Master’s in Marketing Communication Research Concentration: Media Science Program

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What is marketing communication research?

Marketing Communication Research helps organizations make smarter communication decisions. By combining consumer behavior, audience research, analytics, and strategic communication, you’ll uncover the insights behind how people think, make decisions, and respond to messages.

Every campaign, product launch, and communication strategy begins with the same questions: Which audience should we reach? Which messages resonate most—and why? What influences purchasing decisions? Whether you’re looking to advance in your current field or pivot into a career in consumer insights, you’ll learn how to answer those questions through quantitative and qualitative research, then translate your findings into communication strategies organizations can act on.

Why study Marketing Communication Research at BU?

What can you do with a Marketing Communication Research degree?

Organizations don’t need more data—they need people who know how to turn research into strategic communication decisions. That’s exactly what Marketing Communication Research graduates do.

More than 90% of alumni report working in their field. Graduates translate consumer research into communication strategies that shape campaigns, strengthen brands, improve customer experiences, and guide organizational decision-making across technology, retail, healthcare, finance, consulting, and beyond.

Alumni career spotlights

Graduates build careers where consumer research informs communication strategy and shapes organizational decisions.

Consumer insights + analytics:

• Product Manager at TikTok
• Sr. Data Science Manager at Visa
• Senior Research Analyst (Research & Strategy) at Sony Electronics

Strategy + user research:

• UX Researcher at Google
• Associate Director (Marketing Insights and Strategy) at The Clorox Company

Leadership + innovation:

• Director (Consumer Insights and Front End Innovation) at Nestlé Coffee Partners

Additional career opportunities

• Core functional roles: Brand Strategist • Consumer Insights Manager • Market Research Analyst • Marketing Analytics Manager • UX Researcher • Consumer Insights Director • Research Consultant • Research Director • Research Analyst • Data Analyst • Market Research Specialist • Management Analyst
• Executive + academic milestones: Graduates have gone on to become founders, CEOs, corporate vice presidents, and university faculty.

Graduate employers

• Technology + finance: Google, TikTok, Sony Electronics, Tencent, Visa, Fidelity Investments, Allstate
• Consumer brands: Nestlé Coffee Partners, The Clorox Company, SharkNinja
• Research + analytics: Nielsen, Tiger Analytics, Lieberman, Digitas
• Industry Footprint: Graduates also work in boutique research firms, specialized consumer insights consultancies, nonprofits, and public policy organizations.

What you’ll learn: the consumer insights curriculum

To graduate from the Marketing Communication Research (MCR) concentration (within the Media Science master’s program), you’ll complete 12 courses (48 credits) that build expertise in consumer research, audience behavior, analytics, and strategic communication. You’ll learn how to uncover consumer insights, evaluate communication effectiveness, and translate research into recommendations organizations can act on.

Core research courses (4 courses):

• Consumer behavior + audience insights: Understand the psychological, emotional, and social factors that influence purchasing decisions, audience behavior, and communication effectiveness.
• Research design + measurement: Design and conduct reliable research studies that generate meaningful consumer insights.
• Applied analytics + statistics: Use statistical tools to analyze consumer data, evaluate communication performance, and identify meaningful patterns.
• Data visualization + storytelling: Learn how to communicate complex research findings through clear, persuasive visualizations that support strategic communication decisions.

Customizable electives (4 courses)

Customize your degree with electives that deepen your expertise in consumer insights, communication strategy, analytics, and emerging media.

• Advanced data analytics
• UX research and user experience design
• Social media analytics and strategy
• Health communication campaigns
• Political communication and public opinion
• Interactive media and consumer behavior
• And more

Optional: Certificate in Data Analytics

Looking for even more technical depth? You can choose to use your electives to earn a Certificate in Data Analytics alongside your master’s degree. This pathway adds high-demand skills in machine learning, data visualization, web mining, and data mining to strengthen your consumer research and analytics expertise—with no additional semesters.

Put consumer research into practice

Put your research skills into practice using the same enterprise-level tools trusted by consumer insights, analytics, and communication strategy teams.

• Communication Research Center  (CRC): Work with faculty on daCollaborate with faculty on research exploring consumer attention, audience behavior, and message effectiveness using eye tracking, biometric measures, virtual reality, and emerging AI-powered research tools.
• Zimmerman Family Social Activation Center: Use enterprise social listening, sentiment analysis, and audience analytics platforms to understand public conversations, uncover consumer insights, and inform strategic communication decisions.

Meet your consumer insights faculty

Our faculty are researchers, strategists, and industry practitioners who bring expertise in consumer insights, audience research, analytics, media psychology, and strategic communication into every course. They’ll help you translate complex research into communication strategies that organizations can act on.

There is nothing more rewarding to me than seeing my students, years after they graduate, still applying what I’ve taught them. The same can be said about watching students who did not think they had the needed background to understand advanced analytic techniques become masters of these techniques.

Dr. Michael Elasmar, MCR program founder and director

Study in Boston: your living media lab

Boston is one of the country’s leading centers for consumer research, consulting, technology, healthcare, and innovation—where organizations constantly seek better ways to understand audiences, evaluate communication, and make smarter strategic decisions.

Major employers—including Boston Consulting Group, McKinsey & Company, Forrester Research, Applied Marketing Science, Wayfair, Ipsos, Kantar, NielsenIQ, Google, Microsoft, and Amazon—offer opportunities to apply your research skills through internships, consulting projects, and careers in consumer insights, analytics, and strategic communication. It’s the ideal place to learn how consumer insights become communication strategies that organizations act on.

Program details at a glance

• Degree: MS
• Concentration: Marketing Communication Research (within the MS in Media Science)
• Length: 3 semesters
• Format: On campus
• GRE: Not required
• STEM OPT: Eligible for 36-month extension
• Optional: Certificate in Data Analytics (within the same 3 semesters)
• Scholarships: Merit scholarships available — no separate application required
• Double Terrier: Scholarship available for current BU students and alumni

Frequently asked questions about the MS in Marketing Communication Research

What is marketing communication research and how is it different from a traditional marketing degree?

Traditional marketing programs often focus on developing campaigns and managing brands. Marketing Communication Research focuses on understanding the people those campaigns are designed to reach. You’ll learn how to conduct consumer research, evaluate communication effectiveness, and translate consumer insights into strategic communication recommendations. In other words, you’ll graduate knowing not only whether a strategy worked—but why it worked and what to do next.

Is this program a good fit if I want to work in UX research or consumer insights?

Yes. Many graduates pursue careers in UX research, consumer insights, market research, and strategic planning. The curriculum develops the research, analytics, and communication skills needed to understand audiences, interpret behavior, and translate findings into recommendations organizations can act on.

How is this different from the broader MS in Media Science?

Media Science asks, “Why does communication work?” Marketing Communication Research asks, “How can research improve communication strategy?” Both programs share a strong research foundation, but MCR applies that research specifically to consumer insights, audience behavior, analytics, and strategic communication.

How is this different from a business school consumer insights or market research degree?

Business schools often focus on analytics and business performance. Marketing Communication Research teaches you how to use consumer research and analytics to improve communication strategy. You’ll graduate knowing how to uncover meaningful consumer insights—and communicate them in ways organizations can act on.

What is the optional Data Analytics certificate?

A sequence of courses focused on data visualization, machine learning, web mining, graph analytics, and data mining — earned within the same three semesters, with no additional semester required. Students who want deeper technical expertise can complete the certificate as part of their elective coursework—with no additional semesters required.

Do I need a quantitative or coding background to apply?

No. We teach you audience research methods and applied statistical techniques from the ground up. Our students come from incredibly diverse academic backgrounds, including communication, psychology, business, sociology, and English.

Is this program STEM-designated?

Yes. International graduates are eligible for the 36-month OPT extension to work in the US after graduation.

See all marketing communication research FAQs →

Also worth exploring

• MS in Media Science: For students who want to understand why communication works through audience research, behavioral science, and communication theory.
• MA in Emerging Media Studies: For students who want to study how AI, digital platforms, and emerging technologies shape human behavior and society.
• MS in Public Relations: Focused on media relations, corporate reputation, crisis communication, and digital brand strategy.
• MS in Human Centered Design: For students headed into UX/UI design careers, with end-to-end focus on product strategy and prototype design.