What to Expect and How to Compare Online Marketing Masters Degrees
Marketing is an exciting and ever-evolving field to be involved in, offering a wealth of opportunities for personal and professional growth across a wide range of industries and organisations.
Gaining a master’s in marketing will boost your career opportunities in the field, and help you stand out from the crowd when applying for marketing roles.
This guide aims to cover the basics of studying an online master’s degree in marketing, giving you a framework to review and compare your options at your chosen universities.
Program Structure and Format
Course formats will vary between institutions, but in general they will follow a similar structure with a number of core modules that are compulsory, followed by a choice of one or two elective modules, and finishing with a final project or dissertation.
Online master’s are typically structured so that you can comfortably fit in studies around your work and personal commitments, and can generally be completed within one to two years part-time or full-time, depending on your preferred study pace.
Core Curriculum and Key Courses
The core modules are designed to provide a foundation in marketing theory, marketing strategy and practice – these units are compulsory and typically make up the first half of the programme.
Generally, a master’s degree in marketing will cover subjects including:
- Marketing fundamentals and principles
- Economics
- Corporate communications
- Digital marketing
- Marketing analytics
- Social media management
- Marketing campaign strategy and planning
- Customer behaviours, data analytics and insights
- Market Research
- Brand Research
Master’s degrees in marketing also teach you soft skills that will not only help you in your professional, but also your personal growth, such as:
- Communication skills
- Problem-solving skills
- Critical and analytical thinking
- Leadership skills
- Team-building and collaboration skills
In addition to the university’s reputation, you should also take the time to review the core modules. You can request the course specification from your chosen university, which will cover the learning outcomes in more detail than the course website or brochure.
Specialisations and Electives
In the second half of the course , you’ll typically have the option to choose from a range of specialisations and electives.
Choosing a specialisation and/or elective will let you study what you enjoy most in marketing, while simultaneously providing you with the specialist skills you need to pursue career opportunities in that area.
Some examples of specialisations and electives you may be able to choose from include:
- Public Relations (PR)
- Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)
- Media buying and planning
- Social media content creation and management
- Consumer Behaviour
The specialisations are followed by a final project or dissertation. This piece of work represents around a third of the course and builds on all the previous modules, but is self-directed. If project-based, it can look at solving a real-world marketing challenge.
Depending on your goals, you could use the final project to look at an issue facing your current company or sector to secure your next career promotion. Alternatively, if you are taking a master’s in marketing for a career change, the final project is a great way to demonstrate the value you can bring to a company.
Learning Outcomes and Skills Gained
As outlined above, you’ll gain a range of both advanced specialist marketing skills as well as essential soft skills when you’re studying a master’s degree in marketing.
Some of the learning outcomes you can expect to achieve after finishing your marketing master’s degree include:
- Ability to understand and critically evaluate the concepts and tools used in marketing
- Ability to apply marketing concepts, tools and theories effectively to help you solve complex marketing problems
- Create marketing strategies and plans to deliver business objectives
Faculty and Instructor Expertise
When you’re comparing master’s in marketing courses, it’s crucial to assess both the course faculty’s and academics’ expertise.
What is the reputation of the university as a whole, and for marketing in particular? What experience do the academics delivering the course have, and what are their notable achievements in the marketing field? These are all important questions to consider when comparing courses.
A master’s degree is a significant investment of your time and money. Once you have narrowed down your choice, many admissions teams for online programmes can arrange a call with the lead tutor for the course. This can be a really good way to get a feel for the course and what the learning experience will be like.
Flexibility and Time Commitment
Undoubtedly, one of the greatest benefits of studying an online master’s in marketing is the flexibility it offers.
With an online marketing master’s, you’ll be able to keep working and earning a full-time income while you study and further your marketing knowledge and skills. You can also determine your own study schedule, managing your time as it suits you, alongside your work and personal commitments.
The time commitments and flexibility can vary significantly between Marketing programme – some provide a fixed two-year, part-time schedule, while others offer more flexibility with up to 5 years to complete.
Assessments and Evaluations
The majority of online master’s degrees in marketing will not have invigilated exams. Instead, you are graded on the assignment and final project. The final award will be classified as follows.
Classification Grades needed
- Distinction 70% and more
- Merit/Commendation 60-69%
- Pass 50-59%
- Borderline Pass/Fail 40-49%
The final grade is made up of the weighted averages of the core and elective modules in addition to the final project.
Online Student Support Services and Resources
Studying a master’s degree in marketing online doesn’t mean studying in isolation. On the contrary – when you study a marketing master’s online, you’ll gain easy and convenient access to academic support as well as a global cohort of fellow students.
You can ask your course tutors any questions you may have about the course and build a support network of fellow students you can collaborate with via online discussion forums, social media channels or direct messages – all from the comfort of your home.
Conclusion and Next Steps
An online master’s degree in marketing can help to boost your global career opportunities in marketing and equip you with the advanced-level knowledge and skills you need to thrive in your dream marketing job – all while you study flexibly online.
So search and compare online marketing master’s courses, create a shortlist, start planning how you’re going to fund your studies, and prepare your course application.
Online Marketing Master’s Degrees UK universities.
