MSc Food Management
Factfile
| Typical Entry Requirements | Applicants should usually hold a Bachelors degree (UK Lower Second/2.2 or above) or equivalent qualification from a recognised British/overseas university. Every applicant is, however, assessed individually on their own merit. Higher level professional qualifications may also be accepted. Relevant work experience could be an additional benefit where applicants have not reached the standard entry requirements, although it is not an admissions requirement for this particular degree programme. Candidates for whom English is not their first language will normally be required to have IELTS 6.5 or above (or equivalent). The School also assists students whose first language is not English through close cooperation with the University’s Language Centre. |
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| Programme length | 12 months full-time |
| Planned intake | Up to 40 |
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| Start date | September |
| Programme Director | |
| Fees | Fees for this programme can be found on our fee rates 2010/2011 page. |
| Professional recognition | The School of Management is accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB). |
| Download course brochure |
Food Management, International Hotel Mananagement - Postgraduate Programmes 2010 |
| Contact details |
For general enquiriesT: 0800 980 3200 or +44 (0)1483 681681 For admissions enquiries
T: 01483 686300 |
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| Apply online now |
The food industry is an exciting field in which to work, but its diverse nature presents very particular challenges to those within it. Many people reach management positions within the food sector either with relevant food-related knowledge, but no management training, or with management experience, but little knowledge of food.
This programme aims to provide prospective managers with both management and food-specific knowledge. It has a management orientation, offering a very different perspective on food-related topics than, for instance, food science programmes.
Specifically, the programme develops in-depth and sound management knowledge whilst enhancing the skills to ensure the safety, acceptability and nutritional adequacy of the food that is provided. Throughout, links are made between the many, often competing, issues that affect the food system. The challenges that these present to managers are discussed and strategies to overcome the tensions explored.
The programme offers you a high-quality vocational education, which is intellectually rigorous and up-to-date, as well as relevant to the needs of future managers, executives and professionals in the food industry.
Module Overview
This programme consists of six compulsory modules, two optional modules from a range of five, and a dissertation.
Compulsory Modules
Consumer Behaviour in the Food Industry
This module focuses on the many factors that affect consumer behaviour and food choices made by consumers, including the characteristics of the food, and of the consumer and their environment. Theories from psychology, sociology and anthropology are explored as well as basic concepts of marketing strategy to enable students to identify consumer applications in the food and food services industry. There is also a strong focus on the methods of investigating consumer behaviour.
Financial Management
This module encourages the ability to think across management disciplines and appreciate the significance of fiscal implications of decisions. It enables students to apply accounting principles and financial theory to decision making in modern business organisations.
Food Services Marketing
This module provides an introduction to food marketing. It develops an understanding of the role of marketing as a business philosophy and as a systematic thought process.
Organisational Behaviour
This module integrates the study of forms, structures and processes of organisations with the human aspects of psychology at work. It provides an insight into the fundamentals on which organisations are built, and provides a set of analytical processes for understanding behaviour at work and managerial processes.
Policy Issues in the Food Chain
This module aims to address current policy issues affecting food supply chain management and their impact on strategic planning in the food sector. The impact of food policy and consumer culture will be explored in the context of business, government, health and the environment.
Research Methods
Introducing the process of research project planning and the key elements of research design, this module prepares students to design and execute the research study for their dissertation in a systematic and scientific manner.
Optional Modules
Food Safety and Nutrition Management
This module focuses on the importance of maintaining food safety and nutritional quality throughout the food supply chain and on management systems that can be employed to both minimise the chances of food poisoning and maximise nutritional quality.
Innovation and New Product Development
This module focuses on issues central to innovation and the development of new products in the food and food services industries. It discusses technical issues to accelerate the development process, and management strategies to reduce cost and failure rates.
Travel Catering Management
This specialist module meets the needs of students who are interested in the business processes and logistics involved in the travel catering industry.
Other optional modules for the Food Management programme include Strategy and Strategic Information Management.
Programme Details
To obtain the MSc in Food Management from the University of Surrey, you need to achieve 180 credits in total. One hundred and twenty credits will come from modules taught in semester time (from September to June) and the other sixty credits will come from your dissertation.
You can be awarded a Postgraduate Diploma in Food Management by completing 120 taught credits. Similarly, a Postgraduate Certificate can be obtained with 60 credits.
This programme is part of our modular postgraduate structure in which there are six compulsory 15-credit modules. You can choose from a range of five optional modules for the other 30 credits, giving you the opportunity to specialise in the areas in which you are most interested.
Career Prospects
The University of Surrey has scored high marks in The Times employment league table for several years.
Surrey graduates are among the most employable of any UK university. No other university can match our consistently high performance in the jobs league tables. Almost all our postgraduates find work or are undertaking further study within six months of finishing their degrees.
Our MSc Food Management graduates have gone on to careers in a number of sectors including retail, airline catering, food-related consultancy, academic research posts and product development in the food industry, and some have achieved very senior positions. In addition a number of students have gone on to complete PhDs both at Surrey and elsewhere.
Keeping Teaching Relevant
Dr Margaret Lumbers and Dr Anita Eves are active researchers in the area of consumer behaviour as applied to food. They have conducted studies for the Food Standards Agency (FSA) and the EU as well as industry. Their topics have included the nutrition education of catering students, ways to improve hygiene education in schools, food in later life (an EU-funded study involving eight countries), and EUROFIR (an EU-funded project aiming to develop a unified food composition database).
Dr Margaret Lumbers and Dr Anita Eves are founder members of the University’s Food, Consumer Behaviour and Health Research Centre. The Centre brings together complementary research skills from the School of Management, the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences and the Faculty of Arts and Human Sciences. It provides an integrated approach to questions of key importance to research funders, industry, the public and government.
Dissertation
At the heart of the MSc programme is the dissertation. Completed after the taught module programme has ended, this part of the programme gives you the chance to look in detail at a topic that interests you. You will conduct a small piece of research under the supervision of our experienced academics, which will provide an intellectual challenge. The skills needed for successful research will be of benefit to any career.
Industry Links Keep Students on Track
A significant proportion of students have come to study MSc Food Management from jobs in the airline industry including China Air, Air Canada and in-flight catering companies. Others have worked for blue chip companies or small-to medium-sized businesses, covering a range of food industries such as bakery, meat and fast food. This provides an excellent opportunity for shared learning between the students themselves. Students benefit from visiting speakers from major food companies and policy enforcement agencies, and have the opportunity to spend time with environmental health officers as they go about their inspections.
A proportion of students enrol directly on the programme from undergraduate business or food-related degrees. Many of our students have an international background and are able to make excellent networks whilst studying, as well as gaining a global perspective on food management issues.
Food Management – A Global Industry
The food industry is a major income generator all over the world. It is not surprising that many people find themselves responsible for roles in food management. Some of these managers have a food-related background but do not possess general management skills, whilst others have a management background but lack the skills specific to the food industry which are required to be an effective manager in this sector.
Our programme offers you both advanced management and discipline-specific skills, aiming to strengthen your ability to analyse the short-, medium- and long-term impacts of management decisions on aspects of food businesses. You will develop your understanding of the complex interactions that can occur involving different technical, social and financial challenges. It provides you with a sound management education whilst developing the skills to ensure the safety, acceptability and nutritional adequacy of the food that is provided.
Guest speakers from industry and other organisations, along with site visits, form an important part of your studies. For instance, you could spend a day shadowing environmental health officers as they carry out hygiene inspections of premises. You could also visit an inflight catering unit at Heathrow Airport.
The Knowledge You Need to Succeed
The programme aims to provide a high-quality, vocational education which is intellectually rigorous and up-to-date, as well as relevant to the needs of existing and future managers, executives and other professionals in the food management area.
Specifically, the programme aims to offer you the following benefits:
- In-depth understanding and knowledge of food management, recognising the interdisciplinary nature of the subject
- Management and decision-making skills founded on an understanding of the interacting factors involved in the food industry
- Skills to understand and critically evaluate a wide range of management and problemsolving techniques applicable in all sectors and industries
- The ability to conduct research and produce a high-quality dissertation
- Transferable skills in communication, presentation, computing, planning, organisation, problem solving, critical reasoning and teamworking, all vital to success in any organisation
After Your Degree
The Surrey experience does not end with your degree. You will have developed friends and contacts in many different countries and industries. Many Surrey graduates are now captains of industry and can be found in every part of the world and in all sectors of the economy. This network is likely to last a lifetime and support your career development over a sustained period.
You will also be eligible to become a member of the alumni organisation SIGNET (the Surrey International Graduate Network). SIGNET members remain actively in touch with each other via the quarterly newsletter, the membership list and social events organised by the committee.
