Understand culture, media and society and how they shape the world we live in.
Culture and media play a powerful role in shaping who we are, how we communicate and how inequalities are produced and challenged. This course explores how culture and media shape – and are shaped by – society.
This course equips you to understand those dynamics and encourages you to think critically about power, identity and difference. By examining the relationships between gender, class, race, and ethnicity, you’ll develop a nuanced understanding of how culture reflects and influences broader social change in an increasingly connected world.
Study key sociological, media and cultural debates, gaining a strong theoretical foundation. Then learn to critically analyse how topics such as social media, AI, globalisation, representation and identity intersect in contemporary life. Taught by leading researchers, the course draws on expertise in areas including digital cultures, inequality, audiences, creative work and material culture.
Alongside subject knowledge, you’ll graduate with valued transferable skills in research, communication, analysis, teamwork and self‑management. These skills open diverse career pathways in the media and creative industries, academia, the third sector and beyond – as well as roles that value critical thinking, cultural awareness and strong analytical ability.
Why study at Leeds? Learn from experts : Benefit from the expertise of the School of Sociology and Social Policy . Gain specialist knowledge: Develop your understanding of consumption, traditional media and social media, AI and algorithmic cultures, globalisation, representation, popular culture and more. Tailor the programme according to your interests : Take on with optional modules which cover Researching Inequality in the Media, Gender, Sexuality and Popular Culture, Racism, Decoloniality and Migration, Video games, digital resistance and reality TV. Develop transferable skills : Gain valuable expertise across research, analysis, group work and communication. A hub for digital and creative innovation : Leeds and Bradford continue to lead in promoting digital culture, providing a dynamic environment for students interested in media and culture. It’s a fantastic course because it’s allowed me to develop an expertise in a topic area that I’m interested in. As much as I have focused on celebrity, media and internet culture, this course permits many different research routes in society, culture and media.
Emma Brice, MA Society, Culture and Media