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Studies & Degrees in E-Marketing

E-marketing is the older name for what most schools now call digital marketing or online marketing: marketing that reaches customers through digital channels. These channels include search engines, websites, social media, email, online advertising and mobile apps. The principles are those of marketing in general. What changes is the toolset, and the fact that almost every action can be measured.

Students learn to plan a campaign, run it on several channels, read the data it produces and adjust it. A programme usually combines general marketing subjects, such as consumer behaviour, branding and strategy, with channel skills. At ESEI International Business School in Barcelona, for example, the core modules of the Master in Digital Marketing include analytics, search engine optimisation (SEO), social media marketing, search engine marketing (SEM), CRM and data, and performance marketing.

Qualifications and levels

E-marketing is taught at every level, from short courses to master's degrees. It is more often a specialisation than a first degree.

  • Bachelor's degrees. Most students take a degree in marketing or business with digital subjects. In Spain an official bachelor's degree (grado) has 240 ECTS credits. Griffith University in Australia announced a Bachelor of Advanced Digital Marketing and Analytics (Honours) for 2025, next to the marketing major of its Bachelor of Business; check the university's current course list before applying.
  • Master's programmes. Official Spanish master's degrees have 60, 90 or 120 ECTS credits. The Master in Digital Marketing at ESEI has 60 ECTS credits, lasts one year and is taught entirely in English; it asks for a bachelor's degree or more than five years of experience. According to the school, graduates receive an ESEI private degree and a título propio (a university's own qualification) of the Universidad Católica de Murcia (UCAM). In the United States, the Digital Marketing MS of Temple University requires 30 credits beyond the bachelor's degree. It is taught online and part-time, and must be completed within six years.
  • Vocational training in Spain. The higher-level vocational qualification Técnico Superior en Marketing y Publicidad lasts 2,000 hours and includes a module on digital marketing. Holders can continue with a specialisation course in search engine positioning (SEO/SEM) and social media communication.
  • Short courses. Business schools and online providers offer courses of a few weeks or months on single tools or channels. Ask each school what recognition its certificate has.

Where to study it

SpainExchange lists five active schools for e-marketing. Three are in Spain, all in Barcelona: ESEI International Business School, C3S Business School and UIBS / Barcelona Business School. The other two are Temple University in Philadelphia, in the United States, and Griffith University on the Gold Coast, in Australia.

English is the language of the programmes described above: ESEI teaches its master's in English in Barcelona, and Temple and Griffith are universities in English-speaking countries. Universities in English-speaking countries ask non-native speakers for a language certificate: Temple, for example, lists an IELTS score of 6.5 for its Digital Marketing MS. Check the language and the type of qualification of each programme, because private business schools in Spain often award their own qualifications rather than official university degrees.

Careers

Graduates work in the marketing departments of companies, in advertising and media agencies, in e-commerce and as freelancers. Typical first jobs are SEO or SEM specialist, social media manager, content or email marketing specialist and web analyst. Temple University names roles such as insights and analytics specialist and media planning and buying specialist for graduates of its master's degree.

For the United States, the Bureau of Labor Statistics projects employment of advertising, promotions and marketing managers to grow 6 percent from 2025 to 2035, and employment of market research analysts to grow 7 percent in the same period. Managers typically need a bachelor's degree and work experience in a related occupation. The Bureau also expects managers and their staff to use artificial intelligence to generate, test and modify digital advertisements more quickly, so the tools taught in this field change fast.

Frequently asked questions

Is e-marketing the same as digital marketing?

In practice, yes. E-marketing, online marketing, internet marketing and digital marketing describe the same field, and most schools now use the name digital marketing.

How long does a master's in digital marketing take?

It depends on the programme. The Master in Digital Marketing at ESEI in Barcelona has 60 ECTS credits and lasts one year. The Digital Marketing MS at Temple University has 30 credits, is studied part-time and online, and must be completed within six years.

Do I need a degree to work in digital marketing?

Not always, but it helps. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, marketing managers and market research analysts typically need a bachelor's degree. In Spain there is also a vocational route, the 2,000-hour Técnico Superior en Marketing y Publicidad.

In which language are e-marketing programmes taught?

Mostly in English at the schools listed here. ESEI states that its master's is taught 100% in English. Ask the other schools about the language of each programme.