Academic/Subject Departments

Business Studies

‘Business is a good game – lots of competition and a minimum of rules. You keep score with money.’ – Atari founder, Nolan Bushnell

Welcome to the Department of Business Studies and Economics at Sheffield High School. We strive to give each pupil the chance to expand her knowledge on a variety of relevant, interesting and challenging topics. Recent research suggests that 90% of all university graduates work in Business.

In GCSE Business Studies, pupils are given an opportunity to study the theories and concepts that underpin Businesses and the Economy. Interactive teaching is encouraged and group role play and simulation exercises are used to develop communication skills, team building skills and confidence. We aim to encourage the spirit of enterprise from an early age and participate in many independent learning activities such as the Coca-Cola Marketing and Make Your Mark Challenges. Our students have enjoyed much success in these competitions and have been Yorkshire Coca Cola Challenge Champions.

Equally anyone with an interest in how businesses actually work or who wishes to study Business, Management, Finance, Accounts, Marketing, or Economics, individually or in combination at degree level, will find the Business Studies A-level course extremely useful.

At A-level, class and homework activities involve reading and note taking, answering questions, researching business topics, watching videos, analysing case studies, classroom simulations, class discussions and the use of ICT. In addition, during Enterprise Week in November Year 12 students take part in the ‘Make Your Mark’ Business Challenge in which they have represented the school at the Yorkshire Final in 2008 and 2009.

Young Enterprise
Every year, the Economics and Business Studies Department runs the Young Enterprise Scheme, in which students have the opportunity to set up and organise their own firms. This venture is open to all the students in Year 12 and provides experience in running a business as well as teaching valuable team-building and communication skills. Students are encouraged to sit the OCR Young Enterprise examination and thereby gain a formal qualification in enterprise. In recent years our students have enjoyed much success at the regional finals being judged to be the best company in South Yorkshire in 2005, 2006, 2009 and 2010.

This year we are proud to have been crowned South Yorkshire Champions for the third year in a row! In recognition of Sheffield High School’s outstanding achievements in this competition, Young Enterprise have awarded us Centre of Excellence status.

Educational Visits
At GCSE the girls have the opportunity to visit the Coca-Cola bottling plant in Wakefield where they get the opportunity to see one of the Europe’s largest bottling plants in action as well as learn about the Coca-Cola organisation.

Our A-level visits have included the London Stock Exchange and the bi-annual opportunity to visit a foreign destination such as Paris and, as of Easter 2012, China!

Extra-Curricular Opportunities
The department is committed to offering exciting opportunities for students outside the normal syllabus at both GCSE and A-level. Students get the opportunity to be involved in the prestigious Coca Cola Challenge enterprise competition at the beginning of Year 10 where they develop leadership, communication, problem-solving and presentation skills. We have enjoyed great success in the competition, making it through to the regional finals in each of the past 5 years! At A-level, the girls have the opportunity to enter the national Student Investor Challenge Competition where they are given the task of investing an imaginary £100,000 on the London Stock Exchange, with the aim of maximising their portfolio value. This allows the girls to learn more about the stock market and the cut and thrust of city trading!