Mike Pretious

‘Everything you always wanted to

know about developing an

industry-relevant academic module…but

were afraid to ask!’

First Steps

Initial contact with Glasgow marketing communications agency DADA

Explanation of ‘The Student Project’ competition

Discussion with academic subject-group colleagues

Next Steps Commitment to take part in ‘The

Student Project’ 2009 Perceived need to embed

participation into a formal module Consideration of where to fit the

module into existing programmes Discussion at subject and School

level of module requirements

The Student Project Brief Achieving as many

registrations as possible on a ‘Scottish Sun’ student website

Developing two promotional campaigns appropriate to the ‘Scottish Sun’

The ‘Marketing Consultancy Project’ module

Synthesizing the elements of ‘The Student Project’ with Level 4 learning outcomes

Development of an appropriate assessment regime

Linking a ‘practical’ industry brief with academic requirements

Module Assessment Group response to consultancy

brief following participation in the competition (two sets of PowerPoint slides)

Individual report reflecting on team working, the consultancy process and the academic principles relevant to the practical project

Student Engagement Two QMU groups competed in the

competition: ‘SunStroke’ and ‘Off the Record’

Extraordinarily positive response to the brief

Both groups far exceeded expectations in terms of the ‘sign-up’ element of the competition

Both groups developed highly creative promotional ideas

Both groups were invited to the final judging event in Glasgow…

A team of Queen Margaret University students is jetting off to New York City after scooping a top marketing prize.

The winning team beat three other finalists. Part of their prize will be to visit a high profile news corporation in NYC, as well as have a work placement opportunity at News International’s offices in Glasgow.

Joanne Steel, assistant brand manager at News International, said: “‘Off the Record’ presented a highly creative campaign and hopefully this taste of the marketing industry has inspired them and we have helped to motivate tomorrow’s marketing minds.”

Student Feedback“I wanted to thank you for this opportunity. Without this module I am sure that I would still not be 100% sure if marketing was for me. This is a fantastic module for all marketing students as it provides great insight into a real life situation…the experience gained outweighs any benefit  of sitting another academic module in 4th year. 4th year students need a taste of reality, which this module definitely gives.”

Concluding Comments

Huge amount of work both in terms of preparation and teaching

Achieved the aim of producing an innovative industry-relevant module

Significant positive outcomes for the students, the university and personally