The Centre for Communication, Media and Society (CCMS)

Howard College Campus, Durban, South Africa (http://ccms.ukzn.c.za)   

Why Study Professional Communication, Media and Cultural Industries? 

Postgraduate study (Honours, MA, PhD) in CCMS aims to equip graduates with the ability to easily adapt to the world of work, in a variety of sectors. From Honours, CCMS places students in real-world environments where they work with the best professionals in the industry/profession – learning the kinds of conceptual expertise, research methods and professional skills that are required in business, commerce and the civil and state sectors. This makes a graduate employable. Our degrees are worth the paper on which they are written and our graduates can compete with the world's best. Unlike other institutions, CCMS offers highly structured degrees with weekly seminars and close supervision.   Students work in small groups, with very intensive expert support.  Each student is allocated an academic advisor to work with them in ensuring success.  

Our overseas students are attracted by CCMS's world class reputation.  Such visiting students usually come from places such as Norway, The Netherlands, USA, Germany, Canada, the UK, Italy, Greece and so on. 

CCMS graduates are (or have been) employed as lecturers at UKZN, University of Cape Town, Rhodes, Zululand, Fort Hare, Johannesburg University, Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Durban University of Technology, UNISA, and in the private sector at Varsity College, Vega School of Advertising, Boston College, Rosebank, and Damelin and the AFDA Film School.  Overseas, our graduates are or have been employed at universities like Monash and Queensland (Australia), London School of Economics, Atabasca (Canada), Arizona, Towson, St Thomas (USA) etc.  We have also educated lecturers who are now senior academics at top universities all over Africa (Zimbabwe, Botswana, Namibia, Lesotho, Swaziland, Kenya, Zambia, Ethiopia, Eritria, Rwanda, and Malawi.) 

In the professional sector our graduates are or have been employed by UKZN (Corporate Relations, Administration, Access, and in Media and Cultural Studies on both UKZN campuses), Caxton's Community Newspapers, Independent Newspapers, Media24, SABC, eTV, CNN, a variety of NGOs, the video industry, advertising and PR, publishing, magazines (Oprah, sports, Country Life, Get it, and so on), tourism etc.   Many of our graduates are directly involved in South African media developments (policy, community radio, community TV etc); they are employed in the NGO sector (development communication, public health communication, media etc.), and increasingly, in the cultural industries sector, state and municipal departments.  

Our lecturers (and many of our students) have extensive professional and industry experience and have close links with all sectors of the media and cultural industries in which employment is usually sought by our graduates. Employers talk to us when wanting to employ our graduates.  They know us and trust us and take our advice seriously. That means that they also trust our referred graduates.

Our graduates remain active in our alumni community after leaving the University. They feed extensive resources back to our Centre, they assist with research advising and even lecture on components within modules such as on i) social media;  ii) international communication;  and ii) corporate communication). CCMS hosts the UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific, Educational and Cultural Organisation) Chair in Communication for South Africa.  This places us at the centre of national and global collaborations.  In 2012 CCMS will be hosting the prestigious International Association for Media and Communication Research Conference.  Students will have the unique opportunity of interacting with the world’s best media and communication professors.
 

Amongst the outputs on which students are invited to work is our quarterly magazine, SUBtext: 

http://ccms.ukzn.ac.za/index.php?option=com_content&task=category&sectionid=24&id=96&Itemid=142