International Business MSc
Entrepreneurial Finance for SMEs MGT5263
- Academic Session: 2026-27
- School: Adam Smith Business School
- Credits: 10
- Level: Level 5 (SCQF level 11)
- Typically Offered: Semester 1
- Available to Visiting Students: No
- Collaborative Online International Learning: No
- Curriculum For Life: No
Short Description
This course introduces students to the key financial decisions, techniques, and procedures involved in entrepreneurial activity within small and medium-sized enterprise settings. It examines how SMEs identify financing needs, evaluate investment opportunities, manage financial constraints, and select appropriate sources of funding across different stages of development. The course also considers the role of financial and non-financial information in supporting entrepreneurial decision-making, with attention to risk, uncertainty, sustainability considerations, and the practical challenges faced by SMEs in real-world financing environments.
Timetable
4 x 3 hour lectures
2 x 2 hour tutorials
Excluded Courses
None
Co-requisites
None
Assessment
1. Report; Individual; 1700 words; 100%; ILOs 1-3.
Course Aims
This course aims to develop students' understanding of the financial environment in which entrepreneurs and SMEs operate. It introduces key financial techniques and decision-making tools used to evaluate business opportunities, allocate resources, assess investment options, and select appropriate funding structures across the different stages of a venture's life cycle. The course also aims to equip students with the ability to interpret financial statements, analyse cash flows, apply business valuation models, and critically assess alternative sources of finance in the context of business planning and growth. In addition, students will examine the financial challenges faced by distressed or failing companies and consider how active financial management can support restructuring, recovery, or exit decisions.
Intended Learning Outcomes of Course
By the end of this course students will be able to:
1. Critically evaluate contemporary perspectives in entrepreneurial finance and SME funding (e.g., pecking order, financial constraints, venture finance, relationship lending) to interpret real world financing choices.
2. Critically appraise and synthesise financial and non-financial information to make evidence-based SME financing and investment decisions, explicitly incorporating sustainability considerations when relevant.
3. Communicate clear, well-structured, and professionally justified financing recommendations for SMEs, demonstrating awareness of risk, uncertainty, stakeholder needs, and practical implementation constraints.