M.S. Integrated Marketing Communications | Marketing Communications

An Online Marketing Degree From an Established Leader

We were the first online IMC master’s program in the country, and we are proud of the program we have built. Since our start in 2003, we’ve been honing our program to respond not only to student needs, but to the needs of the market. While the program is online, its rigor is held to the standards befitting West Virginia University’s R1 research standing. Go ahead, check us out. You’ll always find WVU’s IMC program listed among the best in the country.

Completely online. Completely flexible.

You need 10 courses (that’s 30 credits) to earn your Master of Science in IMC. But, how, where and when you do it is completely up to you. There are zero in-person commitments. Schedule multiple courses at a time to finish quickly, or spread them out to balance school with work and family. Need to take a semester off for a big work project or a new baby? No problem! It's your degree, on your time.

Customizable.

There are more than 25 electives to choose from. What’s your passion? What do you need to fill a void at your company? Be the expert in digital and social media, or creativity, or healthcare with our specializations. Take courses in diversity, sports marketing or entrepreneurship for course electives. The options are constantly expanding to keep up with industry demands to allow you to become an expert in a specialized field.

Practitioner faculty.

Our faculty are the best in the industry. They are professionals from the nation’s capital, the Big Apple and Silicon Valley. They take their daily professional life and bring the real IMC world into your virtual classroom. They’re more than instructors – they’re mentors, and well-connected members of your new network.

Unbeatable value.

At WVU, you get a lot of bang for your buck — a world-class program taught by leading experts. Tuition is the same regardless of where you live, and the flexible programming allows you to take courses at a pace your budget and calendar can handle. As with any investment, the question is - what’s the return? In a recent survey of our graduates, 41% have received more than 25% salary increases since earning their IMC degree. Now that’s ROI.

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WVU IMC Alumni Go Far

Our 1,500+ alumni, current students and faculty hold elite positions at companies all over the world. We have a saying, “Once a Mountaineer, Always a Mountaineer.” Mountaineers like nothing more than helping fellow alumni and soon-to-be alumni, so the support system starts on day-one and continues as long as you let it. Leverage the power of the Mountaineer network!

Meet Amanda Beck, class of 2017. Amanda is now Marketing Communications Manager at Texas Association of School Boards. Amanda's favorite part of the program was the applicable curriculum. "I enjoyed taking challenges from work and applying the practices from each course to address them. Although it was challenging to complete, the campaigns course was the best example of this. I selected a client in the industry I had previously worked—and had an interest—and really enjoyed going through the process to build a campaign that would be viable in the real world."

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WHAT IS IMC?

Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) is a strategic, collaborative, and promotional business function through which a targeted audience senses consistent, persuasive, and reinforcing brand messaging.

As a discipline, IMC attempts to unify all pieces of marketing communications, including advertising, public relations, direct marketing, social media, and sales promotion. Integrated Marketing Communications adopts a human-centered approach where messaging caters to an audience and is consistent across all channels.

What makes IMC different from general communications?

General Communications

In the broadest sense, to study communications means to study the craft of delivering a message in an effective way.It’s the “marriage of theory and application;” it’s a “wide ranging generalist path that can be tailored to work in a variety of specific industries.” Similarly, advanced communications-related degrees — like a Master of Arts in Communication Studies, Mass Communications, Journalism, orPublic Relations degrees — tend to be more broad and general in subject matter.

IMC

When you study integrated marketing communications, you learn how to align marketing activities to ensure a constant flow of information to consumers from a variety of media. As technology continues to advance and as digital media becomes increasingly important, companies must be able to leverage those mediums to create effective and consistent marketing and messaging that connects the consumer to their brand. As a graduate of an IMC program, you not only would excel at marketing communications, but would also be able to analyze data and manage strategic project planning.

IMC Curriculum

UP-TO-DATE COURSE CONTENT

The WVU IMC program is always evolving to meet the needs of professionals in our dynamic industry. You will gain practical and experiential knowledge of every aspect of IMC from advertising to social media to PR to creative strategy and beyond. The curriculum consists of 1 introduction course, 3 core courses, 2 specialty courses, 3 elective courses, and 1 capstone. The curriculum is structured so that students can attend full-time or part-time.

ADD A SPECIALIZATION

West Virginia University’s Integrated Marketing Communications graduate degree program allows students to specialize with an Area of Emphasis (AOE). These specializations broaden your knowledge base, making you more competitive in the job market. Included on your transcript once you graduate, the AOE you choose demonstrates your expertise in that specific area of specialization. Each specialization adds 3 credits and $2,460 to the degree. Specializations include: creative strategy, data marketing communications, digital and social media, healthcare communication, higher education marketing and public relations leadership.

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INTEGRATED MARKETING COURSES

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Specialize and Gain a Competitive Advantage

These paths offer industry demanded academic focuses to broaden your knowledge base and be more competitive in the job market. WVU Areas of Emphasis give you the ability to develop specific areas of expertise. Add expertise to fill a knowledge gap in your company or to move into an area of marketing in which you’re interested. Each AOE consists of four 3-credit courses, three of which can be applied as electives. The final 3 credits are additional to your degree requirements. So an IMC Degree with a specialization requires 11 courses, 33 credits, and adds $2,460 to the total cost of the degree.

Areas of Emphasis

The Future of Retail

During the pandemic, we’ve all be watching with horror as stores close and shopping behavior has turned upside down. Amazon’s sales are up 40% in the last 12 months. What’s the future of retail, we have to ask? Join us for an engaging discussion with Paul Leinwand and Samrat Sharma from PriceWaterhouseCoopers’s as they discuss the future of consumer markets and where the consumer shopping experience is headed. Paul Leinwand is global director of the Strategy& unit of PwC based in Chicago and teaches strategy and management as an adjunct at Kellogg Graduate School of Business. Samrat Sharma also works at Strategy& and has an MBA from Carnegie Mellon.