How long is the MA in Communication Studies?

The MA in Communication Studies runs for one year full-time or two years part-time, with central London weekend blocks, online live discourse clinics or a distance route.

Can I study the MA in Communication Studies online?

Yes. The MA in Communication Studies is offered fully online with live discourse clinics, or as distance learning with structured supervision and an optional residential week.

Is the MA recognised by UK employers?

The MA in Communication Studies is aligned with CIPR, PRCA and Political Studies Association references — the academic benchmarks UK public-affairs and consultancy hiring panels measure against.

What are the entry requirements for the MA in Communication Studies?

A UK 2:2 in a relevant subject (or five years' senior comms/policy/journalism experience), IELTS 6.5 for non-native English speakers, and a 500-800 word research proposal.

What does the MA in Communication Studies cost and are scholarships available?

Fees vary by route and domicile. The MA in Communication Studies offers a public-sector communicator bursary each intake — contact admissions for the current fee schedule.

MA Communication Studies in London UK | LSCT London | Harold International College of London

Course Overview

The MA in Communication Studies at the London School of Commerce and Technology (LSCT) is a postgraduate qualification for senior communicators, public-affairs professionals, journalists and policy researchers preparing to operate at the level where messages shape decisions. The MA is shaped by CIPR professional standards, PRCA charter principles and Political Studies Association academic references. It is taught from our central London base with online and distance routes.

You will study communication as theory and as craft — from rhetoric and political communication to platform analytics and crisis discourse. Assessment combines an applied strategic-communications project, a discourse-analysis paper and a research dissertation supervised by a senior practitioner or academic.

You will publish or broadcast to a real audience from the first term, with editorial standards set on day one and applied consistently across all student output. The faculty maintains active newsroom and agency contacts across UK media so guest practitioners drop into seminars regularly and feedback loops back from the industry into the syllabus continuously.

Key Features

CIPR-aligned postgraduate syllabus with PRCA charter references.
Three study modes — central London weekend blocks, online with live discourse clinics, or distance learning with structured supervision.
Westminster-cycle module on UK political communication and lobbying.
Crisis-discourse lab built around recent UK reputation cases.
Quantitative-text-analysis module using modern computational tools.
Dissertation supervised by a senior communications practitioner or academic.

The programme is scheduled around the rhythm of a working media operation — newsdays mid-week, longer-form work over the weekend — so students experience the cadence as well as the craft. Editorial standards are set on day one and applied consistently across every piece of student work.

What You Will Learn

The MA builds four senior capabilities the UK communications labour market is structured around — theory fluency, strategy, audience-data literacy and the ability to defend a message under scrutiny.

Communication theory — semiotics, rhetoric and political communication.
Strategic communications planning and stakeholder mapping.
Crisis and issues management.
Public affairs and Westminster engagement.
Digital platforms, algorithms and audience-data analysis.
Quantitative and qualitative text analysis.
Communications ethics and CIPR code of conduct.
Research methods and the communications dissertation.

Modules are assessed by working practitioners as well as academics, which means feedback reads more like an editor note than a marker comment. Students leave with cuttings, packaged work and a portfolio that can be sent straight to a hiring desk.

Who This Course Is For

PR managers stepping into director-track and consultancy roles.
Public-affairs and policy professionals shaping UK political messages.
Journalists moving into senior strategic communications.
International communicators targeting UK practice.

Working journalists adding a specialism are welcome and the media department offers flexible scheduling for those filing daily. International applicants seeking UK media credentials are supported through the post-Brexit publishing landscape and IPSO regulatory framework.

Career Pathways

Graduates move into the senior tier of UK communications, public affairs and policy. Typical destinations include:

Communications Manager
Public Affairs Manager
Press Officer (Senior)
Policy Officer
Strategic Communications Consultant
Internal Communications Lead

Recent destinations include desks at UK regional and national titles, in-house communications teams at FTSE-listed firms, the press functions of public-sector bodies, charity communications, and independent podcast and digital-publishing operations. The placements team supports portfolio review, pitch practice and direct introductions where appropriate.

The MA also opens doctoral routes in communications, media and politics.

The media department maintains an active alumni network across UK newsrooms, agencies and in-house communications functions, with former students regularly returning as guest tutors and direct referrers for current cohorts.

Entry Requirements

A UK 2:2 honours degree (or international equivalent) in a relevant subject.
Applicants from non-cognate fields may apply with five years' senior communications, policy or journalism experience.
IELTS 6.5 overall (no band below 6.0) for non-native English speakers.
A personal statement, two references and a 500-800 word research proposal.

Mature applicants with newsroom, agency or in-house communications experience may apply with a CV and a small portfolio rather than the formal qualifications listed above. International applicants are supported through pre-arrival orientation and CAS issuance, and the media department offers tutorial support for those building UK-context portfolios.

Why Study at LSCT

The London School of Commerce and Technology (LSCT) is a specialist higher-education provider based in central London and part of Harold International College. We teach in small cohorts so every student is visible to their tutor, run a single intake schedule that students can rely on, and partner with UK professional bodies so qualifications carry weight with employers. London puts Whitehall, the City, Silicon Roundabout, the Royal Courts of Justice, the West End and the NHS estate within a short tube ride of every classroom — and our students use that proximity in their projects, placements and graduate job hunts. Our media faculty includes serving public-affairs practitioners and former Westminster lobby journalists, so political-communication seminars track actual select-committee cycles.

The media department brings practitioner panels into every cohort — from working journalists who file daily to PR directors who handle current FTSE reputations — which keeps the syllabus connected to the live UK industry. Students publish to a real audience under their own bylines from the first term.

Apply for MA in Communication Studies

Specialise at postgraduate level with the MA in Communication Studies. Click Enrol Now to apply; admissions teams reply within one working day with scholarship and funding guidance.

Admissions on the media programme respond within one working day with intake confirmation and a short portfolio review where applicable. Tuition discussions and any relevant industry-progression bursaries are flagged privately by the team during enrolment.

The team can discuss study-mode flexibility between cohorts and pre-arrival orientation for international students taking on the central London on-campus route.

Cohort sizes remain deliberately small so editorial feedback is detailed and immediate, and current students consistently report the working-practitioner tutors as the strongest feature of the LSCT media programme.

Course handbooks, assessment criteria, the academic calendar and the named tutor for each cohort are shared at induction so every learner knows exactly how their progress is measured from the first day. The LSCT student experience team is available throughout the programme for academic and pastoral support, and assignment turnaround times are published in the handbook rather than left to ad-hoc practice. Cohorts move through the syllabus together and stay in touch as alumni once they finish, which is part of how the LSCT community sustains its professional networks year on year.