Rethinking the market research curriculum

Abstract

Addressing the challenge of aligning how market research is practiced and how it is taught has been a recurrent theme in the marketing education literature. Recently, the growth of digital marketing and new forms of customer data have disrupted many traditional aspects of marketing practice. Companies are increasingly able to collect data directly from their customers, via large technology firms or from specialist data providers. This has reduced the demand for the traditional fieldwork-based data collection that remains a core focus within the market research curricula. This article considers the past, present, and future role of market research education in the light of the changing practitioner environment. An audit of market research courses is carried out, weaknesses identified, and suggestions made to better align market research courses with evolving skills requirements. More broadly, the article challenges educators to evaluate the extent to which the marketing curriculum can respond to the disruptions brought by the emerging digital economy.