Hi, my name is Mike Ryder, and I'm the programme director for the MSc Digital and Social Media Marketing here at Lancaster University.
You may not realise this, but the marketing department here at Lancaster is actually the oldest marketing department in the UK. And so we bring a wealth of expertise and hard-won experience to our teaching, which we apply in all sorts of different realms.
So in the Digital Marketing Master's course, you will cover a range of different topics.
In the first term, you will cover such topics as consumer insights, strategic marketing communications, global marketing and brand strategy and marketing intelligence.
Then, in the second term, we will take a real practical focus where you'll get a chance to put the skills that you've learned into use. So in our module, Digital Marketing and Social Media, in Practice, you will develop your very own portfolio website, which you can use to help yourself get a job when you graduate from Lancaster and to really showcase your skills to employers.
We also have a specialist module in influencer marketing, which we're really proud of here at Lancaster, as we feel like it's really one of a kind module that you can't really get anywhere else. Drawing on the expertise of my colleague Hayley Cocker, who is a well-established research expert in this field and will prepare you for what is a really interesting, challenging realm of working with influencers to try and promote your brand.
In the final term, you will work on a company-commissioned dissertation. You'll work in a group, and you will respond to a real-world client brief to solve a real-world problem, and you will then present these findings to the client. You will also, as part of this, produce
a dissertation, which you will submit as a group at the end of the year.
Now, as I was saying, we're really proud of the fact that we are the oldest marketing departments in the United Kingdom, and we've got a long track record of success. Our alumni have gone on to work at such wonderful places such as Sony, EssenceMediacom, Nestlé Purina and even the BBC.
So there's all sorts of different careers that you can go into with a degree from Lancaster University, and we're there to support you every step of the way.
You can also make use of our fantastic career support, which you have access to while you're here at Lancaster. So the Management School here has its own dedicated careers team that you can make use of throughout your time here. There's also a central University team as well, so you've got loads of different resources that you can draw on during your time at Lancaster.
We also try and build lots of real-world practical insights into our teaching on a day-to-day basis, including case studies. Built into our teaching, we draw lots of guest lectures, many of which come from our wonderful alumni who have previously sat here and studied, just like you will. And of course, we also use client briefs, which you'll respond to in some of your module assignments.
So we really like to think that this degree should really prepare you for the world of work and getting a job once you have graduated.
So this course is perfect for anyone with a keen interest in marketing no matter what your background. So whether you have studied English Literature, History, Sociology, Psychology, you will find some really interesting things to take away from this course. But of course, it's also great if you've already studied a Business or Marketing-related subject in the past as well.
So our modules, for example, consumer insights, really take your understanding of consumer psychology, consumer behaviour up to the next level.
We also think in terms of far more strategic thinking when it comes to marketing planning, marketing communications. So there is something for everyone. And as I said, you'll get the opportunity to put the things that you learn into practice as you respond to real-world client briefs through our client dissertation, for example, but also through our module where you'll create a digital portfolio as part of your assessment.
So as part of your degree here at Lancaster. You will take part in a company-commissioned dissertation.
Now each year we have a whole range of different companies who come and work with us and give us projects for our students to work on. So you will work together with a group of fellow master's students and an academic supervisor to respond to a real-world client brief. So what this means is we have a real-world company that will have a problem that you have to solve in some way, and it's up to you and your fellow students to work out how you're going to solve that problem.
Now, this will involve you collecting data in some form. So this may be you run interviews, you may run focus groups, you may run surveys, for example. And then you do analysis of that data and you present your findings to the client. So what's so great about this is it's a real-world problem. So this is a real unique selling point of our course here at Lancaster. And will give you the opportunity to see what it's like to actually work in marketing in the real world.
And it's also a great thing to have on your CV as it gives you that extra bit of experience that you might not otherwise be able to get.
