Studies & Degrees in Marketing Management
Marketing Management Study Programs
IED Madrid, Centro Superior de Diseño
Marketing management is the planning and direction of how an organisation finds, wins and keeps customers. It goes beyond advertising: a marketing manager decides which customers to serve, which products and prices to offer, through which channels to sell and how to measure the result. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) describes marketing managers as the people who estimate demand and identify potential markets for the products and services of an organisation and its competitors, and who may develop pricing and other strategies, such as ways to acquire and retain customers.
Students learn market research, consumer behaviour, branding, pricing, distribution and sales management, digital marketing and data analysis, together with general business subjects such as finance and strategy. Most programmes end with a marketing plan or a project for a real company.
Qualifications and levels
- Vocational training (FP) in Spain. The official higher-level qualification is Técnico Superior en Marketing y Publicidad, a grado superior of 2,000 hours. According to TodoFP, the education ministry's vocational training portal, holders work as marketing technicians, assistants to a product manager, advertising or public relations technicians and organisers of marketing events.
- Bachelor's degree. In Spain a bachelor's degree (grado) has 240 ECTS credits; marketing is studied as its own degree or as a specialisation within business administration. In the United Kingdom, the Marketing BA (Hons) at York St John University takes three years full time, or four with a placement year.
- Master's degree. This is where the title marketing management (dirección de marketing) is most common. Official master's degrees in Spain have 60, 90 or 120 ECTS credits. The Universidad de Zaragoza teaches the Máster Universitario en Dirección, Estrategia y Marketing, with 60 credits, at its Facultad de Economía y Empresa, and the economics faculty of the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid lists a Máster Universitario en Marketing among its official master's degrees. In the United Kingdom, the Marketing MSc at York St John University takes one year full time or two years part time.
- Business school programmes. Private business schools offer master's programmes in marketing and sales management, often of 60 ECTS credits over one academic year. The qualification differs from one programme to another, and sometimes within the same programme. At EAE Business School, the Máster en Marketing y Gestión Comercial leads to an official qualification in one Madrid format and to the school's own qualification in another. ESERP Business School describes its nine-month, 60 ECTS master's in Barcelona as a qualification of its own from the Universitat de Vic - Universitat Central de Catalunya. Ask each school which qualification you will receive.
Where to study marketing management
SpainExchange lists 50 active schools for marketing management. Spain has 28 and the United States 8, followed by the United Kingdom with 2. Canada, Italy, Denmark, China, Singapore, Ethiopia, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Uruguay have one school each.
In Spain the subject is taught at public universities such as the Universidad de Zaragoza and the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, at business schools such as EAE Business School, ESERP Business School, ENAE Business School in Murcia and IMF Business School, which teaches online, and at vocational centres such as Florida Universitària near Valencia. Teaching is mostly in Spanish, and some business school programmes are also offered in English.
Abroad, the list includes York St John University and the University of Sunderland in England, colleges in the United States and Canada such as Broward College and Camosun College, VIA University College in Denmark and the Universidad de la Empresa in Montevideo, Uruguay, for study in Spanish.
Costs in Spain
Public universities charge regulated prices per credit, set each year by the regional government. At the Universidad de Zaragoza, the price for the 2026-27 academic year is €30.40 per credit for a first enrolment in the master's degrees of the Facultad de Economía y Empresa, which makes €1,824 for the 60 credits. Private schools set their own fees, which are considerably higher; ask for the full price including enrolment charges.
Careers
Graduates start as marketing assistants, market research analysts, brand or product executives, digital marketing specialists and sales representatives, and move on to brand manager, product manager and marketing director posts.
The BLS notes that advertising, promotions and marketing managers typically need a bachelor's degree and work experience in a related occupation. Marketing managers held about 421,600 jobs in the United States in 2025. Employment of advertising, promotions and marketing managers is projected to grow 6 percent from 2025 to 2035, with about 36,300 openings each year. These figures apply to the United States only.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between marketing and marketing management?
Marketing is the whole field. Marketing management is the planning and direction side: setting strategy, budgets and prices and leading a team. The title is used mostly for master's programmes.
Can I study marketing in Spain without going to university?
Yes. The grado superior Técnico Superior en Marketing y Publicidad is an official vocational qualification of 2,000 hours.
How long does a master's in marketing management take?
Usually one academic year. Official master's degrees in Spain have 60, 90 or 120 ECTS credits, and the master's at the Universidad de Zaragoza has 60. The Marketing MSc at York St John University takes one year full time.
Are business school master's programmes official degrees?
Some are and some are not. Schools such as EAE Business School offer official and own qualifications under similar names, so check the exact title before you enrol, especially if you need the degree for a doctorate or a public-sector post.