Top Digital Marketing Course in Canada
The digital marketing space is booming, going through explosive growth spurts in the last ten years alone. A digital marketing course in Canada can prepare you for diverse career opportunities in this dynamic field. Thanks to the global relevance of digital marketing, your skills in this field are highly transferrable. And with an excellent degree from one of Canada’s world-leading universities, your qualifications will have global recognition.
Let’s have a closer look at what a digital marketing course entails and the career prospects you can expect with this degree.
What to Expect from a Digital Marketing Course?
As the name suggests, digital marketing is all about marketing through digital media. As the role of the internet and online platforms grows more prevalent in everyday life, so do the opportunities for businesses to reach their audiences with effective messages. To operate effectively in the 21st century market, being able to compete in the digital media space for attention sets successful businesses apart.
Digital content development is an important component of marketing, from large multinational corporations to small businesses. In a digital marketing program, you will focus on learning the tools, techniques, strategies, and opportunities of digital marketing through a variety of platforms. You can discover the best list of university courses for digital marketing in Canada through GRADSearch!
Some fields of study you will focus on include:
● Digital Marketing
● Social Media Marketing
● Search Engine Optimization (SEO): Optimizing websites to perform well in organic user searches on engines like Google
● Paid Advertising: Advertising through digital platforms like Google and Facebook
● Content Marketing: Learning the relationship between content and marketing the product
● Data Analytics: Analyzing data to inform and develop your marketing decisions
Co-Op Programs for Digital Marketing Students
A digital marketing course in Canada might also be part of a co-operative or co-op program. Canadian universities offer co-op programs as part of their efforts to help students graduate career-ready. With a co-op program, you alternate semesters of classroom learning with hands-on work experience. In other words, you get practical experience by collaborating with and working for real-world digital marketers.
There is no better teacher than experience and the same is the case for digital marketing. As a discipline where its practical applicability depends on a variety of scenarios, the chance to develop your skillset and portfolio by being part of actual marketing campaigns is invaluable.
Co-op programs add a lot of weight to your resume as well, ensuring you graduate with some of the experience employers look out for in candidates. You also have the chance to start building a professional network that you can leverage for your career after graduation.
How to Apply for a Digital Marketing Course in Canada
Digital marketing is a specialist subset of the marketing field, as well as of the communication field as a whole. At the undergraduate level, you might start with a bachelor’s degree in communication or marketing, with specialist modules in digital marketing. Some universities also offer bachelor’s degrees specifically in the digital marketing discipline. You can explore all of these and more through the GRADSearch course matcher.
If you are looking to upskill or reskill for a digital marketing career opportunity, a diploma or graduate certificate in digital marketing may be the right choice. These programs tend to be short courses with a strong specialist focus. The curriculum focuses on developing your knowledge and skills for career enhancement.
If you are on a masters courses search, you can also look at options in marketing broadly or in digital marketing specifically. Remember that many of the broader applications of marketing – such as advertising and public relations – apply to digital marketing too. Building a strong foundation through a general business or marketing course might be worth looking into, depending on your career goals!
Typical Application Requirements for a Digital Marketing Course
| Criteria | Minimum Requirement |
| Bachelor’s Program – Academic Qualifications | Appropriate School-Leaving Certificate, appropriate grade point average |
| Master’s Program – Academic Qualifications | Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field such as marketing or other business degree |
| Diplomas and Professional Certificates – Academic Qualifications | Bachelor’s degree in a relevant undergraduate program/relevant work experience |
| English Proficiency | Generally, an overall score of 6.5 with minimum of 6.0 in all bands (IELTS Academic) |
| Work Experience | For graduate certifications and master’s programs, if applicable |
Undergraduate Degrees, Diplomas, and Graduate Certification Programs
Undergraduate program options for a digital marketing course in Canada can include bachelor’s in marketing, broadly, or graduate certificates. An undergraduate program in marketing or communication can help you develop a sound foundation in the discipline. You can have flexibility in your options in the marketing and business fields, by developing an all-around expertise in subdisciplines like advertising, public relations, brand management, and social media marketing.
A graduate certificate program generally lasts 1-2 years and typically costs less than an undergraduate or postgraduate degree. Since many graduate certificates specifically focus on professionals hoping to upskill or reskill after their bachelor’s degree, they often come with co-op options too.
Below are some universities and colleges you can consider for the best digital marketing course in Canada at the undergraduate (and above) level:
Fanshawe College
Fanshawe College offers a four-year honors Bachelor of Commerce degree specializing in Digital Marketing. Students will develop their core understanding of business fundamentals with modules in:
• Business strategy
• Management
• Human resources
• Accounting
• Leadership
The curriculum also pays special attention to specialist digital marketing competencies, including:
• Brand management
• Media integration
• Analytics
• Strategic website management
• Search engine marketing
An excellent perk of this digital marketing course in Canada is the mandatory co-op semester, through which you can experience hands-on workplace learning. The holistic approach of the degree program ensures that you have diverse career pathways available in the marketing and business disciplines after graduation.
Toronto School of Management
The Toronto School of Management emphasizes experiential learning for its students. The School offers a Diploma in Digital Marketing with a co-op program. By completing this program, you will earn a Digital Marketing Associate certificate!
This is a full-time academic course, with 24 weeks in class and 12 weeks in co-op. The co-op will be part-time, up to 20 hours per week. The total length of the diploma is 51 weeks including breaks.
The program outcomes aim to equip you with the actionable skills you need to start a successful career in digital marketing, such as:
● Building digital marketing campaigns across a variety of media and platforms, including websites and social media
● Learning Google Ads, WordPress, HTML, CSS, etc.
● Conducting audience analysis and identifying the behaviors and interests of key stakeholders
● Content writing and creation for effective marketing
● Building, analyzing, and optimizing PPC campaigns on Google Ads and Bing Ads
Concordia University
Concordia University is one of Canada’s world-ranking universities, calling the vibrant city of Quebec its home. More than 45,000 students enroll at Concordia University, of whom around 25% are international students.
Concordia University offers a Diploma in Digital Marketing, a full-time online program. This five-course diploma is a 160-hour digital marketing course in Canada with a keen focus on the practical skills and competencies you need to succeed professionally. The program comes with options for one-on-one mentorship in career development from digital marketing experts, as well as work-integrated learning opportunities.
The modules you will cover in this program include:
● Intro to Marketing
● Search Engine Marketing
● Social Media – Networks and Concepts
● Social Media – Strategies and ROI
● Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Canadian College of Technology and Business
The Canadian College of Technology and Business offers a Digital Marketing diploma with co-op. This full-time post-secondary diploma can last between 48 and 65 weeks. To develop effective, practical, and professionally relevant strategies, CCTB places a holistic emphasis on:
• Marketing
• Advertising
• Campaign Building & Management
• Social Media
• PPC Marketing Model
• Research
This diploma builds up your foundational understanding of marketing and branding before guiding you in the technical and specialist aspects of digital marketing. Specialist focus takes into account key strategies such as:
● Search engine optimization and organic search-driving
● Website optimization and effective web design principles
● Market research strategies, including the application of analytics tools
● PPC marketing and campaign management
The co-op component of the program totals 480 hours, half of the duration of this digital marketing course in Canada.
Professional Certificate Programs
Professional certificates and completion certificates are another opportunity to consider in digital marketing. Canadian colleges and universities offer certification programs to graduates to learn specialist skills, especially for career advancement. Since digital marketing is a specialist subject, you will find many institutions offering a digital marketing course that you can pursue after your bachelor’s degree. The certification adds weight and recognition to your qualifications as a digital marketing professional.
Below are some universities offering digital marketing certifications in Canada:
York University
York University, one of the top universities in Toronto, offers a Certificate in Digital Marketing. This online program is 8 months long and offers four intakes. Enrollment for the program takes place in September, October, January, and March.
This is a part-time certificate program – industry experts built its 9-month curriculum with professional application and career readiness in mind. The courses you will cover include data analysis in digital marketing and Search Engine Optimization.
University of Calgary
The University of Calgary is one of the premier universities in Canada and among the top 200 universities in the world. It offers a 100-hour Digital Marketing Certificate program comprising 5 taught courses. The course is fully online and includes topics such as:
● Foundation of digital marketing
● Content management
● Social platforms
● Marketing analytics
● Promotion and optimization
Master’s Programs in Digital Marketing
If you are pursuing a holistic postgraduate degree to build up your specialist qualifications in marketing, a masters courses search might be the right option. Some of the top universities in Canada provide MBAs with a marketing focus as well as comprehensive marketing programs. These opportunities include what you would cover in a digital marketing course for career success. Some of your options include:
York University
York University ranks in the #1 spot in the country and among the top 10 in North America for its postgraduate marketing programs. This professional degree is a 12-month, full-time program with a keen focus on career acceleration in the field of marketing. Among the aspects of the discipline you will cover are:
• Analytics
• Brand Management
• Digital Marketing
• Marketing Communications
The program is an ideal option for those looking into a digital marketing course in Canada as a recent graduate from a non-business program. The program’s capstone courses include a Field Project, where you get first-hand experience developing marketing solutions and strategies for organizations and their real-world problems.
University of Lethbridge
The University of Lethbridge offers a full-time Master of Science in Management degree with a specialization in Marketing. You have two pathway options for this program: thesis or project completion. It also includes an optional co-op program, as well as a 40-hour part-time alternative. The project pathway for this course involves a Business Analytics concentration, whereby the curriculum blends coursework and experiential learning through the project.
University of Guelph
At the University of Guelph, another of Canada’s world-ranking universities, you have the opportunity to study the MSc in Marketing and Consumer Studies. This is an excellent route if you are considering research or doctoral opportunities in the future!
The program primes students for careers in:
• Marketing (including digital marketing)
• Product development
• Market research
• Brand management
• Consumer protection policy
The program is 24 months long, consisting of five core modules covering consumer behavior, marketing theory, measurement and analysis, etc.
Rounding Up
A digital marketing course in Canada can create dynamic opportunities for your future career. An undergraduate degree, diploma, or certificate in digital marketing can help you achieve professional success in a thriving field. The opportunity to access hands-on work experience through co-op programs at Canadian universities adds further weight to your qualifications. The job scope in digital marketing is continuously evolving as online spaces and platforms evolve. With a course in digital marketing, you can work in Canada or any other country in the world.
