Quick Answer
An online MBA in digital marketing is a two-year MBA degree where the second-year electives focus on channels such as search, social media, performance marketing, e-commerce and marketing analytics. Amity, Manipal University Jaipur, Chandigarh University and LPU offer it as a named specialization. A regular marketing MBA covers brand, consumer behaviour and sales, usually with only one digital subject.
Key Highlights
- An online MBA in digital marketing is still a full MBA: the first year is the same core management curriculum, and the digital subjects arrive in semesters 3 and 4.
- Four universities we checked name it as a specialization: Amity (Digital Marketing Management), Manipal University Jaipur, Chandigarh University and LPU. UPES offers a related Digital Business track.
- NMIMS, ARKA JAIN and Sikkim Manipal teach marketing with at most one digital subject, so check the elective list, not just the brochure headline.
- Official fees for these programmes run from about ₹1 lakh (ARKA JAIN marketing track) to ₹2.25 lakh (Amity), before limited-period offers, as checked on 27 October 2026.
- The real differences sit in the subject list: Chandigarh University teaches SEO, performance marketing and affiliate marketing, while Amity adds customer analytics and AI tools.
What is an online MBA in digital marketing?
It is an MBA degree delivered in online mode where you choose digital marketing as your specialization. The degree you receive is the same MBA as any other specialization from that university; the specialization changes which electives you study in the second year. If you have not finished a degree yet, the undergraduate route is a BBA in digital marketing, or the broader online BBA in marketing.
That structure matters more than most brochures admit. In every programme we checked, semesters 1 and 2 are general management: accounting, economics, finance, organisational behaviour, marketing management and research methods. Only in semesters 3 and 4 do you spend most of your time on digital channels. So you are not choosing a two-year digital marketing course. You are choosing a two-year MBA in which roughly the second half leans digital.
This is also why an online MBA in digital marketing should be checked like any other online MBA. The university must be permitted to offer the MBA online for your session. Our guide to the UGC approved online MBA shows how to confirm that on the UGC-DEB portal before you pay.
How is it different from a short digital marketing course?
A short course or certificate teaches tools and channels, often in weeks or months, and awards a certificate. An MBA awards a master’s degree after two years, with management subjects alongside the digital ones. If you only need the tools, a course may be enough. If you want a management qualification that also covers digital, the MBA is the fit. Our comparison of the online MBA certificate vs degree explains what each one actually awards.
How does a digital marketing MBA differ from a marketing MBA?
The difference is in the second-year electives. A marketing specialization usually covers brand management, consumer behaviour, sales, advertising, services and international marketing, with one digital subject at most. A digital marketing specialization replaces most of those with search, social, performance, e-commerce and analytics subjects.
You can see this clearly by putting two official subject lists side by side. NMIMS offers an online MBA in Marketing, and Chandigarh University offers an online MBA in Digital Marketing.
| Area | NMIMS online MBA (Marketing): electives named on the official page | Chandigarh University online MBA (Digital Marketing): specialization electives |
| Brand and consumer | Brand Management, Consumer Behaviour | Covered in core (Consumer Behaviour in semester 2) |
| Communication and sales | Integrated Marketing Communications, Sales Management | Not a specialization elective |
| Markets | International Marketing, Services Marketing | Not a specialization elective |
| Digital channels | Digital Marketing (one elective) | Search Engine Optimization; Social Media Marketing; Affiliate Marketing and Google AdSense; Performance Marketing |
| Content and commerce | Not named | AI-Powered Content Marketing and Personalisation; E-commerce, D2C and Quick Commerce Strategy |
Sources: NMIMS online MBA Marketing and CU online MBA Digital Marketing, both checked on 27 October 2026.
Neither is better in general. The marketing track builds broader brand and sales thinking. The digital track builds channel skills you can apply straight away in a performance or growth role. Pick based on the job you want next, which we cover further down.
Which universities offer an online MBA in digital marketing?
Four of the universities we track offer digital marketing as a named online MBA specialization: Amity, Manipal University Jaipur, Chandigarh University and LPU. UPES offers a Digital Business specialization that includes a digital marketing subject. NMIMS, ARKA JAIN and Sikkim Manipal offer marketing tracks with limited or no digital electives, and GLA’s MBA page does not name digital marketing at all.
| University | Specialization name on the official page | Digital subjects named | Official page |
| Amity University (Uttar Pradesh) | MBA with Specialization in Digital Marketing Management | 8 digital or analytics subjects across semesters 3 and 4 | Amity digital marketing MBA |
| Manipal University Jaipur | Digital Marketing (super or dual specialization) | 8 subjects across semesters 3 and 4 | MUJ digital marketing MBA (onlinemanipal.com) |
| Chandigarh University | Online MBA in Digital Marketing | Core Digital Marketing plus 6 electives | CU digital marketing MBA |
| Lovely Professional University | Online MBA in Digital Marketing | Areas named; no semester-wise list on the page | LPU digital marketing MBA |
| UPES | MBA with specialisation in Digital Business | 5 digital subjects, including Digital Marketing | UPES Digital Business MBA |
| NMIMS | MBA (Marketing), online mode | Digital Marketing as one elective | NMIMS marketing MBA |
| NMIMS | MBA (Working Executive), Digital Marketing | Specialization named; subjects not listed | NMIMS MBA for executives |
| ARKA JAIN University | Marketing | One subject: Digital Marketing and Brand Management | ARKA JAIN online MBA |
| Sikkim Manipal University | Marketing | No digital elective named | SMU marketing MBA (onlinemanipal.com) |
All pages checked on 27 October 2026. Specializations and electives change, so confirm the current list with the university before you apply.
What will you actually study in each programme?
The subject lists below are taken from each university’s official page. Where a page did not list subjects, we say so rather than fill the gap.
Amity University Online: Digital Marketing Management
Amity’s specialization is the most analytics-heavy of the group. In semester 3 you study Digital Journey with Brand Management, Digital Customer Analytics, Performance Marketing, and Social Media and Technology Marketing, along with a minor project. Semester 4 adds Digital Marketing, AI Tools and Applications, Digital Commerce: Reinventing Business Models, and Marketing Analytics: Data Tools and Techniques, plus a major project.
The page also describes live campaign simulations, gamified business simulations and an AI fundamentals certification. It does not mention Google or Meta certifications. Eligibility is graduation in any discipline with 40% marks; below 40% you take an admission test. You can read more on our Amity University Online page.
Manipal University Jaipur: Digital Marketing
MUJ lets you take digital marketing as a super specialization or as one half of a dual specialization. Semester 3 covers Introduction to Digital Marketing, Social Media Marketing, Search Engine Marketing and SEO, and Ethics in Digital Marketing. Semester 4 covers Digital Branding and Reputation Management, Digital Entrepreneurship, E-Marketing, and Advertising and Brand Management.
The page names Excel and Tableau in its data visualisation course and R or Python in business research methods. It suggests 15 to 20 hours of study a week, and optional Coursera access is offered at an extra charge. Eligibility is 50% in graduation (45% for reserved categories). See our Manipal University Jaipur profile for the wider programme list.
Chandigarh University: Digital Marketing
Chandigarh University teaches Digital Marketing as a core subject in semester 3, then adds four specialization electives that semester: Search Engine Optimization, AI-Powered Content Marketing and Personalisation, Social Media Marketing, and E-commerce, D2C and Quick Commerce Strategy. Semester 4 adds Affiliate Marketing and Google AdSense, and Performance Marketing.
This is the most channel-specific list we found. CU also offers a separate Brand Management specialization that includes Digital and Social Media Branding, which suits you if brand work matters more to you than performance marketing. Exams are listed as “On Demand Examination”, which lets you schedule when you are ready.
LPU Online: Digital Marketing
LPU’s page names the areas rather than a semester-wise subject list: Foundation of Digital Marketing, Social Media Marketing and Search Engine Optimization. It says students get hands-on exposure to Google Ads, Facebook Ads, content marketing, YouTube advertising and email marketing, and includes LinkedIn Learning access. Classes are live and recorded, and the page recommends 8 to 10 hours of study a week.
Because the page has no subject list by semester, ask LPU for the official syllabus before you enrol. More on the university is on our LPU Online page.
UPES: Digital Business
UPES does not call its track digital marketing, but it covers much of the same ground from a business-model angle. Semester III includes Introduction to Digital Business and Social Media Tools, Digital Business Models and Design Principles, Digital Brand Management, Digital Payments and E-Commerce, and Customer Relationship Management. Semester IV includes Digital Marketing, Digital and Business Laws, Strategic Management, and Innovation and Entrepreneurship, with a dissertation.
Choose this if you are more interested in running or building a digital business than in running campaigns. Eligibility is 50% in graduation, or 45% with at least two years of work experience.
NMIMS: Marketing, and the Working Executive option
NMIMS’s standard online MBA in Marketing lists seven named electives: Brand Management, Consumer Behaviour, Integrated Marketing Communications, Sales Management, International Marketing, Services Marketing and Digital Marketing. So you get one digital subject inside a broad marketing track.
NMIMS also runs an MBA (Working Executive) with a Digital Marketing specialization. The page names the specialization but does not list its subjects. It needs 55% in graduation and at least three years of work experience. Our guide to the online executive MBA compares it with other executive formats.
ARKA JAIN University: Marketing
ARKA JAIN does not offer a digital marketing specialization. Its Marketing track includes one subject in semester 4 called Digital Marketing and Brand Management, alongside Omni Channel Marketing, Integrated Marketing Communications and Market Research Tools in semester 3. It is the lowest-cost option here, but the digital content is limited. ARKA JAIN’s MBA (General) appears on the UGC-DEB recognised list rather than the entitled list; read more on our ARKA JAIN University page.
Sikkim Manipal University and GLA
SMU’s online MBA in Marketing names no digital marketing elective. Its electives cover consumer behaviour, advertisement and brand management, retail and distribution, market research, and services and global marketing. The core Marketing Management subject mentions digital marketing in its description. GLA’s MBA page lists Marketing Management as an elective but names no digital subjects. If digital is your priority, these two are not the obvious choice. You can still compare them on our Sikkim Manipal University and GLA University pages.
How much does an online MBA in digital marketing cost?
Specialization does not usually change the fee: you pay the university’s standard MBA fee. As checked on 27 October 2026, official programme fees for the options above run from about ₹1 lakh to ₹2.25 lakh, with the NMIMS working executive route at ₹4.5 lakh.
| University and track | Official fee as checked on 27 October 2026 | Offer or extras shown on the page |
| ARKA JAIN (Marketing) | ₹25,000 per semester | Registration ₹2,500; exam fee ₹3,000 per year |
| Manipal University Jaipur (Digital Marketing) | ₹1,84,000 total (₹46,000 per semester) | 15% early bird offer to ₹1,56,400, with a last admission date of 27 October 2026; application fee ₹500; EMI from ₹6,517 a month |
| UPES (Digital Business) | Total not shown on the page | EMI from ₹8,864; our earlier check of the UPES MBA page showed fees starting at ₹1,75,000 |
| LPU (Digital Marketing) | ₹50,000 per semester, including a ₹2,000 exam fee | 20% Student Grant to ₹40,400 per semester, valid to 31 October 2026; registration ₹1,000 |
| NMIMS (Marketing) | ₹55,000 per semester, ₹1,05,000 per year, or ₹1,96,000 one-time | Admission processing ₹1,200; exam fee ₹800 per subject per attempt |
| Chandigarh University (Digital Marketing) | ₹2,20,000 programme fee | Early bird scholarship to ₹1,65,000; seat booking ₹10,000 |
| Amity (Digital Marketing Management) | ₹56,300 per semester (₹2,25,000) | ₹2,07,000 one-time; ₹1,06,880 per year; EMI of ₹8,906 a month for 24 months |
| NMIMS (Working Executive, Digital Marketing) | ₹4,50,000 (₹2,50,000 year 1, ₹2,00,000 year 2) | ₹4,00,000 one-time; processing ₹1,500 |
Two points before you compare. First, several of these offers expire within days of our check, so the price you see may differ. Second, the cheapest headline fee is not always the cheapest total once exam, registration and resit charges are added. Our full online MBA fees comparison shows how to work out the real total.
Digital marketing, marketing or digital business: which should you pick?
Pick the specialization that matches the role you want in the next two to three years. A simple way to decide:
| If you want to | Consider | Why |
| Run paid campaigns, SEO, social or performance marketing | Digital Marketing (CU, MUJ, LPU, Amity) | Electives map directly to channel work |
| Lead brand, consumer research, sales or trade marketing | Marketing (NMIMS, SMU, ARKA JAIN) | Broader brand and sales coverage |
| Build or run an online business, D2C brand or e-commerce operation | Digital Business (UPES) or CU’s e-commerce and D2C elective | Business models, payments and e-commerce subjects |
| Move into marketing analytics | Amity’s Digital Marketing Management, or a Business Analytics specialization | Customer analytics and data tools subjects |
| Grow from a marketing role into general management | Marketing or a dual specialization (MUJ offers dual) | Keeps options open across functions |
If you are torn between two areas, look at universities that allow a dual specialization. MUJ lets you combine digital marketing with another elective group, and SMU’s MBA is built around dual specializations, though without a digital track.
It also helps to compare digital marketing with other specializations you may be weighing. Our guide to the online MBA in operations management uses the same official-source approach for operations.
Do you need certifications as well as the MBA?
You do not need them to graduate, but many people in digital roles add platform certifications alongside the MBA. They show you can use a specific tool, while the MBA shows management depth.
Two widely used options come straight from the platforms. Google Skillshop describes itself as online training for the Google tools you use at work, and offers Google Ads certification. Meta Certification lists role-based exams such as Digital Marketing Associate and Media Buying Professional, with free courses and practice tests to prepare and an online exam to register for; its training is published on the Meta Blueprint learning catalog.
Check whether your chosen MBA already builds any of this in. LPU’s page mentions hands-on work with Google Ads and Facebook Ads, and Amity’s mentions AI and industry certifications. Neither page says the MBA includes a Google or Meta certification exam, so assume you would take those separately.
How do you judge a digital marketing curriculum before you enrol?
Look past the specialization name and check five things in the official syllabus.
1. Count the digital subjects. Amity, MUJ and CU each list six to eight digital or analytics subjects. NMIMS and ARKA JAIN list one.
2. Check for measurement and analytics. Performance marketing without analytics is half a skill set. Amity names customer analytics and marketing analytics; MUJ names data visualisation tools.
3. Look for projects. Amity lists a minor and a major project and live campaign simulations; MUJ lists a term paper and a project. Ask what a typical project involves.
4. Check how current the topics are. Subjects such as AI-powered content marketing (CU), AI tools (Amity) and quick commerce (CU) suggest a recently updated syllabus.
5. Ask about tools. If a page names no tools, ask which platforms you will use in assignments.
If the university cannot share a semester-wise syllabus before admission, treat that as a reason to slow down.
What roles does a digital marketing specialization prepare you for?
The specialization is designed for marketing roles where most of the work happens online. Typical roles include digital marketing manager, performance marketing or paid media lead, SEO lead, social media manager, content marketing manager, e-commerce manager and marketing analyst. In smaller companies, one person often covers several of these.
What the MBA adds over a pure skills course is the management layer: budgeting, strategy, finance and team leadership. That combination suits people who already work in marketing and want to manage a function, or people moving from sales or operations into a digital role.
We do not quote salary or placement figures, because no official dataset tracks outcomes for online MBA graduates by specialization. Treat any salary promise in marketing material with caution, and ask the university for documented outcomes for the online cohort specifically.
Is an online MBA in digital marketing right if you are working?
Yes, for most people it is designed to be. The universities here deliver classes online with recorded content, and most require no work experience for the standard MBA. The time commitment is real, though: MUJ suggests 15 to 20 hours a week and LPU suggests 8 to 10 hours a week, according to their official pages.
If you already work in marketing, your job becomes a live lab for the electives. If you do not, plan a side project, such as running campaigns for a small business or your own site, so you have work to show. Our guide to the online MBA for working professionals covers eligibility, exam formats and planning study around a job.
Questions to ask before you enrol
- Can you send the semester-wise syllabus for the digital marketing specialization, with subject names?
- Is digital marketing a full specialization, or one elective inside a marketing track?
- Which tools or platforms will I use in assignments and projects?
- Is any platform certification included, or do I take it separately?
- Is the MBA on the UGC-DEB list for my admission session, and under which programme name?
- What is the total fee for all four semesters, including exam, registration and resit charges?
- Is the current discount or grant valid for all semesters, or only the first?
- How are exams conducted, and what equipment do I need?
Once you have the answers, our step-by-step guide to online MBA admission explains the documents and process.
If you would like help comparing digital marketing syllabi side by side, or checking which programme suits your current role, you can speak to an admission advisor and we will walk through the official subject lists with you.
How GetOnlineDegree.in Helps
We compare online MBA specializations using each university’s official subject lists and fee pages, so you can see what you would actually study rather than what a brochure headline suggests. For digital marketing, that means showing you which universities offer a full specialization and which offer a single elective.
Our advisors can share the current official fee schedule for your shortlist, point you to where each programme appears on the UGC-DEB list for your session, and help you prepare questions for each admissions team. The final choice is always yours.
Conclusion
An online MBA in digital marketing gives you a full MBA degree with a second year focused on search, social, performance, e-commerce and analytics. Among the universities we checked, Amity, Manipal University Jaipur, Chandigarh University and LPU offer it as a named specialization, UPES offers a related Digital Business track, and NMIMS, ARKA JAIN and SMU teach marketing with little or no digital content.
Choose by subject list, not by name. Count the digital subjects, check for analytics and projects, confirm the UGC-DEB listing, and work out the full four-semester cost before you commit.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is an online MBA in digital marketing a real MBA degree?
Yes, when it is offered by a university permitted to run the MBA online for your session. The specialization only changes your second-year electives; the award is the university’s MBA degree. Confirm the university and programme on the UGC-DEB list for your admission session before you pay any fee.
Which universities offer an online MBA in digital marketing?
Among the universities we checked on 27 October 2026, Amity, Manipal University Jaipur, Chandigarh University and LPU offer digital marketing as a named online MBA specialization. UPES offers a Digital Business specialization, and NMIMS offers digital marketing within its working executive MBA. NMIMS’s standard marketing MBA includes one digital elective.
What is the difference between an MBA in marketing and an MBA in digital marketing?
A marketing MBA covers brand management, consumer behaviour, sales, advertising and international or services marketing, usually with one digital subject. A digital marketing MBA replaces most of those electives with SEO, social media, performance marketing, e-commerce and marketing analytics subjects. Both share the same first-year management core.
How much does an online MBA in digital marketing cost?
Specialization usually does not change the fee. As checked on 27 October 2026, official fees for these programmes range from about ₹1 lakh (ARKA JAIN’s marketing track) to ₹2.25 lakh (Amity), before limited-period offers. NMIMS’s working executive MBA with a digital marketing specialization costs ₹4.5 lakh.
Do I need Google or Meta certifications if I do this MBA?
They are not required for the degree, but many people in digital roles add them. Google Skillshop offers Google Ads certification, and Meta lists role-based certifications such as Digital Marketing Associate. None of the MBA pages we checked said a Google or Meta certification exam is included, so plan to take them separately.
