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MSc Strategic Marketing and Consulting

Start date
September
Duration
1 year full-time
Course Type
Postgraduate, Taught
Fees
For 2024-2025
£16,290 (UK)
£31,878 (International)
Attractive scholarships are available

Advance in your career with the industry-led consulting programme to become a future marketing leader. 

We will focus on developing your strategic marketing and consulting knowledge; professional skills and your understanding of the latest advances in strategic marketing, thinking and research.

In a complex and evolving marketing world, marketing professionals with the ability to think strategically, creatively and responsibly are in high demand by organisations across the globe. This course will help to prepare you as a marketing industry professional; customer success specialist and thought leader of the future.

Innovative, industry-led teaching

Professional seminars, real-world projects and industry involvement in module delivery will enable the MSc Strategic Marketing and Consulting course to help you prepare for specialist careers in strategic marketing and/or consultancy. Our modules will directly develop much sought after skills through problem-based learning in a strategic marketing context. The modules will cover subjects such as analytical marketing insights; digital and innovative marketing. Small group teaching will focus on building critical analysis, decision-making and reflective skills through intensive theoretical and industry-based seminars.

We will equip you with the critical and analytical skills required for a new digital (industry) environment. We will focus on how artificial intelligence (AI) and digitalisation is shaping marketing practice for the new digital and social media age. You will not only learn how to generate data, but how to turn this data into marketing and business strategy for future decision-makers and industry specialists.

Why study at Birmingham?

Students attending lecture at UoB
  • The University of Birmingham is one of the only research-led institutions to offer a specialist programme in Strategic Marketing and Consultancy. The course focuses on developing strategic decision-making and consultancy skills, unique to the postgraduate marketplace.
  • You will benefit from the Birmingham Business School Future Ready Graduate Framework, developed to prepare you for the future of work and enhance your experience and graduate attributes.
  • Birmingham Business School is part of an elite group of global business schools and holds the Triple-Crown accreditation from leading bodies AMBA, EQUIS and AACSB. The School is also a signatory of the Principles for Responsible Management Education (PRME).
  • You can develop your understanding of business in a practical way, by working on real-time projects with top global companies through our Future Leaders Certificate. 
  • This course is accredited by the Chartered Institute of Marketing. You will be able to gain industry-recognised qualifications at an accelerated pace, including the CIM Certificate in Professional Marketing or the CIM Certificate in Professional Digital Marketing.

Discover our unique scholarship offers

Students walking on University campusAt Birmingham Business School we offer a wide variety of scholarships for our new MSc students in 2024.

These awards are available to both UK and international applicants and range in value from partial to full tuition fee support.

Find out more about our scholarship offers

Triple Crown accreditation and CIM accreditation logos

Marketing strategy, planning and management are at the very core of Birmingham Business School's new MSc Strategic Marketing and Consulting programme. Developing these skills is absolutely essential, particularly since businesses and brands need their marketing to be effective and accountable.

Anthony Tattum, Founder and CEO of Big Cat Agency

Modules

Unless indicated otherwise the modules listed for this programme are for students starting in 2024.

In addition to your Individual Project (worth 60 credits), the following modules must be taken which are worth 20 credits each:


Please note: The modules listed on the website for this programme are regularly reviewed to ensure they are up-to-date and informed by the latest research and teaching methods. On rare occasions, we may need to make unexpected changes to compulsory modules; in this event we will contact offer holders as soon as possible to inform or consult them as appropriate.

Fees

Fees for 2024 - 2025

  • £16,290 (UK)
  • £31,410 (International)

Please note that you will be required to pay a £50 non-refundable application fee for all of the above courses.

  • For further information on programme fees and information please visit our Fees and Financing page.

Scholarships

  • For information on scholarships you may be eligible to apply for, please use our PG Funding Database.
  • Business School Scholarships may be available, find out more about our scholarships.

Additional Course Costs

  • In addition to the Tuition Fees you will need to consider accommodation, living expenses and daily costs. You can find financial advice and support on our Finance pages.
  • For information on our accommodation and services, including the support we offer to students wanting to rent privately, please visit the Accommodation pages.
  • Questions about funding? Use our Student Help knowledge base to find the answer.

How To Apply

7 May 2024 is the application deadline for international students applying through the student route who wish to study in the United Kingdom. We are not able to consider applications for 2024 made after this date. The deadline for Home students is 30 August 2024.

How to apply

To apply for a postgraduate taught programme, you will need to submit your application and supporting documents online. We have put together some helpful information on the taught programme application process and supporting documents on our how to apply page. Please read this information carefully before completing your application.

Apply now

Our Standard Requirements

In order to be considered, applicants will have or should be expecting to achieve an Honours degree (2:1 or higher) or postgraduate diploma from a UK university (or overseas equivalent) in Marketing or a related discipline or a degree with at least two marketing modules (2:1 or equivalent).

If the Honours degree is not in Marketing or the required modules above have not been obtained, a minimum of at least two years full-time relevant work experience may also be considered.

Applicants who demonstrate being able to exceed the minimum entry requirements will be given preference.

Find out more about entry requirements

International Requirements



International Students

English language scores of 7.0 IELTS (no less than 6.5 in any band).


  • IELTS 7.0 with no less that 6.5 in any band
  • TOEFL: 95 overall with no less than 22 in any band
  • Pearson Test of English (PTE) including online: PTE Academic 76 with no less than 67 in all four skills
  • Cambridge English (exams taken from 2015): Advanced or Proficiency – minimum overall score of 185, with no less than 176 in any component 

If you are currently studying at a Chinese university, please view our specific entry requirements including our list of acceptable universities for further study at Birmingham.

Preparing the customer success specialists of the future

We are dedicated to helping you develop real-world professional skills and an understanding of the latest advances in strategic marketing, thinking and research. You will benefit from the expertise and experience of research staff in our Department of Marketing.

Get to know our talented researchers

The MSc Strategic Marketing and Consulting course is for marketing industry professionals and/or graduates with some experience in marketing or business. The focus of this programme is to ensure that you develop professional skills required from leading industry players, e.g. IBM, Google, IKEA, JLR. You will undertake data driven assignments, culminating in a high-level consultancy project worth 60 credits. We will focus on applied student learning for the modern workplace.

You will not only learn how to generate data, but how to turn this data into marketing and business strategy for future decision-makers and industry specialists. Modules to highlight include Digital and Innovative Marketing, Consulting Skills and Practice, Analytical Marketing Insights and Contemporary Global Marketing and Responsibility Issues.

A high-class learning environment

Students outside the Alan Walters BuildingAs a postgraduate student, you will have access to our award-winning £10 million postgraduate teaching space, the Alan Walters Building. This will provide you with access to facilities of the highest quality, including a state-of-the-art lecture theatre, dedicated computer clusters and seminar rooms as well as communal areas for studying and group work, which look out over the University's ambitious Green Heart development, which was completed in 2019.

You will work with leading Business School academics and industry practitioners to develop much needed employability skills such as creativity and innovation, leadership, communication, digital competency and responsible business.

The course is designed to enhance career paths in a variety of areas, including senior marketing or consulting roles and future CMOs. These roles could be in the public, private or charity sectors where there is high demand for graduates who can conduct research, analyse information, then formulate and evaluate programmes of activity.

Top jobs in this area 

  • Purpose Planner
  • Loyalty Engineer
  • Interbrand Marketer
  • Mood and Empathy Manager
  • Marketing strategy consultant
  • Marketing executive
  • Strategy analyst

BBS Careers and Careers Network

As a Birmingham Business School student, you will benefit from two award-winning Careers teams.  

Careers Network is the University of Birmingham careers and employability team offering: career fairs, employer events with top firms across the UK, start-up and entrepreneurial activities, and support. Internships and bursaries are also available exclusively to University of Birmingham students.   

BBS Careers is a dedicated service for Birmingham Business School students. The team provides guidance, support, and work experience opportunities, tailored to business school students, to help you succeed during and after university. We offer workshops, alumni and employer events, and 1-to-1 consultations. These will help you to develop your skills and learn how to submit high-quality internship and graduate applications.  

BBS Careers is one of a few, if not the only business school career service to offer life-long support.  

We are here to support you! Whether you are applying for postgraduate end-of-study internship, a graduate job, or applying for a management role five years after graduation.  

Visit the BBS website for more details