MBA Essentials at University of Stellenbosch Business School, Cape Town

Gain an overview of the economics field and the principles that form the basis of economics.

• Explain the economic dilemma, the role of opportunity costs, and the factors of production
• Articulate the impact of business on the economy
• Describe how an economist views certain events
• Show how the economic principles are true in a given context

Learn about the fundamentals of microeconomics, such as supply and demand.

• Recognise how supply and demand are expressed on a graph
• Identify how determinants of supply and demand influence their visual representation on a graph
• Describe what market equilibrium is
• Distinguish between the different price controls
• Assess what effect a change in supply or demand has on market equilibrium
• Explain what price elasticity means and the different price elasticity options
• Calculate the price elasticity of demand for a given situation
• Decide what is the best pricing decision by looking at the price elasticity of demand of a product

Explore economic growth and development and gain insight about unemployment.

• Explain how economic growth occurs and the components of real output
• Outline the different phases of the business cycle
• Discuss the challenges related to South Africa's overall growth trajectory
• Articulate the various definitions of unemployment
• Investigate the causes of and remedial action for unemployment in South Africa
• Conclude how unemployment affects economic growth and development

Learn about the foreign exchange market, its impact on the value of a country's currency, and how central banks control money supply and influence inflation.

• Define the foreign exchange market and the balance of payments
• Recognise what causes fluctuations in the foreign exchange market, and how this affects a country's currency
• Describe general factors that influence the value of a country's currency
• Analyse what happens to the wider economy when currency fluctuates
• Interpret inflation and its causes
• Analyse the role of central banks, such as the SARB, in influencing the money supply in an economy

Explore the African economy in a global economic context.

• Discuss the state of the world economy and the key players
• Explain what caused the 2008/2009 economic recession and its impact
• Analyse what the effects of globalisation and the economic recession are on today's South African economy
• Articulate the characteristics of the African economy and the role that South Africa plays in the continent's economy
• Interpret the state of the South African economy and the role of indebtedness
• Write a strategy that outlines ways to revitalise the South African economy

Discover the world of quantitative methods through the real-world application of time value of money.

• Define the concept of time value of money (TVM)
• Recall the formula for calculating TVM
• Describe the role of TVM in a managerial decision-making context
• Discuss how TVM relates to valuation and investment strategies
• Calculate future value (FV), present value (PV), and net present value (NPV) for a given scenario

Learn the importance of statistics and how to gather and interpret data.

• Recognise the difference between inferential and descriptive statistics
• Outline the differences of various sampling methods and types of variables
• Identify the role and application of common statistical descriptions
• Calculate a frequency distribution for a quantitative data set
• Use various data points for the purposes of visual representation
• Investigate a set of charts for their accuracy according to a data set
• Recommend a plan of action based on a given data set
• Write a data summary

Explore the concept of probability, how it is calculated, and how it can be applied in real-world scenarios.

• Define fundamental probability concepts
• Identify the characteristics of classical, subjective, and empirical probabilities
• Calculate the probability of various kinds of events
• Calculate the conditional probability of an event
• Use a contingency table to calculate the probabilities of various events
• Distinguish between independent and dependent probability
• Recommend action steps in a given case based on probability calculations

Discover how to use certain variables, probabilities, and probability distributions to measure quality control in a business.

• Recognise the difference between discrete and continuous random variables
• Describe the probability distribution of a discrete random variable
• Explain and calculate the binomial distribution, hypergeometric distribution, and Poisson distribution
• Discuss the difference between normal distributions and standard normal distributions
• Use the standard or Z table
• Calculate summary measures for a discrete random variable
• Calculate probability measures for a random variable that follows the normal distribution
• Apply specific probability measures for quality control

Learn how to calculate and apply the concepts of statistical decision theory to improve decision-making processes.

• Recall the three components of and three common strategies for decision-making
• Explain estimated and expected opportunity loss, and estimated and expected payoffs
• Calculate the expected values for a payoff table
• Differentiate between perfect and imperfect information
• Create a decision tree

Discover accounting, debits and credits and the double-entry system.

• Recall the different types of accounting
• Define the accounting equation and the double-entry system
• Identify the four main financial statements and their purpose
• Articulate the basic accounting principles
• Illustrate the differences between the GAAP and the IFRS
• Discuss the challenges associated with budgeting and working with financial statements
• Apply the accounting equation and double-entry system to a given transaction

Familiarise yourself with the components of the income statement, basic ratios and comparisons.

• Explain what the income statement is and its purpose
• Distinguish between the different components that make up an income statement
• Calculate basic ratios pertaining to the income statement
• Complete a basic income statement
• Compare income statements from two financial years

Explore the basics of the balance sheet, and learn more about concepts like share capital, retained earnings, and ratio calculations.

• Identify the fundamental characteristics of the balance sheet and its format
• Define the concept of retained earnings and the different types of share capital
• Apply your knowledge of ratio calculations to extract information from the balance sheet
• Investigate the relationship between retained earnings and the balance sheet

Learn how to use cost behaviour to make informed business decisions.

• Identify the differences between fixed and variable costs
• Interpret fixed and variable costing in a scenario
• Discuss how a company's cost structure may impact its sales strategy
• Calculate an operating profit, a contribution margin, and break-even point
• Investigate what the opportunity cost will be for a given scenario
• Test a business decision to outsource or insource using relevant costing

Discover cash concepts, the cash budget, cash flows, and the importance of positive cash flows.

• Recognise the difference between cash and profit
• Classify cash transactions as operating, investing, or financing activities
• Identify the importance of cash management in a company's financial health
• Calculate the value of different components of a cash budget
• Create a cash budget for a small business