International Marketing

MSc
Programme Handbook 2016–2017

ncl.ac.uk/business-school
 Summary of programme commitments
The University’s Student Charter is available online at www.ncl.ac.uk/pre-arrival/regulations/
charter.htm. It is also provided to all students as part of The Student Guide. In the Student
Charter, the University undertakes to provide you with access to ‘high standards of teaching,
support, advice and guidance’.

The Student Charter requires that students are provided with a ‘programme handbook which
details any professional requirements, contact hours, mode of course delivery, assessment
criteria, examination arrangements and regulations, academic guidance and support, and
appeals and complaints procedures’. The purpose of this summary is to help you locate further
details about this key information in your handbook.

Your handbook also contains a range of other valuable information, so you should read it
thoroughly and retain a copy for future reference.

Your attention is also drawn to the Student Charter Supplementary Statement of Student Rights
and Responsibilities. Further information on this can be found at
www.ncl.ac.uk/pre-arrival/regulations/charter.htm

Key Information
This section signposts you to some of the key information about your Master’s degree
programme in your Programme Handbook and Postgraduate Study Guide.
Average number of contact hours
Page 6, Programme Handbook
for this stage/programme:
Mode of delivery: Page 4, Programme Handbook
Normal notice period for changes to the
Page 6, Postgraduate Study Guide
timetable, including rescheduled classes:
Normal notice period for changes
Page 14, Postgraduate Study Guide
to the curriculum or assessment:
Normal deadline for feedback on submitted
Page 9, Programme Handbook
work (coursework):
Normal deadline for feedback on
Page 9, Programme Handbook
examinations:
Professional accreditation: Not applicable
Page 9–10, Programme Handbook
Assessment methods and criteria:
Page 23, Postgraduate Study Guide
Page 3, Programme Handbook
Academic guidance and support:
Page 25, Postgraduate Study Guide

01 Postgraduate Handbook 2016–17

Contents
 Page
Your contacts  3
Your programme 4
Your assessment  9

Use of programme handbook

The purpose of this handbook is to provide you with an overview of your Master’s degree
programme. This handbook should be read in conjunction with the Newcastle University
Business School Postgraduate Study Guide. Together, these documents will provide you with a
guide to the facilities offered to you both by the School and the wider University and are designed
to complement other information provided by the University.

This handbook provides an accurate picture of the programme at the time of writing, but this
may be subject to minor change during the course of the academic year. You will be informed
of any changes through the appropriate channels.

Postgraduate Handbook 2016–17 02

 Your contacts
The International Marketing MSc programme director is Dr Natalia Yannopoulou. The
programme director has overall responsibility for the management of the programme.
The programme secretary is responsible for general administrative issues relating to the
programme.

Useful contacts
Degree programme director: Dr Natalia Yannopoulou natalia.yannopoulou@ncl.ac.uk
Room 4.05, Business School @ Barrack Road 0191 208 1720
The degree programme director (DPD) oversees your Master’s programme and can help you
with questions about the programme as a whole.

Programme secretary: Stephanie Thomas stephanie.thomas@ncl.ac.uk

Contact via Student Enquiries, The Hub (room 5.07), Business School @ Barrack Road
0191 208 1568
The programme secretary is your main point of contact for administrative queries relating
to your programme, such as information about procedures or deadlines.

Director of pre-experience postgraduate programmes: Dr Sara Maioli sara.maioli@ncl.ac.uk

Room 4.02, Business School @ Barrack Road
Dr Maioli oversees all pre-experience postgraduate programmes in the Business School.

Senior tutor: Dr Graeme Heron graeme.heron@ncl.ac.uk

Room 8.21, Business School @ Barrack Road
You will be allocated your own personal tutor who is there to help you with matters of a more personal
nature. In addition, you can contact the senior tutor who has overall responsibility for pastoral
matters and is chair of the staff–student committee for your programme.

Business School careers adviser: Ailsa McLeod ailsa.mcleod@ncl.ac.uk

Careers Service, King’s Gate
Our careers adviser can help you with information and guidance on careers and employment,
both during and after your studies.

Details on the teaching team will be provided in the first lecture for each module.

A complete list of Business School academic and professional support staff, along with contact
details, can be found online at www.ncl.ac.uk/nubs/staff. Staff profiles are also available via
this link illustrating the research and teaching interests of academic members of staff.

03 Postgraduate Handbook 2016–17

Your programme
This section aims to provide you with some key information on your degree programme.
Generic information relating to postgraduate degrees can be found on the Business School
Postgraduate Blackboard Community and in the Postgraduate Study Guide.

Programme features
This is a one-year, full-time modular programme. It consists of two parts: a taught component,
which runs from late September until mid-May; and a project, for which a dissertation is
submitted in early September. Successful completion of the taught component is required
in order for a student to progress to the dissertation project.

The taught component of the course consists of 120 credits of modules. This is followed
by a dissertation to a value of 60 credits. Dissertation projects involve both secondary and
primary research. Students who produce excellent dissertations will be encouraged to publish
their findings.

There will be an induction week for your Master’s programme at the start of Semester 1, including
sessions with your programme director, your designated personal tutor, group activities and social
events. This week is also your opportunity to familiarise yourself with the University, the facilities
available such as the Robinson Library, and check details such as your timetable. A full schedule
for the week will be included in your welcome pack on the first day of induction week and will
also be published in the ‘Student Life’ section of the Business School website at
www.ncl.ac.uk/nubs/studentlife.

Programme structure
Semester 1 provides a foundation for teaching core principles in marketing, the international
environment and consumer behaviour. All these are taught in a specific international context.
In Semester 2, students specialise in international marketing (courses in international marketing,
international brand management and international marketing communications management).
The key elements of knowledge and understanding in international marketing are taught within
these core compulsory modules.

The subject-specific and practical skills are developed within the taught programme. The key
skills are developed within the modules. In addition, research skills are developed from the
start of the programme through the Marketing Research module and are further practised in
other modules. This skill is applied at an advanced level during the dissertation. The application of
computer skills in numerical analysis is employed intensively in NBS8508, NBS8514 and NBS8236.
Computing skills are also employed within the dissertation.

Postgraduate Handbook 2016–17 04

 An overview of the programme structure is given on the following pages. Information on module
content is available online at www.ncl.ac.uk/module-catalogue and further details of the structure
will be given during the first lecture for each module.

All students take the following compulsory and core modules.

Module code Title Semester Credits

NBS8045 The International Business Environment 1 10
NBS8508 Market Analysis 1 10
NBS8517 Consumer Behaviour 1 10
NBS8526 Principles of Marketing 1 20
NBS8514 Marketing Research 1 and 2 20
NBS8507 International Marketing 2 10
NBS8509 International Brand Management 2 10
NBS8510 International Marketing Communications 2 10
Management
NBS8512 Dissertation in Marketing 1, 2 and 3 60

All students select 20 credits from the following list of optional modules.

Module code Title Semester Credits

NBS8213 Managing Design and Product Development 2 10
NBS8225 Performance and Decision Management 2 10
NBS8236 Customer Relationship Management 2 10
NBS8518 Small Business Marketing and Management 2 10
NBS8519 E-Marketing 2 10
ACE8107 Food Policy and Marketing 2 10

These modules will be offered subject to availability and timetabling.

05 Postgraduate Handbook 2016–17

Full descriptions of each module, including the aims and outcomes, syllabus, skills developed
(including Graduate Skills Framework), teaching methods and assessment methods, can be
found in the Module Catalogue at www.ncl.ac.uk/module-catalogue. Each module will comprise
a mix of teaching and learning methods, including independent study.

The Module Catalogue gives the indicative number of hours for each module of scheduled learning
and teaching (such as lectures/seminars) and guided independent study (such as assessment
preparation/directed reading and research).

As an overall indication, each 10 credits comprises 100 hours of study, including lectures –
the majority of this time will be independent learning, which you will carry out yourself outside
of scheduled classes. The exact number and type of contact hours for each module will vary
but you can expect to have at least 18 contact hours per 10 credits of modules taken.

Reading lists for each module can be accessed at rlo.ncl.ac.uk. Further information about the
module structure and recommended reading will be provided by the module leader at the start
of teaching.

Postgraduate Handbook 2016–17 06

 Semester International Marketing MSc

3 Oct 2016– International Business Environment

13 Jan 2017
Principles of Marketing

Market Analysis

1 Consumer Behaviour

Marketing Research
16 Jan–
27 Jan 2017 Assessment Period

30 Jan–  International Marketing

19 May 2017
International Brand Management

International Marketing Communications Management

2 Marketing Research

Optional Modules (20 credits)

22 May–
9 June 2017 Assessment Period

12 June–
3 1 Sep 2017 Dissertation

Dissertation
The dissertation is worth 60 credits and is the opportunity for you to integrate and apply your
learning to real-world situations and problems. The dissertation process commences during
the first semester with the Marketing Research module and additional taught sessions on
dissertation preparation. These are designed to lead you through the dissertation process,
including the preparation of your research project proposal. Following preparation of your initial
proposal, you will be allocated a supervisor who will provide guidance through the dissertation
writing process.

07 Postgraduate Handbook 2016–17

The dissertation is a major piece of work (10,000 words), which will enable you to apply the
knowledge and skills developed during the taught element of your degree programme. You
will be expected to demonstrate evaluative and analytical ability, gain an in-depth knowledge
of the topic and understand the relevance of the context in which the investigation is set.
The dissertation will be completed by 1 September 2017.

Degree programme regulations

The Degree Programme Regulations detail the modules to be studied on your Master’s degree
and any progression requirements, such as the need to pass the taught modules of the degree
before proceeding to dissertation. It is important that you read these and make sure you know the
requirements of your Master’s degree. Degree Programme Regulations are available online at
www.ncl.ac.uk/regulations/programme/2016-2017/nubs.php.

Programme specification
A detailed description of the programme structure, programme aims and learning outcomes
can be found in the Programme Specification online at
www.ncl.ac.uk/regulations/programme/2016-2017/nubs.php.

This includes information on the knowledge and understanding, intellectual skills, practical
skills and transferable/key skills which you are expected to develop and demonstrate during
your studies.

University regulations
It is important that you familiarise yourself with the University Regulations, in particular the
Postgraduate (Taught) Progress Regulations and Examination Conventions which detail the
regulations for study and award of a Master’s degree. This includes conditions for reassessment
in failed modules and criteria for eligibility of a Master’s award. You are expected to read these
and make yourself aware of their implications.
www.ncl.ac.uk/regulations/docs/2016.html.

Postgraduate research
Students who are successful in their Master’s programme may wish to consider applying for a
PhD with Newcastle University Business School. Newcastle University Alumni may also qualify
for a discount on PhD fees. Further details of the research areas covered within the School and
details of research programmes are available online at
www.ncl.ac.uk/nubs/courses/postgrad/research.

Postgraduate Handbook 2016–17 08

 Your assessment
The assessment will depend on the individual module. You can expect to be assessed by a
variety of means, including examinations, assignments both individual and group, presentations
and the dissertation. The mix of assessment methods is to allow you to demonstrate your
understanding of the knowledge outcomes of the programme and also your assimilation
of the skills developed during your Master’s programme.

The assessment methods used in individual modules are included in the module outlines.
The assessments for the taught modules are summarised in the table on the following page.

Details of assessment deadlines will be provided on the Postgraduate Blackboard Community

within the first two weeks of term to allow you to plan your workload. You should familiarise
yourself with the assignment submission procedures available on the Postgraduate Blackboard
Community. All assignments for Business School postgraduate modules must be submitted by
09.00 on the specified deadline date.

Most assignment deadlines are set at 09.00 on a Monday morning. This timing was decided
upon following feedback from students in previous years as it allows you to make full use of the
weekend for working on your assessment but doesn’t overlap with classes on a Monday. Please
note that work submitted after the specified deadline, even by just a few minutes, will be treated
as a late submission in line with University policy. Please see further details in the Postgraduate
Study Guide on late submission of assessed work.

Occasionally, a module leader may change an assignment deadline (almost always to a later
date). You will be notified of this in advance by e-mail by either the module leader or the relevant
programme secretary. For all assignment deadlines, you should receive your marks and feedback
within 20 working days. There may be certain exceptions to this turnaround time, but you will
be notified of this at the time the deadline is set. For Semester 1 exams, generic feedback will be
provided for the module early in Semester 2 to help you prepare for Semester 2 exams. For any
students required to resit any exam, as a minimum generic feedback will be provided at least
four weeks before the resit exam. Individual feedback for any exam can be provided on request
after exam boards have met.

09 Postgraduate Handbook 2016–17

Module Compulsory/ Individual Group Examination
core/optional assignment(s) assessment
International Business Core 100%
Environment
Principles of Marketing Core 50% 50%
Market Analysis Core 100%
Consumer Behaviour Core 100%
Marketing Research Core 50% 50%
International Marketing Core 100%
International Brand Core 100%
Management
International Marketing Core 20% 80%
Communications (Presentation)
Management
Managing Design and Optional 30% 70%
Product Development
Performance and Optional 100%
Decision Management
Customer Relationship Optional 100%
Management
Small Business Optional 20% 80%
Marketing and
Management
E-Marketing Optional 40% 60%
Food Policy and Optional 30% 70%
Marketing

Postgraduate Handbook 2016–17 10

For more information
Newcastle University Business School
5 Barrack Road
Newcastle upon Tyne
NE1 4SE
UK

Telephone: 0191 208 1500

ncl.ac.uk/business-school

This brochure is for information and guidance purposes only.

Details are correct at the time of printing (August 2016) but
should be checked on the University’s and School’s website.

The matters covered by this brochure and other information

that we provide for students, are naturally subject to change
from time to time, both before and after a candidate’s admission.
The University may have to make such changes without notice.
Further details of the University’s policies, procedures and regulations
can be found at www.ncl.ac.uk/pre-arrival/regulations.

© Newcastle University, 2016.

The University of Newcastle upon Tyne
trading as Newcastle University.