This degree is no longer offered. You may be interested in other courses in Business
Graduate Certificate in Business
Postgraduate | CUR-BUS-GCE | 2023
Course information for 2023 intake
Build your career with an understanding of business practice.
Take charge when you learn contemporary business concepts and know how these work in practice. Understand how to synthesise information, and create useful working models. Hone your communication and develop the leadership skills required to excel.
- Study method
- 100% online
- Assessments
- 100% online
- Credit available
- Yes
- Duration
- 1 year full time or part time equivalent
- Total subjects
- 4
- Price from
- $16,420
- Available loans
- Australian Higher Education Loan Program (HELP)
Graduate Certificate in Business
About this degree
On completion of the degree students will be able to:
- have a thorough foundation of contemporary business theories, concepts and principles and be able to apply these in a group or organisational environment.
- create and critically evaluate innovative ideas and strategies within ambiguous and uncertain business environments (which includes business, government and not-for-profit).
- access, evaluate and synthesise diverse information for intelligent business application.
- effectively communicate in a manner appropriate to their audience and their desired outcomes.
- recognise and apply international perspectives within the business environment
- appropriately manage and value diversity within a business setting
- apply professional skills - team work, leadership and ethical behaviour.
This degree is tailored to give students a firm grounding in the basics of business theory and practice and is designed as a possible entry point to further postgraduate study or as a challenging stand-alone degree. Upon completion, students are encouraged to continue their studies in either the Graduate Diploma in Business, Master of Business Administration or Master of Business Leadership.
Recommended study pattern
Students are to study the subject GCB510 Organisational Behaviour for Managers first; thereafter subjects can be taken in any order.
Award requirements
To qualify for the Graduate Certificate in Business, students must complete 4 subjects or equivalent.
Degrees are usually made up of core subjects and electives. Some degrees include a choice of majors, so you can focus your studies on a specialisation.
This list is a general overview. Download the full Degree Guide for more information.
Transition arrangements are changes that occur when courses are updated or phased out. This happens regularly as part of continuous improvement. It may affect you if you are currently enrolled in this course, or if you plan to use credit from previous study towards it.
2022 Changes
The Master of Business Administration (MBA) and the Graduate Certificate in Business have been withdrawn in 2022.
OUA Students will be provided study plans and progression based on a 2-year phase out of Curtin MBA OUA units in line with student analysis. The leadership specialisation units will be offered for an additional year to facilitate the teach out. Students will also be provided OUA substitution units to either accelerate their progression or delay completion to suit their individual needs.
OUA MBA students with 100 credits or less will also be offered an exit award of the Graduate Certificate if they elect to exit the degree.
The MBA team already provide a comprehensive study plan support service – this will be incorporated in this pre-existing service. Almost all MBA students study a part-time load, the transition plan has been created with this distinctive feature in mind.
The MBA team and members from the Central Student Services team will meet to review individual study plans and make recommendations. These will be recorded and actions noted as the student completes the recommendations.
If there are students that have not completed the subject by final delivery date, the School will recommend substitute subjects based on what is available at Curtin University or OUA at the time.
* Students need to be aware that there is a requirement to complete 50% of Curtin units to meet the requirements for a Curtin MBA Award.
** It is recommended all Curtin OUA MBA students complete MBA680 by the end of 2023, requisite waivers will be approved for all students.
Start your career with Curtin’s globally recognised courses and extensive industry connections. Through OUA, their online courses offer an interactive and collaborative learning experience that gets you the same degree as if you studied on campus. Curtin is a global university with a vibrant culture of innovation and collaboration and is ranked in the top one per cent of universities worldwide.
Learn more about Curtin University.
Explore Curtin courses.
- QS Ranking 2024:
- 14
- Times Higher Education Ranking 2024:
- 15
Entry requirements
This is a restricted degree. Subject enrolment is only available to students admitted into this degree.
Specifically, applicants require a bachelor degree from a recognised tertiary institution and at least three years subsequent, relevant work experience.
Applicants without an undergraduate degree will be considered on the basis of significant work experience (at least eight years) at a recognisable level of responsibility.
If you are applying based on work experience you will need to meet the English proficiency requirements.
If your education degrees were not solely in English, as per the International Handbook of Universities or the World Higher Education database, or you are applying based on work experience you will need to meet the English Proficiency requirements. Admission requires an overall International English Language Testing System (IELTS Academic) (or equivalent test) score of at least 6.5 and competence in all test components (IELTS score of 6.0).
Please refer to the 'Minimum English Entry Requirements' document at https://study.curtin.edu.au/applying/english-language-requirements/.
Applicants are required to meet University academic and English language entry standards; details are provided at https://study.curtin.edu.au/applying/english-language-requirements/accepted-english-proficiency-tests/
Entry to the degree is competitive and applicants will be required to undertake an interview as the final stage of application assessment.
*** Please Note: If any academic or legal document is not in English, you must provide a colour scan of the non-English documents, including a colour scan of the official English translations of these documents. This is for comparison purposes. ***
Credit for Recognised Learning (CRL) is assessed on individual merit and is awarded for different types of learning, for example, studies you have previously completed or for relevant work experience.
Students must be admitted in an award degree of study before lodging their completed CRL application, along with all required supporting documentation for a formal assessment.
To apply for CRL, please visit the Curtin University website: https://study.curtin.edu.au/credit/
It is important to note accepted documentation includes scans of the original Transcripts and/or Award Certificate; front and back; in colour; and original size. For further information see the scanned documents and certification requirements and guidelines.
More information about the policies and procedures related to CRL assessment and appealing a CRL assessment outcome can be found in the Credit for Recognised Learning manual (PDF).
Career opportunities
This degree is designed to give students a foundation in business and therefore opens up a range of management level opportunities across industries in which the student has experience. Most students use the qualification to hasten their move from a functional level position to a management role within their focal industry.
Career outlook
- Chief Executives and Managing Directors:
- Unknown average
- Corporate General Managers:
- Unknown average
- General Managers:
- Unknown average
- Management Consultants:
- Unknown average
Degree FAQs
How long does it take to finish an online degree?
That's up to you! Because we let you choose when to study online, you can actually pick up and pause study when it suits you. Many universities have a set time you need to complete your degree within. For some this is up to 10 years, and for others there is no limit.
There are some degrees that are stricter about when you can take breaks, and about how many years you can take to complete your degree. Please always check with your uni what the limits are.
As a general guide, Commonwealth supported place students have 10 years to finish their undergraduate degree through OUA, However, if you're studying with Griffith University, there's a limit of 8 years to complete your studies. If you want to take a break that lasts more than two study terms, you'll need to apply for a leave of absence. You can apply for a leave of absence for up to 12 months, as long as you complete your studies within the maximum time allowed for your degree.
If you're studying with Macquarie University, with the exception of certain degrees, there's no limit to how long you can take. But, please check with Macquarie Student Administration to be sure.
If you're studying with the University of Adelaide, you have up to 9 years to complete your undergraduate degree and graduate.
If you're studying with La Trobe University and want to take a break of minimum 1 study term, you must apply for leave of absence to avoid being inadvertently withdrawn from your degree.
Through OUA, you can study all year round, so it's possible to fast-track and finish up sooner than studying at a traditional uni would allow. That said, you need to spend around 12 hours a week on each undergraduate subject you do, so taking on extra work to finish ahead of time can be challenging.
How can I pay for my studies?
You may be eligible for a HELP loan from the Australian government, depending on your citizenship status and where you'll be living during your studies. You can also pay upfront with your credit card.
Payment options are explained in Fees, and you can contact a student advisor for more information.
How does studying through Open Universities Australia work?
You might find learning through OUA a little different to how you've studied in the past. It can take time to develop the skills you need for independent online study.
We connect you with subjects and degrees that are taught by leading Australian universities. You can complete single subjects, or follow a degree structure to work towards a specific qualification. Subjects are offered in several study terms throughout the year, so you can choose to study part-time or full-time, continuously or with breaks.
We help you find the subjects or degree that's right for you, and we handle your enrolment in uni and some administration. Your uni sends you your study materials and deals with all academic matters. They're also in charge of your assessment and graduation. If you go on to complete a degree, you'll graduate from the uni offering your degree, for example, RMIT University or Griffith University.
How do I know if I‘m eligible to apply for a course?
Before starting an enrolment, it's important to read the entry requirements for your chosen course to ensure that you're eligible to apply. If you don't quite meet the requirements, we can help you find a pathway into your course through open-entry subjects, which anyone can study. Contact us to find out more.
When is my cut-off date for enrolment?
Our close of enrolment times vary. You can check the cut-off dates for upcoming study terms by visiting Key dates.
Why should I study online through Open Universities Australia?
There are a lot of reasons to study your course online through us.
You can enrol without entry requirements
We have a unique open-door policy that makes it possible for everyone to enrol in university study, no matter their academic history. If you don't meet the entry requirements for a degree, we'll help you get in through single undergraduate subjects and transition into a qualification from there.
You have total control over how you study
Upskill without committing to a whole degree upfront. Or enrol in a full degree, but take it a subject at a time. We'll introduce you to flexible study options you didn't even know about, so you can fit uni around what matters to you.You'll graduate with the same qualification as an on-campus student
Once you enrol through us, you'll study online with the university that provides your degree. This means that when you complete your qualification, you'll graduate with the same degree as on-campus students.We'll help you navigate the university world
Our friendly student advisors will be your guide every step of the enrolment journey. They'll help you compare universities, choose a course, provide documentation and understand your finance options.
How do I enrol?
Here at Open Universities Australia, we make enrolling online as straightforward as possible. To get started, find the course for you by browsing the options on this page. You can also compare different qualifications using our handy comparison tool, or request help from one of our student advisors.
When you've made your choice, click 'Apply now' on the relevant course page and follow the prompts to begin your enrolment. We'll ask you to supply some supporting documentation, including proof of your identity, your tax file number, and a unique student identifier (USI) during this process.
Your university will get in touch with you via email to confirm whether or not your application has been successful.
If you get stuck at any time, reach out to a student advisor and we'll talk you through it.
You can also take a look at our online self-service enrolling instructions.