Key Information

Full-time

1 year

Part-time

2 years

Typical Offer

View

School

Lincoln School of Film, Media and Journalism

Campus

Brayford Pool

Validation Status

Validated

Fees

View

Course Code

MDSCMMMA

MA Media and Communications

Lincoln’s School of English and Journalism has become one of the first institutions in Europe to be awarded a 'Recognised for Excellence' accolade by the European Journalism Training Association (EJTA).

Key Information

Full-time

1 year

Part-time

2 years

Typical Offer

View

School

Lincoln School of Film, Media and Journalism

Campus

Brayford Pool

Validation Status

Validated

Fees

View

Course Code

MDSCMMMA

Samantha Pidoux - Programme Leader

Samantha Pidoux - Programme Leader

Samantha Pidoux is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Film, Media and Journalism. She has a background in broadcast journalism and digital communications and is a multi-international, award-winning radio journalist winning two Edward R Murrow awards in 2010. Sam is a fully qualified multimedia journalist and has worked for local BBC. Her interests are in social and digital media and how journalists and the communications industry are using these to tell stories. She has headed up multimedia teams at PR events and has worked with small business to raise their profiles online through the use of social media and digital communication techniques.

Academic Staff List

Welcome to MA Media and Communications

In today's competitive marketplace, good communications and a solid reputation are key to a business's survival and success. Lincoln's MA in Media and Communications is designed to explore the role of this fast-growing employment area, by recognising the rapid changes taking place in the communications environment and enabling students to develop the media skills needed to work internationally across multimedia and digital platforms. There is an emphasis on the ability to critically assess contemporary issues in communications in both commercial and not-for-profit organisations.

The programme examines PR agencies and corporate bodies operating within a global remit. Students can research and critique developments in communications practice, with a focus on an ethical approach. Developing eloquence and confidence is explored on the course, along with the key skills required to become a flexible communications professional.

Students can gain practical experience by joining the University's student-run communications company, Cygnet PR. They are also expected to complete an assessed work placement as an important part of the course. Please note that students are responsible for their travel, accommodation, and general living costs while undertaking work placements.

How You Study

A wide range of approaches to teaching and learning are used on the programme to reflect the ever-changing nature of the subject, spanning a range of genres, media, and audiences.

The communications-based modules aim to employ flexible and varied means of teaching, learning, and assessment tailored to the Master's experience and grounded in collaborative research-engaged learning. Media modules deal with the landscape of the media industry and the specific media skills that are required to work in the field of communications.

Students will have the chance to work as individuals and in groups, to produce solo and group presentations, reports, essays, projects, literature reviews, and a dissertation.

As well as the traditional skills of research, essay writing, speaking, and debating, students will be able to develop a range of writing and production skills associated with work in the discipline.

The composition and delivery for the course breaks down differently for each module and may include lectures, seminars, workshops, independent study, practicals, work placements, research, and one-to-one learning.

Weekly contact hours on this programme vary depending on the module being delivered and the stage of study. Postgraduate-level study involves a significant proportion of independent study, exploring the material covered in lectures and seminars. As a general guide, for every hour spent in class, students are expected to spend at least two to three hours in independent study. For more detailed information please contact the Programme Leader.

An Introduction to Your Modules

† Some courses may offer optional modules. The availability of optional modules may vary from year to year and will be subject to minimum student numbers being achieved. This means that the availability of specific optional modules cannot be guaranteed. Optional module selection may also be affected by staff availability.

Independent Study - Dissertation (PG PR) 2023-24PBR9008MLevel 72023-24The Final Project module is where students write a dissertation. Students are expected to spend the final term during the summer on self-directed learning. Students are allocated their own tutor for support and guidance. This final project provides an opportunity to research and make an in-depth study of their chosen study area.CoreIssues in PR 2023-24PBR9009MLevel 72023-24PR activities are conducted within a context of social issues. In this relationship the media plays a vital part. This module aims to consider the possible genesis of some of the important issues and the conduct of PR as a social activity within which PR may be considered in terms of the ethical values it embodies, how it regards truth and its attitude towards corporate social responsibility. These dimensions of PR practice may be considered by examining how PR practitioners managed particular issues such as a crisis, government relations, or corporate change. The module consists of two inter-related parts. In the first the broader social issues are examined and a number of conceptual analytical tools developed. In the second part a number of cases, UK and international, are analysed using those conceptual tools. An important underlying theme of this module is the relationship between PR and the media, particularly in the post-Leveson environment of regulation and oversight.CoreMedia Law 2023-24JOU9156MLevel 72023-24This module introduces students to the areas of the law most likely to be encountered in the practice of journalism and the practice of PR and related communications activities. Students will investigate the interaction between journalism, PR, communications and the law, and gain a clear insight into the relationships between journalists and officials, PR/communications practitioners and their clients/employers, and how information is communicated to an increasingly diverse public.CoreMedia Relations 2023-24PBR9011MLevel 72023-24The fundamental purpose of this module is to provide the opportunity to develop the analytical and practical tools required for media placement of PR material to the best effect and within the context of a designed campaign. It aims to familiarise students with the variety of media available and seeks to enable students to make the best selection for their efforts as a PR practitioner, and then to establish the appropriate relationships leading to successful publication in line with the organisations defined PR objectives. Constraints on the process will be explored and metrics for evaluating success examined.CoreMedia Skills 2023-24PBR9012MLevel 72023-24This module aims to develop multiplatform media skills for the PR practitioner. Students will have the opportunity to write news releases and news stories and articles for corporate and consumer newsletters. Students have the chance to be introduced to the editorial and production skills required for multi-platform production in the increasingly converged media environment. The focus will be on organisational story telling and output production for broadcast (radio, TV and online) and print media. During the module, students will have the chance to work in a production workshop environment with all tasks performed under appropriate time constraints.CorePR Principles 2023-24PBR9016Level 72023-24The module will equip the student with knowledge to understand the history of PR and with skills to analyse PR activities either in-house or for a consultancy. Other topics include Companies/Corporate Considerations; NGOs/Charities; PR/Media Releases; Ethics/Codes of Practice; CSR/Corporate Citizenship; PR/Challenges of Activism; Financial PR; PR Measuring/Evaluation.CoreResearch Methods and Professional Placement 2023-24PBR9015MLevel 72023-24On this module, students are expected to take up a work placement in one or several different media organisations of their choice. The module provides prior guidance, together with career advice. Tutors will help with research of the employment market, help to arrange international, national or local work placements and support students as they build an individual career profile, CV, and work experience. This module also provides the opportunity to develop a methodological understanding and to receive support and advice on the final project. Students will then be expected to prepare a written proposal for their dissertation.CoreGender, Media and Culture in a Global Context 2023-24MED9039MLevel 72023-24This module examines the multi-directional and variable relationship between gender, media and culture. We will interrogate the category of gender as a tool of cultural analysis and its relation to media and popular culture. Gender will be presented as central to media and cultural formations, while media, mediation and culture will be presented as central to gender formations. Key concepts to be examined in relation to gender will include body, class, power, sexual difference, masculinity/femininity race/ethnicity, identity/non-identity and subjectivity. These concepts will be introduced and examined in relation to case studies, media practices and texts from a variety of historical and geo-political contexts.OptionalMedia Ecologies 1 2023-24MED9028MLevel 72023-24This module is designed to tackle critically the current disintegration between discrete media forms. It recognises that long established boundaries between modes, practices and conventions of media have become diffuse. Where, in the past, individual media forms were comfortably self-contained and distinctive, today these forms are experienced as a type of informational content that we access on multiple devices and in multiple contexts. The module understands contemporary media to be a complex, entangled ecology, a dynamic system in which any one product, device or image is always multiply connected, and in which our use of such media is necessarily informed by such connections. It insists that media activity is informed by a pattern of relations between individuals, political and economic institutions, commercial brands, and technologies.OptionalOnline Communications 2023-24PBR9013MLevel 72023-24Optional

How you are assessed

This programme uses a full range of assessment and feedback tools which may include written exams, written assignments, reports, a dissertation, portfolios, projects, oral assessments and presentations, practical skills assessments, and set exercises.

The University of Lincoln's policy on assessment feedback aims to ensure that academics will return in-course assessments to you promptly - usually within 15 working days after the submission date.

Fees and Funding

For eligible students, there are more ways than ever before to fund your postgraduate study, whether you want to do a taught or research course. For those wishing to undertake a Master's course, UK students can apply for a loan as a contribution towards the course and living costs. Loans are also available to those who wish to undertake doctoral study. The University offers a number of scholarships and funded studentships for those interested in postgraduate study. Learn how Master's and PhD loans, scholarships, and studentships can help you fund your studies on our Postgraduate Fees and Funding pages.

Programme Fees

Entry Requirements 2023-24

First or second class honours degree.

If you have studied outside of the UK, and are unsure whether your qualification meets the above requirements, please visit our country pages for information on equivalent qualifications.

https://www.lincoln.ac.uk/home/studywithus/internationalstudents/entryrequirementsandyourcountry/

Overseas students will be required to demonstrate English language proficiency equivalent to IELTS 6.5 overall, with a minimum of 6.0 in each element. For information regarding other English language qualifications we accept, please visit the English Requirements page.

https://www.lincoln.ac.uk/home/studywithus/internationalstudents/englishlanguagerequirementsandsupport/englishlanguagerequirements/

If you do not meet the above IELTS requirements, you may be able to take part in one of our Pre-session English and Academic Study Skills courses. These specialist courses are designed to help students meet the English language requirements for their intended programme of study.

https://www.lincoln.ac.uk/home/studywithus/internationalstudents/englishlanguagerequirementsandsupport/pre-sessionalenglishandacademicstudyskills/

How to Apply

To apply for this course you will need to submit an application through our online application system:

Apply Now

Career and Personal Development

In our digitally connected world, there is an abundance of information readily available to audiences worldwide, meaning that companies are more vulnerable than ever to misinformation about their brand. Good communications and media relations are a key management function in any business and can be used as an essential strategy to manage reputation while establishing trust among the public, increasing news media and social media presence, and maintaining a consistent voice. Roles within the sector include publicist, copywriter, PR specialist, and social media manager, and can be based in-house or in an agency. This programme aims to equip graduates with the eloquence and confidence needed for a variety of career in media and communications.

Postgraduate Events

Find out more about how postgraduate study can help further your career, develop your knowledge, or even prepare you to start your own business at one of our postgraduate events.

Find out More

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Prioritising Face-to-Face Teaching

At the University of Lincoln, we strive to ensure our students’ experience is engaging, supportive, and academically challenging. Throughout the Coronavirus pandemic, we have adapted to Government guidance to keep our students, staff, and community safe. All remaining Covid-19 legal restrictions in England were lifted in February 2022 under the Government’s Plan for Living with Covid-19, and we have embraced a safe return to in-person teaching on campus. Where appropriate, face-to-face teaching is enhanced by the use of digital tools and technology and may be complemented by online opportunities where these support learning outcomes.

We are fully prepared to adapt our plans if changes in Government guidance make this necessary, and we will endeavour to keep current and prospective students informed. For more information about how we are working to keep our community safe, please visit our coronavirus web pages.

The University intends to provide its courses as outlined in these pages, although the University may make changes in accordance with the Student Admissions Terms and Conditions.