MA in Media Design
Emerson College
Key Information
Campus location
Boston, USA
Languages
English
Study format
Distance learning
Duration
1 - 2 Year
Pace
Full time, Part time
Tuition fees
USD 1,402 / per credit
Application deadline
Request Info
Earliest start date
Sep 2024
Introduction
Emerson’s online Media Design (MA) blends art, technology, and community-based research to address social justice issues ranging from climate change and public health to voting rights, racial injustice, and food insecurity—or anything you’re passionate about changing in your local or global community.
Housed in our renowned Engagement Lab, our research-based design lab, the Media Design program is designed for artists looking to drive civic change through different forms of media and technology such as video games, apps, film, websites, and more.
Emerson’s Media Design program prepares you for a career in improving the world through art, media, technology, and civic engagement.
Our students partner with local and global organizations such as the Red Cross, UNDP, the City of Boston, the City of Portland, Maine, and iCivics to create solutions that solve community-based problems. This design-oriented program will teach you how to effectively communicate with different populations by building processes, prototypes, and platforms.
Examples of previous student projects have included an app that helped marginalized youth build confidence about their futures by identifying people in their support systems, journaling, and more.
Another project focused on the shrinking footprint of newspapers. Students created a localized digital platform that allowed readers to submit their own news stories to ensure communities that are left without local media resources are able to stay connected.
Program Highlights include:
- Exposure to a broad range of employment opportunities in varying industries such as nonprofit, corporate, government, news & media organizations, and more
- Access to Emerson’s renowned Engagement Lab
- Opportunity to teach and study at Salzburg Media Academy
- 1 or 2-year program options available
- 100% online MA program
- Night and evening classes available to fit your schedule
- No GRE requirements to apply
Program Paths
You may choose to complete your program as a One Year Immersive Program or a Two Year Program Sequence.
One-Year Immersive Program
The One Year Immersive Program is a three-semester program, running from Fall-Summer. The program offers students a hybrid class schedule with online and in-person options available, and with most classes taking place in the evening. Elective schedules are flexible and are offered during the summer semester.
Faculty
Emerson’s School of Communication brings scholars and professionals from around the world to teach and mentor our students. From award-winning journalists to grassroots campaign organizers our faculty are well versed in the field of communications.
The Engagement Lab
The Engagement Lab at Emerson College is an applied research and design lab that investigates and creates media and technology to reduce disparities in civic participation. We work with partners to co-design solutions to the most pressing problems in democracy and governance, including participation gaps, gender or racial discrimination, lack of basic media literacies, youth exclusion, and gaps in public health practices.
From playing games to making media, to running campaigns, we create opportunities for people to creatively participate in civic life. Whether they are used in classrooms or town squares, the tools and processes we develop make civic engagement meaningful for citizens and communities.
Student Project Spotlight
Port(land) of Opportunity by Justin Warren
Port(land) of Opportunity is a game for immigrants and refugees living in Portland, Maine to learn about services available to them in Portland. The Office of Economic Opportunity wanted to try stepping away from more conventional approaches of seeking community feedback (such as interviews and focus groups, as they have used in the past) and instead created an educational game in hopes of making the process more engaging and meaningful to participants.
Alumni
Our Alumni have gone on to work for diverse industries and organizations such as:
- The Obama Foundation
- Global Family Research Project
- Harvard Kennedy School
- National Organization on Disability
- City governments
Admissions
Curriculum
Curriculum Requirements
Emerson’s MA in Media Design requires 32 credits. You can choose from two program paths; A One-Year Immersive Program or a Two-Year Program Sequence.
32 Credits Required for Graduation
- 24 Credits of Core Requirements
- 8 Credit Electives
- (Non-credit) Civic Design Colloquium offered each semester
Core Requirements - 24 Credits
Number | Course | Modality | Credits |
CM 600 | Foundations in Civic Media | Online | 4 |
CM 610 | Participatory Design Methods | Hybrid | 4 |
CM 620 | Design Studio 1 | In-person | 4 |
CM 621 | Design Studio 2 | Online | 4 |
CM 631 | Mapping Community Engagement | In-person | 4 |
MD 690 | Master’s Thesis | In-person | 4 |
Elective Requirements - 8 Credits Sample Courses
Number | Course | Modality | Credits |
CM 630 | Experience Design | Hybrid | 4 |
MK 664 | Design in Communication | In-person | 4 |
CC 640 | UX Design | Online | 4 |
CM 640 | Salzburg Academy on Media & Global Change (global opportunity) | In-person | 4 |
Thesis
The Media Design master’s thesis includes both written and production components. Successful theses include a literature review and theoretical justification, creative portfolio, the design of creative work or program scaled for implementation, and evaluation of initial sketch or intervention, as well as a plan to continue work with the partner organization.
Final theses are in the form of design books to be reviewed by a faculty chair and small review committee, which is intended to be part of the responsibility of the Engagement Lab Fellows. An external reviewer for the final thesis may also be included, which would bring in practitioners or scholars from the Boston community, incentivized by small honoraria.
Scholarships and Funding
Financial Aid
Emerson College is proud to offer students and families financial aid options and resources. For a full list of our financial aid offerings, visit our Financial Aid page.
Scholarships
Upon applying to an Emerson Graduate Program, the Graduate Admission team automatically reviews every accepted student’s scholarship eligibility. For more information about scholarships, please visit our Scholarships & Grants page.
Gallery
Ideal Students
Our Media Design cohort includes students from diverse professional and academic backgrounds who have majored in, worked in, or are interested in journalism, UX design, nonprofit organizations, fundraising, photography/video production, and communications. Our students aspire to work in nonprofit and public-sector industries on the local, national, or international level and value social justice as a core part of their career path through the use of media, digital art, and design. Our students often go on to pursue careers as community managers, developers, digital strategists, community relations managers, civic artists/technologists, designers, videographers, and photographers.
Career Opportunities
Global Opportunities
Our Media Design Master’s program reserves exclusive space for students interested in teaching to participate in a signature global-civic media program called the Salzburg Academy on Media & Global Change.
During the month-long program, you will work as teachers and graduate assistants in Salzburg, an intense and experimental setting for pedagogy practice.
The Salzburg Media Academy annually gathers over 75 students, 15 faculty, and 15 visiting scholars and practitioners from over 30 countries around the world for one month in Salzburg, Austria, to explore how media can respond to the most pressing problems of our time, and to rapidly prototype and create civic media responses to such problems.
Career Outlook
There is an increasing number of jobs in media design within the public, private, and non-profit sectors. Students in the program gain experience working with a variety of community-based organizations and will be prepared for jobs such as:
- Digital Strategist
- Innovation Director
- User Experience Designer
- Civic Designer
- New Media Catalyst
- Applied Research
- Communications Director
- Community Relations Specialist
- Corporate Social Responsibility Manager
- Community Manager
- Director of Civic Engagement
- Civic Technologist
- Civic Artist
Student Testimonials
Program Tuition Fee
English Language Requirements
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