This course has two key objectives. The first is to take students who are familiar with the cornerstones of analytical work introduced in RSM3052H (equilibrium principles, spatial modelling, and the role of beliefs in game theory) and introduce them to a number of key areas where analytical work has made important contributions to the field of marketing. These include advertising, buyer-seller contexts characterized by asymmetric information, positioning, social responsibility, and two-sided markets.The second objective is to prepare students for a career in research, most immediately in terms of producing a research proposal that often evolves into a second-year research paper. The proposal will relate to a theoretical topic or an empirical topic. Students will go well beyond description of the research questions, methodology, and a literature review. The proposal will incorporate a detailed research plan and initial results.