Marketing with Placement

Marketing is the discipline concerned with understanding what customers want and with creating, communicating and delivering value to them in ways that are commercially sustainable and ethically sound. It encompasses market research, consumer behaviour, brand strategy, digital marketing, advertising, public relations, pricing, distribution and the analytical frameworks used to measure whether marketing activity is working. As digital technology has transformed the channels through which brands communicate with audiences, the discipline has grown both in technical complexity and in strategic importance.

At Southampton this four-year full-time programme includes an integrated year of paid work placement, which is a significant and distinctive feature. You will cover marketing strategy, consumer psychology, digital marketing and the analysis of big data alongside more traditional approaches to market research, branding and communications, as the current description notes. The placement year gives you twelve months of real professional experience with an employer before returning to complete your final year, and many students find it transforms both their confidence and their clarity about the kind of career they want.

Southampton's marketing programmes are accredited, which reflects their alignment with professional standards and typically confers exemptions from professional body examinations. A typical entry tariff of 136 points reflects the programme's competitive character.

Marketing graduates move into careers across brand management, digital marketing, market research, advertising, public relations, e-commerce, product management, data analytics and strategic communications. The placement year frequently leads to a direct graduate job offer. Many graduates also pursue professional qualifications through bodies such as the Chartered Institute of Marketing.

Postgraduate study in marketing, data analytics, communications or business administration is an option for those who want to specialise further, and graduates with strong analytical skills find the field offers increasingly data-driven and technically demanding roles at senior levels.