Admissions

Start date:
Duration:
12 months
Next application deadline:
Fee:
£42,500
Location:
London, UK

Applying for MSc Strategic Marketing

Are you ready to begin your MSc Strategic Marketing programme at a Business School where worlds collide? We take a holistic approach to admissions, considering not only your academic and professional achievements, but also who you are, what motivates you and how you collaborate with those around you.  

Applications for 2025 entry are now open.

Apply now

MSc Strategic Marketing class photo 2019-20

What we look for in an MSc Strategic Marketing candidate

If you are passionate about marketing with an excellent undergraduate degree and are an effective communicator with great problem-solving and teamwork skills, then MSc Strategic Marketing is a good fit for you. We’re looking for confident applicants who come from a variety of academic backgrounds who can display their passion via extra-curricular activities or professional experience. 

If you have substantial work experience, consider applying to our online programme.

Further detailed entry requirements are below.

Entry requirements

You should have a First or Upper Second Class undergraduate degree (or international equivalent) in disciplines such as: 

  • Business Management 

  • Marketing 

  • Economics 

  • Psychology 

  • Media and Communications 

Whilst there are no specific ‘A’ Level criteria for admission to MSc Strategic Marketing, you should be aware that some companies have very strict grade requirements for their graduate programmes. We strongly recommend that you research the entry requirements of any companies you are interested in working for. 

MSc Strategic Marketing is not a highly quantitative programme and is open to graduates from a variety of disciplines, but candidates are expected to be familiar with a basic knowledge of maths before the start of the programme. Successful candidates will be provided with access to online primer courses in basic quantitative skills and accounting to prepare you for the programme. Please familiarise yourself with the online primer content prior to applying so that you are clear about the topics you will be covering in the early stages of the programme. 

Although there are not specific quantitative prerequisites, it is useful for the selection committee to understand the level of your experience to date. You should use the ‘Quantitative Experience Statement’ on the application form to list the most advanced quantitative courses that you have taken in your academic career to date and to provide brief examples of the relevant topics covered by the course. 

MSc Strategic Marketing is designed for new and recent graduates. Candidates with more than three years’ work experience will be considered on a case-by-case basis. 

Work experience is not a requirement, although undertaking relevant internships and work placements and listing them in the ‘Industrial/Professional Experience’ section of your application form will add weight to your application.

 If you have substantial work experience, consider applying to our online programme.

All home, EU, and overseas applicants must demonstrate English language proficiency. Students who were not awarded their degree in a qualifying English-speaking country must demonstrate their proficiency by completing an approved English language qualification at the required level. Minimum test requirements for the most popular tests are: 

  • IELTS (academic): A minimum score of 7.0 with minimum scores of 6.5 in all elements 

  • TOEFL iBT: A minimum score of 100 overall with minimum scores of 22 in all elements 

  • Duolingo English Test: 125 Overall with no less than 115 in any band score 

More detailed information can be found on our English language requirements page.

How to apply

Start your application online 

  • Go to the application portal
  • Create an account and input your personal details   
  • Pay the £100 application processing fee 

Complete the application questions

As part of your application, you will need to complete: 

  • Career planning questions 
  • Quantitative experience statement 
  • Programming/computer software experience (if applicable) 

Submit your supporting documents   

 

Complete your application

Once you have submitted your supporting documents you can complete your application. Please note: referees may respond after submission.

Interview

Shortlisted candidates will be invited to interview. This is the best opportunity for you to demonstrate your passion and drive, and why you want to study a Master’s at Imperial.

Normally this will be through our video interview platform, which you can access online to record and submit your answers; occasionally you may be invited to interview via Skype or telephone instead.

Admissions decision   

You will be notified informally via email and officially via your Imperial Gateway account with the result of your application. You will receive a decision in line with the advertised deadlines.

Submit outstanding documents and pay your deposit   

After receiving your offer, you will need to submit documents to satisfy your offer conditions. As part of this process, you must verify your degree award through the online Qualification Check service, using a unique link provided in your offer conditions. You will then be required to pay a 10% deposit for the programme. The application portal can be used to respond to your offer and review the full details of your conditions.

Key dates and deadlines

Applications for our MSc Strategic Marketing 2025 intake are open.

We operate a staged admissions process with several deadlines throughout the year. This programme is highly competitive, so early application is advised; this will put you in a stronger position to be considered for a scholarship, and provide access to exclusive admitted students events.

Sign up to receive deadlines

Candidates should submit their application by 23.59 UK time on the day of the application deadline.

Deadlines for 2025 entry

Admissions round

Application deadline

Decision deadline

1

26 September 2024

28 November 2024

2

9 January 2025

6 March 2025

3

13 March 2025

8 May 2025

4

1 May 2025

19 June 2025

2025 scholarship deadlines

Deadline round

Date

1

Thursday 26 September 2024

2

Thursday 9 January 2025

A young woman on a mac laptop smiling

Invest in yourself

Choosing to pursue an Master's is one of the most important decisions you will make and is a substantial investment in yourself.

Many of our students fund their studies through multiple funding sources. We offer a wide range of awards, including a number of full scholarships to the most talented applicants.

Head over to our Fees and funding page to find out more about tuition fees, scholarships and the different financing options available to you.

 

Join an upcoming event

A great way to find out about our programmes is to meet us at an information session, drop-in or webinar. These events are held regularly throughout the year and give you the opportunity to learn more about the programmes from faculty, current students and alumni. Members of our Recruitment and Admissions teams will be available to provide you with all the information you need on the application process, deadlines, funding and scholarships.

Frequently asked questions

All applications to our postgraduate programmes are made online – we do not accept paper applications. Please refer to the ‘How to apply’ section of each programme page to see what documents you are required to submit with your application and to view the selection process.

All of our programmes are academically rigorous and include a quantitative component so all candidates are expected to be familiar with a basic level of mathematics before the start of the programme. The quantitative experience statement provides an opportunity to demonstrate this to the selection committee.

In the quantitative experience statement, you need to list up to five of the most quantitative modules or elements of your studies to date. You should list the main topics of study (eg: algebra, probability etc) as well as the level of study (eg: high school, undergraduate degree, short course etc) as this will allow the selection committee to have an understanding of your quantitative experience to date.

Quantitative experience is a key selection criterion for our more quantitative programmes (MSc Finance, MSc Finance & Accounting, MSc Financial Technology, MSc Investment & Wealth Management, MSc Risk Management & Financial Engineering, MSc Business Analytics, MSc Climate Change, Management & Finance and MSc Economics & Strategy for Business) so please be sure to check the entry requirements for your programme of interest to ensure your background is sufficiently quantitative. For other programmes, candidates are advised to review both the programme content and the pre-study modules to see what the numerical content of the programme includes before they submit an application.

Yes, you can. Our finance programmes at Imperial College Business School are highly rigorous, and our students are required to have a high level of quantitative skills. If you are considering applying for a programme within our finance Master’s portfolio, we advise you to take our online maths test to test your quantitative ability and determine if you are suitable to apply for the programme.

Please note, this maths test is most relevant to candidates considering the MSc Finance, MSc Investment & Wealth Management, MSc Financial Technology and MSc Risk Management & Financial Engineering programmes.

While it is not compulsory to submit the results of an approved English language test with your application, it is strongly encouraged and will add weight to your application if you are able to show that you have met the language requirement prior to applying. You can find detailed information regarding the Business School’s language requirements and the tests that we accept here.

In order to submit a verification request, you must first create an online account with Qualification Check using the unique link provided to you as part of your offer conditions. Once you have completed the two-step registration process, you will have access to your online account. Search for the name of the institution at which you obtained your qualification(s) and follow the steps to enter the required information for submission of a verification request. Your details will then be sent to the institution at which you studied to be authenticated by the appropriate department. Find more information at Qualification Check

Qualification Check’s standard procedure is to contact the primary source of the information, this is the institution at which you studied. Qualification Check will regularly contact the relevant department at the institution in order to confirm the authenticity of your qualifications. We understand that applications are urgent and Qualification Check make every effort to accommodate your needs and expedite processes. Some institutions may take longer than others, but rest assured that Qualification Check is working hard to complete your verification. Find more information at Qualification Check.

As part of your application, you will be asked to provide the contact details of two referees. Your referees will be contacted by email once you have completed and submitted your application, and the email will contain instructions on how they can submit your reference via our application system.

Please ensure that each reference letter that is submitted has been sent from an academic or professional email address. We cannot accept references sent from personal email addresses, such as Gmail, Hotmail, 126, 163, Sina, QQ, and Yahoo.

If you submit a complete application by the stated round deadline, we will ensure you receive an outcome by the corresponding decision deadline. However, delays in receiving your references or missing documentation required to progress your application may mean we are not be able to guarantee a decision by the deadline.

If the requested information is not received within five working days, we may be unable to guarantee a decision by the round deadline.
 
If you have received confirmation that your references have been submitted but this is not reflected in your account after a week, please contact the Central Admissions team at business.admissions@imperial.ac.uk

Yes. As part of the selection process, shortlisted candidates for our MSc programmes will be invited to complete an interview. Interviews are conducted through Kira Talent, our video interview platform, which you can access online to record and submit your answers.

The interview process typically takes about 20 minutes and does not require extensive preparation. It aims to supplement your written application by providing a further opportunity for you to articulate your suitability for your MSc programme of choice through questions about your previous experience and future aspirations.

If you are invited to submit a video interview, you will be sent details of how to access and use the Kira Talent online interview platform.

Once you have created an account, you will be asked a series of questions, to which you can record your answers as short videos and submit them online.

Please make sure that the invitation doesn’t go to your junk mail by adding kiratalent.com to your list of safe senders. You must complete your online interview by the deadline stated in the email. If the email has gone into a junk, spam, or clutter folder in your inbox, we will not be able to rearrange a new interview for you, and your application will be considered for withdrawal.

Please note: our video interviews are conducted via the Kira Talent platform. As Kira Talent is an independent third party service provider with their own terms and conditions of service and privacy policy, please familiarise yourself with these and ensure you are happy with them before proceeding to use the Kira service and platform.

For all MSc programmes, you can normally expect to receive a decision within 6-8 weeks of having submitted a complete application. Please keep in mind that during busy times and/or where documents are missing from an application, this time may increase.

When an offer is submitted by the Business School, the Central Admissions need to make a number of final checks before it can be formally approved. These may include an additional review of an applicant’s academic background or ensuring the references we have received are valid. Until you have received confirmation of the official offer via the College’s applicant portal, please do not arrange accommodation, book flights or decline any other offers you may be holding. The majority of offers are successfully approved by Central Admissions and you will be able to see full details of your offer conditions once your official offer has been confirmed.

Please email your programme admissions team if you would like feedback on your application. Please note that whilst limited feedback can be provided, the decision of the academic selectors is final and it will not be possible for your application to be reconsidered.