Media Studies with a Placement Year
Media studies is the academic examination of the systems, texts and institutions through which contemporary culture is produced, circulated and consumed. It asks how media organisations operate and are regulated, how messages are constructed and what assumptions they carry, how audiences interpret and respond to media content, and how digital platforms have transformed the relationships between producers, distributors and consumers. It is a discipline with both critical and analytical dimensions, concerned as much with understanding how media shapes society as with evaluating how well particular media serve the public.
At the University of East Anglia, this four-year full-time programme includes a placement year, giving you the opportunity to gain substantial professional experience in a media organisation or related industry setting before you complete your degree. You will study media theory, the history of broadcasting and journalism, the political economy of the media industries, genre analysis, digital cultures, film and television studies, audience research and the ethics of journalism and representation. The placement year allows you to test your academic knowledge in a professional environment and build the practical skills and industry connections that strengthen your graduate prospects.
Graduates work in television, film, radio, publishing, online media, journalism, public relations, marketing, advertising, the charitable sector, education and cultural policy. The analytical skills developed through media studies are also valued in any sector that needs people who can evaluate communication, understand audiences and think critically about how information is shaped and shared. Postgraduate study in media studies, journalism, communications, film studies or cultural policy is a natural next step for those who wish to develop specialist expertise or pursue research-oriented careers.
The placement year experience is a particular advantage for graduates entering a competitive media job market.