Postgraduate students on a Social Media Marketing and Content module at the University of Westminster are gaining invaluable real-world experience by working with actual businesses as clients for their assessments.
Between March and April 2024, more than 80 postgraduate students from the Digital Marketing Management MSc course taking the Social Media and Content Marketing module completed an authentic assessment and collaboration with five different businesses. Each student worked with these business clients to design a social media marketing campaign.
Every business delivered a live brief and question-and-answer session on campus. After students developed their campaigns, they delivered their pitches to their partner businesses. Industry clients who collaborated with students for these assessments are Evenbreak, a job board organisation that helps connect disabled candidates with inclusive companies; STORY Clinic, a holistic aesthetic medical clinic; The Academy Clinic, a leading cosmetic training clinic; UltraCarePlus, private ultrasound diagnostic clinic; and Kurk, a supplement company focused on managing inflammation.
The hands-on nature of these assessments enabled students to apply theoretical knowledge gained in the classroom to real-world scenarios. Students gained real-world experience in understanding the target audience's social media preferences, crafting engaging content and implementing effective marketing tactics across various social media platforms.
Lecturer Maria Bortnovskaya, the module leader of the Social Media and Content Marketing module said: “Collaborating with businesses as part of authentic assessments in the module offers students invaluable real-world experience. This hands-on approach enhances their employability by developing critical skills such as strategic thinking, stakeholder management, and client communication. Furthermore, such partnerships help to foster industry connections, providing students with networking opportunities that could lead to future career prospects, and we already have a few successful examples.”
Digital Marketing Management MSc student Julia Cox said: “Collaborating with a business in the Social Media and Content Marketing module was exhilarating and educational. Applying our studies in a real-world context and receiving feedback from professionals was both exciting and nerve-wracking but ultimately very rewarding."
Trent Scanlen, Co- Founder and CEO of Kurk, said: “We really enjoyed this collaboration with Westminster marketing students led by Maria. I was impressed with the energy, insight and ideas that they all brought to the marketing challenge. I hope we were able to help them gain valuable real-world experience.”
The businesses were invited to collaborate by the module leader and by Westminster Enterprise Network (WeNetwork), the University’s entrepreneurial network that brings together students and recent graduates with industry to develop their entrepreneurial skills, engage in self-employment work and create businesses.
These projects contribute to Employability and Education objectives in the Being Westminster Strategy by offering employability-led learning and purposeful engagement with businesses and industry.
This course initiative directly contributes to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 4: Quality Education and 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth. Since 2019, the University of Westminster has used the SDGs holistically to frame strategic decisions to help students and colleagues fulfil their potential and contribute to a more sustainable, equitable and healthier society.
Learn more about courses in Business and Management at the University of Westminster.
Kursk student team
Storyclinic student team
UltraCarePlus student team
