Business

Business Studies helps you to make more informed decisions in the everyday business of living. It gives you a better understanding of the world of work. It encourages you to think about how and why people start up in business and why you too might consider starting a business.

What you will learn:

Some of the things you will learn include:

1. Good communication skills such as letter writing and report writing
2. How to calculate your wages when you start working (including the minimum wage)
3. How to collect, organise and record financial information for yourself, your family, clubs you may be a member of or businesses you may be employed by in the future.
4. What your rights and responsibilities are as a consumer (someone who buys or uses goods and services – that’s you!)
5. Why E.U. membership is so important to our country.
6. What it takes to be an Entrepreneur (person who starts their own business)

Junior Cycle Business:

The specification for junior cycle business studies focuses on improving students’ understanding of the business environment and on developing skills for life, work and further study through the three inter-connected strands: Personal Finance, Enterprise and Our Economy.

• Exam worth 90%
• Common level

Junior Cert Course Content

The 3 main areas covered in Junior Certificate are:

• Personal Finance (Budgeting, Consumer Rights, Understanding Payslips)
• Enterprise (Forms of Business, People at Work, Entrepreneurship)
• Our Economy (Supply and Demand, Globalisation of Trade, Importing and Exporting)

Exam Structure

• Classroom based assessment 1 which is an investigation of a product
• Classroom based assessment 2 which is an individual presentation
• Assessment task worth 10% which is linked to the classroom based assessment 2

Leaving Cert Business

Leaving Certificate business creates an awareness of the importance of business activity and develops a positive and ethical attitude towards enterprise. The learning experiences in business develop students’ critical thinking, creative and organisational skills while enhancing literacy and numeracy skills using real-life examples. Business provides students with a learning foundation for a wide range of careers in business, marketing, law, enterprise and management.

Leaving Cert Course Content

Unit 1: People in business (Contract law, industrial, relations, consumer conflict etc)
Unit 2: Enterprise (Entrepreneurship, skills & characteristics, Intrapreneurship, Enterprise at home and the community
Unit 3: Managing 1 (Different types of leader, motivation in business, communication, different types of planning, organisational structures, control within a business)
Unit 4: Managing 2 (HR management, Insurance, Tax, Ratio analysis, Finance in business)
Unit 5: Business in action (Business expansion, Marketing, how a business starts up, business opportunities
Unit 6: Domestic Environment (Business organisations, community development, categories of industry, business and the economy
Unit 7: International Environment (International trade, European Union, Global Business

Exam Structure:

Leaving Cert Business is assessed at higher and ordinary levels.

Higher Level:
Section 1 – Short Questions (80 marks) Answer any 8 out of 10
Section 2 – ABQ (80 marks) Based on 3 units, changes each year
Section 3 – Long Questions (240 marks)

Must answer 4 questions from 7 as follows:

One question from part 1
Two questions from part 2
One other question from part 1 or part 2

Ordinary Level:
Section 1 – Short Questions (100 marks) Answer 10 questions from 15
Section 2 – Long questions (300 marks) Answer 4 questions from 7