Why Earn a Masters in Marketing & Advertising Degree

Do you want to stand apart from other marketing and advertising professionals? Many in these fields earn a master’s degree so that they can enjoy the most rewarding career possible.

Marketing and advertising has changed tremendously in the last 20 years, but there is still strong demand in this field for well educated professionals who can help to bring an organization’s advertising and marketing to the next level.

By earning your master’s degree in marketing and advertising, you will have the skills and qualities to succeed in many mid level and upper management positions. For instance, you will be able to compete for these exciting career positions:

  • Advertising manager: Creates interest among potential buyers and customers for various products and services. Advertising managers may conduct these services for the entire company, a specific product, a department or on a project by project basis. Advertising manager need to work as a team player with sales representatives and other staff to generate new ideas for advertising campaigns, especially online, and for TV and radio.
  • Promotions manager: Is responsible for directing programs that combine advertising needs with incentives for purchasing to drive sales. Promotions may use direct mail, Internet ads, newspaper inserts, displays in store, and endorsements of products.
  • Marketing manager: Needs to estimate the demand for products and services that a company may offer. They also must determine new potential markets for new products. These marketing experts also need to closely watch trends that indicate a need for new services or products.

Why Earn a Master’s Degree in Marketing and Advertising?

A master’s degree in marketing and advertising will prepare you to enter the growing and exciting world of developing, promoting and selling products in many different markets.

Having an effective marketing and advertising campaign is just vital today in such a competitive, global marketplace. Companies greatly value marketing and advertising professionals who can add to their bottom line.

As a skilled marketing and advertising professional with your master’s degree, you will be able to do offer your employer the following vital skills and services:

  • Boost awareness of the company and brand. There is nothing more important to increase sales than to let the targeted potential customers that the company exists and offers a product or service they need. You will learn how to create an effective marketing and advertising campaign that will drive brand recognition for the long term.
  • With a master’s degree, you will be an expert in know the metrics for your marketing campaigns. You will have the skills to learn what the average customer is worth. So, you will know how much you can spend to obtain every new sale. Your master’s program will teach you vital performance indicators, such as cost per acquisition (CPA), lifetime customer value (LCV) and average revenue per user (ARPU).
  • Learn how to test and optimize your campaigns. You will develop the advanced marketing and advertising skills so that you know which headlines, images and ads work best. As any experienced marketer knows, a headline or tagline that sounds perfect may not engage your specific audience. Your master’s program will teach you how to do A/B and multivariate testing so that your company gets maximum return on investment.

Also note that the demand for marketing and advertising managers will be 9% higher in 2024. Although advertising demand has declined greatly for print media, this has been replaced by online advertising to a large degree.

Admission Requirements

As you consider various master’s programs, you will need to carefully weigh the admissions criteria for each program. Some programs are more competitive than others. For example, the Master of Arts in Advertising at Michigan State University has the following criteria:

  • Official transcripts from all undergraduate and graduate work
  • Official GRE test scores; this can vary depending upon the institution
  • Three letters of recommendation from either professors or work supervisors
  • Updated resume
  • Personal statement and/or academic statement of goals. You are applying for admission into a liberal arts master’s program, so it is very important for your essays to be of only the highest quality.

Curriculum and Courses

You should seek a master’s in marketing and advertising that has a great focus on digital marketing and advertising; after all, most companies today focus on digital advertising to drive their brand recognition and sales.

An excellent program to consider is the Master of Science in Marketing – Digital Marketing and Advertising that Liberty University offers. This is a two year master’s that provides students with the skills and knowledge to create and properly implement effective digital marketing campaigns. Students in this program focus much of their study on strategic communication skills that have been updated for the digital age. Also, you will spend a lot of your online class time learning how to develop highly effective social media marketing campaigns.

This program is very well suited for marketing and advertising professionals who want to work in digital marketing for companies in all industries.

Required courses will include:

  • Marketing Research
  • Consumer Behavior
  • Marketing Promotions
  • Strategic Marketing Management
  • Brand Management
  • Marketing Strategy Capstone
  • Supply Chain Management
  • Effective Social Media
  • Applied Market Research

Career Outcomes and Job Titles

Graduates transition into jobs with titles such as these:

  • Advertising account manager
  • Digital marketing manager
  • Digital media director
  • Creative director
  • Event director
  • Corporate communication manager
  • Product manager
  • Trade show manager
  • Market research analyst
  • Social media manager
  • Graphic design director
  • Marketing director

Marketing and advertising skills can be used in virtually any field, including, consulting, government, health care, PR, retail, banking and finance, and nonprofits.

Job and Salary Outlook

  • Marketing Research Analyst — A marketing research analyst studies current and future market conditions to determine what the potential sales of a product or service could be. Marketing research analysts play a very important role in helping many types of companies understand the products and services that people really want. You will use your advanced skills acquired in your master’s program to forecast and monitor marketing and sales trends. Job demand will be very strong by 2024 – 19% increase in jobs. Median salary is $62,100.
  • Advertising, Promotions and Marketing Managers – We highlighted this speciality earlier on this page. Expect to see 8% increase in demand, especially in digital marketing-focused positions. The median salary is $95,800.
  • Public Relations and Fundraising Managers – These professionals direct and plan advertising, marketing and PR material that will enhance the image of a certain company or client. Fundraising managers are responsible for coordinating successful campaigns for a particular cause or organization. There is considerable crossover between marketing and public relations, so many who earn their master’s degree in marketing and advertising may end up as a public relations professional. Jobs will increase by 7% by 2024, and the median wage is $104,000 per year.

Scholarships and Grants

You have many options for finding funding to pay for your graduate degree:

  • University of Colorado Denver: Offers several marketing and advertising scholarships for bachelor’s and master’s students.
  • Texas A&M University: Offers several scholarships for its Master of Science in Marketing and its Master of Arts in Advertising.

Additional Resources

If your future is advertising and marketing, check out these resources:

  • American Marketing Association: This is the largest marketing association in America, and is regarded as the essential community for all marketers.
  • Business Marketing Association: This association is designed especially for B to B marketers, and offers many opportunities to grow your skills and to network.