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BA (Hons) Advertising Management and Brand Management
Introduction
The BA (Hons) Advertising Management and Brand Management degree is ideal if you are interested in developing knowledge and expertise to pursue a career in advertising and marketing communications. This programme can be studied as a three year full-time course or a four year sandwich course, including a one year work placement in your third year. The programme offers a number of options if you wish to specialise in areas such as international marketing.
This programme has been developed in close cooperation with practitioners from the communications industry who are also actively involved in the delivery of the programme as expert guest lecturers, providing valuable resources and advice to students on career opportunities. The programme itself is taught by a highly skilled team who have considerable academic and professional experience in communications and marketing and who have published widely in these fields.
Special Features
- One of the first specialist advertising and brand management programmes in the country.
- This programme has been approved and accredited by The Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM) and counts towards 50% of the CIM Professional Diploma in Marketing. For more information visit www.cim.co.uk/learningzone/dualaward
- This programme has links to industry professional bodies such as the Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM) and Institute of Public Relations (CIPR).
- The Marketing and Retail programmes received excellent National Student Survey results for the last academic year. Students rated this programme as one of the best in the country for teaching quality, learning resources, personal development and overall quality of the courses.
Programme Content and Structure
You can study this as a three year full-time programme or as a four year sandwich programme. The programme is intended to expand your knowledge and understanding of advertising and brand management disciplines, with the opportunity to gain exemptions from Chartered Institute of Marketing professional qualifications (subject to validation).
The following diagram shows the programme's structure, detailing which course units you will take in each year:
| Year 1
|
Professionalism, Achievement and Employability |
Information Discovery and Data Analysis |
Consumer Psychology and Behaviour |
Principles of Marketing |
Marketing Communications Theory and Practice |
Ideas, Creativity and Entrepreneurship or Language or Work Based Learning |
CORE |
CORE |
CORE |
CORE |
CORE |
ELECTIVE |
|
| Year 2
|
Business Research and Professional Skills |
Advertising |
Brand Management |
Creative Brand Strategy |
Direct and Interactive Relationship Marketing |
Business and Sustainability or Ideas, Creativity and Entrepreneurship or Language or Work Based Learning |
CORE |
CORE |
CORE |
CORE |
CORE |
ELECTIVE |
|
Year 3 |
Placement (for sandwich version only) |
|||||
| Final Year
|
Research Project |
Strategic Marketing Management |
Strategic Communications and Advertising Planning |
Corporate Reputation Management |
||
CORE |
CORE |
CORE |
CORE |
ELECTIVE |
||
In your first year you will study the principles of marketing, gaining an understanding of the broad themes of marketing orientation, practice, models and processes. You will look at communication theory and its impact on marketing, advertising, brand and PR management and mass media communication. You will study consumer psychology and behaviour, learning to analyse consumers’ needs and expectations and developing appropriate responses. You will develop the skills that will enable you to progress to an independent, lifelong learner whilst developing your employability and professional attitude to work and university. You will learn how to retrieve, analyse and interpret business and management information and present this effectively. Finally, you will complete a work-based learning, foreign language or ideas, creativity and entrepreneurship option.
In your second year you will explore the role of direct and relationship marketing as a strategic route to market using traditional and web-based channels. You will be introduced to the key concepts of advertising theory and practice and study the changing nature of brands. Through practical engagement, you will examine the theories and techniques in the creative process surrounding the design and production of brand and corporate identity conception and implementation. You will develop awareness and skills in evaluating, planning and designing business research utilising project management tools and techniques. You will also have the opportunity to study a work-based learning; ideas, creativity and entrepreneurship; foreign language or business sustainability option.
Students choosing the four year sandwich programme spend a minimum of 36 weeks on a work placement during their third year of study. It is often longer than this with the agreement of the student and their employer and can last up to one year. Our dedicated placement office will assist in arranging your placement, helping you with job applications and interview practice. During your placement you will be visited by a Placement Tutor to check on your progress and help you plan your assessment and your return to study in the final year.
In your final year, you will explore the role of communications within a business marketing strategy and take a critical approach to the integration of advertising planning. You will gain the skills and knowledge to develop effective marketing strategies and to reflect on how the global business environment is impacting on the role of the marketer. You will consider the strategic role and structures of corporate reputation management, looking at PR, corporate image and identity and corporate social responsibility. You will undertake a significant piece of research or consultancy work. This will provide a depth of knowledge in a subject area relevant to the degree title and enhanced providing you with improved skills in research. You will also be able to choose an option giving you the opportunity to specialise e.g. Sports Branding and Sponsorship, Marketing Law or a Business School wide option.
Assessment
The programme is assessed by a balance of assignments and examinations. From the second year onwards, these marks may go towards determining the final classification of your degree from Manchester Metropolitan University.
There will be a mixture of individual and group work throughout the two years of study. Types of assessment will include report writing, essay writing, presentations, business, games/case studies, poster presentations, portfolio work and reflective activities. The work placement year (only for students completing the four year sandwich programme) is not formally assessed, but must be completed satisfactorily.
Students’ Experiences
“The course has opened my eyes to how the industry works and has inspired me to look at different avenues, especially online marketing. There are brands all around us, and this course allows the individual to relate to the subject, that’s what is so interesting about it. You will never be able to look at adverts or brands in the same light again. The course is both creative and analytical, and employers are increasingly looking for graduates who are both.
The course opened doors for me – I have even pitched ideas to the CEO of L’Oreal. Representing the UK at the L’Oreal Brandstorm International Finals in Paris, my team and I entered a competition to develop a new product and were the winners of the UK Finals. During the summer I have done paid work experience in L’Oreal’s London office working on New Media projects for the Maybelline New York and Garnier brand. Now I am nearing the end of the course, I have been invited for interviews by LEGO, ExxonMobil, Publicis and Estee Lauder and I feel confident and optimistic about my future prospects.”
Michael Boyle, final year BA (Hons) Advertising Management and Brand Management student
Career Development Opportunities
This programme prepares you for a career as an account executive within an advertising or communications agency. You will be prepared to work with creatives, media buyers and clients in developing communications campaigns.
Our first cohort of BA (Hons) Advertising Management and Brand Management graduates graduated last summer. However, as an indication, graduates from the BA (Hons) Retail Marketing degree have gone on to forge very successful careers. A few examples of the types of first jobs graduates have gone onto and the companies employing them are:
| Sainsbury’s | Marketing Graduate Trainee |
| Marks and Spencer | Business Analyst |
| O2 | Marketing Assistant |
| HSBC | Equity Analyst |
| Asda | Graduate Trainee |
| Toni and Guy | Opticians Co-Creator |
Enquiries
Make a Course Enquiry using our online form or Telephone: 0161 247 6969