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Cultural & Creative Industries MA

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Overview

Our multi-faceted course examines the structure and history of the cultural and creative industries and explores practical and theoretical issues facing cultural entrepreneurs, professionals and policy-makers.

Using a range of analytical tools from sociology, media and cultural studies, the course draws on teaching, research and professional expertise from both King’s academics and professionals working in the field.

Ideally suited for students looking for a career in the cultural, media and creative sectors.

Key Benefits

Located at the heart of London’s arts and media industries.

Guest lectures from industry professionals and researchers provide up-to-date knowledge of current debates and trends.

Key information

Application status Closed

Duration One year FT, two years PT, September to September.

Study mode Full-time, Part-time

Credit value UK 180/ECTS 90

Course intake 150 FT, 15 PT.

Course leaders Dr Red Chidgey

Further details

Course contact for further information

Postgraduate Admissions Team, Admissions Office tel: +44 (0) 20 7848 7000 fax: +44 (0) 20 7848 7200

https://www.kcl.ac.uk/study/postgraduate/apply/enquiry-form.aspx

Course contact form Postgraduate admissions

Awarding institution King's College London

Faculty Faculty of Arts & Humanities

Department Department of Culture, Media and Creative Industries

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Cultural & Creative Industries MA

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Course detail

Description

Cultural & Creative Industries is a unique interdisciplinary course that draws on cultural theories, cultural history, digital culture, management, screen studies, geography, cultural policy, gender and fashion. This exciting and contemporary course also makes use of our links with and proximity to Tate Modern, to offer bespoke optional modules that take students ‘behind the scenes’ of a leading art museum to explore different aspects of Tate’s activities.

If you are seeking a career in the arts or creative industries, or if you are a professional looking to enhance your existing knowledge and career prospects, then this course is ideally suited for you. You can also use the training and skills we will give you to prepare for doctoral research in culture, media and creative industries. However, you should bear in mind that this is not a traditional media, communications or journalism studies course. If you want to follow a career in these areas, this course will only be relevant in so far as your interests relate specifically to the cultural and creative industries, such as performing and visual arts, cultural heritage, film, games and music.

Whilst the MA does not include an organised internship, we have a dedicated member of academic staff who assists students interested in acquiring practical experience through sharing information about competitive internship opportunities offered by our cultural partners or other organisations across London. Previous students from within the Department have succeeded in independently securing internships at a wide variety of arts and cultural institutions, including National Theatre, Barbican Centre, British Council, British Film Institute, Hayward Gallery, National Portrait Gallery, Screen Digest, The British Museum, CIDA (Cultural Industries Development Agency), Donmar Warehouse and the V&A Museum, which gives you an idea of the exciting opportunities on offer.

Each year students have the opportunity to apply for a selective-entry Collaborative Dissertation Project, organised with external arts, media and heritage organisations. The collaborative dissertation project enables students to work with a cultural partner on a live research brief that informs their final MA dissertations. Previous dissertation partners include Battersea Arts Centre, Black Live Theatre, Arts Council England, Dash Arts, King’s Cultural Institute, Live Cinema, Glyndebourne, Mahogany Opera Group, Lambeth Archives, OnRoad Media, Royal Society, Arts Cabinet, Iconem, and Greater London Authority.

Course format and assessment

Teaching

If you are a full-time student, we will provide you with six to eight hours of teaching through lectures, seminars, study visits and workshops each week during semesters one and two. We will expect you to undertake an additional 34 hours of self-study each week. In semester three, you will complete your dissertation final project, for which we will provide supervision guidance. You will be expected to devote approximately 600 hours of independent study to your MA dissertation project.

If you are a part-time student, we will provide 90 hours of teaching through lectures and seminars in your first year, and 50 hours in your second year. We will expect you to undertake 720 hours of independent study in your first year, and 954 hours in your second.

We will use a delivery method that will ensure students have a rich, exciting experience from the start. Face to face teaching will be complemented and supported with innovative technology so that students also experience elements of digital learning and assessment.

Typically, one credit equates to 10 hours of work.

Assessment

Your performance will be assessed through a combination of coursework and written/practical examinations. Forms of assessment may typically include essays, reports, individual and group presentations, proposals and reviews. Coursework contributes approximately 95% and examinations approximately 5% to your final mark.

Location

The course is primarily taught at the King’s College London Strand Campus. We are located in the heart of London, offering you an unparalleled location and easy access to the city’s cultural offerings.

Regulating body

King's College London is regulated by the Office for Students.

Structure

Year 1

Course are divided into modules. You will normally take modules totalling 180 credits.

Required Modules

You are required to take the following taught modules:

• Analysing the Cultural & Creative Industries (40 credits)

• Research Approaches (20 credits)

In addition you are required to complete:

• Dissertation (MA Cultural & Creative Industries) (60 credits)

• Arts-Based Research Project (60 credits)

Optional Modules

In addition, you are required to take 60 modules from a range of optional modules, which may typically include:

• The Aesthetic Economy (20 credits)

• The Art Museum: Past, Present, Future (selective entry) (20 credits)

• Children, Media Industries & Culture (20 credits)

• Collecting Cultures (20 credits)

• Contextualising Creativity (20 credits)

• Cultural Management in Small Arts & Cultural Organisations (20 credits)

• Cultural Markets (20 credits)

• Cultural Memory (20 credits)

• Cultural Policy (20 credits)

• Culture: Conflict, Diplomacy & International Relations (20 credits)

• Digital Media Production Cultures (20 credits)

• Entertainment Industries (20 credits)

• Entrepreneurial Opportunity: Arts & Culture (selective entry) (20 credits)

• Exhibitions, Identities and Politics (20 credits)

• Fashion, Culture & Society (20 credits)

• Festivals: Arts, Public Spaces & Communities (20 credits)

• Future Memory: Creating Connected Worlds (20 credits)

• Gaming Industries and Cultures (20 credits)

• Gender, Media & Culture (20 credits)

• Gender and Sexualities in East Asian Popular Culture (20 credits)

• Immersive Media and Extended Realities (20 credits)

• International Heritage & Cultural Tourism (20 credits)

• Media on the Move: Products & Power (20 credits)

• Museum Curating Now (selective entry) (20 credits)

• Music & American Culture (20 credits)

• The Politics of Global Art (selective entry) (20 credits)

• Readings of the Music Business (20 credits)

• Transnational Screen Production (20 credits)

• Visual Culture (20 credits)

You may choose 20 credits of modules from the Faculty of Arts & Humanities and the Modern Language Centre, or, exceptionally, from a range of modules from the Faculty of Social Science & Public Policy (notably the Department of Education & Professional Studies, and Department of Management), or the School of Law, subject to approvals.

If you are a part-time student, you will take the Analysing the Cultural & Creative Industries (40 credits) in your first year, along with 40-credits of optional modules. In your second year, you will take Research Approaches (20 credits) and either the Dissertation or Arts-based Research Project (60 credits), along with a 20-credit module from the list of optional modules.

King’s College London reviews the modules offered on a regular basis to provide up-to-date, innovative and relevant programmes of study. Therefore, modules offered may change. We suggest you keep an eye on the course finder on our website for updates.

Entry requirements & how to apply

CCI Entry Requirements
Minimum requirements	High 2:1 (65%)	Bachelor’s degree with high 2:1 honours (i.e. overall average of at least 65% across all years of study) in any discipline. For those returning to study, evidence of appropriate experience will be required. In order to meet the academic entry requirements for this programme you should have a minimum high 2:1 undergraduate degree with a final mark of at least 65% or above in the UK marking scheme. If you are still studying you should be achieving an average of at least 65% or above in the UK marking scheme. Please note: Meeting the minimum requirements for your application to be considered does not guarantee an offer as applications for this programme are very competitive.
International requirements		Visit our admissions webpages to view our International entry requirements.
English Language requirements	Band B	Visit our admissions webpages to view our English language entry requirements.

Application procedure

Applications must be made online using King’s online application portal apply.kcl.ac.uk and a non-refundable application fee of £100 applies.

To apply for a place on MA Cultural & Creative Industries, please go to King’s Apply (via the link above) to complete the online application. You must include the following supporting documents:

A reference from a previous or current academic tutor
A complete or partial transcript of your first degree results. This is obtainable from your degree-awarding institution
A personal statement of 500 words (following the guidelines below)
Create a new piece of writing specifically for your application (see guidelines below).

If English is not your first language, and your degree was not taught and assessed entirely in English, we require relevant English language qualifications to be provided. Please note that we will still be able to consider your application even if you do not yet have an English language certificate. In this case, any offer made will be given on more the condition that you meet King’s College London's English language requirements, which will be detailed in your offer letter.

In assessing your application we will look for the following: academic capabilities: broad understanding of CCI; and interest and ability in studying CCI. Your academic interests should match the broad themes that inform MA CCI teaching, i.e. cultural theory and history, cultural production, cultural consumption and cultural governance. It is ideal that your career interests correspond to the sectors on which MA CCI teaching focuses including visual cultures, museums, popular music, film and digital culture.

Personal statement and supporting information

You will be asked to submit the following documents in order for your application to be considered:

CCI checklist
Personal Statement	Yes	Applicants must submit both a personal statement and a writing sample. The personal statement should explain why you wish to apply for this programme and why you feel it matches your interests, academic background, and, if relevant, your career plans. The personal statement should be a maximum of 500 words, if you submit a personal statement which is longer than this it will not be accepted, and you will be required to submit a shorter version, thus delaying application assessment.
Previous Academic Study	Yes	A copy (or copies) of your official academic transcript(s), showing the subjects studied and marks obtained. If you have already completed your degree, copies of your official degree certificate will also be required. Applicants with academic documents issued in a language other than English, will need to submit both the original and official translation of their documents.
References	Yes	One academic reference is required. A professional reference will be accepted if you have completed your qualifications over five years ago. In some cases, we may request an additional reference from you.
Writing Sample	Yes	Please see details below.
Other	Optional	Applicants may wish to include a CV (Resume) or evidence of professional registration as part of their application.

The piece of writing you should submit must address ONE of the following options, and should be 2,000 words in length:

1. Write a reflective piece about an issue pertinent to the cultural and creative industries

2. Should governments subsidise the arts? Explain your answer using relevant examples to illustrate your points

Your essay will demonstrate your ability to:

- Investigate the topic/question

- Source apposite material

- Undertake original research

- Construct a coherent argument

Use appropriate evidence and source material to support your arguments, such as textbooks, journal articles, newspaper articles and internet sources. Please include AT LEAST five sources. Ensure that you cite these using the Harvard referencing system and provide a full bibliography at the end of your essay.

We will be using plagiarism software to check that your essay has not been submitted by another student or to another institution, either in whole or in part; if you are found to have plagiarised then your application will be immediately rejected. Our system will detect self-plagiarism, i.e. if you have submitted any portion of your essay to another UK institution; your essay must therefore be original and specific to this application.

Application closing date

We recommend that you submit your application as soon as possible. Our first application deadline is the 26^th March 2021. After this date, the programme will remain open only if places are still available and will be closed as soon as it is full.

For programmes that remain open beyond this date, the final application deadlines for the following fee statuses are listed below:

EU or overseas (international) fee status: 30^th July 2021
Home fee status: 27^th August 2021

Please note, you will not be eligible for an application fee refund if you apply after the first application deadline in March, and we are unable to process more offers as places are filled before the final application deadlines above.

Help and support

If you don't have a suitable qualification for direct entry to a UK university, or if English isn't your first language, our academic preparation courses can help you get ready for study in the UK.

Preparation courses

Fees and funding

Full time Home fees: £10,500 per year (2021/22)
Full time overseas fees: £25,800 per year (2021/22)
Part time Home fees: £5,250 per year (2021/22)
Part time overseas fees: £12,900 per year (2021/22)

These tuition fees may be subject to additional increases in subsequent years of study, in line with King’s terms and conditions.

Deposit

When you receive an offer for this course you will be required to pay a non-refundable deposit to secure your place. The deposit will be credited towards your total fee payment.

The UK deposit is £500.

The INTERNATIONAL deposit is £2,000.

If you receive an offer on or before 31st March, payment is due by 30^th April 2021.
If you receive an offer between 1st April and 30th June, payment is due within one month of receiving the offer.
If you receive an offer between 1st July and 31st July, payment is due within two weeks of receiving the offer.
If you receive an offer on or after 1st August, payment is due within one week of receiving the offer.
If you receive an offer from late August onwards, payment is due within 2 days of receiving the offer.

If you are a current King’s student in receipt of the King's Living Bursary you are not required to pay a deposit to secure your place on the programme. Please note, this will not change the total fees payable for your chosen programme.

Additional costs/expenses

In addition to your tuition fees, you can also expect to pay for:

• books if you choose to buy your own copies

• clothing for optional course related events and competitions

• library fees and fines

• personal photocopies

• printing course handouts

• society membership fees

• stationery

• travel costs around London and between campuses

• graduation costs

Please visit our web pages on fees and funding for more information.

Financial help and support

Visit the fees and funding webpages to find out more about bursaries, scholarships, grants, tuition fees, living expenses, student loans and other financial help available at King's.

Career prospects

Our graduates take the skills and knowledge they develop with us to a wide range of roles in the cultural and creative industries. Our previous graduates have taken up roles in arts administration in local government, marketing for a major cultural institution in London, editing a lifestyle magazine in the US, and researching for China’s broadcasting industry regulator.

Further career paths have included performing arts management, museum and gallery management, arts funding, cultural industries development, film distribution, freelance research and creative business development. A number of our students have gone on to further academic research.

Testimonials

Rodolphe

I chose King's College London because I wanted to study at a top university. It offers a world-class education as you are taught by renowned teachers in fantastic facilities and this explains its international reputation.