PhD in Media, Languages and Cultures

The School of Media, Languages and Cultures offers research degrees that are interdisciplinary that broadly covers the fields of media, communications and culture. Under this umbrella are options focusing on media democracy, media reform, Southeast Asian cinema, youth and new media, internet governance, civil society, creative industries, digital media, and film. Other areas of expertise include music, food culture and identity, migration, cross-cultural and intercultural issues, and multiculturalism and sociologyIn a globalized world where constantly evolving technology becomes the basis and medium of socio-cultural and political communication, the school’s research degrees tap into a much-needed understanding of our common urban modern world, providing a critical understanding of the inner workings and meanings of objects, media and everyday cultural artefacts that we take for granted.PhD in Media, Languages and Cultures offers training in various types of research methodologies in the social sciences to obtain data. Through mentoring and supervisory guidance from our research-active faculty members, students acquire analytical and critical skills to help them analyse the collected data and learn to be independent researchers. Graduates will be equipped to be active researchers and educators in university, or in the relevant sectors.Why choose this programmeThe School of Media, Languages and Cultures is a dynamic research community providing internationally recognised degrees in culture, media and communications.As convergence and digitalisation now form part of the much bigger multimedia industry, there is an increased need to make sense of the implications for society by conducting more research into the areas of communications and culture. Our research programmes provide you with an opportunity to explore contemporary culture, media and communication theories, policy and practice.Our community of researchers and teachers are of international standing, with each staff member bringing their own unique set of cultural and research specialisations. This mix of experiences delivers a contemporary programme with wide-ranging significance to the modern environment.Course contentOur research covers areas including:comparative literature, Japanese literature, literary translationdigital cultures, youth and social networksfood, identity and transnationalisminternational information flows – questions of imbalance, cultural and media imperialism and dependencymedia and human rights – these include communication rights, media and gender relations, and media and minority groupsperforming arts: music, drama, performance, applied creative practicesSoutheast Asian cinema, particularly Indonesian, Malaysian and Singaporean filmsthe history, policies and structures of the culture industries - these encompass structural analysis, political economy and post-colonial development studiesCareersOur PhD graduates have gone on to work as academics in higher education and the civil service, research institutes and NGOs while the MRes is a path to further study or work in research institutes and the fields of film, media and communications.Job prospectsThis PhD programme provides advanced skills in research and analysis along with providing a broad understanding of contemporary developments in media, communications and culture from a critical perspective. Graduates of this PhD have gone on to work in NGO’s, government services and private sectors including advertising, public relations, market-based research consultancies, film and television, print media, digital content, marketing, foreign service, advisory and consultancy roles, and academic careers.

A master\u2019s degree (or international equivalent), plus at least a second-class honours degree (2:2) (or international equivalent) in a relevant discipline. Non-UK qualifications will be assessed against this standard.ORA first-class honours degree (or international equivalent) in a relevant discipline. Non-UK qualifications will be assessed against this standard.IELTS: 7.0 (with no less than 6.0 in each element)TOEFL (iBT): 100 (minimum 19 in Writing and Listening, 20 in Reading and 22 in Speaking)PTE (Academic): 76 (with no less than 65 in each element)