Are you an analytical thinker with a creative flair that you could apply to marketing campaigns?
From social media, website management and digital design, digital marketers are an integral part of 21st Century business. They require not only a head full of marketing ideas but the ability to work with data for the purpose of analysing marketing campaign effectiveness.
Our CIM-accredited MSc Digital Marketing and Analytics course has a strong focus on marketing metrics and a large practical element. It allows you to apply theoretical knowledge and hit the ground running with top-end skills needed for digital campaigns for any business. Also available with an optional Industrial Placement.
Watch our Postgraduate Placements video here.
You’ll learn about the digital consumer, digital and social media and design, data mining, digital marketing research and analytics across web marketing, social media and digital marketing. You will end your Master's with a detailed report with the support of a dedicated expert supervisor.
The programme also allowed me to put my years of experience into learning the fundamental theories and frameworks of digital marketing as well as explore the analytical decision-making process further.
~ Aliaa Elshabrawy, MSc Digital Marketing and Analytics, 2020
A minimum of a second-class UK degree, or an equivalent internationally recognised qualification is accepted for this course. We encourage applicants from a marketing, business or management background, but other subject areas will be considered.
All applicants are considered on an individual basis and those without an honours degree may also be considered on the basis of work experience, professional qualifications and the relevance of the programme to their current professional role.
All applicants are considered on an individual basis and additional qualifications, professional qualifications and relevant experience may also be taken into account when considering applications.
Please see our International Student website for entry requirements by country and other relevant information. Due to visa restrictions, students who require a student visa to study cannot study part-time unless undertaking a distance or blended-learning programme with no on-campus provision.
The University requires all non-native speakers of English to reach a minimum standard of proficiency in written and spoken English before beginning a postgraduate degree. Certain subjects require a higher level.
For detailed information see our English language requirements web pages.
Please note that if you are required to meet an English language condition, we offer a number of pre-sessional courses in English for Academic Purposes through Kent International Pathways.
Duration: 1 year full-time
This programme consists of 10 compulsory modules in Stage 1 with Stage 2 finishing with a piece of digital marketing and analytics research.
The MSc Digital Marketing and Analytics programme is available with an optional industrial placement, which will require you to complete the Industrial Placement Report.
The following modules are indicative of those offered on this programme. This list is based on the current curriculum and may change year to year in response to new curriculum developments and innovation.
Social media and information applications are transforming business. This module introduces students to the practice and strategy development of digital and social media design and branding. The module uses a practical approach; students will learn and apply design skills to support digital marketing activities. Students will also cover principles of branding in an online environment context. Contemporary social media issues and business cases will be introduced and discussed.
Indicative topics to be covered are likely to include:
• Applications of digital media tools and technologies
• The challenges and opportunities of digital social media
• Branding in digital environments
• Interactive online/Internet marketing activity implementation strategy and planning
• Designing strategic online messages, campaign planning for digital media
• Social media campaign management
• eWOM management
• Social media analytics and tools
• Economic, cultural and political factors that influence online social media design and branding
The Internet and web applications have fundamentally changed nearly every aspect of our daily lives. Marketing practitioners have shifted their efforts online. This module aims to help students recognise the role of web analytics within the digital marketing landscape, and practically apply web analytics tools and technologies to monitor performance of web based marketing activities.
Indicative topics to be covered are likely to include:
Introduction to web analytics and web data driven marketing
Web server log analysis
Web metrics and key web performance Indicators
Web monitoring and trends analysis
Dashboard design
Navigation analysis
Online advertising
Future trends of web analytics
Ethics of web analytics
This module examines the key factors that influence the digital consumer, including social networks and virtual communities. It identifies the importance of developing campaign content aimed at specific market segments and how campaigns can be measured. Topics to be covered are likely to include: Introduction to consumer behaviour across cultures; The digital marketplace and its impact on consumers; Online consumer behaviour; e-CRM and managing the customer experience; Generational differences in digital responsiveness; the psychology of Internet behaviour and communication; democracy in the digital age: the rise of digital political marketing.
Social media not only provides practitioner with a means of communicating with their customers, but also a way to better understand their customers. This module helps students to explore multiple social media platforms for data collection and apply analytical methods to convert social media data to digital marketing insights.
Indicative topics to be covered are likely to include:
• Basics of social media and the role and structures of social media conversations
• Collecting and extracting social media data
• Social media data analysis, visualisation, and exploration
• Key metrics used for analysing social media
• Social media case studies
• Methods for identifying trends in social data
• Theories of social networks
This module introduces students to the fast-moving world of digital marketing technologies and their applications. It presents theoretical frameworks and models which are relevant to digital marketing practice. It examines the development of supporting technologies for digital marketing and explores digital channels and their suitability for inclusion for effective integrated online and offline marketing programmes and campaigns.
Indicative topics to be covered are likely to include:
• Introduction to digital and social media marketing
• Online marketplace analysis
• Digital marketing strategy
• The impact of digital media and technology on the marketing mix
• Relationship marketing using digital platforms
• Delivering the online customer experience
• Campaign planning for digital media
• Marketing communications using digital media platforms
• Evaluation and improvement of digital channel performance
• B2C and B2B digital marketing practice
This module covers data mining techniques and their use in marketing decision making. In this module students will gain practical experience and will critically apply software commonly used in contemporary organisations to support marketing strategies based on marketing data.
Topics to be covered are likely to include: Introduction to data mining (e.g., cluster analysis, PCA/factor analysis) for digital marketing; Data pre-processing, visualisation and exploratory analysis used to provide insight into marketing activities; Key marketing tasks: e.g., segmentation, profiling; Data Mining Methods for Classification; Data mining predictive models and their application; Accessing and collecting data from the Web and introduction to text mining; Web-analytics and data mining models in real-world applications.
Marketing has become a digital process, blurring the lines between IT and marketing, and making IT an essential ingredient. Technology is becoming the fundamental essence for supporting digital marketing activities. This module aims to introduce the emerging and on-going IT trends and the applications of these technologies.
Topics to be covered are likely to include: Micro and Edge computing environments; IT applications and customer experience; Decision support systems; Internet of Things (IoT); Blockchain technology; Cyber security; Cloud computing; Social technology; Virtual reality.
In day-to-day life, consumers and companies generate large amounts of data all over the web that could provide valuable and useful business insights. The data collected through digital marketing research and market intelligence processes help companies with data-driven strategic decision making. Digital marketing intelligence refers to the wider market, and the information that can be gleaned from its various sources. Digital marketing research provides a link between the consumer and public, through information that is used to identify and define marketing opportunities and problems, to initiate marketing action, and to improve marketing performance. This module aims to provide students with an understanding of the methods used in digital marketing research and intelligence, and their roles in supporting marketing decisions.
Indicative topics to be covered are likely to include:
a. Digital marketing research process and contemporary digital marketing intelligence
b. Introduction to digital marketing data sources and data collection tools
c. Qualitative digital marketing research methods and its applications
d. Quantitative digital marketing research methods and its applications
e. Introduction to online analytics solutions (e.g., Google analytics)
f. Ethical issues in digital marketing studies
Digital marketing has evolved from a set of tactical actions into a significant element of strategy. This module aims to develop understanding on how organisations can implement digital marketing capabilities into strategic marketing planning. Topics to be covered are likely to include: Introduction to twenty-first century marketing; The changing micro- and macro- online market environment; Segmentation, targeting and positioning strategies in online markets; Forecasting future online market demands and requirements;E-commerce and online trading; Strategic online customer analysis and management; Strategic alliance and networks; Digital marketing plan establishment; Digital marketing project management and implementation; Corporate social responsibility; New product development.
Employers are in search for individuals who possess logical thinking, analytical capability, leadership, communication and the ability to work under pressure. This module develops the necessary research knowledge and skills for students to be able to successfully complete a piece of research in industry or consultancy contexts or academia.
Indicative topics are:
• Choosing the topic of interest and literature review
• Research process and Ethics in in business research
• Choosing your research design
• Preparing the research proposal
• Communicating the Research
This module will focus on both qualitative and quantitative approaches to digital marketing research and allows students to gain knowledge of the various research techniques and research design issues. Subjects covered will typically include:
* Identification of digital marketing management issues and relevant research objectives
* Literature review and theoretical framework development
* Research ethics
* Digital marketing data collection sources
* Qualitative and quantitative methods and data analysis
* Writing and presenting a digital marketing report.
We use a variety of teaching methods, including:
Classroom-based learning is supported by the latest online technologies and learning platforms.
Your progress on this course is assessed through a variety of means, including:
Industrial placements are the perfect way for you to enhance your career prospects and deepen your understanding of a specific area of expertise. You can opt to take an in-company or self-employed industrial placement of up to 12 months (visa dependent), allowing you to gain work experience in the UK or overseas.
The fees for the 2024/25 year have not yet been set. As a guide, the tuition fees for postgraduate study in 2023/24 are shown below.
For details of when and how to pay fees and charges, please see our Student Finance Guide.
For students continuing on this programme fees will increase year on year by no more than RPI + 3% in each academic year of study except where regulated.* If you are uncertain about your fee status please contact information@kent.ac.uk.
The University will assess your fee status as part of the application process. If you are uncertain about your fee status you may wish to seek advice from UKCISA before applying.
Find out more about general additional costs that you may pay when studying at Kent.
Search our scholarships finder for possible funding opportunities. You may find it helpful to look at both:
This programme attracts many applications from Chevening scholars. Chevening is the UK Government’s international awards scheme aimed at developing global leaders, and Kent is a Chevening partner.
For details of the funding available, see our Chevening Scholarships page.
We have a range of subject-specific awards and scholarships for academic, sporting and musical achievement.
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In the Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2021, 80% of our research was deemed ‘world-leading’ or ‘internationally excellent’. The school’s environment was judged to be conducive to supporting the development of research and international excellence.
Kent Business School is a research-led business school. Our research strategy is developed around the core theme of sustainable innovation which cuts across the entire School. This theme can be seen as being divided into two sub-strands of research aimed at answering these main questions:
Kent Business School advances knowledge through constant promotion and support of innovative research. We have an impact on wider society through extensive collaborations with external partners which range from other academic institutions to a variety of local, national and international businesses as well as the NHS. Within this wider context, our main strategic aim has been geared towards establishing ourselves as a leading institution for research in sustainable innovation.
Kent Business School is a global leader in research and develops a wide portfolio of research related activities including workshops, conferences and research seminar series. This has led to a large number of international collaborations and to over 200 co-authored papers with international partners.
Specialising in public-sector critical accounting and accounting history.
Looking into a wide array of financial issues from derivatives pricing to real-estate modelling.
Innovating in wide-ranging topics such as operational research and systems thinking.
Studying issues surrounding consumer behaviours, product development and maintaining value supply chains among others.
People, Management and Organisation
Specialising in improving human resource management, organisational behaviour and leadership.
Strategy and International Business
Helping in the development of innovative business strategies for business all over the world.
Centre for Logistics and Heuristic Optimisation
Helping companies to solve complex strategic, tactical and operational problems.
Centre of Productivity and Workplace Performance
Contribute to the productivity debate and drive improvements at all levels; from the national economic output, to changes in the ways SME’s operate.
Centre for Quantitative Finance
Providing quantitative analysis of issues in the financial markets for businesses and policy makers.
Helping both academics and practitioners tackle the challenges emerging from the rapid development of new digital technologies
Dynamic publishing culture
Staff publish regularly and widely in journals, conference proceedings and books. Among others, they have recently contributed to: Critical Perspectives on Accounting; Quantitative Finance; Human Resource Management Journal; Journal of Product Innovation Management; European Journal of Operational Research; and Psychology & Marketing.
Full details of staff research interests can be found on the School's website.
Graduates find work in both financial institutions and general management in public and private sector management and consultancy both overseas and in the UK in a wide range of companies and organisations, including careers in digital marketing, mobile marketing, SEO account management, web analytics, marketing communications, search and social media in a range of consumer goods, business-to-business, consultancies and not-for-profit organisations.
Companies our graduates have gone on to work with include:
Many of our students also stay local and find job opportunities regionally in small and medium firms or even set up their own businesses as well-equipped entrepreneurs.
You gain much more than an academic qualification when you graduate. We enhance your student experience and accelerate your career prospects to help you achieve your ambition.
From the moment you start with us, our efforts are focused on helping you gain the knowledge, skills and experience you need to thrive in an increasingly competitive workplace. As part of the course, undertake an Industrial Placement or opt for an In-Company Scheme to work on a real business case study. Go on our Business Start-up Journey and transform your idea into a business through ASPIRE. Our qualified careers practitioners provide support for up to three years after graduation.
Additionally, the Postgraduate Employability Edge programme, available to PGT students at Kent Business School takes place from Welcome Week through to the end of the academic year and is designed to enhance your career prospects further.
Accredited by CIM (Charted Institute of Marketing) - the leading body in the UK specialising in marketing, meaning our master's degree is recognised and highly valued by employers all around the world.
Our lively and active postgraduate community is brought about in part by our strong research culture and by the close community between our staff and students. Staff publish regularly and widely in journals, conference proceedings and books and embed their research in their teaching.
Students have regular contact with their course and module conveners with staff on hand to answer any questions and to provide helpful and constructive feedback on submitted work.
You can also get involved with extra-curricular academic and social activities with guest lectures, talks and workshops organised by our academic staff, research centres and the ASPIRE team. You can catch up with our most recent Open for Business Seminar Series.
Our Medway campus is full of history and offers a unique experience to our students. We have recently moved to the Pembroke site, our new Medway home. This move puts Kent Business School at the heart of the Medway Campus, a former Royal Naval base combining historic and new buildings. You can find the Drill Hall Library, the Deep End where Kent Union at Medway are based and the Oasis lounge right on campus.
Off campus, there is lots to do in the historic town of Rochester and nearby Chatham, with cinemas, theatres and good shopping. London is just 40 minutes away by fast train.
Kent Business School has close links with: ifs (Institute of Financial Services); dunnhumby, who partners the Consumer Insight Service in the Centre for Value Chain Research; Hong Kong Baptist University, with whom we offer a joint Master’s programme in Operational Research and Finance Business Statistics; University of Castellanza (Italy); Audencia Nantes Business School (France); Aarhus School of Business and Social Sciences (Denmark); Universiti Teknologi Malaysia; University of Ingolstadt, Bayern (Germany); City University of Hong Kong; Renmin University of China, School of Business.
All students registered for a taught Master's programme are eligible to apply for a place on our Global Skills Award Programme. The programme is designed to broaden your understanding of global issues and current affairs as well as to develop personal skills which will enhance your employability.
Learn more about the application process or begin your application by clicking on a link below.
You will be able to choose your preferred year of entry once you have started your application. You can also save and return to your application at any time.
Telephone: +44 (0)1227 827726
Fax: +44 (0)1227 761187
Email: kbsadmissions@kent.ac.uk
T: +44 (0)1227 823254
E: internationalstudent@kent.ac.uk
