1-year MA
MA in Communication for Development (60 credits)
Communication for Development is an interdisciplinary field of study and practice, combining studies in culture, communication and development integrated with practical fieldwork. It explores the use of communication – both as a tool and as a way of articulating processes of social change – within the context of globalisation.
The MA in Communication for Development (ComDev) is web-based programme running 50% part-time over two years. During the first year, students receive a comprehensive overview of globalisation and an introduction to the field of Communication for Development. In the second year, students are introduced to the theory and practice of new media and ICT in a development context and receive a thorough introduction to research methodologies in order to prepare them for their thesis.
ComDev attracts students from all corners of the world and it is particularly popular with those working within the field of communication and development or in civil society organisations. There are close to 200 graduates from the programme and future employment includes working with professional media companies, international organisations and going on to PhD-studies.
You can find alumni portraits on the portal, for example new interviews with students who work(ed) in the UN system, continued with PhD studies or pursued different career paths-and do browse through the content to get a better idea of the people, ideas, research and public engagement behind ComDev.
ComDev was a pioneer in the use of internet-based learning, using online platforms to make education available to students globally and offers a unique blend of distance- and campus-based learning. From the start, the backbone of the programme has been a pedagogical approach referred to as Convergence Pedagogy. The concept was coined and is continuously developed by the ComDev staff and utilises the advantages that the online environment offers in terms of students connecting with fellow students around the world mixed with onsite seminar weekends where students get a chance to meet and interact in person. Lectures and seminars are planned to allow students participating in different time zones. This learning environment, based on the group dynamic that potentiates the participants’ own resources, is described as the Glocal Classroom and allows students based around the globe to interact and conduct group assignments with their peers.
How to Apply
The main application windows for the MA programme in Communication in Development are between 15 March – 15 April for the the autumn semester starting in early September and 15 September – 15 October for the spring semester starting in mid-January. The autumn semester is our primary start date for admitting new students. More information on the courses, general requirements and how to apply are on Malmö University’s official website. Plenty of additional information about studying in Sweden, application procedures and deadlines and much more are available on University Admission’s website.
We introduced a supporting document for the first time during the autumn 2015 application round.
Why a ‘letter of intent’?
It is sometimes difficult in the centralized Swedish application system to identify capable, motivated and interesting students based on the formal documents alone-especially when relevant credits is one of the core indicator in ranking applicants. We are also aiming at recruiting more mature students with professional experience in international development work-and their applications are sometimes difficult to match with the expectations of central admission. Now in its 18th year, the ComDev team has gained quite a lot of knowledge about students who participate actively and complete the course successfully.
Why you should submit the letter of intent
University admission will continue to process all qualified applications and a missing letter of intent will not exclude you from the admission process. However, we strongly encourage you to take the extra time and reflect on your reasons for applying; essentially, tell us a bit more how your personal, professional and academic journey is linked to the core themes of the ComDev course, media (including ICTs), globalization, culture and development.
What happens next?
If you open the document, you will see two sections that we ask you to complete:
First, a brief description (maximum 500 words) of those experiences of Communication for Development issues and problems that, in your opinion, prepare you for studies in the programme; and, second, a Letter of Intent (again, maximum 500 words) where you describe the purpose and your objectives behind applying to the programme.
Once you submitted your completed application we will evaluate the letters that we receive from qualified candidates and rank profiles. This will inform central admission who will make the final decision about which students will be offered a place in the program.
In summary
- We are strongly encouraging applicants to submit a ‘letter of intent’ together with their application; your qualified, completed application will be processed without the letter, but due to the high numbers of qualified students a letter should make a difference and 80% of the places are offered to students who submitted the letter
- Applications are still handled by the central Swedish admission authority and all questions about application formalities should be addressed to them first
- Due to the high number of applications we will not be able to discuss individual cases and to ensure transparency we will also refrain from discussing individual letters during the application process. In case you have general questions you can write to the ComDev team at comdev(AT)mau.se.
