Marketing (Branding and Communications) MSc (PGCert PGDip)

How this course is delivered

COVID-19 has changed everything. We’ve made some changes to the way our courses are taught to keep everyone safe and that will help you stay connected and involved in university life.

From the start of term in September, you’ll learn through a blend of on-campus and digitally enabled remote learning that will provide lots of opportunities to interact and engage. Together with carefully managed access to libraries, labs, workshops and studios this means your studies are as collaborative, practical and flexible as possible.

Course structure

The course is organised into three-hour blocks of teaching and seminar activities, which are based on specialist reading, research and case studies. Modules are assessed through essays, reports, group work, presentations and examinations.

All of our Marketing MSc courses share six core modules.

This specialist route includes one subject-specific module (Branding and Communications), but also shares a range of option modules which enable you to tailor the course to your interests and career aspirations.

In the final phase of the course, you will complete a 15,000-word dissertation on a marketing topic of your choice, where you will make recommendations for real-life marketing practice. Throughout your dissertation, you will receive support from a supervisor who will help to guide you in your research.

Syllabus 

All students study six core modules including a masters transition module and a dissertation. You also choose an option module to study. This will allow you to specialise in the areas of the course that interest you the most.

Modules

• Moving to Masters
• Critical Developments in Marketing Theory and Practice
• Marketing Planning and Strategy 
• Marketing Research I: Quantitative Methods
• Marketing Research II: Qualitative Methods
• Branding and Communications
• Dissertation

Options
One from:

• International Marketing 
• Social Marketing 
• Behavioural Economics 
• Digital Marketing 
• New Product Development

Modules in focus

Branding and Marketing Communications

Marketing communications refers to the various tools that marketers use to communicate with key target markets. It covers the use of advertising, sales promotion and PR amongst others. This is therefore an invaluable module for any student who wishes to pursue a career in marketing.

Contents

• The marketing communications (marcoms) mix
• Personal and environmental influences on marcoms
• Ethics in marcoms
• Consumer and organisational buyer behaviour
• Communications theories
• Segmenting, targeting and positioning for marcoms
• Marcoms planning models and integrated marcoms strategy
• The creative approach
• Present and future media selection alternatives
• Measuring effectiveness
• Product and corporate branding

New Product Development

This module will help ensure that you perform effectively in a new product development team – making a valuable contribution in those areas more directly related to the marketing frame of reference eg idea/concept/product screening; product research and testing and commercialization. 

Contents

• Developing balanced NPD programs in the context of corporate strategy.
• Managing the introduction of new technologies. Does it pay to be a first mover?
• Managing and scheduling the NPD process.
• Finding and screening project concepts, including business analysis and the application of NewProd.
• Research for new products – from product and consumer testing through to test marketing.
• Speeding up product development – tools and techniques.
• Issues in branding and segmentation.
• Launching new products – new product marketing strategies.

Placement year 

To further increase your employability and international experience we offer full-time students starting in September the opportunity to take a placement year. This means that your course will take two years, but you’ll be graduating with work experience.

The year on placement in a role related to your course will allow you to put all that you have learned on your masters into practice, enhancing your career opportunities and giving you practical experience in your area of expertise.

During your placement you will also complete a business project. This project is assessed as part of your masters and, depending on the topic that is agreed between you and your employer, could also provide a valuable piece of insight for your placement employer.

Our placement partners include BMW, Bosch, Disney, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, HSBC, IBM, Ipsos Mori, L’Oréal, Nike, Metropolitan Police and The Pensions Regulator.

Work placements are optional, and you are responsible for arranging your placement with support from our dedicated Placements and Employability team.

We are now offering a two-year international study visa route to support applications for this course.

Find out more about how we can support you finding a placement.

Staff profiles

International study exchange

Through our partnership with MIP Politecnico di Milano Graduate School of Business, you have the opportunity to gain an international perspective to your studies. On our study exchange programme you would join MIP's International Master in Multichannel Marketing Management course, which is taught in English. 

You will be able to choose from a range of modules including Design and Marketing: the Italian way in different sectors including for example Design, Fashion and Furniture, Automotive, Wine and Sports Marketing. 

International requirements and visas

We can help you meet our English language or academic entry requirements.

Visas and immigration advice

Course fees

Scholarships, bursaries and loans

We offer a range of scholarships for postgraduate students. Bursaries and loans may also be available to you.

Find out more about postgraduate fees and funding.

Our Marketing MSc courses, full-time and part-time, are eligible for the government’s postgraduate master’s loan scheme.

What's included

You may have to pay additional costs during your studies. The cost of optional activities is not included in your tuition fee and you will need to meet this cost in addition to your fees. A summary of the costs that you may be expected to pay, and what is included, while studying a course in Brighton Business School are listed here.

• Students who choose to take an optional placement will have travel and living expenses. The cost of this depends on where and how long your placement is.
• Some courses include optional field trips for which the school pays – you may incur minimal costs such as for food and drink and should budget up to £15.
• You will be required to buy textbooks and should budget up to £150.

You can chat with our enquiries team through the Stay in touch panel at the end of this page if you require further information. Or check our finance pages for advice about funding and scholarships, as well as more information about fees and advice on international and island fee-paying status.

Info

The fees listed here are for full-time courses beginning in the academic year 2020–21.

Further tuition fees are payable for each subsequent year of study and are subject to an annual increase of no more than 5% or RPI (whichever is the greater). The annual increase for UK/EU students, who are subject to regulated fees, will increase no more than the statutory maximum fee.

You can find out more about our fees in the university's student contract and tuition fee policy (pdf).

The tuition fee you have to pay depends on a number of factors including the kind of course you take, and whether you study full-time or part-time. If you are studying part-time you will normally be charged on a pro rata basis depending on the number of modules you take.

Local area

Campus where this course is taught

Accommodation

Maps