This describes the two basic options for a Masters student with an interest in Marketing:

• The MA in Business with a Specialization in Marketing; and
• The MA in Business with a Specialization in Marketing, Advertising, and Mass Communications.

These are very different programs with different goals, requirements, and likely career paths.

Master of Arts (MA) in Business (Marketing Concentration)

The Master of Arts (M.A.) in Business (Marketing Concentration) has three options. Two of them are for people who intend to pursue a Ph.D., and the other is for people who intend to pursue a business career in marketing.

Option I

Option I is for those who intend to go forward to a Ph.D. It requires completion of 20-24 semester hours of graduate course credit (normally, 7-8 courses), and a thesis equivalent to 6 to 10 semester hours of credit, for a total of at least 30 hours. At least 15 of the total hours must be in Business, primarily Marketing. Students may take an entirely Marketing curriculum, or may take courses outside the department. A minor area outside Business of at least 9 hours is possible. At least 8 semester hours out of the 30 must be in more advanced graduate courses not open to undergraduates. The thesis should demonstrate the student's ability to carry out independent research, and is done under the advice and supervision of a committee of Marketing faculty and other faculty who help the student develop his or her research skills.

Option II

Option II is used for people who wish to go on to a business career in Marketing, and consists of 36 hours of graduate course work (normally 12 courses), with no thesis. The student must complete at least 18 hours in Business, (primarily Marketing), and at least one minor area outside of Business, consisting of at least 9 hours. If the student elects to have two minor areas, then the total hours in Business must be at least 15 hours, with at least 9 hours in each minor.

Option III

Option III, like Option I, is for those who wish to pursue an academic career. It consists of 36 semester hours of course work, at least 18 of which must be in Business (primarily Marketing). Instead of the thesis required in Option I, the student substitutes a greater fraction of the more advanced graduate-level courses; at least 18 of the 36 hours must be in courses open exclusively to graduate students.

All students entering the M.A. program must have previously completed the "Common Body of Knowledge (CBK)" requirements, which students with an undergraduate business degree usually have done. The CBK requirements are 3-5 hours of calculus, 3 hours of finance, 3 hours of marketing, 3 hours of human resources management, and 3 hours of operations management. Minor deficiencies can be made up by taking courses in our undergraduate program while taking graduate hours in the M.A. program.

As one can see from this discussion, the M.A. program is a flexible way to concentrate in the Marketing discipline for either academic or business career goals. It should be clear, though, that an M.A. is not normally thought of by employers or graduate schools as a general business degree. It is designed for people who wish to specialize in a business area such as the Marketing discipline for the bulk of their business or academic careers. Students who take the M.A. concentrating in Marketing normally have worked for several years in commercial marketing (advertising, direct marketing, marketing research, etc.), and have a strong feeling, based in real-world experience, that Marketing is their chosen career.

For further information on the about this program, contact:

Professor James Gentry

University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Department of Marketing
CBA 322
P.O. Box 880492
Lincoln, NE 68588-0492
Office: 1 (402) 472-3278
Dept. Office: 1 (402) 472-2316
Fax: 1 (402) 472-9777

Master of Arts in Business with a Specialization in Marketing, Advertising, and Mass Communications

The Master of Arts in Business with a Specialization in Marketing, Advertising, and Mass Communications is an inter-disciplinary program in cooperation with the College of Journalism and Mass Communications and the Communication Studies department of the College of Arts and Sciences. This program is intended to produce practical specialists who will most likely work in advertising, promotion, integrated marketing, or some other field of applied Marketing communications. Career opportunities exist in advertising agencies and marketing communications firms, direct marketers, and large and small businesses and organizations of all types which manage relationships with customers and the public.

Thirty-six semester hours of coursework are required. Graduate-level classes in marketing Research and Strategic Issues in Marketing Communication are required, as well as four more graduate-level Marketing classes. Three graduate-level Communications courses are required: Organization and Culture, Organization Communication, and an elective. From the College of Journalism and Mass Communications, graduate courses in Advertising/Public Relations Audience Analysis and Advertising Management are required, along with one elective.

The Common Body of Knowledge prerequisites for the MA in Business are waived for this program, although there are prerequisites for required courses in the program. A student should have statistics, communications studies, research methods in communications, advertising copy and strategy, and advertising media strategy in order to take the required courses, or permission of the instructor. Elective courses may have prerequisites as well.

As with the MA in Business with a Marketing Specialization, this degree should be recognized by employers as a specialist degree rather than a general business degree, and should be considered seriously by students who wish to specialize in the area of marketing communications for a large part of their careers.

For further information on the about this program, contact:

Dr. Sanford Grossbart

University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Department of Marketing
CBA 332
P.O. Box 880492
Lincoln, NE 68588-0492, USA
Phone: (402) 472-2359
Fax: 1 (402) 472-9777

Comparing the Degree Programs

Program	MBA Marketing Concentration	MA, Business Marketing Spec.	MA Business Mktg., Adv., Mass Comm.
Likely Career Path	Begin in a marketing area and move to general management	Specialize in a chosen marketing area, move into general or marketing management	Specialize in advertising or marketing communication, move into advertising or communications management
Required Semester Hours	48	30-36	36
Hours of Required Courses	30	0	18
Hours of Electives required from certain areas	9	21-27	18
Hours of Unconstrained Electives	9	9-15	0
Prerequisites	statistics and calculus	Common Body of Knowledge	statistics and certain advertising and communication courses
Knowledge of General Business	excellent	good	limited
Knowledge of Marketing Specialty	adequate	excellent	excellent

Marketing Courses:

We offer a number of Marketing courses at the Masters level:

• Marketing Management which is required in the M.B.A. program but also available in the M.A. program, and emphasizes the development of marketing plans and controlling the marketing mix for the firm.
• Applied Marketing Research covers the use of exploratory research, surveys, and experiments in marketing management decisions.
• Survey of Buyer Behavior which examines the economic, psychological and sociocultural bases of buying behavior as the basis for marketing strategy and public policy.
• Franchising Management deals with the important aspects of starting a franchise business, from evaluation of franchise opportunities and legal issues to launching a franchise business.
• Advanced Quantitative Analysis in Marketing covers state-of-the-art methodological issues in multivariate analysis of marketing research data.
• Sports Marketing covers concepts and theories unique to sports marketing, review of the basic principles of marketing in the context of sports.
• Strategic Issues in Marketing Communication covers the analysis and application of current concepts in the formulation and evaluation of promotional strategy in both for-profit and not-for-profit organizations.
• Marketing Channels and Distribution emphasizes the marketing management issues relating to the selection of intermediaries, channel control, marketing institutions, channel power, and pricing.
• Marketing and Electronic Commerce covers strategies to deal with opportunities and challenges of evolving technology and marketing in digital networks of customers, suppliers, and employees.
• Strategic Database Marketing covers concepts of customer relationship management, integration with electronic commerce systems, analytical techniques, ethics and practices of customer data privacy.
• Marketing and Globalization puts emphasis on access to new consumers, new supplies, and the effect on consumer choices. Marketing strategies developed for Nebraska firms and organizations such as value-added food marketers.

Beyond the marketing courses they choose to take, Masters students are encouraged to take courses in other departments which fit their needs and goals. For example, a student interested in database marketing might take Database Organization from the Management Department, and an applied statistics course or two from the Sociology or Educational Psychology departments. A student interested in advertising might take a course or two in Mass Media from the Journalism and Mass Communications Department. A student interested in Marketing Research might take courses in statistics or research methodology from any one of several social science departments. Each student's program is tailored to him or her as an individual. We take a strong personal interest in each student, and do not put anyone in a preconceived mold.

Admission Requirements:

Click here to find out more about the application process about a Masters Programs in Marketing.