Heriot-Watt University

Degrees for a digital world

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Be FutureMade at Heriot-Watt Online

For 200 years our mission at Heriot-Watt University has been to create tomorrow’s leaders through the provision of degree programmes that embrace an international outlook and prepare our graduates for the real world. During this time, we have also become a pioneer of online education and our online degrees and courses have been designed with accessibility and flexibility at their heart.

As an institution with roots all over the world, we know that every student’s life demands something different from them. It could be that you’re raising a family, have professional commitments, need to study in your home country – or even all three. Whatever the case, we’re committed to making a world-class education not just accessible but achievable too.

Continuing professional development

For organisations to successfully undergo digital transformation, it is important that today’s workforce have the skills and confidence to make the right decisions. To meet these needs, we have created a portfolio of specialist online continuing professional development (CPD) courses and degree programmes.  

New digital CPD courses

Available to study from April 2021

The below courses are part of our internationally recognised online MSc programmes: MSc Big Data Analytics, MSc Digital Leadership and MSc Global Logistics and Supply Chain Management. They can be studied as stand alone CPD courses or students can decide to continue onto the MSc pathway.

CPD Course MSc Digital Leadership MSc Big Data Analytics MSc Global Logistics  Available from
Big Data Analytics (C11BD) No Yes  No May 2021
Business Analytics (C11BA) Yes Yes Yes May 2021
Digital Business Strategy: Platforms and Ecosystems (C11DG) Yes No No April 2021
Leadership (C11LD)  Yes No No April 2021
Research Philosophy and Practice (C11BU)  Yes Yes Yes April 2021
Strategies for Managing Supply Chains (C11LS) No No Yes April 2021

New modern business degrees

All programmes will be available to study from September 2021.

The below online postgraduate programmes have been developed to help current and future leaders adapt to the challenges of a fast-paced digital environment.

MSc Digital Leadership

The MSc Digital Leadership aims to develop a critical understanding of the opportunities and challenges digital transformation in contemporary business settings, and develop the requisite leadership, management and technical competences to execute digital transformation initiatives in organisations. The programme is geared towards professionals who already have some managerial experience in a technical or business discipline.

Courses include:

  • Business Analytics (C11BA) - Available from May
  • Digital Business Strategy: Platforms and Ecosystems (C11DG) - Available from April
  • Leadership (C11LD) - Available from April
  • Research Philosophy and Practice  (C11BU) - Available from April
  • Strategic Change (C11SH) - Available from September
  • Big Data Analytics (C11BD) - Available from May
  • People Analytics (C11HA) - Available from September
  • Digital Marketing Analytics (C11DA). Available from September

Outcomes include:

  • Develop a critical attitude towards leadership, strategy, innovation and change in the context of today's digitally enabled and knowledge-driven economy.  
  • Provide a critical appreciation of the potential of digital technologies to deliver sustainable competitive advantage through operational efficiencies and enhanced customer value in a variety of business contexts.
  • Develop an understanding role of networked markets in transforming today's economy and an appreciation of the strategies required to design, monetize and launch a digital platform. 
  • Provide an appreciation of the role of data as a strategic asset and a critical appreciation of the analytical tools, techniques, and supporting technologies used to inform management decision making. 
  • Provide opportunities for students to apply knowledge gained from the programme to the resolution of practical problems and case scenarios, developing and evaluating alternative solutions in systematic and creative way.
MSc Big Data Analytics
MSc Big Data Analytics is designed to equip you with the decision skills you need to develop and excel as an effective leader and manager of transformational change in an era of Big Data and rapid innovation.
 
Mandatory courses include:
  • Business Analytics  (C11BA) - Available from May
  • Research Philosophy and Practice (C11BU) - Available from April 
  • Big Data Analytics (C11BD) - Available from May 
  • Finance and Financial Reporting (C31FF) - Available from September
  • Network Analysis for Business (C11NA) - Available from September
  • Management Consultancy (C11BC) - Available from September

Optional courses include:

  • Fundamentals of Lean Six Sigma (C11FS) - Available from September 
  • Measuring and Managing Performance (C11MP) - Available from September 
  • Project Management (C11PA) - Available from September 
  • Quality Management (C11ME) - Available from September 
  • Strategic Change (C11SH) - - Available from September 
  • Systems Thinking and Analysis (C11SL) - Available from September 
Outcomes include:
  • A critical understanding of the core theories, principles and concepts that underpin contemporary Business.
  • Analytics and Management Consultancy.
  • Extensive, detailed and critical knowledge and understanding of data analytics in a business context, informed in part by research-teaching linkages.
  • Critical awareness of current issues in research and knowledge creation within specialist areas of analytics and consultancy.
  • The development of original and creative responses to problems and issues associated with professional level practice and research.

 

MSc Global Logistics and Supply Chain Management

As an accredited specialist MSc, this degree provides you with a chance to expand, refine and enhance your knowledge in the Logistics and Supply Chain Management subject area including big data business analytics, demand planning and forecasting, freight transport, inventory and material management, maritime economics and logistics, procurement, quality management, risk and resilience management, sales and operations planning, supply chain and logistics strategy, supplier management and sustainability.

Mandatory courses include:

  • Research Philosophy and Practice (C11BU) - Available from April 
  • Strategies for Managing Supply Chains (C11LS) - Available from April
  • Operations Management (C11OE) - Available from September
  • Freight Transport and Warehouse Management (C11FT) - Available from September
  • Global Purchasing and Supply (C11GB) - Available from September

Optional courses include:

  • Business Analytics and Introduction to Big Data (C11BA) - Available from May
  • Fundamentals of Lean Six Sigma (C11FS) - Available from September  
  • Green and Sustainable Logistics (C11GL) - Available from September 
  • Measuring and Managing Performance (C11MP) - Available from September 
  • Project Management (C11PA) - Available from September 
  • Quality Management )C11ME) - Available from September 
  • Supply Chain Risk and Adaptation (C11SA) - Available from September 
  • System Thinking and Analysis (C11SL) - Available from September 

Outcomes include:

  • Knowledge that covers and integrates the main areas of the discipline, including their features, boundaries, terminology and conventions.
  • A critical understanding of the principal theories, principles and concepts.
  • Extensive, detailed and critical knowledge and understanding of one or more specialisms, informed largely by research-teaching linkages.
  • Critical awareness of current issues in research and knowledge creation within specialist areas of the discipline.
  • The development of original and creative responses to problems and issues associated with professional level practice and research.

Online delivery and support

Online degree programmes comprise of eight taught courses and a reflective capstone project. Each individual CPD course will take approximately 150 study hours to complete. On average, students take between three and four years to complete an MSc.

We’ll support you from the first day right up to graduation and beyond into your career. That means having access to a full range of resources and course materials taught by industry experts – plus you’ll also be connected to an established global support network. Our courses are delivered online by national and international leaders in their field. Students will have full access to our state-of-the-art online learning platform and will be able to work through the course material at a pace that suits them.

Register your interest

Please complete the below form to register your interest and to be kept updated on fees, scholarships, and course registration and applications timings.

For other enquiries please contact HWOnlineApps@hw.ac.uk.