The Best Online Master’s in Marketing
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Graduates with an online master's in marketing can pursue senior positions in a variety of industries, such as advertising, sales, and public relations.
An online master's degree in marketing program often features diverse concentrations that allow students to tailor the degree to their goals and interests.
Whether students pursue a traditional program or earn a master's in marketing online, graduates with a master's in marketing enjoy many career opportunities. Employers increasingly prefer graduates with a master's in marketing over candidates with a bachelor's degree, particularly for leadership roles.
What Is an Online Master's in Marketing?
Generally, master's in marketing programs online include courses on consumer behavior, market research, and communications. Additionally, most programs emphasize a career-oriented course of study that builds skills in business, advertising, and promotions. Common courses include:
- Marketing metrics
- Social awareness and ethics
- Foundations of marketing
- Digital strategies
- Marketing communication
- Business leadership
- Entrepreneurship
Master's in marketing programs typically offer a variety of concentrations that allow students to tailor the degree to their career goals. Common concentrations include:
- Social media marketing
- Digital advertising
- Marketing management
- Integrated marketing communications
- Marketing analytics
- Content marketing
- Product marketing and branding
- MBA with a concentration in marketing
Most master's in marketing programs online require 30-34 credits and take two years of full-time study to complete, though some programs offer accelerated schedules. Many traditional and online master's in marketing programs require an internship, which online students can typically complete at a site near their home. Additionally, most programs require a capstone or final project that synthesizes degree knowledge and skills.
Featured Online Master's in Marketing Programs
The Best Online Master's in Marketing 2021
Since opening in 1972, Florida International University's annual enrollment has grown to about 40,000 students. Located in Miami, FIU prepares its student to be leaders in the global market.
FIU's master of science in marketing online focuses on marketing dynamics by offering three concentrations: marketing analytics, brand development, and digital marketing. This master's degree curriculum gives insight into influential marketing dynamics in courses such as integrated marketing communications, marketing management in a global environment, and marketing analytics.
Applying for this 30-credit master's degree program requires a bachelor's degree with a minimum 3.0 GPA and a 500 GMAT or three years of work experience.
Founded in 1971 as a private evangelical Christian university, Liberty University operates from its Lynchburg, Virginia, campus. Around 46% of Liberty's nearly 108,000 student body attends online.
The five specializations of Liberty's master's in marketing online are sports marketing and media, social media management, digital marketing and advertising, and public relations. Featured courses in this 36-hour master's degree program curriculum include brand management, strategic marketing management, and a marketing strategy capstone.
Applicants must have a regionally or nationally accredited bachelor's degree with a GPA of at least 3.0.
Southern New Hampshire's campus sits in Manchester, New Hampshire. Since 1932, this private, nonprofit school has grown from a small college to a university of approximately 138,000 students, 98% online.
SNHU's master of science in marketing online offers four concentrations: marketing research and analysis, new media and communications, digital marketing, and social media marketing. Along with a marketing capstone, the 36-credit master's in marketing program offers courses such as international marketing strategy, strategic digital marketing, and integrated marketing communications.
SNHU does not require GMAT or GRE scores. Applicants must supply official undergraduate transcripts and fill out a graduate application.
Located in Mequon, Wisconsin, Concordia University-Wisconsin has been a prominent private Lutheran University since 1881. It has a 12-to-1 student-faculty ratio with a yearly enrollment of 8,004 students.
CUW's online master of business administration in marketing online focuses on honing marketing competitiveness through better planning, implementation, and management of marketing activities. The 36-hour curriculum provides strategy-oriented courses such as social marketing strategies, legal aspects, and strategic marketing.
The application process doesn't require a GMAT or GRE score. Instead, applicants must present a resume, two letters of recommendation, official transcripts, an essay, and verification of a bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university.
Walsh University's 136-acre campus sits in North Canton, Ohio. Founded in 1960, this private Catholic university enrolls about 2,650 students.
The master of business administration in marketing online from Walsh emphasizes the abilities necessary to lead marketing campaigns. The 36-credit curriculum reinforces this with courses such as sustainable ethical leadership, a leadership experience practicum, and strategic management.
Walsh does not require a GMAT or GRE score from master's degree applicants. Instead, they must present a current resume, official transcripts, and proof of a bachelor's degree from an accredited university.
From its Barbourville, Kentucky, campus, Union College has been educating students since 1879. This private United Methodist school has an enrollment of over 1,000 students.
Union's online master of science in digital marketing and communications helps students gain a competitive advantage in the emerging marketing and communications fields. To further this cause, Union features a curriculum with courses such as internet consumer behavior, e-commerce, and strategic decisions.
This 30-credit master's degree online program requires applicants to show proof of a bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited academic institution.
Since 1877, Regis University has been a private Jesuit University in Denver, Colorado. Among its five different colleges, this university has around 6,900 students with a student-to-faculty ratio of 12-to-1.
Instead of concentrating on just selling products, Regis's online master of science in marketing emphasizes the development skills for discovering real market segments and communicating ideas. The 30-credit curriculum supports this theme with courses such as marketing mix decisions, market opportunity assessment, and customer relations development and management. Also, it features a capstone in product management.
Applicants must apply with a resume, essay, and an official transcript form from a regionally accredited institution or equivalent.
Regent University has a 70-acre campus in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Since 1978, this private Christian university has grown to an annual enrollment of over 10,500 students.
Regent's master of business administration marketing online program emphasizes Christian leadership in maximizing communication, ethical standards, and strategic marketing tactics. This master's degree online program offers dynamic marketing courses such as managerial economics, viral marketing, and consumer behavior-the psychology of marketing.
Regent requires applicants to hold a bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited academic institution. The school's selection process depends on academic achievement, leadership experience, philosophical compatibility with the program's outcomes, and writing quality.
Established in 1851, St. Joseph's University firmly adheres to its Jesuit Catholic founders' educational standards. These spiritual core values have made this Philadelphia-based school a trusted learning mecca for over 8,000 students.
SJU's s top-ranked master of science in marketing online offers a blend of active academic learning and real-time marketing experiences. Within the 30-credit curriculum, students get to work with local business leaders and learn from expert faculty members in courses such as marketing analysis, predictive analytics in marketing, and promotional strategy.
This school requires applicants to show proof of an undergraduate degree from a regionally accredited university or college, official transits, GMAT/GRE scores, a resume, and two letters of recommendation.
Since 1878, Brenau University has operated as a private university in Gainesville, GA. It has a student body of over 3,800 students from around 32 states and 22 foreign countries.
Brenau's master of business administration in marketing provides a 15-course, 45-credit platform to investigate significant marketing areas, including product development, sales management, and advertising promotions. Within its targeted curriculum, feature courses include excellence in operations, management of people, and international finance.
Admission requirements include an official transcript (3.0 GPA), a resume, and a bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university.
Tiffin, Ohio, is the home of Tiffin University. Established in 1888, this private university has a student population of over 3,000.
With its master of business administration in marketing online program, TU strives to help students develop their ability to maximize marketing outcomes on a local and international level. The highlighted courses within the 36-credit curriculum include managerial business foundations, fundamentals of quantitative business, and global marketing management.
Applying for this MBA program requires a bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited institution, a minimum GPA of 3.0, a professional resume or curriculum vitae (CV), and a personal statement resume.
Founded in 1851, Lasell University spreads over 54 acres within several Newton, Massachusetts, neighborhoods. Nearly 2,000 students attend this private university.
Lasell's globally accredited (ACBSP) master of science in marketing online focuses on the working professional looking to increase marketing and leadership capabilities. The 36-credit curriculum emphasizes digital strategy, product development, data-driven analytics, and integrated marketing communications. Internship and research project capstones round out the program.
Application requirements include official transcripts, a one-page personal goals statement, and a resume. For recent college graduates with less than three years of work experience, Lasell recommends 3.0 or higher GPA.
Since its inception in 1898, Dallas Baptist has been making a spiritual and educational impact far beyond its location in Dallas, Texas. It has a total annual enrollment of over 4,700 students.
DBU's online master of business administration in marketing program focuses on distribution channels management, marketing strategy, implementation issues, and integrated marketing communications. The 36-credit curriculum includes courses such as business development strategies, new product development, and international marketing.
Applicants must have a bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited institution, character references, a minimum 3.0 GPA, and a GMAT score of at least 425.
From its Henniker, New Hampshire, campus, New England College serves around 3,900 students. NEC has been a private, nonprofit institution since its beginning in 1946.
NEC's online master of business administration in digital marketing prepares students for marketing success by featuring real-world projects, current academic research, and instructors with vast industry experience. The curriculum provides courses such as social media campaigns with clients, foundations of digital marketing, and marketing analytics in digital marketing.
NEC does not publish admission requirements for this master's degree. Interested parties must fill out the form on this page or email graduateadmission@nec.edu.
Launched in 1966, Bellevue University operates as a private university in Bellevue, Nebraska. For the last 25 years, this university has offered online degree options to nearly 9,000 student enrollees annually.
BU offers a 36-credit master of science in strategic marketing that addresses strategy-based marketing goals such as determining market demand and identifying new market potentials with courses such as social media marketing campaigns, buyer behavior, and marketing analytics.
Admission requirements include a bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited institution, a 2.5 GPA over the last 60 credits of coursework, and possible recommendation letters.
Online Master's in Marketing Programs Ranking Guidelines
We selected the following degree programs based on quality, curricula, awards, rankings, and reputation.
The motto of TheBestSchools.org is Finding the best school for you. Here is how we do it:
The value of any ranking list of schools and/or degree programs depends on having a methodologically sound assessment of each school’s/program’s characteristics, especially insofar as these can be objectively measured. A college or university is a complex entity, with numerous factors to consider, and distilling these down to the place where meaningful comparisons can be made to form a defensible ranking list becomes part science and part art.
To meet this challenge—and thereby provide you with the most useful and insightful educational rankings on the Internet — TheBestSchools.org formulates our rankings based on five informational categories (six, when considering online schools). The major metrics and qualities for which we rank are these (with expanded, detailed considerations and weights listed):
1. Academic excellence based on a school’s curriculum generally or within the selected discipline [weight = 25%]
- Weighs school against known leading schools in that discipline
- Weighs number of core curricula listed as advanced courses within that discipline and compares against introductory courses
- Weighs school’s curriculum against known knowledge needs of major employers in that discipline
- Considers number and types of specializations offered within that discipline
- Considers faculty expertise in that discipline
- Considers range of electives within that discipline
- Considers quality of online environment offered to students (if applicable), particularly within that discipline
2. Strength of faculty scholarship [weight = 25%]
- Considers education background of the faculty
- Considers years of faculty experience both inside and outside of academia.
- Considers faculty membership and leadership within relevant, prominent associations
- Considers academic papers published by faculty in relevant, prominent periodicals
- Considers awards and recognitions given to faculty members from prominent organizations and from other sources
3. Reputation [weight = 20%]
- Considers a school’s reputation among academic peers and employers regarding the following:
- Faculty
- Curriculum
- “Freshness” of academic knowledge
- Adaptability to changes in employment sectors
- Suitability of graduates for the workplace
4. Financial aid [weight = 10%]
- Mandatory: Requires full accreditation from an agency endorsed by the U.S. Department of Education and listed on the federal register to accept student federal financial aid
- Considers range of school-sponsored financial aid such as scholarships and grants
5. Range of degree programs [weight = 20%]
- Considers range of degree levels: associate’s, bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral and professional
- Considers range of degree subjects offered, such as art & design, computers & technology, education & teaching, criminal justice, and business
6. Strength of online instruction methodology (if applicable) [weight = 25%; subtract 5% from each of the above for online schools/programs]
-
Considers the following of the online classes:
- Types of online technology used to deliver content
- Pedagogy style: asynchronous, synchronous, or both (depending on the degree)
- Extent and quality of the online, community learning environment, including options for communication, interactivity, and collaboration between students and also between students and instructors
- Variety, breadth, and depth of coursework, and its support, including project options and online tutoring
-
Considers the following of instructors:
- Extent of training for teaching within an online learning environment
- Amount of timely, consistent feedback to students
- Extent of collaboration with prospective employers to ensure suitability of instructional materials for achieving desired skills
- Ratio to number of students in a class
- Number and quality of internships in a student’s geographical area for applicable degrees
Because students tend to review a variety of information when choosing a school, the weight a student gives any one criterion will vary. For instance, it’s not enough to offer a carefully constructed ranking of great schools if many are too expensive or too difficult to get into.
To better serve the needs of prospective students, we are therefore increasingly offering filters that help you better use our rankings to find the schools that match your specific needs. These supplement our ranking criteria and include:
- Accreditation
- Public or private status
- Acceptance rate
- Retention rate
- Graduation rate
- ACT/SAT requirements
- Cost in-state / out of state
- Undergrad, grad, or both offered
- Region
- State
- City
Get the best rankings here AND get them to suit your personal needs. That’s TheBestSchools.org advantage!
If you have any questions about our ranking methodology, please contact us.
Citations: For a broader account of our ranking methodology, especially as it relates to TheBestSchools.org's underlying educational philosophy and, in other ranking articles, looks beyond academic excellence (as here) to such factors as return on investment or incidental benefit, see our article "Ranking Methodology: How We Rank Schools at TBS." Reputation of schools and degree programs can at least in part be gauged through the school or department's publishing activity, citations, and desirability. At TheBestSchools.org, we keep track of such social and peer validation: "Making Sense of College Rankings." For nuts-and-bolts information about colleges and universities, we look to the National Center for Education Statistics and especially its College Navigator. Insofar as salary and inflation data are relevant to a ranking, we look to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Finally, nothing beats contacting schools and degree programs directly, which our researchers often do, with the result that all the entries in this article should be considered as belonging to this citation!
Choosing a Master's in Marketing Online Program
Students interested in an online master's in marketing program can choose from several options, including a master of science (MS) in marketing, a master of arts (MA) in marketing, and an MBA with a concentration in marketing.
Generally, an MS focuses on the science of marketing, while an MA program focuses more on theory and the humanities. An MS in marketing program might include courses on marketing analytics and market research in addition to some STEM courses. In contrast, an MA in marketing focuses more on marketing psychology through subjects like public relations and consumer behavior.
Students pursuing an MBA with a concentration in marketing take a mix of business and marketing courses. Business classes cover topics like entrepreneurship, corporate finance, and investment analysis, while marketing courses may include global marketing, advertising and branding, and sales force marketing.
What Can You Do with an Online Master's in Marketing?
Graduates with a master's in marketing enjoy many career options. While most entry-level marketing jobs require only a bachelor's degree, a master's degree in marketing leads to more advanced positions and higher salaries. Students who earn a master's in marketing online qualify for managerial positions in marketing, advertising, and promotions, as well as top-tier marketing jobs, such as chief marketing officer.
| Median Annual Salary: $136,850 | Projected Growth Rate: 7% |
|---|
Marketing managers identify target markets and demand for a product and service. They then work with product developers, sales executives, and public relations officers to create marketing plans to promote the product or service.
| Median Annual Salary: $135,900 | Projected Growth Rate: 6% |
|---|
Advertising managers create strategic marketing campaigns to generate interest among consumers for a product or service. Promotions managers pair financial incentives with advertising strategies to increase the sales of a product or service.
| Median Annual Salary: $63,790 | Projected Growth Rate: 18% |
|---|
Market research analysts study consumer markets to help businesses sell goods and services. They collect and analyze data on consumer preferences, demographics, and spending habits to develop marketing plans.
Frequently Asked Questions About Master's in Marketing
While salaries vary by industry and employer, marketing managers earned an annual average salary of $134,290 in 2018.
A master's in marketing prepares candidates for top-tier marketing jobs, such as chief marketing officer (CMO). Chief executives earned an annual average salary of $189,600 in 2018.
Some of the highest-paid marketing professionals work in scientific research and development and cable and subscription programming.
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