in preparation for your research project.

Semester 2

As the course develops, we’ll examine the skills required to be an effective HR manager or consultant, focusing on how to diagnose HRM problems and apply appropriate solutions taking particular account of specific international, national and local contexts, institutions and cultures.

The project module gives you the chance to demonstrate your ability to critically analyse, research and report independently on a specific HRM problem, practice, policy or opportunity through systematic enquiry and the integration of theory. You may, for example, analyse how remote working influences employee engagement or investigate best practices in redundancy and dismissal.

The following modules are indicative of what students study in this course. To be awarded the MA in Human Resource Management, you'll take five core modules and choose three option modules from the list below.

Core Modules

• Behaviour, Culture and Change
• Human Resource Management and the Business Context
• People Practice
• Skills of the Manager/Consultant
• HRM Research Project

Option Modules

• Designing and Delivering Training
• Employee Relations and Employee Engagement
• Employment Law for HR Practitioners in England and Wales
• HR Analytics
• International Human Resource Management
• Learning for Career Development
• Managing Equality, Diversity and Inclusion in the Workplace
• Organisational Analysis, Design and Development
• Reward Management
• Talent Management
• The Psychology of Assessment and Selection