The Bachelor of Media Communication responds to the increasing global demand for graduates with a deep understanding of the role of media in contemporary social, cultural and economic life and well-developed professional skills in communication. The course will provide you with analytical and critical thinking skills through a core program of professional communication practice alongside specialist study in a related field such as journalism, media, screen, or digital humanities.
The core units will offer a range of practical experiences utilising the Monash Media Lab, culminating in a key component of the course; a final year media project or industry internship, taken either locally or overseas.
You will develop cross-cultural competency, social awareness and a global outlook. This course is suited for students who wish to pursue a career in media communication occupations across a broad range of media industry sectors and other professional domains, including government, corporate and NGO. Relevant occupations include journalist, video producer, media content coordinator, public relations professional, digital communications coordinator, director of social media, researcher, media educator.
Double degrees
The Bachelor of Media Communication can be taken in combination with the following courses:
- B2028 Bachelor of Business and Bachelor of Media Communication
- B2044 Bachelor of Marketing and Bachelor of Media Communication
- B2045 Bachelor of Business Administration and Bachelor of Media Communication
- F2009 Bachelor of Design and Bachelor of Media Communication
This will lead to the award of two degrees, the Bachelor of Media Communication and the degree awarded by the partner course. The requirements for the award of the Bachelor of Media Communication degree are the same whether the award is earned through a single or double degree course. You should refer to the course entry for the partner course and the course map for the double degree for the requirements of the other degree.
Specialisations
Digital humanities
Digital humanities is an innovative, multidisciplinary specialisation at the intersection of the study of human culture and digital technologies, of the disciplines of the arts, humanities and computing. It utilises a variety of different critical approaches that make use of new digital technologies to research and understand media communication. Rather than taking digital technologies as simply objects of study, digital humanities employs them as tools for making sense of the media-saturated world in which we live and the cultural transformations that are taking place with their development. By combining the expertise of the faculties of Arts, IT, and Art, Design and Architecture you will develop the necessary skills to create and evaluate digital media content, use digital technologies to analyse complex problems and creatively express yourself and to work both independently and collaboratively with others across disciplines boundaries. The specialisation will prepare you for professional media practices such as data journalism, data visualisation, data archiving, social media analysis and other computer-mediated communication analysis, and interactive experience design.
Journalism
The Monash Journalism Program is one of the most dynamic in Australia. One of the key strengths of Monash Journalism is its foundational teaching of both the practice of journalism addressing all production technologies (print, broadcasting and podcasting, photojournalism and digital) and the study of journalism. Our program is designed for students to understand the history, power and context of journalism alongside units, which offer practical experience using multifaceted platforms and technologies. In doing so, it prepares you for the professional practice of high-quality journalism. This blending of critical enquiry and industry engagement provides you with an opportunity to explore journalism in all its facets, and to address the vital issues of the media today.
The program is taught by award-winning journalists and renowned journalism academics, in a multi-million-dollar purpose-built facility at the Caulfield campus. Monash Journalism is designed to facilitate entry to an exciting and challenging profession providing internship opportunities. It imparts advanced skills in research and communication for professional practice and is founded on the principle that robust and accurate journalism is an essential component of a democratic society. Students from many other disciplines and areas of study take our journalism units to learn critical skills in communication in a variety of approaches and media platforms, which improves their employability.
Media
The media specialisation provides a strong, grounded understanding of contemporary media. You will gain in-depth knowledge of media studies as a discipline and develop skills in media analysis that have applications across a wide range of professional contexts - from social media strategy in organisations to media management and communication and media policy. You will develop an understanding of the transition from 'broadcast' to 'networked' media systems and of the social, economic and political disruptions this transition has brought around the world. The specialisation introduces principles for making critical and ethical judgments relevant to professional practice in the new media environment. It offers an international approach, providing opportunities to locate yourself as a responsible global citizen.
Public relations
This specialisation will prepare you for a public relations career. It develops a critical understanding of all aspects of communication management and the role of strategic public relations in society, with an emphasis on ethical communication and stakeholder engagement. You will develop a strong understanding of the public relations industry in Australia and internationally alongside public relations theory. You will learn to research, develop, implement and evaluate strategic communication plans. You will work with real-client organisations and learn from industry case studies and research reports, in order to gain the advanced skills in communication, content creation and media production you need for professional practice in a complex and dynamic communication environment.
Screen
Screen industries, technologies and cultures are changing faster than ever before. This specialisation provides you with the knowledge to understand these transformations, navigating how film, television and newer screen formats have led to and function within contemporary media ecologies. You will study an extensive range of units covering historical, analytical and practical approaches to screen content and formats from around the world. In this, you will consider current academic debates concerning the shift from local to global and analog to digital economies, and also address issues to do with the representation of gender, race and class on screen. The screen specialisation also combines conceptual and practical video production skills relevant to a broad range of media platforms and screen cultures.