What Can I Do with a Master's in Marketing?
As millions of people across the nation are resigning from their jobs, aspiring professionals are finding the most promising career opportunities in recent history. Advanced education equips you with high-demand skills, knowledge, and credentials for success in a booming job market—alongside a highly competitive one—and positions you for the inevitable ups and downs. A master’s in marketing prepares you for some of today’s most sought-after marketing careers.
According to a new Forbes assessment, the favorable trend in today’s professional marketplace applies to a broad range of roles—from entry-level positions up to executive positions. No one can predict how long the trend will last or what will come next. As a LinkedIn blog advises, the field of marketing is “quick to evolve and even quicker to leave those behind who don’t evolve with it.”
How Will a Master’s Degree in Marketing Equip Me for Success?
Positioning yourself as a marketing leader requires comprehensive real-time knowledge and experience. The Master of Arts in a Marketing degree program at Emerson College (Emerson) develops a forward-thinking perspective and insights-driven expertise for the evolving job market. Earning an online master’s in marketing allows professionals the flexibility to complete a degree while continuing to work full-time.
Forward-Thinking Content Gives You Leading Insights
Making powerful impressions in today’s market requires the art of effective communication and the science of analytics.
Emerson College combines intellectual exploration with professional preparation to help ambitious, independent-minded communicators become a creative force in marketing to shape our society, culture, and future. Emerson’s master’s degree in marketing is designed around core themes that cover the breadth of modern marketing know-how.
Brand Storytelling
Learn to conceptualize and craft compelling messages that engage audiences and facilitate positive brand interactions. Coursework includes practical experience in collecting data, setting goals, evaluating techniques, and producing stories relevant to different platforms, audiences, and brand strategies. Students will explore differences in digital strategies compared to traditional marketing.
Digital Campaign Creation
Understand digital best practices and leverage them to develop customer-centric marketing campaigns. Opportunities to create, test, and measure integrated initiatives lead students to develop a framework for team roles. Content includes mobile marketing, targeted delivery, and tactics for social networks.
Web and Social Analytics
Employ analytics concepts and tools to effectively target and measure performance across digital channels. A hands-on approach to learning utilizes Google Analytics to study customer behavior and other current platforms such as Brandwatch to capture, analyze, and convert social media data for actionable information.
Consumer Behavior and Insights
Understand and anticipate the motivations of your audience to facilitate positive brand interactions. Course content guides students to examine consumer goals and fears to find psychological, emotional, logical, and sociological explanations of behavior. Students explore both online and offline processes and trends and the dynamics of social media in modern marketing.
You’ll Develop Top Marketing Skills
Contemporary marketing leaders excel in creativity and communication savvy but also in specialized skills that fuel today’s marketplace. Emerson’s online master’s in marketing program equips students for both.
These are just some of the high-demand skills emphasized in the program’s core courses and specialization tracks:
- Social media
- Project management
- Online marketing
- Market analysis
- Business strategy
- Brand management
- Web analytics
- Data analysis
The Emerson online master’s in marketing program prepares marketing leaders with the extensive knowledge and experience vital for navigating the contemporary marketing world. Compared to a master’s degree in marketing analytics or other marketing concentrations, a master’s degree in marketing explores analytics from a leadership perspective for a broad range of marketing careers. A deep understanding of analytics is integral to program content, guiding students to relate data to business strategy. Coursework includes skill development in market analysis, customer relationship management, web analytics, and data analysis.
Courses in the program are developed by industry professionals and aligned with the tools, technologies, and trends that are driving innovation in marketing. Students build a professional portfolio while attaining these digital marketing certifications:
- Google Analytics
- Hubspot
- Hootsuite
- Brandwatch
Additionally, our hands-on curriculum develops proficiency in analytics tools such as:
- SAS Studio
- SAS Enterprise Miner
- Microsoft Excel
- Digital Marketing Simulation Platform by Stukent
The Option to Specialize in Your Degree Furthers Your Goals
While Emerson’s Master of Arts in Marketing gives students broad preparation for marketing careers, the program also includes the opportunity to specialize in some of today’s highest-demand areas. Following a particular specialization, track equips graduates with the expertise for highly technical roles and management positions. Specialization options are:
- Social Media and Digital Public Relations—Use modern tools and technologies to amplify PR and social media engagement efforts.
- Marketing Analytics—Employ descriptive, predictive, and web analytics for a range of strategic applications.
- Content Strategy—Develop and deploy effective, strategically crafted content that resonates and empathizes with diverse audiences.
What Is the Outlook for Marketing Careers?
Modern marketing jobs are on the rise as businesses continually innovate, requiring fast-paced expertise for product development, distribution and pricing strategies, and smart promotion. A recent article published by the American Marketing Association identifies how “some of the most coveted skills” for today’s businesses are in the field of marketing.
Here’s a review of some of the leading opportunities for marketing careers.
Advertising, Marketing, or Promotions Manager
Advertising, marketing, and promotions managers are strategists who lead a company’s initiatives in developing, distributing, and promoting products and services. According to U.S. News & World Report, the role of the marketing manager ranks number one in “Best Sales and Marketing Jobs.”
Responsibilities of the Role
Advertising, marketing, or promotions manager directs people and processes to accomplish a company’s goals. Job responsibilities may include:
- Developing marketing plans
- Implementing pricing and promotion strategies
- Budgeting and arranging contracts
- Planning advertising campaigns
- Directing market research and analysis
Jobs Outlook
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) projects a 10% increase in jobs for advertising, marketing, and promotions managers from 2020 to 2030. Current data shows the median annual salary in this role is $142,170. Top-paying jobs are often found in professional, scientific, and technical services and in finance and insurance.
Public Relations or Fundraising Manager
Directly representing an organization with public audiences and key constituents, public relations and fundraising managers work to promote a positive image for the organization. This high-stakes role includes communication with consumers, donors, media representatives, and other influential contacts.
Responsibilities of the Role
Public relations managers are primarily concerned with the overarching public image of an organization and its brand. Responsibilities may include:
- Leading initiatives in corporate branding
- Developing communication strategies
- Acting as a liaison between the public and executive leaders
- Writing and sending press releases
- Engaging with the media
Fundraising managers are charged to raise money from donors for nonprofit organizations. Responsibilities may include:
- Planning and leading campaigns
- Developing relationships with current and potential donors
- Organizing fundraising events
- Directing the process of grant writing
Jobs Outlook
According to BLS data, the number of jobs for public relations and fundraising managers is expected to grow by 13% from 2020 to 2030. The median annual salary in this role is $118,430. Public relations and fundraising managers work in various industries and nonprofit sectors, including large corporations, small businesses, and religious, community, and professional organizations.
Market Research Analyst
The role of the market research analyst is one of today’s fastest-growing job fields. This high-tech role is key to delivering critical information for identifying customers and developing the effective product, pricing, and promotion plans.
Responsibilities of the Role
A market research analyst monitors and evaluates current markets, including consumer characteristics, interests, and purchasing behavior. Responsibilities may include:
- Developing tools for data collection
- Implementing market research strategies
- Projecting sales and market trends
- Using analytics programs to interpret data
- Presenting data analysis in actionable formats
Jobs Outlook
To meet the growing demands in this field, the number of jobs for market research analysts is projected to increase by 22 percent from 2020 to 2030. According to the BLS, this is “much faster” than the average for all occupations. The median salary for market research analysts is $65,810, with the top 10% earning more than $127,400. Leading roles and specialized positions in market research are often held by professionals with a master’s degree.
How Does a Master’s in Marketing Benefit My Career?
A bachelor’s degree is the minimum educational requirement for most marketing jobs. Years of experience and building a network of connections often contribute to career advancement. Earning a master’s degree in marketing boosts your possibilities as you develop specialized skills, deepen your knowledge, and extend your professional network.
Advancement Opportunities
While an undergraduate degree is the standard entry-level education for most marketing careers, continued education propels you forward. A master’s in marketing sets you apart with a distinguished credential, giving you an edge for the most sought-after jobs. A master’s degree puts professionals on a pathway from lower and mid-level roles to higher-level management and executive positions.
Further, developing as a leader will position you for influence in the marketplace. Not only will you develop business acumen, but you’ll hone leadership skills. With new opportunities for leading roles in the marketplace, you’ll be ready to fulfill your aspirations for impact.
Earning Potential
Advancing within your field typically also means increased salary potential. For example, moving from marketing specialist to marketing manager to marketing director often comes with commensurate steps up in earnings. According to Burning Glass Labor Insight, marketing professionals with master’s degrees earn an average of 17% higher salaries.
Personal Fulfillment
Many job seekers today are motivated by opportunities for higher-level positions and pay and by a compelling sense of purpose.
In a recent webinar by the American Marketing Association, industry leaders explained how today’s major employment shifts are largely driven by a search for more meaning at work. One of the webinar’s speakers, Karen Mangia, VP of Customer and Market Insights at Salesforce, described a prevailing new view of success. “Employees are signaling employers that they want more of what matters,” she said.
Higher education is an opportunity to discover new possibilities and optimize your potential. Through innovative coursework, you’ll explore new ideas and see marketing opportunities from a new perspective. Whatever your visionary ideas, you’ll be equipped as an agent for progress.
Why Choose Emerson for a Master’s Degree in Marketing?
Like the most successful modern marketers, the Emerson community is bold, expressive, and highly engaged. Our creativity, inclusivity, hands-on attitude, and unparalleled connections make us special. Emerson students and graduates are driven by passion, taking on real-world challenges with intensity and hands-on action in today’s leading marketing careers.
The Master of Arts in Marketing at Emerson is designed for aspiring marketing professionals eager to be part of today’s innovative, visionary creative force. The program is:
- Strategically designed and flexible
- Built around high-demand skills and specializations
- Set in a progressive, connected community
Are you ready to see if the program is a fit for you? Schedule an appointment with an admissions counselor today.