B. A. A. Marketing Communication & PR
B. A. A. Marketing Communication & PR
Professional title: Bachelor of Applied Arts
Marketing Communication & PR higher education programme came to life in response to the staffing needs of consulting companies, marketing communication agencies, design agencies, public relations agencies and all marketing-oriented companies in economic and non-economic activities. When recruiting the above organizations are searching for staff that are able to combine creativity, leadership and communication ability, in addition to entrepreneurial mindset in repositioning or development of brands, products and services.
After completing the studies you will become sought-after experts in strategic communication, business planning, entrepreneurship, corporate communications management, or brand consultants, innovation managers, creative managers, PR managers, media planners, developers of new businesses and products, event designers etc.
The study programme teaches creative professionals how to develop, coordinate and implement marketing strategies and consumer researches in order to gain additional understanding of brands and innovation.
You will have the opportunity to learn from the best and work with the best. Many experts in the field of marketing, marketing communication and public relations were deeply involved in the preparation of highly practical and application-oriented study programme. Collaboration with reputable companies and institutions provides an opportunity for close co-operation with experienced professionals who will help you face the reality of work.
The entire programme is focused on the subject matters that are relevant to your future career.
Marketing Communication & PR higher education programme is rated at 180 ECTS credits.
Curriculum
1st YEAR
| COMMUNICATION MANAGEMENT | (5 ECTS) |
| Upon completion of this course, students will possess basic knowledge of communication skills and their impact on the performance of individuals and organisations. They will acquire knowledge on the best approaches to communicate effectively with various stakeholders. | |
| COMMUNICATION, MEDIA AND SOCIETY | (5 ECTS) |
| The intended learning outcomes of the course are: understanding of basic theories and models of communication; ability to understand and recognize characteristics of interpersonal, mass and media communication; understanding and evaluation of characteristics of verbal and nonverbal communication; knowledge of basic dimensions of culture and society for successful intercultural communication; understanding of the basics of socially responsible communication and marketing; understanding the functions of mass media and their fields of actioning and understanding of all elements of media systems and their functioning. | |
| BASICS OF MARKETING | (7 ECTS) |
| Students will learn the language of marketing used by practicing marketing managers. They will understand the importance of marketing in a society and its organizations and will gain the knowledge of basic marketing concepts: market, exchange process, benefit, prices, participants in exchange processes, product, and satisfaction. | |
| LANGUAGE CULTURE | (6 ECTS) |
| The main purpose of the course is to know and understand the social types of language – to recognize the differences between them and master them in various spoken and written word events, to understand the functionality of the language, to identify the differences between them, to master them on different occasions, to know how to use language manuals, what language culture is and to understand it. | |
| BASICS OF MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS | (7 ECTS) |
| The main purpose of the course is to know basic communication models through time, to learn how to understand consumers/users and to learn how to define target user/consumer groups for communications, to master methods of communication strategy and tactics development, to understand hierarchy of the goals (business – marketing – communication) and connection between correctly chosen communication tools for achieving those goals, to learn how to analyse efficiency of marketing communications and to apply the results in future activity planning, to understand the overall image of marketing communications and branded activities, to understand the broader context of marketing communications and to understand the right marketing communications evaluation tactics. | |
| BASICS OF PUBLIC RELATIONS | (7 ECTS) |
| The main objectives of the course are to gain knowledge of theoretical basics of PR, the use of appropriate terminology, the identification of political, economic, social, cultural and technological effects, which affect organizations, the ability to choose and use the correct communication techniques, to understand the strategic planning in relation with the philosophy of the organisation, the compliance with ethical principles, to know how to use the appropriate methodological tools for research, the ability to work in a team and the ability of holistic thinking. | |
| CONSUMER BEHAVIOR | (5 ECTS) |
| At this course you will develop a fundamental psychological and other knowledge about the consumer behaviour in terms of marketing and marketing communications and gain an understanding of basic theoretical principles, concepts and research findings to communicate with customers and programming of public relations. You will also develop the capacity for interdisciplinary treatment of consumer and commercial cooperation with various experts and ability to analyse and understand the communication process text and visual material to consumers. | |
| BUSINESS ENGLISH 1 | (6 ECTS) |
| The course covers a variety of topics and vocabulary from the fields of Marketing and Public Relations. Students will develop self-confidence to increase motivation for communicating in the target language and developing the ability to form views as precondition for effective communication. They will also develop the ability to transfer the acquired knowledge into new entities, to think about language, to analyse, compare and synthesize linguistic and cultural phenomena. | |
| BUSINESS ECONOMICS | (5 ECTS) |
| The main purpose of the course is to gain knowledge and understanding of controlling of fundamental categories of entrepreneurship, economics and finance, especially in relation to market, production, marketing, assets and liabilities, costs, etc… Students will learn about the capacity of strategic and operational planning, analysing and evaluation of financial statements, developing of capacity for standalone fabrication of reports, analyses, indicators and their interpretation, implementation of data and tools for analysing markets, customers and competition. They will acquire knowledge about planning of marketing, communication mix, advertising strategies and politics, which comprise necessary financial resources and measurement of market programmes, consumer profitability, market channels, pricing strategies, trademark values, and communication mix from the aspect of marketing and market communication performance. | |
| INFORMATICS IN COMMUNICATION AND NEW TECHNOLOGIES | (7 ECTS) |
| The main objectives of the course are: to learn about digital concepts and methods used by practitioners of digital business practices, communication, marketing, advertising ...;to learn how to think and communicate digital business topics such as markets, industries, business models, methods ...; to learn how to plan and manage digital communication in business, government and NGO sectors; to use the most advanced analytical tools and methods for evaluating the effectiveness of communication activities and programmes; to learn about specific areas of information technology and communications such as analytics, social networking, Web 2.0., mobile communication, semantic web, cloud computing, etc..; to acquire skills in integrating traditional and digital channels and to acquire skills in evaluating websites and other digital tools. | |
2nd YEAR
| PROJECT AND EVENT MANAGEMENT | (6 ECTS) |
| Students will learn about the importance of business events for linking and maintaining contacts with business partners. They will be acquainted with different organizational approaches, organizational forms and project management methods. They will learn about the importance of communication and project documentation as well as risk management, and the impact of business events on the business culture of the company and on public relations. | |
| BRAND MANAGEMENT | (6 ECTS) |
| At the end of the course, students are qualified to make a sublime decision about the true strategy and policy of using the trademark in business processes. The course enables and thus mediates the ability to integrate knowledge of trademarks with other business processes and to spread the true business culture through a brand. It also provides students with basic insights on the views offered by the rules of modern brand management and knowledge of a balanced brand image. Students will learn to think and to provide concrete solutions required by a comprehensive brand management process. | |
| SALES PROMOTION AND DIRECT MARKETING | (5 ECTS) |
| The main purpose of the course is to learn about the necessity of using direct marketing and the basic marketing concepts, processes and methods of direct marketing and marketing approaches of any products on any markets. After completion students will be able to analyse, diagnose, plan, implement, and control decisions about the use of database and testing in the field of direct marketing and will be able to use new media for the benefit of greater sales. | |
| CORPORATE COMMUNICATIONS AND SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY | (6 ECTS) |
| In today’s extremely dynamic environment, the role of corporate communications is to help organisations to develop and, ultimately, to cultivate and protect their reputation. It does it by engaging with the organisations’ stakeholders and by nurturing and communicating the organisations’ identity. The main objectives of the course are to recognise and understand the importance of corporate communications, to understand the basics of key corporate communications competencies, to learn corporate communications terminology, to learn about and how to use the communication management process, to use various communications network tools and activities, as well as to learn and use measurement techniques. | |
| METHODS OF MARKETING RESEARCH | (7 ECTS) |
| The main objectives of the course are to learn the role and reasons for conducting marketing research, to understand the basic process of marketing research (to formulate problem, determine research design, design data collection, analyse and interpret data); to gain the ability to plan and develop marketing research; to identify a suitable research approach to solve different marketing problems; to develop the ability to judge the quality of the marketing information (sample size, representativeness, results); to develop the ability to prepare the appropriate inquiry for conducting research at the marketing research agency, and to recognise the importance of the ESOMAR codes and ethical principles. | |
| SERVICES MARKETING | (6 ECTS) |
| The purpose of this course is to introduce, discuss, and analyse several topics important to service businesses. After completing this course, students should be able to understand the unique challenges involved in marketing and managing services, to identify differences between marketing in service versus manufacturing organisations, to understand how "service" can be a competitive advantage in manufacturing organisations, to identify and analyse the various components of the "services marketing mix" (three additional P's) as well as key issues required in managing service quality. They will know how to appreciate the role of employees (and often customers) in service delivery, customer satisfaction, service recovery, and other key issues in service businesses, such as managing supply and demand, the overlap in marketing/operations/human resource systems, and relationship management. They will build upon important workplace skills (e.g., cooperation, teamwork, meeting deadlines, report writing) through active learning activities and other classroom exercises. Additionally, the course assignments are designed to continue to improve students' verbal, written, and critical thinking skills in preparing them for positions in the business world. | |
| DIGITAL MARKETING | (5 ECTS) |
| The aim of the Digital Marketing Course is to provide students with the knowledge about business advantages of the digital marketing and its importance for marketing success. Students will be able to develop a digital marketing plan; to make SWOT analysis; to define a target group. They will learn how to integrate different digital media and create marketing content; how to optimize a Web site and SEO optimization; how to create Google AdWords campaigns; social media planning. They will be introduced to various digital channels, their advantages and ways of integration, as well as getting basic knowledge of Google Analytics for measuring effects of digital marketing and insight into future trends that will affect the future development of the digital marketing. The application of the gained knowledge, skills and competences will help future managers in forming digital marketing plan in order to manage a digital marketing performance efficiently. | |
| MEDIA RELATIONS AND MEDIA PLANNING | (6 ECTS) |
| In the profession of advertising, media planning is the process of creatively selecting the vehicles of mass communication (i.e. digital, mobile, radio, television, newspaper, magazine, out-of-home and non-traditional media) that will direct advertising messages to the right people, at the right time, at the right place, with the right number of exposures. Until the ads are placed in media, the advertising message is not advertising. In short, media planning is the process of choosing the best possible way of exposing consumers to ad messages. The aim of the study is to provide students with the ability to plan and buy messages in traditional and new media to creatively and effectively reach targeted prospects. Attention is given to media characteristics, scheduling, testing and buying efficiencies. Upon completion of the course, students should be able to understand the role of advertising and media planning in the strategic communication field. Students should also be able to critically evaluate and purchase media and understand the effects on the intended audience(s). | |
| ELECTIVE COURSE 1 | (5 ECTS) |
| The student chooses one of the elective subjects. | |
| PRACTICAL TRAINING | (8 ECTS) |
| Students take the practical training in the selected company or organization. Students with at least one year of relevant work experience can apply for the recognition of practical training. | |
3rd YEAR
| COPYWRITING | (6 ECTS) |
| By definition, copywriting is the writing of advertisements or publicity materials. Copywriters write such advertisements and materials with the purpose of generating leads, sales, or creating brand awareness. This course was designed to give students the knowledge and basic skills to start out as an entry level copywriter. Over the duration of this course, they learn the strategies for writing effective advertisements, as well as to create different types of advertising and marketing copy. This course also gives students the information they need to start pursuing a career as a copywriter. | |
| ADVERTISING, MEDIA AND BRANDING | (6 ECTS) |
| The number of choices that consumers have has exploded over the last decade. More than ever, brands must engage with potential consumers. How do you get through to your audience and move them from the point of awareness to the point of engagement and purchase? This is the main question that this course addresses. We will expose you to cutting edge marketing tools, methods and cases as well as most recent trends in advertising and branding such as targeted, viral and interactive ways of advertising, and engage you in evaluating advertisements and campaigns. You will learn different approaches to innovative thinking about advertising and branding and will get a chance to practise these skills in various exercises that will form part of the larger Advertising Plan that you will develop for a client. | |
| STRATEGIC MARKETING | (6 ECTS) |
| Upon completion of the course, students are able to identify the concepts and tools linked to strategic marketing. The course improves students’ ability to evaluate different market situations among industries and propose solutions to strategic product/market decisions. Furthermore, students are able to explain strategy at different levels: corporation, SBU and functional. They are able to apply concepts and tools of strategic marketing in global and local context, i.e. they understand the interdependency of macro- and microenvironments. In addition, students will demonstrate analytical thinking skills by applying different marketing strategies in practice and solving real-life business problems in a case exercise, guided by the problem-based learning (PBL) method. Students will apply oral and written communication skills appropriate for business situations by working in small groups throughout the course, playing various roles of marketing professional, and presenting their case exercise in written and oral form. |
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| INTEGRATED MARKETING COMMUNICATION | (6 ECTS) |
| Integrated marketing communication (IMC) is a cross-functional process for creating profitable relationships with customers and publics by strategically controlling all messages sent to groups and encouraging dialogue. Students learn to integrate marketing communication elements (e.g., advertising, public relations, publicity, sales promotion, event marketing, direct marketing, e-communication, and selling) to advance an organisation’s success and brand equity. Case studies and exercises help students learn how to develop effective IMC plans. | |
| CREATIVE ADVERTISING | (6 ECTS) |
| The objectives of Advertising Creative Strategy and Research course is to familiarize students with the theoretical foundations of creative strategy in advertising and marketing communications; the research methods utilized in gathering data for developing and evaluating strategy; and the process of developing strategy. The course will include lectures and discussions, as well as learning techniques that are meant to facilitate the exploration of creative strategy and research in advertising. These techniques include guest speakers when possible, case studies, exams, individual assignments, and a team project. The objectives of the course are as follows: to analyse advertising strategies demonstrated in successful advertising campaigns; to expose students to the issues and concerns in creative strategy and research; to examine the process of creative strategy and research, including relevant criteria associated with understanding advertising and promotion planning decisions. | |
| COMMUNICATION LAW | (5 ECTS) |
| This class considers legal issues in application. Students will systematically evaluate examples of how Slovenian/EU law affects and influences mass communication with a particular emphasis on public relations. Although this focuses on public relations issues, you will learn how communication law affects all aspects of mass communication practice. The goal of this class is to generate knowledge of effective principles of communication law, and promote legally sound approaches to work in communication. At the conclusion of this course, students should be able to understand communication law and its application to a variety of situations. | |
| ELECTIVE COURSE 2 | (5 ECTS) |
| The student chooses one of the elective subjects. | |
| ELECTIVE COURSE 3 | (5 ECTS) |
| The student chooses one of the elective subjects. | |
| ELECTIVE COURSE 4 | (5 ECTS) |
| The student chooses one of the elective subjects. | |
| THESIS or TWO ELECTIVE COURSES | (10 ECTS) |
| The diploma work is a student's written assignment composed on the basis of rules for writing expert or scientific and research reports. In the assignment, the student shows the ability of system approach and problem-based treatment of the topic of the diploma work. The student shows the ability of an interdisciplinary approach to dealing with a business problem by applying the knowledge and skills in the field of marketing communication & PR and the ability of comprehensive addressing of the study problem. | |
ELECTIVE COURSES
| BUSINESS ENGLISH 2 | (5 ECTS) |
| The main objectives of course are to upgrade and extend the knowledge of the terminology related to various fields of business and marketing, to develop specific listening, speaking, reading and writing skills by using appropriate business-related texts, to develop specific business communication skills (e.g. presentations in English), to develop professional discussion skills in marketing and public relations, to develop integrated skills by the application of case-studies and to develop a sound understanding and awareness of cross-cultural issues in international marketing. | |
| MARKET AND PUBLIC OPINION RESEARCH IN PUBLIC RELATIONS | (5 ECTS) |
| The intended learning outcomes of the course are: the ability to differentiate between qualitative and quantitative research, to understand the benefits and shortcomings of qualitative and quantitative research when evaluating PR projects, to understand the barriers of the media content analysis as one of the most widely used tools for monitoring the effectiveness of PR actions, to learn about the classification of effects of PR actions (outputs, outtakes, outcomes, actual change) and being able to use it for setting up the goals of the PR project and for defining the indicators to monitor the pre-set goals, to learn how to plan the suitable types of research along with planning the PR project while taking into account the goals, contents, target group and other details of the project, to learn how to specify all the requirements of the requested research for the outsourced research agency, to develop the skills of the project work and to strengthen problem-based and analytical thinking. | |
| PUBLIC RELATIONS IN PRACTICE | (5 ECTS) |
| Public Relations Strategies introduces students to the strategic planning process involved in putting together and coordinating organisational public relations efforts. In this course, students will learn what is involved in developing, implementing and evaluating public relations strategies. The course provides insights on understanding an organisation’s internal and external environment, as well as identifying and addressing public relations situations that emerge in these environments. Students will learn how to develop objectives and design strategies, and select tactics that can better serve the organisation’s goals. Additionally, students will learn from current public relations strategies by analysing and discussing good and bad practices. This course also focuses on the use of social media and other new media channels in strategic public relations, examining when and how they can be employed to better serve the organisation communication and relationship building needs. | |
| BUSINESS ATTIRE AND PERFORMING FOR THE CAMERA | (5 ECTS) |
| The course deals with topics such as understanding the power of a visual first impression; analysing business events from the perspective of business protocol; recognizing, understanding and analysing suitability of business image considering specific business opportunities; awareness that employees contribute to the image of the company or a project; providing suitable business image for a certain business environment and a professional role, an appropriate usage of colours and patterns; developing a positive self-image and recognizing the importance of physical activity, body care, care of clothing and footwear; critical and selective dealing with media information; coordinating non-verbal and verbal communication while performing publicly; defending a selected topic of a seminar paper. | |
| BUSINESS COMMUNICATION AND PROTOCOL | (5 ECTS) |
| The course provides a foundation in business communication and protocol and emphasises the importance of presenting information to a professional audience. When you communicate to a professional audience, you have to establish credibility. If your documents/presentation slides are not organized so that key information is easy to read; if there are mistakes in grammar/usage; if you cannot substantiate your recommendation, if the distinctions you are trying to make are not clear, then most business professionals will dismiss you as not worth their time. Course assignments will include written assignments, oral presentations, and team-building exercises. These assignments focus on preparing you to convey information or to take a position and back it up with evidence in a clean (no distracting errors), clear, and concise way. The topics covered will include composing standard business messages, organizing and reporting workplace research, developing presentation and team-building skills. Protocol coverage will include multiple aspects of professional behaviour, with a focus on integrative skills (soft-skills), including diversity awareness that companies expect new employees to possess. | |
| VISUAL COMMUNICATIONS | (5 ECTS) |
| This course introduces students to communication in a creative and innovative perspective through visual imagery and media. Students will learn the concepts, theories, aesthetics and skills of visual communication, covering visual persuasion, photography, graphic design, cultural and ethical issues, visualization of ideas, and others. Emphasis will be placed on the ability to conceive new and innovative solutions for specified communication issues. Relevant project works and case studies worldwide will be discussed. Techniques will also be introduced for accomplishing visual communication tasks with a range of media applications. Through hands-on practice, students will learn how to apply theories into practice and to become creative and effective communicators in the media world. | |
| CASES IN MARKETING | (5 ECTS) |
| At the end of the course students should develop individual approach to research, teamwork, patience, acceptance and compliance with constructive criticism and comments, ability to solve real business problems by using scientific methods and procedures and integrate knowledge from different fields and its application in the business environment. | |
| MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES OF PUBLIC RELATIONS | (5 ECTS) |
| As a result of the course, students should be able to demonstrate understanding of the purpose of public relations and its strategic process; to identify and explain the concepts and theories on which strategic public relations is based; to apply the knowledge and experience gained in this course, as well as from course prerequisites, to the development of an experiential learning project for a client organisation, which should become part of students’ professional portfolios; to write and formulate fundamental components of a public relations strategic plan, including situation analysis, objectives, and selection of strategies and tactics; to define publics appropriate for specific client organisations and appreciate differences that affect programming; to recognize the importance of primary and secondary research in public relations practice; to demonstrate understanding of conceptual foundation, professional skills and competencies related to strategic management process of the public relations function; to demonstrate proficiency in written and oral communications. | |
| FORMATION OF COMMUNICATION STYLE | (5 ECTS) |
| Students will acquire knowledge on the main aspects involved in creating a comprehensive Communications Plan for an organisation, and how to deal with human communication-driven problems or challenges. They will gain understanding of the rules and norms that should govern any organisation, appreciate the legal aspects inherent in creating and then operating an organization, become familiar with a number of major organisational communication theories and models, and understand and effectively make use of the specialized vocabulary. They will learn how to best conduct meetings, negotiate and resolve conflicts, and gain management skills in the organisation of events. | |
| ACCOUNTING | (5 ECTS) |
| This module provides an introductory level orientation to some basic accounting principles and their applications. Part of the focus is on Financial Accounting and part on Cost and Management Accounting. The subject provides an introductory level to financial statements such as balance sheets, income (often referred to as profit) statements, and cash flow statements. These financial statements are then analysed using financial ratios. Cost and Management Accounting focuses on the internal activities of a business, and approaches to determining the cost of products, services and other activities as a part of business. This focus also covers planning to help in financial decision-making process, including break even analysis and other financial ratios. | |
| SALES MANAGEMENT | (5 ECTS) |
| This course focuses on developing and maintaining relationships with customers and managing the sales process of finding, converting, and keeping customers while achieving the organisation’s goals. Communication techniques, career planning, selling strategies and tactics, as well as sales duties, responsibilities, and problems are included. | |
| SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING | (5 ECTS) |
| The main purpose of the course is to understand new ways of marketing on the World Wide Web and to know the PR language for the World Wide Web. During the course, students will become familiar with all types of social media and be able to use them for business purposes. The importance and role of social media in modern marketing efforts can no longer be ignored. It is an integral component in almost all successful marketing strategies. With the increasing emphasis on integrated social media strategies, there is an irrefutable need for marketing professionals and organisations to have end‐to‐end social media expertise. Through case studies, interactive sessions, and class exercises, students will learn best practices and develop the skills to connect business objectives with social media strategy, platforms and tactics. Topics will include choosing appropriate platforms, creating effective and engaging social media content, content management, social listening and creating a social media policy. | |
| CAREER ORIENTATION | (5 ECTS) |
| Through participation in various workshops, students will develop autonomy, (self)criticism, (self)reflectivity, and (self)evaluation skills and will be able to research, report, and evaluate in the context of their career development. They will develop critical and self-critical judgment skills, empathy, intercultural sensitivity, and openness to people from various cultural backgrounds and different social situations. Students will develop communication skills in the domestic and international learning environment. In one's own career planning and critical evaluation within the framework of selected problem tasks, students will develop the ability to manage time and to flexibly apply knowledge in intercultural practice. | |
