Marketing with Sustainability MSc



Our course brings together two activities of global significance and gives you the skills and knowledge to address these important issues.
For a career in the most exciting and dynamic of all the business disciplines

Overview

This programme combines two harmonising and essential fields of study: marketing and sustainability.

Marketing is the engine of global economic growth, but it has also been blamed for the rise in consumerism and the acceleration of pollution. For marketing to be practiced responsibly, an understanding of marketing’s relationship with sustainability and sustainable practices is required, and this degree provides a focused and dedicated understanding of the relationship between these crucial fields for the success of every business, on both a theoretical and practical level.

The MSc Marketing with Sustainability will give you the skills and knowledge to address these important issues of global significance. 

Woman smiling behind stacks of books

Mode of Study:

Full-time

 

Duration:

1 years

Start date:

SepJan

Course details

The MSc in Marketing with Sustainability is a single year of study over 12 months (for students starting in September), or 18 months (for students starting in January).

As a full-time student, you will study six taught specialist modules,  designed to provide you with in depth knowledge of sustainable marketing practice, plus an additional module in either ‘Research Methods’ or ‘Research Skills’, as well as our non-credit bearing module, ‘Skills for Success’, where you will learn business skills and etiquette, and essential computer literacy skills. 

Three bespoke modules linking marketing and sustainability will focus your expertise: ‘Sustainable Supply Chain Management’ allows you to learn about global distribution issues, ‘Marketing, Sustainability & Ethical Perspectives’ will develop your skills in debating important theoretical and practical points and sharpen your abilities as a critical thinker.

The module ‘Marketing for a Sustainable Future’ will lead you to a full understanding of how marketing can help businesses and consumers achieve their sustainability goals. In particular the module will consider the role of marketing in advancing the UN's Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly in relation to SDG 12, which seeks to promote sustainable consumption and production.

Option modules will allow you to decide which aspects of marketing you would like to focus on, such as Global Marketing, or Strategic Brand Management, and the Dissertation or Capstone Project, completed in your third trimester, will focus on a marketing and sustainability topic. This substantial piece of work will allow you to showcase your academic writing and research skills, and demonstrate expertise in an area of marketing and sustainability that will be of interest to future employers.

At Edinburgh Napier, we have a well-established international reputation in marketing research and education. As one of the graduates from this programme you will be well informed in the theory and practicalities of marketing and sustainability.

Programme Leader: Dr Elaine Mercer-Jones

 

 
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    How you’ll be taught

     A variety of learning, teaching and assessment methods are utilised. These include lectures, tutorials, workshops, presentations, reports, essays, debates and individual supervision. Key to the programme is the opportunity to complete either a Dissertation or the more practice-based Capstone Project, which provides the opportunity to reflect on how the knowledge and skills you have gained from the taught modules can be applied in practice. Our MSc in Marketing and Sustainability programme provides frequent emphasis of the importance of ‘practice’, with opportunities to apply your existing and new knowledge to sustainable marketing industry situations, and to personalise learning tasks. 
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    Assessments

     You will be assessed in the following ways:

    Presentations
    Debates
    Group presentations
    Reports
    Essays
    Closed Book Examination

Modules

Modules that you will study* as part of this course

Consumer Insights ( MKT11112 )

Introduction to the subject area and topical consumer issues. The contexts in which the marketer operates (e.g. organisational contexts profit/non-profit, differences in needs/wants/values and segmentation, targeting and positioning) and key factors that influence consumer dynamics e.g. individual (motivation, learning, perception, attitudes, lifestyles) and group (opinion leaders, reference groups, culture). Understanding and enhancing the consumer experience through examining the consumer decision making process.

Further information

Global Marketing ( MKT11104 )

In this module, you will develop an in-depth understanding of Global/International Marketing theories and concepts and how these theories can be applied to analyse international markets and inform international marketers' decision-making process in the internationalisation of a firm. Each week's lecture will introduce you to key theories in global/international marketing and how these can be applied in real international marketing cases. In tutorials, you will apply theories covered in the lecture to analyse real business cases and come up with solutions to different problems. You will engage with a range of international and Global marketing literature to learn important concepts in global marketing and develop academic reading skills such as evaluation and appraisal of global marketing literature. Upon successful completion of the module, you will understand the global marketing process and be able to provide solutions to challenges that global/international organizations face under the current global business climate from a global marketing perspective.

Further information

Marketing for Sustainable Future ( MKT11125 )

In this module, you will explore how marketing tools can be used to encourage more sustainable and responsible consumption and contribute to global efforts aimed at addressing environmental challenges, improving social welfare, and promoting economic resilience.You will study key sustainability concepts from both macro and micro (organisational) perspectives, and consider how marketing strategies can be used to construct a brand purpose that prioritises sustainability, as well as encourage responsible consumption.The module will enable you to develop your understanding of the key principles and drivers of sustainable marketing practice and develop strategies that can enable organisations to integrate sustainable practices effectively while fostering positive relationships with key stakeholders.

Further information

Marketing, Sustainability and Ethical Perspectives ( MKT11126 )

This module equips you to challenge the critical issue that will affect the decisions of future business leaders and consumers: sustainability. In this module, you will be introduced to interdisciplinary ethical theories and fields of study including: utilitarianism, deontology, virtue ethics, surveillance, postmodernism, feminism and semiotics. These perspectives are then applied as a critical lens to examine current sustainability-related issues in marketing, debate arguments and present solutions to real-life problems. We apply these theories to current debates such as: 'cosmetics industry is sustainable', 'consumer culture encourages wasteful consumption', 'green marketing is a contradiction in terms', 'algorithmic marketing is harmful to the environment', 'marketing creates more problems than it solves'.

Further information

Principles and Practice of Marketing ( MKT11108 )

The module is essential to anyone wanting to work in business and / or marketing. Throughout the module we will analyse the principles and practices of marketing with a focus on their practical application. The module covers the marketing environment by evaluating marketing strategy and objective setting. The importance and understanding of the marketing mix focusing on products, marketing communications, pricing strategies, logistics and distribution are dealt with in relation to the key role in marketing. An understanding of planning and control is addressed. By studying Principles and Practices of Marketing you will learn how to make marketing decisions across an organisation, and how to devise and implement a marketing plan for a product / service of your choice.

Further information

Research Skills ( TBS11109 )

This proposal is for the development of a new Research Methods/Skills module that will provide you with an alternative 20 credit module to the existing SOE11131: Research Methods. This would be taught during a your second trimester and will develop skills and knowledge in: literature reviewing, secondary data gathering and analysis, approaches to personal reflection, business/research ethics, use of artificial intelligence, sustainability, equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI), etc.

Further information

Skills for Success ( TBS11108 )

Module is designed to ensure you are equipped with a longitudinal induction which ensures ‘How to be here’ foundation moves through Professionalism in classroom and beyond to Careers awareness and guidance as part of pass/fail attended module. This ‘levelling-up’ will provide an you with an enhanced experience if you have an identified skills gaps, and provide more skills balances for you within individual cohorts.

Further information

Sustainable Supply Chain Management ( SOE11152 )

Supply chains and sustainability have become a key focus for many organisations and broader society, as many countries and organisations around the globe push for decarbonisation and the implementation of the United Nations Sustainability Goals. Organisations have developed an understanding that they do not act alone but are part of complex networks that need to act together in order to effectively address these issues. This module focuses on key aspects of sustainability and supply chain management, such as:Introduction to supply chains/networks and their global influencers;Demand amplification and the Bullwhip Effect;Relationships, integration, and social network analysis of supply chains;Sustainable procurement and corporate social responsibility in supply chains;Supply chain design and performance measurement;Customer centric supply chains;Evaluation of supply chains to assess weaknesses and strengths on a wide range of issues, such as communication and relationships to living wage.

Further information

* These are indicative only and reflect the course structure in the current academic year. Some changes may occur between now and the time that you study.

Disclaimer

Study modules mentioned above are indicative only. Some changes may occur between now and the time that you study.

Full information is available in our disclaimer.

Entry requirements

What are the entry requirements for Marketing with Sustainability?

The entry requirements for this course is a Bachelor (Honours) Degree at a 2:2 or above. We look for applicants to have a background in any discipline in order to be eligible for the programme.

We may also consider lesser qualifications if you have sufficient professional work experience within the industry.

Can I get admission into Marketing with Sustainability based on my working experience in this sector?

This course has academic entry requirements which are assessed alongside relevant work experience. Full details of any relevant work experience, including references should be submitted with your application and may be considered for entry where the minimum academic entry requirements are below those required.

Usually, unrelated work experience is not considered sufficient for entry without meeting the minimum academic entry requirements. Please contact us with your specific circumstances by submitting an enquiry form above and we will be happy to discuss your options.

Can I make an appointment with an advisor to discuss further about the admission process?

If you want to get more information on the admission process, please get in touch with the Postgraduate admissions team by submitting an enquiry form above.

If your first language isn't English, you'll normally need to undertake an approved English language test and our minimum English language requirements will apply.

This may not apply if you have completed all your school qualifications in English, or your undergraduate degree was taught and examined in English (within two years of starting your postgraduate course). Check our country pages to find out if this applies to you.

We welcome applications from students studying a wide range of international qualifications.
Entry requirements by country

Please note that international students are unable to enrol onto the following courses:
  • BM Midwifery/MM Midwifery
  • All Graduate Apprenticeship courses.

See who can apply for more information on Graduate Apprenticeship courses.

We’re committed to admitting students who have the potential to succeed and benefit from our programmes of study. 

Our admissions policies will help you understand our admissions procedures, and how we use the information you provide us in your application to inform the decisions we make.

Undergraduate admissions policies
Postgraduate admissions policies

Fees & funding

The course fees you'll pay and the funding available to you will depend on a number of factors including your nationality, location, personal circumstances and the course you are studying. We also have a number of bursaries and scholarships available to our students.

Tuition fees
Students from 2024/25 2025/26
Scotland, England, Wales, Northern Ireland, and Republic of Ireland £8,715 £9,160
Overseas and EU £18,800 £19,750
Tuition fees are subject to an annual review and may increase from one year to the next. For more information on this and other tuition fee matters, please see our Fees and Funding links above.
The University offers a 20% discount on Postgraduate Taught Masters programmes to its alumni. The discount applies to all full-time, part-time and online programmes. The discount can only be applied to year one of a full-time Postgraduate degree, any additional years are exempt from the discount. For part time Postgraduate degrees the discount will apply to years one, two and three only and any additional years will be exempt from the discount. Please read our full T&C here
Please note that the tuition fees liable to be paid by EU nationals commencing their studies from 1 August 2021 will be the Overseas fee rate. The University offers a range of attractive Tuition Fee bursaries to students resident in specific countries. More information on these can be found here.


Careers

What career will open as a result of studying the MSc Marketing with Sustainability?

Marketing is the engine of global economic growth and with a Masters in a marketing discipline you can help any business, charity or NGO to be a leader in its field.

What will make me distinctive as a graduate from this programme?

For marketing to be practiced responsibly, an understanding of marketing’s relationship with sustainability and sustainable practices is a real benefit. Although our other MSc Marketing programmes emphasise the role marketing can play in contributing to a sustainable future, this degree provides a more focused and dedicated understanding of the relationship between marketing and sustainability on both a theoretical and practical level. By studying MSc Marketing with Sustainability you will benefit from the marketing group’s well-established and high-quality work in both fields. 

Three bespoke modules linking marketing and sustainability will focus your expertise: ‘Sustainable Supply Chain Management’ allows you to learn about global distribution issues, ‘Marketing, Sustainability & Ethical Perspectives’ will develop your skills in debating important theoretical and practical points and sharpen your abilities as a critical thinker.

The module ‘Marketing for a Sustainable Future’ will lead you to a full understanding of how marketing can help businesses and consumers achieve their sustainability goals. In particular the module will consider the role of marketing in advancing the UN's Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly in relation to SDG 12, which seeks to promote sustainable consumption and production.

Option modules will allow you to decide which aspects of marketing you would like to focus on, such as Global Marketing, or Strategic Brand Management, and the Dissertation or Capstone Project, completed in your third trimester, will focus on a marketing and sustainability topic. This substantial piece of work will allow you to showcase your academic writing and research skills, and demonstrate expertise in an area of marketing and sustainability that will be of interest to future employers.

 
Graduate student smiling for the camera as he works on a laptop