Careers Brief - Marketing Communications FdA
Overview
The Foundation degree in Marketing Communications offers you the opportunity for progression onto an Honours degree programme and direct job entry, although the advantages of being an Honours graduate can be significant.
Success in your course will have given you the knowledge and skills for a range of careers in business and marketing, as well as being of value for most careers. You will have demonstrated key employability skills and competencies in demand by employers. Key personal employability skills such as: interpersonal social/people skills, team working, written and verbal communication, problem-solving, IT, numeracy and time management.
You can further your prospects by gaining appropriate level work experience (or work placement).
Most organisations need to publicise and promote their activities to attract users or customers. This creates marketing opportunities across all industry sectors, commerce and public sector, both large and small organisations and consultancies.
A career in marketing incorporates the related career fields of advertising, direct marketing, market research, promotion and public relations. Job titles include: account executive; marketing executive; market researcher/analyst; sales promotion account executive; media analyst; publicity/PR agent; sales advisor/consultant; export manager; appeals organiser; advertising manager.
Go to the website links below to find out more.
Be aware that many of the multinational companies start recruiting honours graduate trainees from the Autumn Term of the final year. If you plan to continue onto a one-year top-up honours degree or final year honours degree, you should be prepared for job-hunting before you start your final year.
For an overview of related industry sectors, go to National Guidance Research Forum for 'LMI Future trends' and 'Sectors covered'.
Go to the Employability section of this Careers Guide for help and advice.
Further Study
You can apply for a Top-up degree. Top-up degrees are designed as a direct progression from a Foundation degree to achieve an Honours (or Ordinary) degree, though entry may be selective.
Alternatively, you could transfer onto a related Honours degree. Entry point would depend on your grades, experience and overlap between courses but could be the final year.
Go to http://onlineservices.bournemouth.ac.uk/courses/ for information on courses at Bournemouth University.
Institutions offering Top-ups with 'marketing' include:
Birmingham City University; University of Bolton; Bradford College; Buckinghamshire New University; Coventry University; University College Falmouth; University of Glamorgan, Cardiff & Pontypridd; Harper Adams University College; University of Huddersfield;
Newcastle College; New College Nottingham; University of Northampton; Northumbria University; Nottingham Trent University; University of Portsmouth; Sheffield Hallam University; Southampton Solent University; Staffordshire University; University of Sunderland; University of West London; University of Worcester.
To search degree courses go to www.ucas.com/ (UCAS - Universities and Colleges Admissions Service for the UK). Use the university/college links for course details.
You will need to use UCAS to apply for courses. Contact the Course Tutor of your chosen course to find out your position, before you make your formal application.
Find out how much this will cost you. Where is the funding coming from? Go to the university/college links for information on costs and finance and to the section on Financial support for additional help.
Alternatively, you could consider 'topping up' your Foundation degree to Honours through distance learning with the Open University. You could be awarded up to 240 credits and then only need 120 credits of OU study to achieve an Honours degree. This would also give you the opportunity to take up employment. Go to www.open.ac.uk/ to search undergraduate courses and credit transfer.
With a good Honours degree (First or 2.1), you may progress onto an appropriate higher level Masters and/or PhD doctorate. This could be to develop your area of study to a more in-depth practical and/or academic level or to gain other specialist training.
For information on postgraduate study and finance, go to the national online directory at www.prospects.ac.uk/study.htm .
Go to the main section on Further Study of this Careers Guide for additional help.
Useful Links
http://mycareerhub.bournemouth.ac.uk/
Bournemouth University Graduate Employment Service - job news, campus events, part-time work, graduate job, ask a question, book an appointment
www.prospects.ac.uk/starting_out.htm
Graduate Prospects - national careers site for HE students studying in the UK:
Drop down 'Careers advice' for 'Options with your subject'
Drop down 'Jobs and work experience' for 'What jobs would suit me?' using Prospects Planner
http://nextstep.direct.gov.uk/
Next Step careers site - go to sub-heading 'Planning your career' for 'Job Profiles'
http://targetjobs.co.uk/career-sectors
GTI Media publication for graduate jobs and careers advice
The Institute of Direct and Digital Marketing
Student site - go to sub-heading 'Want a job?'
www.mrs.org.uk/careers/career.htm
Market Research Society - careers section
The Association for Qualitative Research - go to sub-heading 'Jobs' for 'Graduate Pack'
The Chartered Institute of Marketing
The Institute of Sales & Marketing Management
Chartered Institute of Public Relations
Creative Choices developing your career in the creative and cultural industries - drop down sub-heading 'Choose a creative sector'
The Advertising Association
Hollis PR - online directory of PR agencies
www.marketingmanagersinfo.co.uk/
Marketing handbook
The Direct Marketing Association - online directory
Go to the Employability section of this Careers Guide for additional help and advice with making applications.
