MA in Advertising and Public Relations

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273

Central London Location

156

Small Class Sizes

Richmond The American University in London

Optional International Internships

Flexible Curriculum at Richmond University

Internationally Recognised Teaching

MA in Advertising and Public Relations

Advertising and Public Relations (PR) are thriving and increasingly competitive industries which offer a growing variety of exciting international employment opportunities.

Programme Overview

Richmond University’s MA in Advertising and Public Relations brings together practical skills and academic work. It is taught at our Kensington Campus in central London, the hub of the Advertising and PR industries.

Practical Content
The MA emphasises practical skills in both advertising and PR from the outset, with students developing and presenting their own bodies of professional work. The practical aspect of the course will culminate in an optional accredited internship and mandatory professional research project, including live PR work and associated advertising materials and, at its end, a critical reflection which will require students to relate their work to wider thinking about these industries.

At the same time the programme provides an in-depth academic examination of the advertising and PR industries, their histories, how they function in the contemporary world and the role they play in international society and economic life – especially in relation to the media, business and the full range of marketing disciplines.

Explore
Students examine the issues these industries face and explore different views of both advertising and PR. Students also benefit from a range of optional courses in the second semester of the programme, which enable them to develop knowledge and skills in specific areas of interest.

Industry Networking & Internships
The programme benefits from exceptionally strong links with the advertising and PR industries in London, with teaching by practitioners, a wide range of distinguished guest speakers, and events involving both industries.  These links not only ensure that students are aware of the latest developments in London’s advertising and PR industries, but facilitate internships and help students with their career development. MA students have worked for companies such as Bell Pottinger, Ralph Lauren, Edelman and M&C Saatchi as well as numerous advertising and PR firms, including several in the fashion and sports fields, mainly in London but also in the US, Europe and the Middle East.

Develop skills to assist in career progression
A broad education of this kind equips graduates for a wide range of careers internationally while enabling them to develop specialist expertise in areas of particular interest. By ensuring that they are critical and reflective practitioners it prepares them for challenging leadership roles in a world of diversity and rapidly changing opportunities, in keeping with the university’s wider mission.

Programme Specification 2016-17
Key Facts
  1. A one year programme based in central London
  2. A global and critical perspective on the thriving, rapidly evolving and increasingly competitive global industries of Advertising and PR
  3. Professional training for work in Advertising and PR including an optional internship and professional research project including live PR work and associated advertising materials
  4. Internationally recognised, research and professionally active faculty
  5. Small class sizes and faculty supervision
Curriculum Summary

Students engaged in studying the MA in Advertising and Public Relations will participate in a programme that uniquely brings together practical skills and academic work. With a strong emphasis on the practical elements of both advertising and PR, the MA will enable students in developing and presenting their own bodies of professional work.

The practical aspect of the course will culminate in an optional accredited internship and mandatory professional research project. Students will be required to participate in actual PR and advertising campaigns ensuring true engagement with the course material. Students will then be required to critically reflect upon how these issues relate to their work and its impact on a global industry.

Programme Structure

Degree requirements - US Credits 36 - UK Credits 180

APR 7100 (4 CREDITS) Advertising Practice
This course explores the fundamental principles and tools involved in the professional practice of advertising. It introduces students to the full range of techniques used in advertising and enables and encourages students to apply practical tools with confidence. This includes designing and presenting their own ideas for an advertising campaign. It relates the practice of advertising to contemporary issues and developments in the UK and internationally.
APR 7101 (4 CREDITS) Public Relations Practice
This course explores the fundamental principles and tools involved in the professional practice of public relations, with a particular focus on media relations and third party endorsement, although other PR specialisms are also covered. It introduces students to differences in key sectors in the practice of public relations including government and industry, politics and public sector, third and voluntary sectors, and reputational management for organisations and individuals. It offers a thorough critical overview of the typical practice of public relations across sectors, including their interrelationship, and enables and encourages students to apply practical tools with confidence. It relates the practice of public relations to international events and contemporary issues.
Explores how the disciplines of advertising and PR are brought together within the global marketing communications mix, both in theory and in practice. It provides an advanced critical understanding of the role of integrated communications – including all marketing techniques, public affairs, internal communications, brand management, and specialty services as well as advertising and public relations - in the development and dissemination of organisational communications strategy.
APR 7104 (4 CREDITS) Professional Digital Media Skills
The module is designed to enhance students’ skills in the use of online media. It is split between two main assessments, one focused on research and development, the other on online media practice. For their practical assessment, students have to create an individual media project that sets out to use the potentials of the net and new media technologies in an informed and innovative way. Students will be able to focus on PR, advertising and/or journalism but will be expected to display an understanding of all these disciplines. For the more conceptual assessment, students have to do research and development work, coming up with an idea for an innovative online media product/strategy which they then sell via a short presentation. Students on this module are also required to keep a log documenting the work they do on their assessments. At the end of the module, they draw on the notes kept on their blog for a summary critical report, which evaluates the work done on the module and summarises the main things learnt.
This course explores public relations, advertising and journalism, examining their history and evolution and how they relate to each other, as well as investigating the political, economic, social and cultural contexts in which they practice and reviewing their relationships with the media industries. It relates the practice of PR, advertising and journalism to international events and contemporary issues and developments, including criticisms of the industries’ role and a range of ethical debates.
plus one elective:
APR 7110 (4 CREDITS) Political Communication
This course examines the influence of mass communications on the development of democratic politics. It provides an insight into the relationship between political actors, professional communicators and media personnel and institutions, and the way in which government advertising and public relations and political campaigning is undertaken.
This module offers a critical exploration of the evolving role celebrities play in the media, public relations, advertising, other forms of marketing activity and in relation to wider contemporary culture. It examines different perspectives on and debates about the development of celebrity culture and its impact on society, in the UK and internationally, and relates them to contemporary issues.
This course examines both the ways in which advertising and public relations are used alongside other marketing techniques within the fashion and luxury brand sectors and the nature of fashion journalism and media coverage, both in the UK and internationally. It enables students to choose between creating their own media plan for a specific fashion or luxury brand and the creating a portfolio of journalism.
Provides students with the concepts, knowledge, skills and experience required for successful placement in professional positions in a range of arts and cultural industries. Students develop their conceptual framework and knowledge, and topics may include the art market, gallery practice (management and administration), art law, museum education, private and public funding, curating, cataloguing, collections management, auction house procedures, press and marketing. Considerable use will be made of London’s wealth of art galleries and museums, libraries and archives. Students will handle objects and this may involve site visits to museums, galleries, auction houses and related institutions.
This course explores two related topics: innovation and entrepreneurship. For firms to achieve and maintain a competitive advantage, they need to innovate faster and more effectively than their competitors. This course provides an overview of innovation as a complex process which goes from the recognition of opportunities to the launch of new products, services or business models. The innovation process will be complemented with an analysis of the current trends regarding the evolution of the concept of innovation. Concepts beyond product innovation such as open innovation, disruptive innovation, creativity, business model innovation and ambidexterity will be encountered throughout the course. Innovation takes place within organisations large and small. The course will also look at entrepreneurship: the process of innovation within smaller firms. It will explore the nature of entrepreneurial and innovative management within small organisations as well as more established ones. A multidisciplinary approach: linking with organisational systems to cultures – will be adopted. The course provides a variety of perspectives on the creation and evolution of entrepreneurial ventures. It covers important aspects of launching a business from initial idea to growth and international expansion. It considers planning, marketing, financial, legal, control and human elements associated with the start up, acquisition or operation of a business from the entrepreneurial point of view. The course will address the need to manage effectively in environments that are uncertain and complex, and where appropriate strategic responses have to be crafted in recognition of limited resource and indeterminate outcomes.
This course explores the relationship that exists between the media, the implementation and execution of foreign policy and the management of security and environmental threats. Covering a century’s worth of media reports on politics, diplomacy and warfare, the course will address the fundamental issues pertaining to the role of the media in both free and command societies and the manner in which the media manipulate and is manipulated by governmental agencies. The course will consider the manner in which journalists gather information, the role of the PR industry in managing the news industry, and issues of bias, media ownership and agenda-setting. Drawing upon the experiences of international journalists, this course will challenge students to reflect upon the degree to which the media influences foreign policy.
MGT 7110 (4 CREDITS) Managing Organisations and People
Organisations consist of the people who work within them. The objectives of this course are therefore to raise the student's awareness of the centrality of managing organisations and people to understanding organisational functioning and effectiveness. To show how an understanding of human behaviour via the disciplinary bases of psychology, sociology and anthropology profoundly deepen our analysis of organisations. To demonstrate the core value of an understanding of managing organisations and people to a manager's ability to achieve organisational goals.
MGT 7120 (4 CREDITS) Corporate Governance
The course defines Corporate governance, the set of policies, processes and customs by which an institution is directed, is a topic of increasing importance in strategic management. How a company is governed influences rights and relationships among organizational stakeholders, and ultimately how an organization is managed. This course teaches the fundamentals of Corporate Governance from a variety of angles – the board of directors, senior management, investors, the media, proxy advisors, regulator and other stakeholders – and focuses on assessing the effectiveness and execution of governance roles and responsibilities
MGT 7130 (4 CREDITS) Strategic Management
The course explores issues relating to the strategic management of organisations, focusing on strategic analysis and evaluation, long-range planning and policy implementation. The topics covered fall into two broad themes: corporate strategy (‘in which industries should we operate?’) and business strategy (‘how should we compete in those industries?’) The course covers the core strategic analysis models, and uses case studies to analyse the relationship between a firm's internal organisation and the environment in which it operates.
MKT 7110 (4 CREDITS) Marketing in a Digital World
The course will provide insights into new marketing concepts, tools, technologies and business models to enhance the value creation process. New technologies have created some radical changes in the way companies reach their markets and in particular the emerging phenomenon of social media. The course will provide an understanding of theoretical perspectives, techniques and tools to understand and harness the opportunities provided by best practice digital marketing. Students will have the opportunity to learn about electronic commerce in action; the interplay between the technology and marketing applications; the changing scope and uses of the Internet, along with current management issues facing businesses attempting to use the World Wide Web.
VAM 7106 (4 CREDITS) The International Art Market
Provides students with an overview of the international art market, including its history and current dynamics. Specific attention will be paid to emerging markets in China, Russia, India and the Middle East. The course analyses the structure, theory and practice of the constituent components of the ‘for-profit’ arts sector, including commercial galleries, auction houses, art fairs and consultancy organisations. Qualitative and quantitative research methods for art business and investment will be discussed.
plus EITHER
APR 7500 (8 CREDITS) Professional Research Project
For students working independently on their Masters professional research project. The professional research project (equivalent to 10,000-12,000 words) encourages students to study intensively a topic agreed with a supervisor, and so develop skills and experience which can be applied in work placements or further graduate work. Students apply their knowledge from across the fall and spring semesters to researching and developing a project, which may relate to the internship. This course is comprised of intensive and regular meetings on a group and one-to-one (by appointment) basis with a project supervisor to discuss the progress of research, development and writing.
APR 7902 (4 CREDITS) Internship
A 3-5/days a week work placement of approximately three months (depending on the requirements of the organization in question; a minimum of 9 weeks) within an organization to enable students to participate in graduate level experiential learning and so develop hands-on skills and professional experience which will prepare them for work in the fields of advertising and public relations. Placements are supervised, career-related work experiences combined with reflective, academic study that help students ‘learn by doing’. During the internship, the staff of the Internship Office and the MA internship faculty supervisor work closely with each student and the organisation to ensure that the placement is a successful one.
OR
For students working independently on their Masters professional research project. An extended project equivalent to a 15,000-20,000 word thesis is offered as an alternative to the internship. The professional research project encourages students to study intensively a topic agreed with a supervisor, and so develop skills and experience which can be applied in work placements or further graduate work. Students apply their knowledge from across the autumn and spring semesters to researching a topic on advertising and public relations, which may relate to their work experience. This course is comprised of intensive and regular meetings on a one-to-one (by appointment) basis with a project supervisor to discuss the progress of research, development and writing.

Graduate Destinations

This programme is relatively new and so graduate destination information is not fully available. However, our graduates are working in PR and advertising in the UK and internationally. Our postgraduate programmes aim specifically to prepare students for careers in related fields and in line with this, all our MA students may undertake an internship through Careers & Internships Office as an aspect of their degree. Afterwards, some continue with their education, take up further internships and/or progress directly into professional training programmes and employment in relevant organisations.

The Department works closely with the University’s Department of Student Affairs to offer a series of skill-based careers seminars throughout the academic year on both campuses. Together we have developed connections to volunteering opportunities in Richmond and Kensington, leadership development through student clubs and societies, and work experience in the form of part-time employment and graduate trainee programmes.

Working in partnership with CRCC Asia, Richmond also offers internship programs in Beijing & Shanghai.

Programme Information

Programme leader
Please contact the Admissions office if you wish to speak to the Programme Leader.

Awarding institution
Richmond, The American International University in London

Accredited
Middle States Commission of Higher Education (US)

Duration
One year full-time, September to September.
Two year part-time, September to September.

Location
Kensington Campus.
Additionally, off-site locations are used in London as part of the practical element of the programme.

Application deadline

Students who require a visa to study in the UK should apply by 1st July. UK or EU nationals should apply by 1st August.

Entry requirements
US Bachelors degree from an accredited institution, or UK first degree with minimum second class honours, or an overseas equivalent as determined by the University. Relevant work experience is welcomed and may on occasion be accepted in lieu of a first degree, but is not required.

Alessandro Sansica

I studied on this programme

I chose Advertising and PR for their creative, yet strategic nature. This course is providing me with the right set of skills to work in these exciting sectors, through stimulating and engaging classes. Working on several group projects has also given me an idea of how these two industries really work. London is a great place for these two sectors and Richmond University has links with many companies for internships. From building an effective CV to sending a final application, they are really helping me a lot!

My tutors are enthusiastic, inspiring and available outside class for support. Their suggestions are always constructive, and it is great to hear from the experience of professionals.

Richmond University attracted me for its American education and international perspective. I’ve met people from the world over, it really is an international University! I was expecting a lot by this experience, but I’m getting even more!

Alessandro SansicaMA in Advertising & PR

Faculty who teach on this programme:

Professor Simon Goldsworthy

Professor Simon Goldsworthy

Professor of Public Relations and Advertising

PRCA - Logo Blue - Partner University

Entry Requirements

What are the entry requirements?

A Bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution, or UK first degree with minimum second class honours, or an overseas equivalent as determined by the University. For Masters programmes in the School of Communications, Arts and Social Sciences, a first degree in an appropriate discipline is normally required. Relevant work experience is welcomed and may on occasion be accepted in lieu of a first degree, but is not required.

The language of instruction at Richmond is English, and non-native English speakers are asked to provide IELTS, or Pearson Academic Test of English language examination results as proof of their fluency in written and spoken English. You will need to obtain a score of at least 6.5 overall and a minimum of 5.5 in each element for postgraduate study or Pearson Academic Test of English with 61 overall and 56 in each element.

How to Apply

How do I Apply?

For Masters programmes you may choose one of two application routes:

The Direct Application Form to make a single application to Richmond

UKPASS if you wish to apply to other UK Universities who are part of the UKPASS scheme as well

Scholarships

Find out more about Postgraduate Scholarships

Graduate Admission Requirements

Duration: FT (one year), PT (two years)

  • The programme is recognised in the US via our MSCHE accreditation.
Tuition Fees: 2017/18 entry per annum, students from:

UK/EU

£7,000 FT

£3,500 PT

Rest of the World

£12,000

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Postgraduate Prospectus