KU launches postgraduate in Media Studies

 Kathmandu, June 28

Kathmandu University (KU) has launched a postgraduate programme in Media Studies from this year. The Media Studies programme, which has been running at the undergraduate level for the past 16 years, has now been extended to the postgraduate level as well. It will provide a rare opportunity to obtain quality education in media studies, Head of the Department of Languages and Mass Communication at the university, Dr. Sudhamshu Dahal, said.

Although mass communication and journalism are being taught in other universities in Nepal, Media Studies is a separate programme conducted at Kathmandu University. The students enrolled here study various dimensions of media with society, institutions, culture and technology as the cornerstone, said Dr. Dahal.

He said that due to the combination of technical skills and theoretical knowledge at KU's Media Studies programme, there is a huge demand for its graduates in the market.

A quarter of the undergraduate subjects are related to research, while subjects such as media production and media management can be strong sources of knowledge for those pursuing professional media careers. While preparing this postgraduate level programme, the original traditions, knowledge and philosophy of Nepal and Asia were taken into consideration. Nirmala Mani Adhikari, Associate Professor at the Department, said.

In this two-year programme, students will study 20 different subjects equal to 60 credits. From them, they will be able to choose three elective subjects from 28 subjects including mobile journalism, film studies, advertisement management, broadcast journalism, radio station management. The University has also made provision for postgraduate diploma degree to be given as an alternative to the students who cannot continue their studies after completing their first year.

According to Dahal, this postgraduate programme qualifies students to work as a policymaker, communications expert and researcher.

To be enrolled in media studies at the postgraduate level, the applicant must have completed at least 3 years of undergraduate studies in any subject. Also, they should have obtained a minimum of 50 percent or 2.5 GPA. However, 45 percent or 2 GPA is enough for the applicant who has been involved in professional media work for more than ten years.

Twenty students will be enrolled every year in the programme, and the total tuition fee has been fixed at Rs. 400,000. About 20 percent of the students enrolled in this program will be provided with full scholarships.

 Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 29 June 2022.