Advance Your Career with a Doctorate in Media and Communication Studies
Please note that we’re not accepting applications for a 2024–25 cohort. Check back for potential future enrollment terms, or visit our program list to see what other options are available.
If you want to be a difference-maker in the world of media and communication, the PhD in Media and Communication Studies program at IUP can help you get there.
With a unique dual emphasis on theory and practice, this is not your average doctorate. At IUP, you’ll gain both theoretical knowledge and practical, hands-on experience.
What You’ll Learn
Unlike other PhD programs, IUP will put you right in the middle of advanced research and technology, and production. You’ll study communication theory, quantitative and qualitative research, and content creation.
You'll graduate with the strategy and implementation skills you need to advance your career.
- Conduct original research in the communication field.
- Develop emerging technologies.
- Develop online media productions.
- Evaluate media ethics and how ethics apply to communications campaigns.
- Master production hardware and editing platforms to create video, audio, and digital imagery.
- Optimize media for education.
- Plan budgets and scripted media productions.
- Refine your abilities as a strategist and apply media to instructional and persuasive goals.
Imagine Your Future
Imagine Your Future
With a mastery of media research, theory, and production, you’ll be well-prepared for a range of careers in an ever-evolving media landscape, including:
- Corporate communications and training
- Full professorship at the university level
- Health and political communications
- Higher education administration
- Media production and management
Classes and Requirements
Classes and Requirements
The PhD in Media and Communication Studies program requires a minimum of 60 credit hours beyond a master’s degree: 48 credits of coursework and 12 credits of dissertation work. You’ll develop a planned program of study with support from your advisor and the doctoral coordinator.
Take required and elective courses in three areas.
- Media Processes and Production: Broaden your media development skills while working on exploring new media formats and applications.
- Media Research and Teaching: Gain the tools for designing data-gathering activities, analyzing data, interpreting existing research, and synthesizing information into useful answers and productive new questions.
- Media Uses and Effects: Engage theoretical literature and critically analyze the interrelationship between media and culture.
Full Academic Catalog Listing
The course catalog is the official reference for all our degree and course offerings. Check it out for a full listing of the classes available and requirements for this degree.
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Flexibility: Choose a Full- or Part-time Format
IUP's PhD in Media and Communication Studies program is, in a word, supportive. With a mix of options designed to accommodate both full- and part-time students, the program's flexibility allows you to pursue the degree without putting your career on hold. The program is offered in a weekend-based format, with class meetings six times per semester.
Full-time
Students take approximately three courses per semester (including summers), completing coursework in about two years.
Part-time
Students typically take two courses per semester (including summers) and complete the coursework in three years.
Students may make arrangements, in special circumstances, to adjust their course load or take an alternative load that does not match the full- or part-time cohort model.
Immersive Hands-on Learning
What makes this doctoral program different from others in the field? An emphasis on practical, hands-on production experience in a variety of media.
You’ll work closely with the production hardware and editing platforms in digital imaging, video production, audio production, multimedia, documentary production, and more.
Department facilities include an audio recording lab, a digital television studio, an FM radio station, a graphics lab, and a digital photography lab.
As the program includes production requirements that immerse students in media development, the PhD program utilizes these resources to develop and enhance students' production skills.
Immersive Hands-on Learning
What makes this doctoral program different from others in the field? An emphasis on practical, hands-on production experience in a variety of media.
You’ll work closely with the production hardware and editing platforms in digital imaging, video production, audio production, multimedia, documentary production, and more.
Department facilities include an audio recording lab, a digital television studio, an FM radio station, a graphics lab, and a digital photography lab.
As the program includes production requirements that immerse students in media development, the PhD program utilizes these resources to develop and enhance students' production skills.
Financial Support
At IUP, you’ll find funding opportunities to support your coursework, research, and professional development. Options include:
- Graduate assistantships
- Grants for research support and conference travel
- Scholarship funding
- Teaching associate positions
students enrolled in our program
average starting salary of graduates
To apply for the PhD in Media and Communication Studies, begin by submitting your application with the School of Graduate Studies and Research.
The link will take you to "IUP Admissions Login." Click on the link on the bottom that reads First-time user account creation and request a Banner ID and PIN. The application will be available after you log in.
All applicants must submit the following materials for review to: Office of Admissions, Sutton Hall, Suite 120, 1011 South Drive, Indiana, PA 15705, or via email to graduate-admissions@iup.edu.
Materials to Submit
Students seeking admission to the PhD in Media and Communication Studies must satisfy the minimum School of Graduate Studies and Research requirements and have a master's degree. International students are required to comply with the admission criteria as outlined in the graduate catalog.
Applicants to the MCOM PhD program must submit the following for review by the doctoral program committee:
- Official higher education transcripts (undergraduate and graduate)
- Current curriculum vitae or résumé.
- Writing sample: a sample that reflects your ability to do academic work and research such as a published work, a paper presented at a professional conference, a major paper for a graduate-level course, or other academic writing
- Two letters of recommendation assessing your ability to work at the doctoral level
- Professional goal statement addressing why you are interested in pursuing doctoral studies in this area, your long-term professional goals, and preparations you are undertaking in anticipation of acceptance into the program
- Upon review of completed applications, the MCOM faculty admissions committee may invite the applicant to campus for an interview. The committee determines whether to accept, waitlist, or deny each applicant.
For information regarding graduate tuition and fees, please consult the Office of Student Billing listing of Graduate Tuition and Fees.
Recent Media and Communication Studies Graduates
You can learn about some of our recently graduated Media and Communication Studies students.
Placement
If you choose to enter the world of academia after graduation, you’ll be in good company.
Graduates of the PhD in Media and Communication program hold faculty positions at institutions around the world, including:
- Florida State University
- Pennsylvania State University
- Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania
- University of Akron
- University of Nebraska-Omaha
- University of Wollongong (Australia)
- Webster Vienna Private University (Austria)