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Critical Media and Cultural Studies – (M.A.)
School of Oriental and African Studies
Faculty of Arts and Humanities
- Programme website
- University Website
- City government site
- Student experiences about the UK - STeXX.eu
| Application Deadline: | June 30 | ||
| Annual Tuition Fee: | ≈ € 6,885 - ≈ € 15,134 (non-EEA) | ||
| Location: | London / United Kingdom / View location on map ▾ Hide location on map ▴ | ||
| Duration: | 12 months | Start Date: | September |
| Educational Form: |
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| Education Variants: |
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| Languages: | English | ||
Location of School of Oriental and African Studies
The degree considers critical issues in media and cultural studies in their full global complexity. Most media studies' degrees concentrate on work in English on media production, distribution and reception in North America, Britain and Australia. They ignore the contemporary mass media in Asia, Africa and Latin America, despite the emergence of many of the world's largest film, television, music and print industries. For instance, in Asia terrestrial and satellite television has become politically and culturally crucial from Japan and China to Indonesia, India and through the Middle East. However the preoccupation with the domestic concerns of the British and American media industries disguises the realities of our now living in a multi-centred world, in ways which conventional media and cultural theory fails to study.
The MA in Critical Media and Cultural Studies addresses this double lack. It offers frames of analysis critical of this theoretical and geographical closure, designed for studying non-Western media production, distribution, reception and commentary.
The degree aims to introduce students to the key contemporary issues discussed in Asian and African media. It also provides opportunities to engage directly in research on an aspect of these media. The degree has a strong theoretical element, especially in the first term core course, which provides students with new ways of approaching non-Western media that help avoid Eurocentrism and Ethnocentrism more broadly.
The optional courses offer access to a range of approaches to the critical study of Asian and African discourses, ranging from cinema to music, comparative literature, gender and religion to art & archaeology; from the cultures and societies of Asia and Africa to African & Asian diaspora and the study of language. The degree is distinctive in providing a depth of theoretical and cultural background to contemporary media processes absent in most other media and cultural studies' degrees.
Contents
Each student takes 4 units in total: the Compulsory Course (1 unit), the Dissertation (1 unit), two half units from list 3 and one unit of options of their choice.
1. Compulsory Course
- Theoretical and Contemporary Issues in Media and Cultural Studies
2. Dissertation in Critical Media and Cultural Studies
- Dissertation in Media Studies
(supervisor to be allocated according to the dissertation topic)
3. Courses in Media Studies
Students are required to take TWO half unit courses from List 3.
- The Transnational News Environment: Production, Representation and Use - 15PMSH006 (0.5 Unit) - Term 1 - Not Running 2011/2012
- Transnational Communities and Diasporic Media: Network, Connect, Identity - 15PMSH004 (0.5 Unit) - Term 1 - Not Running 2011/2012
- Mediated Culture in the Middle East: Politics and Commmunications - 15PMSH003 (0.5 Unit) - Term 1
- International Political Communication - 15PMSH009 (0.5 Unit) - Term 1 - Not Running 2011/2012
- Rethinking Audiences - 15PMSH011 (0.5 Unit) - Term 1 - Not Running 2011/2012
- Studies in Global Media and Post-National Communication - 15PMSH007 (0.5 Unit) - Term 1
- Media Production Skills - 15PANH050 (0.5 Unit) - Term 2
- Critical Approaches to the Study of Regional Cinemas - 15PMSH008 (0.5 Unit) - Term 1 - Not Running 2011/2012
4. Optional Courses:
Students may take a course or courses to the value of one full unit from the following lists:
Courses in Cinemas of Asia and Africa
- Japanese Transnational Cinema: From Kurosawa to Asia Extreme and Studio Ghibli - 15PMSH017 (0.5 Unit) - Term 1 - Not Running 2011/2012
- Japanese Post-War Film Genres and the Avant-Garde - 15PMSH001 (0.5 Unit) - Term 1 - Not Running 2011/2012
- Post-crisis Thai Cinema (1997-2007) - 15PSEH008 (0.5 Unit) - Term 1 - Not Running 2011/2012
- (Post) Colonialism and Otherness in South East Asia on Screen - 15PSEH010 (0.5 Unit) - Term 1 - Not Running 2011/2012
- Genders and Sexualities in South East Asian Film - 15PSEH011 (0.5 Unit) - Term 1 - Not Running 2011/2012
- Indian Cinema: Its History and Social Context - 15PSAH001 (0.5 Unit) - Term 1
- Indian Cinema: Key Issues - 15PSAH002 (0.5 Unit) - Term 1
- Iranian Cinema - 15PMSH010 (0.5 Unit) - Term 1
- Arab Cinemas - 15PMSH013 (0.5 Unit) - Term 1 - Not Running 2011/2012
- Aspects of African film and video 1 - 15PAFH006 (0.5 Unit) - Term 1
- Aspects of African film and video 2 - 15PAFH007 (0.5 Unit) - Term 2
- Approaches to the Other in Horror and Science Fiction Films - 15PANH043 (0.5 Unit) - Term 1
- Modern Chinese Film and Theatre (MA) - 15PCHH001 (0.5 Unit) - Term 1
- Modern Film from Taiwan and the Chinese Diaspora - 15PCHH002 (0.5 Unit) - Term 2
- Issues in the Anthropology of Film - 15PANH022 (0.5 Unit) - Term 2
- Theory and techniques of Comparative Literature - 15PSAC279 (1 Unit) - Full Year
- Postcolonial Theory and Practice - 15PSAC019 (1 Unit) - Full Year
- Literatures in African languages - 15PAFC124 (1 Unit) - Full Year
- Modern Arabic Literature and the West - 15PNMC002 (1 Unit) - Full Year
- Literatures of South Asia - 15PSAC284 (1 Unit) - Full Year
- Popular and Fusion Music in South East Asia (PG) - 15PMUH018 (0.5 Unit) - Term 1 - Not Running 2011/2012
One option from among the following courses in Music
- Music in South Asian Culture (Masters) - 15PMUC005 (1 Unit) - Full Year - Not Running 2011/2012
- Music of the Near and Middle East and North Africa - 15PMUC033 (1 Unit) - Full Year
- Pop and Politics in East Asia (Masters) - 15PMUH014 (0.5 Unit) - Term 1
- Music in Selected Regions of Africa: Contexts and Structures - 15PMUC006 (1 Unit) - Full Year - Not Running 2011/2012
- Art and Society in Africa - 15PARC017 (1 Unit) - Full Year
- Media Production Skills - 15PANH050 (0.5 Unit) - Term 2
- Culture and Society of China - 15PANC089 (1 Unit) - Full Year
- Culture and Society of East Africa - 15PANC084 (1 Unit) - Full Year
- Culture and Society of Japan - 15PANC086 (1 Unit) - Full Year
- Culture and Society of South Asia - 15PANC087 (1 Unit) - Full Year
- Culture and Society of South East Asia - 15PANC088 (1 Unit) - Full Year
- Culture and Society of West Africa - 15PANC083 (1 Unit) - Full Year
- Culture and Society of the Near & Middle East - 15PANC097 (1 Unit) - Full Year
One Option from courses in the Study of Religions and Centre for Gender Studies
- Gender, Post-Colonialism and the Study of Religions - 15PSRC037 (1 Unit) - Full Year
- Readings in Derrida On Religion - 15PSRH024 (0.5 Unit) - Term 1 - Not Running 2011/2012
- Readings in French Feminism and Religion - 15PSRH023 (0.5 Unit) - Term 1 - Not Running 2011/2012
- Theory and Method in the Study of Religion - 15PSRC010 (1 Unit) - Full Year
- Buddhist Arts in Context - 15PSRH001 (0.5 Unit) - Term 1 - Not Running 2011/2012
- Central Concepts and Tenets of Indian Buddhism - 15PSRH010 (0.5 Unit) - Term 1 - Not Running 2011/2012
- Christianity and Social Change in Sub Saharan Africa - 15PSRC157 (1 Unit) - Full Year - Not Running 2011/2012
One option from courses in South Asia
- Modern Bengal: the Evolution of Bengali Culture and Society from 1690 to the Present Day (MA) - 15PSAC289 (1 Unit) - Full Year
A Language course (subject to availability)
One Language Acquisition course taught at SOAS (list available from the Faculty of Languages and Cultures)
You are normally required to take an English Proficiency Test if you come from a non-English speaking country.
Most European Universities recognise the IELTS test.
More informationRequirements
Minimum Entry Requirements: Minimum good second class honours degree (or equivalent)
English language requirements
In order to ensure that SOAS students have a sufficient standard of English to study effectively, we require overseas students to submit evidence, during the application process, of their current level of proficiency.
Score for Unconditional Entry
- IELTS: Overall 7+ with at least 7 in all sub scores
- TOEFL: iBT105+ with at least 25 in all sub scores
- Pearson Test of English - Academic: Score of 75 or above with at least 70 in all sub scores
Additional Requirements
| Minimal degree required: | Bachelor's degree |
| Minimal amount of work experience | Not specified |
Language Proficiency
| IELTS Band: | 7.0 |
| TOEFL Internet-based: | 105 |
Funding details
Scholarships and BursariesThere are some scholarships and bursaries available for postgraduate students. These are very competitive and early application is advised.
Loans
Another way to fund your studies is through educational loans. Some high street banks offer loans for education. The other option is a career development loan. Before taking out a loan ensure that you understand what the repayments will be and that you will be able to afford them.
Professional and Career Development LoansA Professional and Career Development Loan is a bank loan for UK students designed to help you pay for your course. Repayments start one month after you complete your course. You can borrow between £300 and £8,000. The bank will approve your loan according to your credit rating.
US Federal LoansEligible US students can apply for Stafford Federal Loans, Federal Plus and private loans to cover their tuition and maintenance costs.
The Registry Fees and Scholarship section can also certify student registration for other loans, such as Canadian educational loans.
Please contact:
- Registry Fees Section if you have any queries on educational loans or fees for degree courses.
- Noel Connaughton for fees information for occasional courses, certificates and diplomas.
- CEFIMS for fees information for distance learning courses.
Other Sources of Funding
Useful funding information can also be found at:
- Hotcourses Scholarship Search
- HERO funding information for research students
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