MRes Bournemouth University Business School

A Master’s by Research (MRes) course allows you to embark upon a research degree by undertaking a research project at Master’s level which will be assessed via submission of a thesis and a viva voce. This course allows you to explore a specific research question that interests you.

By undertaking this degree within our Faculty of Management your research project will be developed in collaboration with our academic University staff who will provide you with specialist knowledge and supervisory input, while accessing BU’s technical facilities and information resources.

We are looking for students to undertake a Master’s by Research in all aspects of our subject areas: Accounting, Finance & Economics, People & Organisations, Marketing, Strategy & Innovation, Sport & Event Management and Disaster Management.

The research strategy in the faculty is aligned with Bournemouth University’s 2025 vision and strategic plan; a plan that stresses real-world impact, the enrichment of society and the economy, and advancing knowledge to significantly influence challenges world-wide. The Faculty is also increasing its alignment to the institution's strategic investment areas (Sustainability; Animation, Simulation and Visualisation; Medical Science; and, Assistive Technology).

Furthermore, given the recent AACSB accreditation awarded to the Business School, our strategy has developed and became fully aligned to a future vision of business schools, one that challenges business schools to examine their relationship to society, to the business community, and to the higher education landscape and be seen as drivers of change. As a result, our strategy is fully aligned to the UN Sustainable Development Goals and all research activity and knowledge advancements are punctiliously quantified against these goals.

We strongly encourage collaboration across specialisms, and an MRes provides an opportunity to work with supervisors from various backgrounds to deliver truly impactful research.

You will also be part of BU’s wider postgraduate community and have access to the suite of research, professional and personal training offered through the Doctoral College and your academic faculty.

The minimum completion time for the full-time course is 12 months with flexibility to take up to 18 months. If you would prefer to complete the course part-time, the minimum completion time is 24 months with flexibility to take up to 36 months to complete.

Course details

A Master’s by Research (MRes) provides you with the opportunity to tailor your studies to your specific research interests or career aspirations. Undertaking an MRes within the fields of business, management, finance, tourism, events and leisure, sport, hospitality or retail management at BU will allow you to collaborate with world-leading researchers in these areas.

We are ranked as one of the world's leading centres of research in the fields of tourism and its associated areas, with an outstanding team of professors who further our research and collaborate across many subject areas. We are also home to the editorial teams responsible for four of the leading scholarly journals in the tourism sector – Tourism Management, the International Journal of Tourism Research, Tourism Economics, and Tourism Management Perspectives.

The MRes is focused on the development of generic research knowledge and critical analysis skills applied to independent research on an approved topic. You research would normally involve a literature study, an experimental or hypothesis-testing phase, an evaluation phase and a writing-up phase.

Your independent research would be written up as a thesis, which is expected to be between 15,000 and 30,000 words (depending on the discipline).