Branch programme/details

The doctoral study program Media and Communication studies is designed for candidates who are deeply interested in:

• Study of communication, mass media, and strategic communications,

• Historical and current developments of media and journalism,

• Media as part of culture and media issues in general;

• The methodology of Communication Studies

• basic and applied media research, journalism, media communication, and strategic communication.

The study prepares students for independent scientific and pedagogical work in the field of communication and media studies and media communication theory at universities.

The application is submitted either electronically via the Study Information System or by post to the Faculty of Social Sciences, Charles University, Smetanovo nábřeží 6, 110 01 Prague 1, no later than April 30, 2020.

The admission procedure takes the form of an oral examination (debate). The debate verifies whether the candidate can fulfill the requirements of a specialized study in the doctoral study program Media and Communication studies. The procedure is based on a written project of dissertation whose characteristics are below. Only the applicant who successfully passes the admission procedure is admitted to study. It is recommended that the candidate consult his/her project with the potential supervisor already in the preparatory phase, i.e. before submitting the project.

The dissertation projects submitted for the admission procedure relate to the field of media research. The project may refer to the research work of the Institute of Communication Studies and Journalism (ICSJ), or applicants may submit projects on their topics that have been consulted and endorsed by the potential supervisor. Research activities at ICSJ focus on the following areas:

• Development of mass media and their position in society in the period 1918-1989 and their relationship to other social institutions

• Development of mass and network media and their place in society after 1989 (including the development of technologies, content, and functions) and their relationship to other social institutions

• Changes in public communication after 1989 with an emphasis on the state of journalism, strategic communication, political communication.

 

The entry exam consists of two parts:

1. An examination in a foreign language (exclusively English or German) verifies the candidate's ability to understand a professional foreign-language text. The foreign language exam is organized by the FSV UK Language Centre. The applicant is obliged to take this examination before the entrance oral examination and to submit proof of its successful completion. Applicants do not receive points for the examination in a foreign language.

2. The entrance oral examination takes place in front of the admission committee. The interview examines the applicant's orientation in the problems of the history and present of mass media and social media theory. The oral exam consists of a discussion linked to the submitted dissertation project.

By April 30, 2020, the applicant must submit the dissertation project, a structured curriculum vitae and a list of literature that he/she has studied, as an attachment to an electronic or paper application. An applicant who does not submit his/her dissertation project within the given deadline will not be invited to the oral entrance examination. The admission committee interviews the applicant based on a list of literature.

 

Criteria for evaluation of entrance examinations:

Quality and completeness of responses, orientation in the field of communication studies and the literature, quality of the dissertation project and its relation to the published topics.

 

Applicants will be evaluated according to:

Evaluation of applicants:

1. Quality of the dissertation project max. 20 points

2. Discussion on the submitted dissertation project and list of literature max. 20 points

TOTAL max of 40 points

 

The members of the committee evaluate the individual categories of evaluation; the point sum is then averaged for each category and added up to get the final score. The point of admission is set by the Dean, taking into account the number of applicants seeking the entrance examination and the capacity of the faculty.

See also the General and faculty requirements

Admission to Doctoral studies is conditioned by successful completion of a Master's study programme.

Verification method:	entrance exam
Confirmation date (of entrance exam) from:	08.06.2020	Until:	19.06.2020
Alternative date (of entrance exam):	24.06.2020	Until:	04.07.2020

The graduate of the doctoral program of Media and Communication Studies knows methods of analysis of media production, media products, and content, audience, and users. He is an expert on the issues of the history and present of media and their position in changes in the social, political and cultural context, able to synthesize knowledge in the social sciences and humanities and to interpret current trends in media development and media and strategic communication.

Doctoral graduates are prepared for pedagogical and scientific careers at universities in the Czech Republic and abroad and employment as media analysts in applied research. As social scientists, they can work in institutes of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic or other scientific workplaces. They can also act as analysts of communication processes in the political sphere.