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Course information

Department

Media, Communications and Cultural Studies

Length

1 year full-time or 2 years part-time

Course overview

Please note that this programme is suspended for 2025 entry. You can explore other programmes by visiting our course finder.

Conceived in the context of world-systemic transformation, this MA will give you the analytical tools to understand contemporary developments and world(s) through an encounter with post-colonial theory and international political economic issues.

  • We're witnessing today a tectonic shift in global geopolitics. The emergence of China, Brazil and India as global players, the development of global governance, the financial crisis, climate change – are all symptoms.
  • On this Masters you’ll grasp concepts like race, diaspora, hybridity, difference, grassroots development, HDI, multitude, immanence, and human rights.
  • These concepts are used to analyse practical, policy and activist issues arising from globalisation: global civil society, the role of international organisations (the IMF, WTO, UN and World Bank and global NGOs), intellectual property rights, social capital, financialisation, global governance and deep democracy.
  • You'll deal with issues like terrorism, microfinance, indigenous people, gender and sexuality, multiculturalism and environmental justice.
  • The MA is ideal for anyone pursuing careers in policy research, NGOs, advocacy, charities, international organisations, cultural and political activism, global media, art and curating, as well as for further academic work leading to a PhD.

Practical placement

  • The Masters includes a supervised and assessed practical placement. This may be with NGOs in India or Africa, arts and conservation organisations in China, indigenous activists in Latin America, London-based global NGOs, diasporic communities, think-tanks, environmental organisations, publishers or financial/microfinance organisations.

Leading theorists and visiting lecturers

  • You'll be taught by leading theorists and visiting lecturers drawn from a wide circle of activists, artists, film-makers, lawyers, economists, journalists and policy-makers.
  • The Department of Media, Communications and Cultural Studies has been ranked 2nd in the UK for 'world-leading or internationally excellent' research (Research Excellence Framework, 2021) and 16th in the world (3rd in the UK) in the 2024 QS World Rankings for communication and media studies.

Contact the department

If you have specific questions about the degree, contact Dr Oana Parvan.

What you'll study

Compulsory modules

Module title Credits
Policy Lab and Placement 30 credits
MA Postcolonial Culture and Global Policy Dissertation 60 credits

Option modules

You take option modules to the value of 30 credits. Modules can be chosen from across Goldsmiths departments and centres. Option modules are subject to availability and approval by the module lecturer/convenor.

Assessment

Essays and/or practical projects; dissertation.

Download the programme specification.

Please note that due to staff research commitments not all of these modules may be available every year.

What our students say

Hope Dove
The MA in Postcolonial Culture and Global Policy was such an insightful course.

Hope's time at Goldsmiths

I enjoyed my time at Goldsmiths immensely. I learned so much in my MA that has helped strengthen my analytical thinking skills, and in fact it made me know that I wanted to pursue my PhD and teach. The MA in Postcolonial Culture and Global Policy was such an insightful course in which I engaged with some great thinkers and writers who have influenced my continued work greatly. The course director, Shela Sheikh was excellent and introduced us to media, art, and conferences that helped to open our academic repertoire to a next level. I cannot recommend this course enough!...

What's Hope doing now

I am currently studying for my PhD and teaching on an assistantship at Temple University in the U.S. I enjoy studying and working around brilliant thinkers and in a positive academic community. I would like to teach in California.

Advice for future students

Going back to university for me was one of the best decisions of my life. I came in in my 30's as a mature student and never looked back. It has afforded me greater opportunities and I have met wonderful people throughout my studies. I have already met another Goldsmiths grad at Temple, and we both remember it fondly and proudly. I transferred from LSE and found Goldsmiths to be a welcoming place where I felt comfortable almost immediately, which was not my experience at LSE. If you are thinking about going to university, Goldsmiths in particular, I would say, do it you will not regret it....

Life in South East London

There were some nice little cafes and places to eat in the area. It was easily accessible by train from central London and the campus is beautiful.

Ama Josephine Budge Johnstone
I had a truly amazing time studying at Goldsmiths. Both my MA and elective lecturers were supporting, inspiring and rigorous.

Ama's time at Goldsmiths

I had a truly amazing time studying at Goldsmiths. Both my MA and elective lecturers were supporting, inspiring and rigorous. They not only challenged, pushed and stimulated my thinking and knowledge, they believed in me and were real about what I needed to do to achieve my academic goals within the academy and all the other ways I might develop and succeed in the wider world.

Apart from my wonderful lecturers, the most incredible part of my time there was being part of such a diverse cohort (both in my MA and in the wider school). I was the only Black student in my entire undergraduate university, so it really was an absolute joy to be surrounded by amazing students from all over challenging the institution and what care, inclusion and change could look and feel like within educational spaces.

Life after Goldsmiths

I'm currently in the final year of a PhD, I never would have thought I could attempt such a thing as a PhD before studying at Goldsmiths and learning to believe in my own ability to think and write expansively. The last year is always really hard but I love my topic of study and I believe it's really important.

I am also lecturing at several universities / art schools in London and abroad, as well as sustaining my own artistic practice. In the future I hope to continue pursuing my academic and artistic careers, becoming a better teacher, artist and writer in order to inspire and support others in the ways I was at Goldsmiths.

Advice for future students

The main piece of advice I'd give would be to really invest time and energy in the extracurricular stuff. Because I was a part-time student I was able to audit extra classes, attend many lecture series across a variety of departments, organise a conference and create work for a joint exhibition as part of my feminist methodologies elective.

I'd really encourage every prospective student to make the most out of the library (especially the women's library collection) and all of the incredible resources.

Life in South East London

Being in such a BIPOC-heavy community was wonderful, with great music venues, food and theatres all around. There are also a number of great parks where we would go for lunch or to sit and study.

My favourite place to eat has got to be Lao Khee (I think that's the name, it's been a while!) Chinese, opposite - I still come back here to eat whenever I can and maintain it's one of the best Chinese food spots in London.

Entry requirements

You should have (or expect to be awarded) an undergraduate degree of at least upper second class standard in a relevant/related subject. 

You might also be considered for some programmes if you aren’t a graduate or your degree is in an unrelated field, but have relevant experience and can show that you have the ability to work at postgraduate level.

International qualifications

We accept a wide range of international qualifications. Find out more about the qualifications we accept from around the world.

If English isn’t your first language, you will need an IELTS score (or equivalent English language qualification) of 6.5 with a 6.5 in writing and no element lower than 6.0 to study this programme. If you need assistance with your English language, we offer a range of courses that can help prepare you for postgraduate-level study.

Fees, funding & scholarships

To find out more about your fees, please check our postgraduate fees guidance or contact the Fees Office, who can also advise you about how to pay your fees.

Additional costs

In addition to your tuition fees, you'll be responsible for any additional costs associated with your course, such as buying stationery and paying for photocopying. You can find out more about what you need to budget for on our study costs page.

There may also be specific additional costs associated with your programme. This can include things like paying for field trips or specialist materials for your assignments. Please check the programme specification for more information.

Funding opportunities

Find out more about postgraduate fees and explore funding opportunities. If you're applying for funding, you may be subject to an application deadline.

How to apply

You apply directly to Goldsmiths using our online application system. 

Before submitting your application you’ll need to have:

  • Details of your academic qualifications
  • The email address of your referee who we can request a reference from, or alternatively a copy of your academic reference
  • Copies of your educational transcripts or certificates
  • A personal statement – this can either be uploaded as a Word Document or PDF, or completed online. 

    Please see our guidance on writing a postgraduate statement

You'll be able to save your progress at any point and return to your application by logging in using your username/email and password.

When to apply

Applicants are encouraged to submit by 31 May, though applications after this date may still be considered to start the following September.

We encourage you to complete your application as early as possible, even if you haven't finished your current programme of study. It's very common to be offered a place that is conditional on you achieving a particular qualification. 

Late applications will only be considered if there are spaces available.

If you're applying for funding, you may be subject to an earlier application deadline.

Selection process

Admission to many programmes is by interview, unless you live outside the UK. Occasionally, we'll make candidates an offer of a place on the basis of their application and qualifications alone.

Find out more about applying.

Careers

Skills

The programme provides advanced training for labour market-relevant skills in transnational analysis of sovereignty, democracy, governmentality, financialisation, intellectual property rights, and the role of non-governmental organisations.

Careers

Suitable careers and areas of work for graduates of the programme include:

  • the academic sphere
  • government and non-government sectors
  • arts and art administration
  • publishing
  • journalism
  • media
  • the culture industry in general

Find out more about employability at Goldsmiths.

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