The MA in Digital Media is unique in its combination of practical and theoretical approaches to contemporary media and technology.
The established and exciting degree is designed to help you understand digital transformations in media, culture and society and apply this understanding in practice, in the media and creative industries and in further research. You will be equipped with skills that can be applied to current and future developments in digital media, social media, computing and other aspects of technology.
The MA in Digital Media educates aspiring media practitioners and academics as well as early and mid-career professionals who seek to reflect on their roles in a structured and stimulating learning environment designed to give all students up-to-the-minute knowledge of digital media and the skills to apply that knowledge to future developments.
The MA offers two pathways:
Pathway 1 is a theory programme where you learn about developments in digital media and technology from a wide range of perspectives
Pathway 2 is a theory and practice programme where you can explore transformations in media, culture and society through the practice of contemporary digital communication. You will work with one or more of the following to create installations, apps and single- and multi-screen work that's responsive to the continually changing digital landscape:
Acclaimed academics and practitioners
Benefit from the experience and expertise of one of the world’s leading media and communications departments. The programme is co-convened by Professor Joanna Zylinska and Daniel Rourke, and you will be taught by theorists and practitioners of international standing.
Work placements and internships
The MA in Digital Media regularly attracts offers of work placements and internships. In the past these have come from Google, The Science Museum and N1creative.com. There is also £6,000 bursary available for UK students studying this course. Find out more about the Stationers' Postgraduate Bursary Scheme on our departmental awards page.
Facilities
Our students have access to state-of-the-art facilities including well-equipped lecture and seminar rooms, exhibition spaces, computer facilities and digital media suites.
The department is also currently host to the renowned philosopher of media and technology, Bernard Stiegler and students will have access to his modulein Media Philosophy as well as priority access to the innovative and popular option After New Media. Designed to complement the MA in Digital Media, this course provides a framework for thinking about the current media environment as well as future forms of human and computer interaction.
An established record
The MA in Digital Media has been redefining media theory and practice since 2004. Our students become proficient in:
MA Digital Media students have access to the pioneering option ‘After New Media’, currently a non-assessed online module which explores the themes of self mediation, ethical mediation and intelligent mediation, and develops a framework for thinking about 'life' after new media. As well as accessing a series of podcasts, students are offered reading groups and a masterclass with Professor Sarah Kember co-author of the book Life After New Media on which the course is based.
Overview
The programme consists of:
Core modules
Seen take-home paper; essays; dissertation or practice/theory project and other production work for image-making.
We provide graduates with skills that are cutting edge: in the critical analysis and/or creative production of digital media; in the disciplinary knowledge and conceptual frameworks necessary for current and future forms of media and technology; in the awareness of how digital media and technologies are re-shaping society from the ways we communicate (through social media and web 2.0) to the increasingly ‘smart’ environments in which we live.
Our programme provides a theory and practice pathway and prepares students for work in the following areas:
This exciting new multidisciplinary Master's programme is fully designed to reflect the needs of contemporary interactive media industries, bringing together creative technologies, interactivity and design practices within digital cultures with the user in mind.
Interactive Media Practice combines a wide range of digital creative technologies primarily combining digital literacies design, technology and interaction, through user-centred design for commercial outputs to an industry standard.
Interactive Media Practice places the user at the centre of the experience and focuses on design and content creation in areas such as mobile app development, wearables, games, rich media websites, interactive guides and installations, immersive VR, next generation advertising and virtual and augmented reality systems, through to social media powerful eMarketing and entrepreneurship through innovation protocol.
According to the late CEO of Apple, Steve Jobs, the app industry "is worth several billion pounds annually and employs around 40,000 people, representing approximately 10% of the total audio-visual workforce. Sectors such as sound-driven games and apps show an even wider growth where providers such as Apple have paid a total of two billion dollars to apps within the US alone".
Adobe Systems (UK) fully support the programme with high recommendation, based on the development and key principles the course offers, which is rare and unique. We embrace excellent contacts within the interactive media and games industries, including regular visits and master classes from industry professionals at the top of their game.
Adobe Systems (UK), said: “This Interactive Media degree offers an ideal grounding for those wishing to work in the digital media industries, which increasingly require people who work with technology from a creative perspective. This is the course that will create the next generation of interactive media stars! ”
The course embraces a hackathon culture with specialist hack labs boasting newly designed flexible learning spaces for students to work more collaboratively on innovation protocols fostering cross-pollination of new ideas creatively. Many students will be working on live industry briefs as well as their own projects independently within and outside our course clusters. This collaborative approach to learning and research often leads to successful projects, which are commercially viable and quickly gain industry recognition through our end-of-year show.
“It’s a really multi-faceted MA, bringing together creativity, technology skills and digital media, with an entrepreneurial thread.” – 2015 graduate.
Our students learn to examine the communication of ideas in a networked world through our entrepreneurship incubator programme and consider the many impacts of digital media in everyday life, for commercial trajectories through practice-based projects.
As one of the top 100 international universities in the world, the University of Westminster's School of Media, Arts and Design currently boasts a series of professional recording studios, a new teaching recording studio, professional technology labs and access to an array of post-production, and multimedia facilities built and equipped to the highest standards.
Using the leading industry software, you will be involved in designing and making interactive digital media content for delivery over the Internet, on tablets and mobile devices and for installations to designing compelling user interfaces creating a great user experience, this also extends to the development towards creating content for the ‘internet of things’.
The MA in Interactive Media Practice course will prepare you for this sector, by leveraging and integrating the fine blend between creativity and technical capacities. You will also benefit from having access to a range of highly regarded industry practitioners who will offer you exceptional insight and working knowledge within the field, both challenging and encouraging your technical and creative fair. On this master's degree you will develop commercial-level interactive media and digital content production skills.
This multidisciplinary course prepares you to work in a wide range of industry combining theory, practice, and bringing together technical, creative perspective on new media systems, interactive technologies and digital culture as well as exploring new emerging creative technologies, producing an industry professional who can produce as well as explore future creative technologies.
Students are encouraged to work with technology experimentally in a creative way, collaboratively, and to apply emerging and existing technology in new and innovative ways, research and the experimental application. You will also have hands-on experience creating content for mobile, tablet wearables, VR, AR and content-rich media websites, advanced web production, and UX design, all of this with the user in mind.
The course will provide skills in the relevant multimedia software, media-rich web production, Unity, UdK, website design and development to mobile app development. You will be taught creative coding, where the course encourages the use of a wide range of programming languages delivered by industry practitioners. We also have accreditation and training opportunities for those students wanting to develop their skills more prolifically within selected software via triple A initiative, outside of the Master's.
These include mobile apps, mainstream games, interactive installation, and eMarketing, with an emphasis on core creative skills. The course also prepares and enhances your ability in producing interactive media, methodologies and production workflows, supported by a robust understanding of the technologies and theories involved.
The Interactive Media Practice degree offers an ideal underpinning for those seeking employment in the digital media industries, which increasingly require people who work with technology from a creative perspective. This is the course that will create the next generation of interactive media talent who are both enterprising and creative.
Our approach on the course is implemented through hackathon culture as seen in technology start-up sectors, where cross collaboration through interdisciplinary approach is very welcomed. Students are encouraged to apply from design, non-programming or non-technical backgrounds as well as technical backgrounds.
The following modules are indicative of what you study on this course.
Modules
Digital technologies are now ubiquitous in nearly every part of our lives, and today's students need to become proficient with digital technologies as research and communication tools. The Digital Anthropology MSc at UCL combines technical skill with anthropological research methodologies in order to train students for research and involvement in this emergent world.
Students gain skills training in digital technologies, from internet and digital film editing to e-curation and digital ethnography; study the anthropological theories of virtualism, materiality/immateriality and social networks; and develop an understanding of the consequences of digital culture through the ethnographic study of its social and regional impact in a global and comparative context.
Students undertake modules to the value of 180 credits.
The programme consists of one core module (45 credits), three optional modules (45 credits) and a research dissertation (90 credits).
Core modules
Optional modules
Dissertation/report
All MSc students undertake an independent research project which culminates in a 15,000-word dissertation.
Teaching and learning
The programme is delivered through a combination of lectures, seminars, practicals and laboratory sessions. It includes a weekly seminar series, with invited international speakers. Assessment is through essays, methodology practicals, written examination and the substantial research dissertation.
Further information on modules and degree structure is available on the department website: Digital Anthropology MSc
In addition to its importance for careers such as in media, design and museums, digital technology is also integral to development, theoretical and applied anthropology. Companies and institutions collaborating with the MSc are: British Telecom, UCL Computer Sciences, UCL Information Studies, Microsoft Research Cambridge, Skype, Intel, the British Museum, NESTA, NOKIA, the Home Office and Inventi V.
The programme is also developing relationships with: Cultural Informatics Research Centre for the Arts and Humanities (CIRCAh), Slade Centre for Electronic Media in Fine Art, Centre for Advanced Spatial Analysis, Centre for Museums, Heritage and Cultural Studies, UCL Interaction Centre, UCL Digital Humanities and UCL Urban Laboratory.
Employability
New media and technology companies are showing considerable interest in Digital Anthropology as a degree that qualifies students for positions in all fields of user interaction and research. In the last few years students graduating from the MSc have been recruited by the best international agencies doing research on users' digital practices. In the non-profit sector students have joined organisations involved in policymaking, open access and citizen journalism. The subject is also a good grounding for students who are interested in continuing to a variety of PhD programmes.
The Digital Anthropology MSc at UCL is becoming a world leader in the training of researchers in the social and cultural dimensions of information technologies and digital media.
UCL Anthropology is one of the largest anthropology departments in the UK and offers an exceptional breadth of expertise. Our excellent results in the 2008 Research Assessment Exercise and 2014 Research Excellence Framework show that we are the leading broad-based anthropology department in the UK. The programme combines ethnographic methods, critical thinking and practical explorations of the digital world and encourages in-depth research to develop the next generation of understanding about the impact, consequences, aesthetics and politics of digital technologies and infrastructures.
The Research Excellence Framework, or REF, is the system for assessing the quality of research in UK higher education institutions. The 2014 REF was carried out by the UK's higher education funding bodies, and the results used to allocate research funding from 2015/16.
The following REF score was awarded to the department: Anthropology
68% rated 4* (‘world-leading’) or 3* (‘internationally excellent’)
Learn more about the scope of UCL's research, and browse case studies, on our Research Impact website.
Our Digital Media Arts MA is taught both at the University of Brighton and at Lighthouse. The Lighthouse is a digital culture agency where a key part of its work is education and professional development (PPD). Through short technology labs and courses they help empower the digital artists and creative engineers of tomorrow.
We have developed the course in the context of Brighton’s status as one of the main centres of the media economy, adopting an interdisciplinary approach that allows you to use and develop your existing skills in an environment that encourages both innovation and high-quality production.
The course provides excellent training for artists, designers and arts professionals wishing to seek a career in the creative industries, offering expert education in the areas of interaction design, social media, programming, digital film, installation, public art and interactive art. You will learn core digital media production skills, explore a broad range of creative digital practices, and access the most up-to-date developments and critical debates in the discipline.
While our professional studio environment enables you to explore the full creative potential of digital media arts practices, we also encourage live project work so that you gain direct experience and develop valuable links to the digital media and wider cultural industries.
The course offers a suitable route and an appropriate academic grounding for PhD study, as has been evidenced by recent student progression on to PhD programs at the University of Sussex, Goldsmiths, Plymouth University and The University of Auckland in New Zealand.
The course is designed to support your individual development and creativity as an artist and producer and is based around an essential core of practice-based learning, underpinned by a programme of theoretical lecture series, artist talks, seminars, workshops, tutorials and independent study.
You will learn core digital media production skills. Specialist workshops have included processing, motion graphics and sound art.
The course supports an interdisciplinary approach that enables you to develop existing skills and experiences in an environment that encourages both innovation and high quality production. Live project work in modules throughout the course will help you gain direct experience and develop valuable links in the digital media industries and wider cultural industries.
Modules will be relevant and up-to-date in this fast changing and evolving digital climate, allowing for flexibility to expand into new areas of development. Examples of theses areas include screen based web design, social media and interactive installations and also including using data analytics, coding, programming and hacking.
You will be taught by a diverse and experienced lecturing team, all of whom are creative practitioners.
The course offers a flexible mode of study for students, either as a part-time route (two years) or full time (one year).
Modules
There will be an increasing emphasis on engaging with script and code, which is particularly pertinent to practical modules as they include the building blocks of developments for creative design, and web applications. These include the following languages - CSS, Flash, Processing, Pure Data, ActionScript 2.0 and 3.0, Wordpress, PHP, HTML5, Javascript, jQuery. MFC, C, OpenGL, Java and Lingo.
We encourage students to create work through the use of open source data and engaging with hacker ethics, which are concerned primarily with sharing, openness and collaboration, rather than using commercial software.
Making sure that what you learn with us is relevant, up to date and what employers are looking for is our priority, so courses are reviewed and enhanced on an ongoing basis. When you have applied to us, you’ll be told about any new developments through our applicant portal.
The Digital Media Arts MA at Brighton develops your production skills and unique artistic approach. Over the course, you will build a substantial body of digital artwork that will help you get ahead in the fast-moving and competitive new media industries.
You will create your art and design work using a range of digital technologies, producing screen-based work, interactive installations, social media interventions and soundscapes. All students produce work for the assessment show towards the end of the course.
The Digital Media Arts MA is a practical course that teaches a range of skills in digital development and design that you can apply outside of university. The course aims to empower digital artists and critical engineers of tomorrow, in exploring the creative thinking that is critical to working effectively with technology.
This Research Master's programme in Media, Art and Performance Studies is an interdisciplinary and internationally oriented research-based programme which offers an advanced training in academic research skills appropriate for today's highly dynamic and interdisciplinary field of media, visual arts and performance.
Contemporary media, art and performance increasingly play with and transcend disciplinary boundaries. Intermedial and performative practices both produce and critically investigate cultural transitions in today’s mediatized and performative culture. Such synergies invite to explore how emerging forms of media, art and performance – while historically and culturally embedded - interact with and relate to social and cultural transformations.
As a student of this programme, you will be introduced to and specialise in new research areas and methodologies, necessary for investigating emerging media, performance and contemporary art forms within today's rapidly changing culture. In relation to this you will also reflect on the role of the Humanities in both academic and public debates.
Central concerns in this programme are, amongst others:
We approach this broad field from a range of comparative and intermedial perspectives, focusing primarily on the dynamics of change and exchange between media, contemporary arts and performance within a culture and society in transition.
In this programme you will reflect on questions such as how media have developed from the time of early cinema up to current new media art; how the definition of 'live' has changed alongside these mediatised cultural forms. How has the performative turn changed the ways we think about audiences? How do media technologies facilitate new methods of self-staging and social performance? What is the influence of media and technology on way we curate and educate in museums and archives and other cultural institutions.
In this age of selfies, datafication, (self-) staging and re-staging, and playful learning, you will examine how various media, art forms, and performance have been used for critical analysis, civic engagement, entertainment and educational purposes. You will do this by asking how digital technologies, dramaturgical and artistic strategies alter ways of dealing with knowledge production and distribution, and how these transitions have contributed to and also ask for new methods of research.
This programme will train you as a researcher within the field of Media, Contemporary Art and Performance Studies, to either prepare you for a PhD position, or for research-oriented positions in professional contexts of cultural institutions such as archives, museums, art institutions, theatres, for education, (non-)governmental organisations, or in creative industries.
After completing the programme:
The Research Master’s is aimed at excellent students from both the Netherlands and overseas, who have a background in the history and theory of contemporary art, or media and performance studies with a focus on theatre, dance, film, television, and/or digital media.
Alumni of the Media, Art and Performance Studies Research Master’s have been successful in obtaining PhD positions in various prestigious international programmes. Graduates also find their way to other job markets. For example in the domain of curation, dramaturgy, or media consultancy. Read more about possible career prospects.
You will develop a critical appreciation of the technical and creative state-of-the art in contemporary applications of digital media. In addition you will learn key technical skills that will enable you to produce new applications of your own. You will then apply this learning to a six-month advanced placement project with one of our partner organisations leading to a thesis.
This innovative programme, unique in the UK, comprises four main components: a series of advanced taught modules completed during the first six months that include programming interactive digital media, production skills for audio and video, making creative installations and research methods; additional advanced option modules that cover topics ranging from advanced technical skills through human interaction to performance and live art; and specialist project work and a placement project with an external partner leading to a thesis (see http://www.mat.qmul.ac.uk/ for a full list of our partners). You may also undertake your placement project with a research partner in a different department or, where appropriate, collaborating departments in other universities.
This programme will:
Your tuition will be delivered by field leading academics engaged in world-class research projects in collaboration with industry, external institutions and research councils.
As one of the UK's leading research-led universities, we are involved in Tech City, the largest concentration of technology, digital and creative companies in Europe (http://www.techcityuk.com)
You will develop a critical appreciation of the technical and creative contemporary applications of digital media. You will also learn key technical skills that will enable you to produce new applications of your own.
You will have access to our new state-of-the-art media and arts technology studios, which include the listening room, control room and performance laboratory, as well as other research and performance facilities including the augmented human interaction laboratory and the Pinter Studio Theatre.
Programme structure
MSc Media and Arts Technology is currently available for one year full-time study.
Full-time
Undertaking a masters programme is a serious commitment, with weekly contact hours being in addition to numerous hours of independent learning and research needed to progress at the required level. When coursework or examination deadlines are approaching independent learning hours may need to increase significantly. Please contact the course convenor for precise information on the number of contact hours per week for this programme.
Core modules:
Optional modules:
Three from among the following options (subject to space and timetabling):
For further information please visit the Media & Arts Technology website: http://www.mat.qmul.ac.uk
This programme provides theoretical knowledge and practical methodologies and techniques via case studies and tutorials that enable students to specify and design technology solutions for business managers and organisations.
You will learn about informatics, business systems, processes and architecture necessary to understand the digital business environment. Students develop analysis, problem solving, teamwork and leadership skills necessary for creating effective business solutions. Students also learn the consulting principles and behaviours necessary for consulting.
A one week residential course at our beautiful Greenlands campus in Henley-on-Thames enables students to experience our world-class executive training environment with other business executives and consultants.
A 10-12 week consulting project enables students to apply their knowledge to real-life cases in a structured and systematic manner, with many projects involving work with and for consulting organisations.
Our graduates are pragmatic problem solvers able to bridge the gap between business and technology, who are often highly sought after by industry. Many of our graduates join consultancies or businesses as analysts, solution architects or project leaders.
Module descriptions are correct for modules taught in the academic year 2017/18. Optional module listings are indicative, and may be subject to change.
Compulsory modules
Optional modules
In addition students must choose two optional modules from the list below.
The MSc Business Technology Consulting programme provides the foundations for a career in technology and management consultancy as well as the skills and behaviours necessary for analysing and solving the type of business and technology problems encountered by all major businesses. This course is a must for those interested in business problem-solving and consulting activities.
Many of our alumni have been recruited by management consultancies or analytical and consulting units of major businesses.
Successful completion on the compulsory module Business Domain and Requirements Analysis can lead to the BCS Professional Certificate in Business Analysis Practice.
Our Art & Technology Master of Fine Arts program gives you the tools to express your inspiration through new media forms and technologies. Develop creative artwork that utilizes a combination of traditional and digital processes to produce digital imagery, physical objects, time-based media, installations, game environments, and virtual reality. Push the boundaries of new media and explore emerging technologies in areas such as motion capture, 3-D scanning and printing, programming, and augmented reality.
Our courses emphasize:
Architecture, Humanities and Computing. Apply now to join the top university in London for student satisfaction!
Create your own story at the University of Hertfordshire’s School of Creative Arts!
