Purpose – Limited attention has been given to the study of social marketing at the graduate level. Such a study not only reveals research interests and trends, but also provides insights into the level of academic evolution or maturity of the social marketing field. This paper aims to examine social marketing as the subject of master’s theses. Design/methodology/approach – A search strategy found 266 social marketing-focused master’s theses completed from 1971 to 2015. These theses were analysed by host countries, institutions, disciplinary contexts and degree programmes for which they were submitted. Findings – Only four theses were submitted from 1971-1980 and eight completed in 1981-1990. The number of theses increased to 35 in 1991-2000, 118 between 2001 and 2010 and 101 in the past five years (2011-2015). The USA was the leading producer of social marketing master’s theses, followed by Canada, Sweden, China, South Africa, the UK and Kenya. A majority of theses were housed in the disciplines of business, health and communication, and none of them was submitted for a Master of Social Marketing degree. Originality/value – This is the first study that investigates master’s theses with an exclusive focus on social marketing. Implications for the evolution, learning and teaching of social marketing are provided.