MA in Professional Practice

Course details

Accredited by DIT (Flexible delivery through the Design, Print and Packaging Skillnet)

A flexible delivery programme aimed at experienced professionals from the design or print industry sector. The aim of the programme is to provide graduates with the necessary skills and competences which will allow them move into leadership and senior management roles in the design or print industry. The programme is delivered through the Design, Print and Packaging Skillnet.

The programme recruits exclusively from people who have at of professional experience in the Design and /or Print Industry. Students are selected through interview and submission of a portfolio of design work and major print industry projects .The portfolio must include at least three high level professional design or print industry projects which the applicant has led or played a prominent part in the design and /or production team. The student profile is a mature experienced design or print industry professional whose career path is moving towards a senior management role in the design or print industry.

Course Content:

The programme is pided into the following sections

1 Design or Print Industry Portfolio 40 credits ( through submission of portfolio and RPL)

Marketing & the Customer 5 credits 2 components and covers the essential elements of marketing and customer service in detail. The module will equip participants with the knowledge and skills necessary for the development of marketing and customer service techniques for Small to Medium sized enterprises.

This module consists of 2 components and covers the essential elements of marketing and customer service in detail. The module will equip participants with the knowledge and skills necessary for the development of marketing and customer service techniques for Small to Medium sized enterprises.

Leadership & Management 5 credits

This module consists covers the essential elements of Leadership, Strategic Management and Planning for Small to Medium Sized Enterprises. The module aims to equip students with a knowledge of leadership for their daily interactions with their people as individuals and in teams. It also aims to give students an overview of what strategy is all about and how participants can apply different strategic principles to running an SME. Finally the module aims to give students a detailed overview of critical aspects of business planning and execution. Participants will work through all of the key steps in analysing, planning, execution change and structuring an implementation plan.

HR & Finance 5 credits

The achievement of strategic objectives involves the effective deployment of the human resources of an organisation. Such deployment requires careful consideration of the organisation’s structures, culture and personnel systems and further requires the alignment of the organisation’s human resources with its strategic objective .This module will cover the use of appropriate human resource strategies which are critical to the success of any organisation in meeting the challenges it will face in today’s environment. In acknowledging that many small – medium sized firms cannot afford the luxury of a separate human resources department, this module is based on the hypothesis that ‘all managers should be their own human resource managers’ i.e. good HRM thought and practice should be a skill possessed by all managers.

Team Development, Coaching & Communication Skills 5 credits

This module will cover all the essential elements of Team Development and Communications Skills with a focus on the individuals listening, questioning, building rapport, assertiveness and conflict for persons in Small to Medium Sized Enterprises. It also focuses and develops the skills of ‘manager as coach’.It will give students practical ideas and concepts to understand what makes team’s successful using techniques in team building and team development and equip participants with a set of principles and effective coaching competencies to deploy with their own people in Small to Medium Sized Enterprises and also equip participants with the knowledge, skills, for the varying levels of communication techniques that should be employed when dealing with people both internally and externally.

Research: 30 credits

Students must complete a 15,000 word dissertation on an approved topic on professional practice in the design or print industry. A full series of workshops on research methodology and tutorial assistance will be provided and all students will have an individuals supervisor.

Entry Requirements:

All applicants must have obtained a 2.2 honours degree in a relevant discipline and have at least five years of professional experience in the Design and /or Print Industry.

Students are selected through interview and submission of a portfolio of design work and major print industry projects.The portfolio must include at least three high level professional design or print industry projects which the applicant has led or played a prominent part in the design and /or production team . The student profile is a mature experienced design or print industry professional whose career path is moving towards a senior management role in the design or print industry.