Expert teaching, intensive learning experience
Delivered through expert teaching in research methodology and foundational subjects, the MPhil in Strategy, Marketing, Operations and Organisational Behaviour prepares you for a research career in your chosen field.
Over 9 months on the programme, you will take 6 courses and a dissertation or 9 courses related to your field of specialisation, and participate in research seminars on current debates and subjects such as strategy, marketing, innovation, organisational behaviour, and operations and technology management.
The MPhil in SMOOB is one of the Business School’s specialist research MPhils and is an integral part of a Cambridge Judge Business School PhD.
Specialisations
Explore the 4 specialisms of the programme and their related foundational coursework that prepares you for a specific PhD pathway.
As a student on the Strategic Management specialisation, you will take 5 core courses and one elective, including strategy area specialisation courses and a methods/statistics course. You will also work closely with a Cambridge Judge faculty member to write a dissertation on your research topic.
Operations and Technology Management (OTM) is a diverse field and inherently multidisciplinary. You will take 6 core courses, including OTM and methods/statistics courses. You will also work closely with a member of the Business School faculty to write a dissertation on your research topic.
Alternatively, students may choose to take 6 core modules and 3 elective courses, one of which will be an Individual Research Project under the supervision of an OTM faculty member.
In the Marketing specialisation, you will take 6 core courses plus write a dissertation under the supervision of a member of the Business School faculty, or 9 courses covering marketing strategy/marketing modelling and consumer behaviour.
If you take the OB specialisation, you will be expected to write a dissertation, working closely with your supervisor. You will take 6 courses, of which 5 are core courses and one elective.
Programme outline
- Preparatory Maths & Statistics
- Your learning experience
- Individual research project
- Assessment
- Dissertation
- Continuing to PhD
Preparatory Maths & Statistics
You will start your MPhil by completing the online pre-course in mathematical and statistical methods in September before the academic year begins in October. This pre-course is mandatory and if you don’t take it, you will not be admitted to the MPhil programme.
Your learning experience
Learn through weekly classes and research seminars in your field of specialisation. Class sizes vary from year to year but are typically small, allowing for deep faculty engagement, collaboration and development of team spirit.
You will be challenged to sharpen your ability to critique research papers by engaging in independent reading and study of academic literature. You will practise your public speaking skills by delivering individual or group presentations. If you decide to take the dissertation option, you will also enjoy one-to-one supervision with a Cambridge Judge faculty.
Individual research project
Apart from taught research courses, you may also do a short, 5,000-word individual research project in lieu of one module. This typically takes place towards the end of the programme and can only be approved if a faculty member commits to act as supervisor.
Assessment
Your performance on the programme will be assessed by written examination, project, or coursework, depending upon the nature of the particular module. The exact composition will be determined in advance by the co-ordinator for the particular module, in consultation with the MPhil in Strategy, Marketing, Operations and Organisational Behaviour Programme Director. In the final assessment, each course module will have equal weight and a dissertation is equivalent to 3 courses.
Dissertation
It may be possible for students to offer a dissertation in place of 3 modules. If you have a well-developed research proposal, you can take 6 modules, instead of 9, and write a 12,000-word dissertation, which carries a weight equivalent to 3 modules, working closely with a faculty member on your research topic.
You will need to submit a dissertation proposal to the MPhil in Strategy, Marketing, Operations and Organisational Behaviour Programme Administrator by early Michaelmas term. Dissertations can only be approved if a faculty member commits to act as supervisor. If you wish to do a dissertation, we strongly encourage you to contact prospective supervisors during the summer and develop your dissertation proposal jointly with the supervising faculty.
Continuing to PhD
If you wish to continue to the PhD, you must apply by the end of your first term on the MPhil. Interviews take place early in the second term, with final decisions based on:
- reports from interviews
- academic reference letters
- how your research interest fits the faculty’s expertise
- performance in Michaelmas term.
Formal PhD offers are made in February, typically conditional on final performance in the programme. All continuing PhD students are fully funded.