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The Television Program: Graduate

The MS degree in television provides graduates with the knowledge and skills necessary to compete successfully in the ever-changing world of telecommunications. The television program recognizes that to enjoy productive and rewarding careers in this world, graduates must be able to meet the challenge of cultural, economic, and technological change. The curriculum is designed to give students the tools they need to seek professional careers in production, management, programming, marketing, teaching, and criticism.

Our graduates must combine professional skills with an understanding of the nature of the telecommunications industry and its complex relationship with different audiences and their cultures. On the creative side, the program stresses that it is the producer who is the intellectual driving force behind all television production, and that he or she must have a mastery of basic technical skills and a developed aesthetic sensibility. But the producer, in turn, has to adapt to structural changes in the industry. Management skills, essential in the successful completion of each production, are also essential to the economic welfare of the industry. New distribution technologies, including broadband and mobile devices plan an increasing role as well. Accordingly, graduates who are drawn to the many different careers available in the telecommunications business may choose courses that concentrate in this area.

Alumni of the Television Program are found in a wide variety of jobs at all levels in the telecommunications industry, both within the United States and, increasingly, in key positions in national broadcasting institutions throughout the world. Many of them are successful independent producers in documentary, educational, industrial, and other video work. Our alumni provide an invaluable network of experienced professionals who can assist new graduates with advice on career opportunities, and in some cases, hire them for entry-level jobs.

Master’s in Media Ventures
and Joint MBA/MS Media Ventures

We are in a unique time where media and technology are converging to create new opportunities to address economic challenges, social issues and global relations. In this environment, universities become the incubators of innovation. To capitalize on this spirit, and to meet the needs of this explosive digital age, Boston University College of Communication is offering a new advanced degree curriculum in Media Ventures.

The MS Media Ventures program is designed for creative and enterprising students who want to take advantage of the explosion of technology and the opportunities that emerging media provide.

The focus of this degree is on the business of creating innovative content in the 21st century entertainment media landscape. The MS Media Ventures program is a 12-month, three-semester, bi-coastal program that benefits from the strengths of both Boston University College of Communication and the BU Los Angeles program. Students will spend the fall semester in Boston where they will examine the evolution of traditional media, and develop skills and strategies to successfully launch the next great idea. The emphasis is on how content and technology are used to create something new and profitable. The spring and summer semesters will be spent at the BU Los Angeles program where, along with courses, students will complete two internships. At the conclusion of the program, students will pitch their capstone projects to a group of industry executives.

We are also offering, in partnership with Boston University Graduate School of Management, a dual degree MS/MBA in Media Ventures. This is a two-year, five-semester option where students pursue an MBA degree before joining the single MS degree program in Media Ventures.

For information regarding this program contact Cathy Perron at cperron@bu.edu.

Download the curriculum guide.

Read the complete graduate course descriptions in the COM bulletin.