Hi all.  This is a favourite topic of mine.  I like the way people’s opinions vary on the topic, the way people combine various factors when they are making their case.  When people talk about the best universities they talk about facilities, some talk about curriculums and some even talk about the people in the school as influences who mould students into good, average or bad marketers.  All the points that are raised have weight because after all, Marketing is both an art and a science (or do you agree with this statement?)  Let us talk about the points that people usually raise when they speak on this topic.

Facilities

Many a parent has sent their children to expensive universities as they are of the notion that good facilities create good end products, in this case marketers.  What is this creature called ‘Facilities’?  What comes into mind are nice buildings, good equipment in the classroom, good sports facilities  and good food in the dinner halls among other ‘critical elements’ of a good education.

Question 1

To those practising Marketing, what impact has the good food, green football fields, crystal clear swimming pools  and having the internet in your room at varsity had on the work you are doing right now?  How has it helped formulate strategies, tactics and action plans for use against the competition?

Lecturers

Others say that the best universities or colleges have the best lecturers.  Why? Because the lecturers guide students on the best path possible to becoming a good marketer.  It is claimed that the best lecturers have the best approach to (Marketing) theory and some are even good at balancing it with the (Marketing) practice side of things.

Question 2

All those books, all those assignments, all those concepts and all those sleepless nights.  How much of it have you used to date?  Have things been as straight forward as in that book you memorised from cover to cover?  Most importantly, was any of the theory taught in a way that you can apply directly to your current job?

Publications

According to some articles on the internet universities are ranked also based on the publications that are made by their professors in industrial and academic journals among other platforms.  I am not sure how they go about the mechanics but maybe they look at the reach of the article and the impact that the article has had on people’s mindsets among other factors.

Question 3

As you are sitting at your desk, or you are on a business call or in a meeting, how do those publications help you do your job?  I believe we learn new things all the time so please educate me on how publications made by a professor at a school where you learnt some years ago will help me convince the customer to give me a distribution deal, sell a product or convince the CEO to give me funds for a marketing campaign?

They say that the best universities offer their students the best opportunities in terms of exposure.  It is claimed that students who attend these institutions get opportunities to work in firms like Mercedes Benz and Pfizer among other firms.  This, it is claimed, gives the students the practical experience required to succeed and to be better marketers than students who do not get that type of exposure.

Question 4

If you did go on attachment at some of these big firms what did you do there that you are doing now?  Marketing is a very dynamic field as what you are asked to do at any given time can change pretty quickly.  Yes you might have been given the opportunity to sit in meetings and probably carry out some baseline research but isn’t marketing a whole lot more than that?  It is hard to get exposure in the medical field if you are not part of an institution because of the fact that lives are at stake.  Has anyone ever stopped you from exposing yourself to social media? I am blogging but I do not remember asking anyone for permission.  Do you need to go to a certain university to get exposure to social media marketing for example?

These are but a few of the factors that people look at when they determine which the best universities are which supposedly create the best marketers.  According to Kotler Marketing is both an art and a science.  It is an art in that a lot of creativity is required in order to pursue activities that will lead to the achievement of people’s goals.

Question 5

Are artistes born, or they are taught how to create art?

This is my opinion.  There is little that an institution can do to prepare someone for what goes on in the marketing  arena.  Do you agree?  In my opinion the art form (not discipline or function) is just too diverse for anyone to even scrape the surface as they prepare you for life in the marketing arena.  In school people learn the fundamentals (the science) part of it, in industry firms pay you for your natural talent.

The best (and worst) universities do not create the best (or worst) marketers.  The best marketers are simply born.  What do you think?

Cheers!

Ruvimbo