MSc Media Management

As part of the delivery of teaching on the core modules, group projects will be delivered to live clients from the media sector. In the past year media sector clients have included a film festival, book publisher, a female empowerment focused podcasting company and an entrepreneurial web app developer. These can be presented to potential future media industry employers as part of a portfolio of your work.

If you’re interested in studying a module from this course, the Postgraduate Certificate or the Postgraduate Diploma then please email Graduate Admissions to discuss your course of study.

Communications, Media and Culture at the University of Stirling was ranked 2nd in Scotland overall in the most recent Research Excellence Framework (REF 2021), with 100% of our research environment and 88% of our overall research classed as world-leading or internationally excellent. 

The Stirling Media Research Institute (SMRI) enjoys an international reputation for the quality of its work, regularly attracting a diverse array of international visitors. The SMRI has a purpose-built research facility for the use of its members. Current research is focused on:

• Cultural and Creative Industries
• Film and Television
• Journalism
• Media and Communications Policy
• Public Relations
• Sport Media
• Digital Media
• Media Archives and Cultural Memory

You'll be taught through a combination of lectures, seminars, workshops and tutorials. We also have guest speakers who are experienced practitioners from the media industry able to provide a strategic or practical insight into current management issues.

Teaching is carried out through a mix of lectures, tutorials, case studies, fieldwork exercises, site visits, guest speakers and organisational projects.

You'll also have the opportunity to hear from industry professionals. Recently we have had speakers from all parts of the media industries and creative sector including Editor of the Sunday National, Former editor of The Scotsman, Head of Business Multiplatform Productions, BBC Scotland, Director and Independent Creative Producer for LeithLate, Director of Crowdfunding at Communications specialists Paved with Gold. Guest lectures have also been delivered from policymakers from the British Council; Ofcom and PACT. On core modules, students also had the opportunity to deliver projects for real-world media sector clients including a film festival, book publisher, a female empowerment focused podcasting company and an entrepreneurial web app developer.

Fieldtrips delivered as part of the core modules include a visit to the state-of-the-art broadcast facilities at BBC Pacific Quay, the recently opened V&A Dundee and tech incubator CodeBase Stirling.

Modules are assessed by a combination of coursework including:

• essays
• practical reports and strategic plans
• case studies
• presentations
• research design and project proposals
• You will also complete a 12,000 word dissertation

Some of these outputs will be delivered to live clients from the media sector and can be presented to potential future media industry employers as part of a portfolio of your work.

The timetable below is a typical example, but your own timetable may be different.

This is an illustrative timetable, and not the timetable for the next academic year.

Dr Katherine Champion, Course Director 

k.m.champion@stir.ac.uk

The course has been strengthened with the appointment of new, dedicated staff and the development of new modules. It continually evolves to keep up with the changing media world. 

Dr Katherine Champion - Course Director, Tutor for Global Media Industries, Digital Cultures for Media Managers and the Dissertation 

Dr Victoria Esteves – Tutor for Research Methods and Media Policy and Regulation 

Professor Steven Buchanan – Tutor for Research Methods and Human Information Behaviour 

Professor Iain MacRury – Tutor for Advertising  

Dr William Dinan – Tutor for Research Methods 

Ask an expert

Course Director, Dr Katherine Champion, a specialist in Media and Communications, explains how studying at Stirling can enhance your career prospects.

Ask an expert in media, culture and communications

Postgraduate tuition fee loans

Scottish students may be eligible to apply to the Students Award Agency for Scotland (SAAS) for loans of up to £11,500 to cover tuition fees and associated living costs.

English students can apply for a loan of up to £12,167 each year as part of the Postgraduate Masters Loan Scheme.

Welsh students can apply for financial support of up to £18,770 as a combination of grant and loan from Student Finance Wales.

Northern Irish students can apply for a postgraduate tuition fee loan of up to £5,500 from Student Finance NI.

Other sources of funding

If you have the talent, ability and drive to study with us, we want to make sure you make the most of the opportunity – regardless of your financial circumstances.

Learn more about available funding opportunities or use our scholarship finder to explore our range of scholarships.

If you’re domiciled in the UK, you can typically apply to your relevant funding body for help with living costs. This usually takes the form of student loans, grants or bursaries, and the amount awarded depends upon your personal circumstances and household income.

European Union and overseas students won’t normally be able to claim living support through SAAS or other UK public funding bodies. You should contact the relevant authority in your country to find out if you’re eligible to receive support.

Find out about the cost of living for students at Stirling

We aim to be as flexible as possible, and offer a wide range of payment methods - including the option to pay fees by instalments. Learn more about how to pay

There are facilities to help you to get jobs, work on your CV and even seek financial assistance. The first time I borrowed books, I felt like I was shoplifting, you can log the books that you borrow on your own. What's more, a lot of the reading material is digitised so that you can stay home and study.

There are also, many places in the city where you can get cheap winter clothing. Students are encouraged in varied interests, elections, fairs and many societies to join. In just six months, I have already been to Glasgow, Edinburgh, the Isle of Cumbrae and the Isle of Sky. So it's not all books!

The lecturers in my experience have all been knowledgeable, encouraging and open. I have found that they truly care that you succeed. What an adventure!”

Sharon Ali Aziz
MSc Media Management 2016/17

We offer a comprehensive employability and skills programme to help you maximise your time at university and develop the graduate attributes required by employers. We have a dedicated Faculty Employability and Skills Officer. There's also our Career and Employability Service who work in partnership with academic staff to ensure you get the best out of your University experience and are given the right opportunities to make you ready for the world of work.

You'll have access to advice, information and career opportunities not only in the UK, but worldwide..

What skills can you develop through this course?

As you progress through your Media Management degree, you’ll develop a wide range of practical skills and attributes that are actively sought after by prospective employers. These include:

• Media industry awareness
  Through case study analysis, guest lectures and site visits to media organisations, you’ll gain an understanding of what’s going on in the media sector and rapid developments in other digitally related industries.

• Written and oral communication
  Media management involves communication with various stakeholders – both internally and externally. Our course develops your abilities to communicate through various essays, reports, presentations and online activities.
  
  
• Team working
  Group work is an essential part of your Media Management degree, with both management and communications modules simulate real-life scenarios in business and marketing communications.

• Research and analysis
  You’ll be given the opportunity to develop your own research skills to carry out both small-scale and larger research projects, including your dissertation.
  
  
• Time management
  You’ll learn how to manage your time more effectively through active involvement in group projects, as well as by successfully juggling your weekly workload in order to meet your (sometimes conflicting) deadlines for coursework.
  
  
• Self-confidence
  The media industry needs confident self-starters, and your active participation in the course and our wider postgraduate community will build your personal confidence and professional prospects.

The Division of Communications, Media and Culture actively supports and encourages its staff and students to engage with a wider audience for its research. We've contributed to the work of:

• policy fora
• funded research for government agencies
• collaborative work with NGO’s
• engagement with the trade associations, unions and institutes of communications
• media and culture professionals
• active dialogue and contributions to media organisations across the spectrum of broadcasting
• the press, film and the Internet
• professional contributions to charities and pressure groups in relation to public media issues and policies
• a range of cultural heritage activities at national and international film festivals and exhibitions

Students will meet media professionals through talks and site visits, and will have the opportunity to focus aspects of their assessment on the needs of media organisations. Staff maintain good relationships with former graduates now working in the media, including organisations such as the BBC, Channel 4, MTV, China Radio HIT FM, Vodafone Greece and Radio One India (A Midday/BBC Joint Venture).