Politics

Managing Public Organisations: Strategy, Finance and Budgeting
Module POLM230 for 2021/2

Postgraduate Module Descriptor

POLM230: Managing Public Organisations: Strategy, Finance and Budgeting

This module descriptor refers to the 2021/2 academic year.

Module Content

Syllabus Plan

Whilst the module’s precise content may vary from year to year, it is envisaged that the syllabus will include the following topics in the order indicated:

Strategy, finance and budgeting in a public sector context and how it differs from that in the private sector
Models and approaches to understanding public sector strategy, finance and budgeting
Forms of accounting, accrual accounting
Accountability and ethics in public sector finance
Basic calculations and spread sheets, how to understand a finance officer
Comparing financial policy instruments
Public spending
Audit and reporting
Strategic Budgetary control and budget setting
Current issues in public sector strategy, finance and budgeting

Teaching of subject knowledge will be through a combination of preliminary directed learning, compulsory reading of core texts, teaching using lectures, linked tutorials, external speakers and workshops.

Students are provided with a module handout consisting of background material to inform lecture and tutorial topics. In addition webpages will have downloads of material and links to key reading and directed learning. Students are required to submit assessed work to deadlines.

Learning and Teaching

This table provides an overview of how your hours of study for this module are allocated:

Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities	Guided independent study	Placement / study abroad
14	136	0

...and this table provides a more detailed breakdown of the hours allocated to various study activities:

Category	Hours of study time	Description
Scheduled Learning and Teaching	14	Fourteen seminars (one hour each)
Guided independent study	86	Reading, thinking and preparing for seminars and assignments
Guided independent study	50	Assignment preparation

Online Resources

This module has online resources available via ELE (the Exeter Learning Environment).

ELE – https://vle.exeter.ac.uk/