Media Studies - Media, Digital Transformations and Society
This MA programme offers a critical exploration of digital media within contemporary networked societies and trains students to work with (big) data in a responsible way.
Media platforms (including social media) have changed the fabric of everyday life and society. This has had important implications for how we inform ourselves, with whom we connect and in which ways, how we organize our daily lives, and how we perform as citizens. Besides increased access to information and connectivity, digital media have also increased divides in society and created new ones. Moreover, who can participate in the digital society depends on levels of literacy and critical understanding of the digital media that surround us. Knowledge of the ways these quickly emerging communication infrastructures are fundamentally transforming society is indispensable. At a time when intensive data-gathering and analysis is key for companies and governments, this MA programme's theoretical approach to social media, platforms and government technology – including their data-driven impact on society – helps students in understanding and reflecting on critical issues in order to respond to current societal transformations. From a practical perspective, students are trained to investigate data and digital technology in the context of social, political and economic change.
Additional English language requirement (also for students wishing to pursue a premaster programme): a Dutch VWO diploma or Dutch VWO English certificate (grade 6 or higher), minimum TOEFL requirement iBT 100 (with a minimum of 25 for all components), or IELTS 7 (with a minimum of 6.5 for all components) or Cambridge C1 Advanced or C2 Proficiency with a minimum score of 185. If you have a Dutch VWO degree, you do not need to submit a language test.
Students with a BA degree in Media Studies from the University of Groningen are directly admitted to the programme. Students with any other BA degree need to have at least 30 ECTS credit points from course units from the Minor in Media Studies provided by the University of Groningen, or course units equivalent to these in content followed at a different university.
- Reference letter: Names and contact of two referees;
- Curriculum Vitae (CV)
- Motivation letter
- A sample of academic writing in English: i.e. your thesis or 10-15 pages of other academic coursework preferably related to the programme you are applying to.
Job prospects
Students who finish this MA degree have:
- A thorough understanding of the societal implications of the emerging social media ecology for democracy, social cohesion and the economy
- Strong analytical, methodological and professional skills that allow them to design and conduct critical research into social media, networks and their implications for society and to computationally collect, analyze, visualize and re-use social media data to study online behaviour and content on a large scale
Job examples
- Data analyst
- Market researcher
- Marketing officer
- Communication and public relations officer
- Consultant
- Entrepreneur
- Policy advisor
