Course Summary

This course is highly practical in nature and enables you to develop a holistic and societal view of marketing communications within a framework that encourages creativity. You will gain an awareness and knack for contemporary, real-world trends in marketing communications that will be invaluable to employers worldwide.

The course will focus on three areas of integrated marketing communications systems: public relations, advertising and interactive and direct marketing. Integration will be a key driving force behind the curriculum, both at an organisational level (integrated marketing) and a campaign level (integrated marketing communications). You will develop your skills in creating marketing communications and planning and evaluating campaign strategies. Plus, you will acquire a critical knowledge of brand management and buyer behaviour, which will underpin your ability to propose and implement strategies that address brand and target customer and media issues involving internal and external stakeholders.

A teaching team including researchers and academic staff with extensive industry experience will support your development. There may also be active involvement by marketing practitioners on the course. You will benefit from lectures and 'live' assignments from UK agencies and brand owners, which will help to prepare you for employment on completion of the course.

Why choose this course?

On successful completion of this course, you will be able to produce and justify creative integrated marketing communications plans. The cutting-edge knowledge and expertise you will have acquired will allow you to pursue a career in the marketing communications sectors of advertising, public relations, direct marketing and client-side strategic brand management. Potential roles include: account executive, advertising account planner, PR officer, PR event manager, direct marketing creative, mailing house manager, media buyer and brand manager.

During the course you will:

• Gain valuable insight into a comprehensive range of marketing and communication strategies
• Mix with other postgraduate students from around the world in a unique and highly dynamic environment
• Emphasise how marketing communications are used worldwide
• Receive guidance from specialist marketing academics from our large Department of Marketing
• Benefit from our excellent links with many marketing organisations offering opportunities for real-world experience
• Study in an ideal location with easy access to London - where many large marketing agencies are based
• Complete an independent dissertation relevant to marketing communications
• Develop your critical understanding and judgement, imaginative powers, teamwork skills, decision-making and critical self-awareness alongside specific skills related to marketing communications

Areas of study you may cover on this course include:

• Marketing communications
• Brand management and research
• Marketing communications and society
• Public relations issues
• Integrated marketing
• Advertising
• Interactive and direct marketing
• Current issues in marketing communications
• Dissertation

The Putteridge Bury campus is brilliant! Very convenient, has nice cafeteria and free parking. The teaching staff makes the subject easy to manage and quick to learn, even if you haven’t studied it before.

Robin Chowdhury - MSc Marketing Communications

MSXXC

Assessment

The assessment strategy underlines the programmes concern with research and independent thinking, critical knowledge of marketing theory and practice, the ability to make information decisions and communicate these under time pressure and, finally, the all-important skills of teamwork and oral communication of ideas.

The written assignments and group reports contribute to the learning outcomes focusing on the proposal and implementation of integrated marketing strategies and plans based on prior brand, customer and other relevant research. They also address the development of creative and management abilities in the specific marketing communications areas.

The end-of-unit examinations focus primarily on critical discussion of integrated marketing communications theory and current practice.

By contrast the time-constrained tests will be more practical and task-orientated in nature, though themselves drawing on branding and interactive / direct marketing theory.

The relatively important weighting given to individual and group presentations stresses the primacy of team work and of effective oral communication based on research and creative, `holistic thinking about brand, organisational, media and stakeholder issues.

Educational Aims

In keeping with the universitys general aims and the more specific modular scheme aims for post-graduate courses the MSc Marketing Communications programme seeks to:

• Provide a curriculum that reflects critical concern with current developments in integrated marketing communications thinking and practice


• Develop students intellectual and imaginative powers and their critical understanding and judgement


• Stimulate an enquiring, analytical and creative approach on the part of the student to integrated marketing communications strategy


• Encourage the ability to see relationships within the individual leaning components


• Develop the ability to locate the field of study within a broad societal, cultural, business and ethical framework


• Develop transferable skills of :

- Independent learning

- Problem-solving

-Research

- Independent judgement

- Initiative

- Creativity

- Teamwork

- Decision making and planning

- Personal responsibility

- Communication

- Critical self-awareness

Specifically, the course aims:

• To develop the students critical knowledge of the capstone areas of brand management and buyer behaviour


• To provide a holistic, integrated approach to marketing communications, from a societal, strategic business and planning perspective


• To develop high level competence in three of the individual components of integrated marketing communications systems public relations, advertising and interactive and direct marketing


• To provide an opportunity for students to demonstrate research abilities founded on critical knowledge of current academic concerns and relevant published literature


• To enable a creative and open approach to decision-making, as would be embodied in a strategic marketing communications plan


• To develop in the student the critical knowledge, creative thinking and high-level skills to enable entry into the relevant job market


• To provide a basis for the students life-long learning and successful career development in his or her chosen professional arena


• To make the student self-aware and for him / her to identify areas for further professional and academic development

Student support

• University Counselling Service


• Course Tutor

Team working

Group work and the development and presentation of findings, critical thinking, creative campaigns etc. are a feature of all units, including the dissertation.

Career Management Skills

The programme is aimed at providing students with advanced knowledge and skills to facilitate employment and subsequent career development in integrated marketing. The grounded and holistic approach to marketing communications implicit in the overview units e.g. Integrated Marketing; the specialist foci within the Advertising, Public Relations and Direct and Interactive Marketing units; the student development of a reflective portfolio within Current Issues in Marketing Communication and potential encounters with practitioners all serve career development.

Career/Further study opportunities

Career:

Careers in account management and planning in full-service or more specialised marketing and communications agencies and departments; in brand management.

Further study:

Preparation for PhD study in marketing communications or related topic.

Entry

Additional:

A good BA (Hons) in marketing or named with marketing in the title, marketing communications, bachelors award in media providing there is an appropriate marketing / business content; exceptionally, good honours degree from other disciplines e.g. social sciences, humanities; appropriate command of English for EU / international students. IELTS 6.5.

UK students Undergraduate entry requirements

Standard entry requirements for Foundation degrees (FD/FdSc)

A foundation degree will be of particular interest if you have completed a Modern Apprenticeship, vocational A levels, BTEC National or equivalent.

Foundation degrees are also particularly suitable if you want to qualify while working.

• As a guideline, a typical offer would require you to obtain a UCAS tariff score of between 80-120 points, based on your level 3 studies.

Many students studying for foundation degrees come to us through work-based routes so you can apply for a foundation degree even if you don’t have traditional academic qualifications.

We welcome applicants with relevant work experience.

Standard entry requirements for Undergraduate degrees (BA/BSc)

We will consider you as an individual and take into account all elements of your application, not just your qualifications. We are looking for both breadth and depth in your current studies as well as enthusiasm for the subject you wish to study.

The general requirement is one of the following:

• UCAS Tariff Score greater than 200, which should include either two A level passes or an AVCE Double Award
• An Access qualification
• Equivalent qualifications such as Irish Leaving Certificate, Scottish Highers, International Baccalaureate or BTEC National Diploma

Students from the European Union

Entry requirements

As a general guide, to apply for a place on an undergraduate course (BA/BSc) at the University you need to have completed your high school education and have the required English qualification.

We have students from all the European Union member countries so we are quick to make decisions on most qualifications.

How to apply

International students

• Undergraduate applications (BA/BSc) can be made direct to the University or via our representatives in your home country. If you intend to apply to more than one university in the UK you should apply via UCAS. If you want to apply to the University of Bedfordshire only you should apply directly using our international application form (link below) or via our representatives in your home country
• Postgraduate applications should be made directly to the University using our international application form (link below) or via our representatives in your home country
• Healthcare, nursing and midwifery students Many of these courses are not available to overseas students due to UK immigration law in regard to bursary funding. Please contact international admissions to find out if you are eligible to apply
• BA Nursing Studies Level 3 (with or without Overseas Nursing Programme) is available to overseas students - please contact International Admissions by email at international-admissions@beds.ac.uk for further information

(Please note that applicants on a full student visa are not eligible for part-time study)

Course application form for international students

We recommend that you apply directly to the University where possible, as this allows us to offer the quickest turnaround time for your application.

• Course application form for direct applications [PDF]

How to complete your course application

Please read the Direct application instructions before completing the course application form.

Application forms for accommodation in the student halls at Bedford campus and Luton campus are available in the Student life section

Accreditation of prior certificated learning (APL)

APL is available for international students applying for undergraduate (Bachelor degree) study. Please do not use this APL form to apply for postgraduate courses.

Use the APL form to tell us about any non-standard qualifications and/or work experience you have that you think should be taken into consideration with your application. `

The APL form should be submitted at the same time as the course application form.

We regret we are unable to process APL forms from students who have not submitted a formal course application form.

• APL application form for International students [100Kb] updated 041007

What next?

Return your completed application to:

University of Bedfordshire
International Admissions
Park Square
Luton
Bedfordshire
LU1 3JU
United Kingdom

Contact International Admissions

T: +44 (0)1582 489326 (non-EU Students)
F: +44 (0)1582 743469
E: international-admissions@beds.ac.uk

Awarding institution

University of Bedfordshire

Professional, Statuatory and Regulatory Body Accreditation

N/A

Students with disabilities

No course elements require special consideration in respect of disabled students.

Skills Development

Communication

The idea of communication underpins the whole programme. To help with the development of this you will be required to present and justify research, proposals, plans and campaigns both orally and in writing. As can be seen above, a substantial part of the teaching and learning and assessment strategy addresses effective communication.

Information Literacy

To help with the development of this you will:

Use of the Internet as a research tool; analysis of websites, SMS etc. as communication media; use of online data/journals e.g. Keynote, EBSCO; use of Powerpoint as a presentational medium.

Research and Evaluation

To help with the development of this you will:

Through the analysis, processing and justification of marketing communications-related numerical data: budgets; brand equity; return on investment measurement e.g. AVEs; other technical formulae OTS, CPT, TVRs. Problem solving permeates much of the unit: for example, in the specialist units, in Integrated Marketing and in the practical part of the dissertation the core task is one of identifying, developing and presenting solutions to brand problems.

Creativity and Critical Thinking

To help with the development of this you will:

Problem solving permeates much of the unit: for example, in the specialist units, in Integrated Marketing and in the practical part of the dissertation the core task is one of identifying, developing and presenting solutions to brand problems.

Improving learning and performance

Students will generally be encouraged to reflect on their performance in individual tasks and identify learning needs and improvement strategies. Specifically, a number of the units include a `reflective element as part of the assessment strategy.

Progress files

The programme builds on the progress files that participants will have developed in their previous studies. The main vehicle for demonstrating developments will be in the project element (analogous to the level 3 Undergraduate approach). Nevertheless, the majority of units provide enabling opportunities for autonomous development in the areas of needs analysis, performance planning and management (especially within a group context) and presentation and evaluation. The most substantial evidential output is the dissertation but each participant will have a (self maintained) portfolio of individual and group tasks. The main mechanism for implementation will be through structured discussions with the dissertation supervisor but there will also be inputs from unit leaders.

Professional standards

• Staff and students will work with professional integrity at all times


• Staff and students will abide by the Code of Conduct as stated in the Universitys Student Regulations


• Staff and students should ensure contact details are current; staff should ensure that their availability is publicised and appropriate communication channels are agreed


• Students are expected to attend all classes, where there are mitigating circumstances staff must be informed promptly


• Staff and students must arrive on time for classes


• In all situations students and staff should dress and act appropriately


• Staff and students should work to sustain a culture of mutual respect


• All assessed work should be a students own and correctly referenced where material is taken from other sources


• Electronic devices must not be used during classes without express permission and mobile telephones must be switched off


• Student concerns should be raised promptly, through the appropriate channels

Strategy for developing and embedding the professional standards

The professional standards are included in the course handbook for reference by students. A range of the issues covered are explicitly included in induction sessions (putting them all in would subvert the purpose of induction) as they are of most significant impact in terms of the potential outcomes students, e.g. plagiarism. Many are also reinforced explicitly within unit handbooks and implicitly through the operation of the units and the example given by unit leaders.