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Marketing (MLitt) 2020 entry

The Masters in Marketing (MLitt) develops an integrated and critically aware understanding of marketing and organisations and equips students to meet the strategic challenges of the global marketplace.

Applications for 2020 entry for this course have now closed, see which courses are available for the upcoming academic year.

Course type

Postgraduate, leading to a Master of Letters (MLitt)

Course dates

  • Start date: 7 September 2020
  • End date: 30 September 2021

Information about all programmes from previous years of entry can be found in the archive.

Course duration

One year (12 months) full time

Entry requirements

  • A good 2.1 undergraduate Honours degree in business, marketing or a related subject from the UK or the equivalent international qualification. Applications are also considered from applicants who have majored in another subject but have a business or marketing minor. Applicants with business experience are welcome, and work experience will be taken into account in the evaluation of applications.
  • If you studied your first degree outside the UK, see the international entry requirements.
  • English language proficiency. See English language tests and qualifications.

The qualifications listed are indicative minimum requirements for entry. Some academic Schools will ask applicants to achieve significantly higher marks than the minimum. Obtaining the listed entry requirements will not guarantee you a place, as the University considers all aspects of every application including, where applicable, the writing sample, personal statement, and supporting documents.

Tuition fees

UK and EU: £11,420
Overseas: £23,090

Application deadline

Wednesday 19 August 2020. Admission to this programme will close once the programme is full. Applicants should apply as early as possible to be eligible for certain scholarships and for international visa purposes and to ensure their application is submitted before the programme is full.

Application requirements

  • CV
  • personal statement explaining why you have chosen the programme, why this subject is important to you and why you have applied to study at the University of St Andrews in particular (500 words)
  • one original signed academic reference
  • academic transcripts and degree certificates
  • evidence of English language proficiency (required if English is not your first language).

For more guidance, see supporting documents and references for postgraduate taught programmes.

Course information

The Masters in Marketing is a one-year taught programme run by the School of Management.

Highlights

  • The programme focuses on the role of marketing within organisations and the wider global context within which they work. Upon completion of this programme you will have an integrated and critically aware understanding of marketing and organisations and be ready to take an effective role within them. 
  • This programme has been approved and accredited by the Chartered Institute of Marketing to provide entry onto the CIM's Chartered Postgraduate Diploma in Marketing.
  • Marketing practitioners from industry and academia are invited as guest speakers on a regular basis to speak to take part in the programme, speak to students and lead master classes. 
  • Students have the opportunity to go on an annual marketing-related field trip.

Teaching format

Teaching is delivered through a mixture of core and optional modules using a range of delivery methods including lectures, small group tutorials, workshops and seminars. The average marketing cohort is 40 students.

Assessment comprises a combination of coursework and examinations. From June to August, students undertake a research project culminating in a written dissertation of 15,000 words. 

Marketing students are academically supported by their dedicated programme director as well as the director of postgraduate programmes.

Further particulars regarding curriculum development.

Marketing students

The Masters in Marketing is run by the School of Management. Find out more about the School of Management.

Modules

Each module typically consists of three to five contact hours per week including lectures, seminars, tutorials and workshops. Assessment is either entirely by coursework, or through a combination of coursework (50%) and a two-hour end-of-semester examination (50%).

For more details of each module, including weekly contact hours, teaching methods and assessment, please see the latest module catalogue which is for the 2019–2020 academic year; some elements may be subject to change for 2020 entry.

Semester 1

  • Consumer Behaviour and Marketing Research: teaches you how to think systematically and critically about consumer behaviour, and understand how the principles of consumer behaviour inform methodological design in consumer research.
  • Contemporary Global Issues in Management: how various global trends impact upon economies, organisations and the practice of management.

Semester 2

  • Contemporary Conceptual Issues in Management: explores core conceptual challenges in organisations such as the meaning of responsible enterprise and the ways in which personality, power and politics impact on organisations and their communication with key stakeholders.
  • Dialogue and Debate in Marketing (Masterclasses): explores key marketing topics such as globalisation, consumer trust, technology, social marketing and behaviour change, PR and branding.

Students choose two optional modules, taking one in each semester. 

Here is a sample of optional modules that may be offered.

  • Alternative Investment
  • Creative Marketing Communications
  • Entrepreneurship and Business Development
  • Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Creativity
  • Ethics, Organisations and Management
  • Financial Systems
  • International Financial Management
  • International Marketing
  • Leadership in Organisations
  • Managing Natural Resources
  • Managing People in Global Markets
  • Marketing and Society
  • Managing Non-Governmental Organisations
  • Risk Management
  • Scenario Thinking and Strategy.

Optional modules are subject to change each year, and attendance may be limited (see the University’s position on curriculum development).

The final element of the MLitt is a 15,000-word dissertation. The dissertation is normally on a specific area of marketing; students can develop a topic of their own which interests them and contributes to future career development and further study goals.

You will be encouraged to consider a topic for the dissertation during Semester 1 and will submit your dissertation proposal early in Semester 2. The School of Management will review your proposal and assign a relevant dissertation supervisor on the basis of the proposal.

In order to prepare you for the research required for your dissertation, you will attend a programme of weekly lectures as part of your Dissertation module. Dissertation projects may be group-based or completed individually (students are assessed individually regardless). You will undertake your research and write your dissertation over the summer, submitting in late August.

If students choose not to complete the dissertation requirement for their Masters degree (MLitt), there are exit awards available that allow suitably qualified candidates to receive a Postgraduate Diploma. By choosing an exit award, you will finish your degree at the end of the second semester of study and receive a PGDip instead of a MLitt.


The modules listed here are indicative, and there is no guarantee they will run for 2020 entry. Take a look at the most up-to-date modules in the module catalogue.

The School of Management

The School of Management organises activities and builds relationships around the concept of responsible enterprise.

Responsible enterprise informs teaching and research about:

  • managing within organisations
  • the impact of human enterprise on the environment
  • the interaction between forms of investment and social and organisational impact
  • the need to foster creativity and development.

Accountability, governance, sustainability and ethics are key to the understanding of and engagement with a wide variety of organisations – private, public and social.

The School of Management has won major grants to undertake research and develop research centres. The research findings are reported in top international journals, which means the School is influential in shaping policy and practice.

The School’s world-class research makes a significant contribution to teaching at St Andrews. School staff work as a supportive community to ensure that students think and engage critically with subject matter, both practical and theoretical, developing their abilities and their skills in analysis, synthesis, evaluation and application.

Events

The School of Management hosts events and guest lectures beginning in Orientation Week and throughout the year, providing students and staff with opportunities to socialise, and to engage with visiting scholars, professionals and practitioners.

The Management Society, a student-led organisation, hosts a broad range of activities, both subject related and social. The University also has a number of other student societies relating to the management discipline.

Funding

International Scholarships Scheme
Scholarships for international students studying selected Masters courses in the School of Management.

Jane M Klausman Women in Business Scholarship
For women pursuing a business or business-related degree.

Find out more about postgraduate scholarships

Recent Graduate Discount
The University of St Andrews offers a 10% discount in postgraduate tuition fees to students who are eligible to graduate or who have graduated from St Andrews within the last three academic years and are starting a postgraduate programme with the University of St Andrews. 

Careers

Alumni from the Masters in Marketing and more generally from other Masters programmes in the School of Management have secured employment in the fields of general management, marketing and brand management, marketing research, management consultancy, fund administration and other aspects of the financial services industry.

Graduates from the Masters in Marketing have taken up roles in a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sector including:

  • Accenture
  • Amazon
  • Deloitte and Touche
  • Google
  • LinkedIn
  • Microsoft
  • Procter and Gamble
  • Unilever
  • Volkswagen Group

Masters Extra (MX)

The Masters Extra (MX) programme is designed specifically for taught masters students in the School of Management and focuses on careers as well as personal and professional development. This series of talks, workshops, networking opportunities and activities includes guest lectures from leading academics and experienced managers. Participants earn a Certificate in Career Development through regular attendance.

The Careers Centre offers one-to-one advice to all students on a taught postgraduate course and offers a programme of events to assist students to build their employability skills.

Research degrees

Many Management graduates continue their education by enrolling in PhD programmes at St Andrews or elsewhere.

ESRC Scottish Graduate School of Social Science
Fully funded awards for PhD students in the School of Management.

Management PhD studentships
The School of Management often offers PhD studentships comprising a stipend at RCUK level and a fee waiver at home and EU level.

PhD in Management

Contact

School of Management
University of St Andrews
The Gateway
North Haugh
St Andrews
KY16 9RJ

Phone: +44 (0)1334 46 2200
Email: pgmanagement@st-andrews.ac.uk

Management website

Policies

Admission to the University of St Andrews is governed by our admissions policy.

Curriculum development

As a research intensive institution, the University ensures that its teaching references the research interests of its staff, which may change from time to time. As a result, programmes are regularly reviewed with the aim of enhancing students' learning experience. Our approach to course revision is described online (PDF, 72 KB).

Tuition fees

The University will clarify compulsory fees and charges it requires any student to pay at the time of offer. The offer will also clarify conditions for any variation of fees. The University’s approach to fee setting is described online (PDF, 84 KB).

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