Overview
Studying with us, you will:
- Build your practical capabilities as a PR professional,
- Hone your critical capacity for appreciating how and why media and communications strategies are effective,
- Fine-tune your cultural sensitivities for transnational practice,
- Learn the importance of authenticity in content creation,
- Perfect your engagement skills through shaping narratives, generating conversation, and organising event plans,
- Optimise your creativity in harnessing the media to influence audiences ethically on behalf of your brand’s/client’s best interests,
- Take the opportunity to complete your MA with the Internship option, available to students who successfully gain an internship during the final Major Project period of the course,
We are a partner-member of the Public Relations Communications Association. This means that as students you get:
- Unlimited and free access to PRCA online training courses to add to your academic programme,
- The Opportunity to get a PRCA Online Certificate,
- Free access to networking events,
- Opportunities to enhance your professional development attending panels, masterclasses and training sessions,
You can also take advantage of our relationship with the Hillingdon Herald, a local newspaper produced by Brunel staff and students in journalism. Our MA students work with the paper on social media content and promotional campaigns, providing crucial practical public relations experience for your CV.
Join us on X/Twitter here: @BrunelMAmediaPR
"I’ve really enjoyed my time on the MA in Media and Public Relations. It has helped me to understand the different aspects of media and public relations beyond the surface level. My favourite module was ‘Building a PR Campaign’ this is because in creating a campaign that I was passionate about I was able to put different aspects of theory that I found particularly interesting such as framing and consumerism, into practice in order to create the vision that I was going for. The support offered by course leaders helped me to create work to its fullest potential and was very helpful in introducing new opportunities for those of us on the course to take advantage of that we may not have accessed such as the PRCA webinars. The experience of the MA gives me many skills that employers are looking for and up to date techniques and tactics to help me stand out from others." - Eden Mitchell
"My gratitude to the lecturers on the MA in Media and Public Relations that have shown great support, collaboration and encouragement during my journey. With their efforts and knowledge, I was able to master my position and upgrade my career. I truly enjoyed every minute I have spent at Brunel University." - Turki Albaidan Alrashidi
" The teaching and support from the teaching team on the MA in Media and Public Relations were key to making the most of my program and degree. I asked questions often, visited their offices and took advantage of tutorials, and found they both Mike and Jo provided support and resources each step of the way. I just landed a job at FleishmanHillard, and my interviews and assessments drew heavily on knowing about media lists, the basics of press releases, and researching and developing pitches. I found that the campaign coursework in FM5602 (Building a PR Campaign) tied academic principles we’d learned all year to the practical work of agency practitioners." - Tristan Torgersen
"The MA Media and Public relations has a high quality of teaching with tutors who are always there to help you and give you all the keys to find your way into the professional world. The Lectures and Seminars are a good mix of theory and practice when you can put in practice what you have learned in the lecture. Group work was always a good way to exchange ideas and learn. After the MA I found a job in a PR agency. The Masters gave me all I needed to know to become a PR practitioner. " - Cecile Benoit
"I’ve really enjoyed my time on the MA in Media and Public Relations. It has helped me to understand the different aspects of media and public relations beyond the surface level. My favourite module was ‘Building a PR Campaign’ this is because in creating a campaign that I was passionate about I was able to put different aspects of theory that I found particularly interesting such as framing and consumerism, into practice in order to create the vision that I was going for. The support offered by course leaders helped me to create work to its fullest potential and was very helpful in introducing new opportunities for those of us on the course to take advantage of that we may not have accessed such as the PRCA webinars. The experience of the MA gives me many skills that employers are looking for and up to date techniques and tactics to help me stand out from others." - Eden Mitchell
"My gratitude to the lecturers on the MA in Media and Public Relations that have shown great support, collaboration and encouragement during my journey. With their efforts and knowledge, I was able to master my position and upgrade my career. I truly enjoyed every minute I have spent at Brunel University." - Turki Albaidan Alrashidi
You can explore our campus and facilities for yourself by taking our virtual tour.
Course content
The MA consists of both compulsory and optional modules, a typical selection can be found below. Modules can vary from year to year, but these offer a good idea of what we teach.
Compulsory
- Public Relations and PropagandaThis module explores how public relations emerged as part of the burgeoning propaganda industry in the early part of the twentieth century and how even today, powerful organisations, including state actors and corporations, utilise PR as forms of propaganda. We explore how the shaping of public opinion and perception is clearly a matter of political significance. PR as propaganda can be observed at work in relation to war, consumerism and the promotion of global free market economics. The module looks at theories of specific media and their role in persuasion, such as the press and film and we look at recent trends in political communications.
- Key Issues in Media, Culture and Public RelationsThis module will provide students with the essential background to the theories and debates that can help us understand public relations and its relationship to media and culture. How does PR shape the media and how does the media shape PR? We explore how concepts drawn from cultural studies can help us understand the context of PR as one of contests between different values and perspectives. The module examines what has been happening to the media in recent decades and the impact of social media on the media and PR. You engage with semiotic analysis of visual communication, with brand theory and the political economy of public relations. We look at crisis communications and how different types of organisations use PR including NGOs and the Third Sector as well as political activists and ‘culture jammers’.
- Building a PR CampaignThis module will provide students with the advanced knowledge, skills and understanding necessary to build a PR campaign and to critically reflect on the role of the PR campaign in the knowledge economy and their own practice. Students will develop the practical skills in lobbying, press releases, campaign building and related practices. The module will provide students with an understanding of the changing nature of public relations today and the impact of the processes of globalisation and the rise of social media on the practices of public relations. The module will also provide students with a critical understanding of the expansion of PR across a range of social and media institutions and the effect that this has had on the practices of public relations.
- PR and Media in Promotional CultureThis module has a particular emphasis on how public relations works in the film and television industries. We look at the relationship between PR and marketing, the role of celebrities, social media, product placement and crisis communications in the culture industries. The module also begins to teach you some practical skills in public relations skills and develop your ability for PR content creation.
Optional
- Public Relations and Media Strategies Major ProjectThe dissertation module enables students to produce a substantial piece of research on a topic agreed with a supervisor in the area of Media and Public Relations. You will be able to develop your research from the knowledge and skills you were introduced to at an advanced level on the taught modules and you can choose to develop an area of specific interest.
- Public Relations and Media Strategies Major Project 2The dissertation module enables students to produce a substantial piece of research on a topic agreed with a supervisor in the area of Media and Public Relations. You will be able to develop your research from the knowledge and skills you were introduced to at an advanced level on the taught modules and you can choose to develop an area of specific interest.
This course can be studied undefined undefined, starting in undefined.
Please note that all modules are subject to change.
Read more about the structure of postgraduate degrees at Brunel
Careers and your future
Recent graduates have been employed at:
- International PR agencies such as FleishmanHillard, Publicis, and Firefly Communications.
- Communications officers for NGOs and public sector bodies
- In-house PR teams at commercial organisations.
UK entry requirements
- A 2:2 (or above) UK Honours degree, or equivalent internationally recognised qualification, in Social Sciences, Law, Humanities, Arts or Business.
Other subjects and qualifications will be considered with relevant work experience.
EU and International entry requirements
If you require a Tier 4 visa to study in the UK, you must prove knowledge of the English language so that we can issue you a Certificate of Acceptance for Study (CAS). To do this, you will need an IELTS for UKVI or Trinity SELT test pass gained from a test centre approved by UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) and on the Secure English Language Testing (SELT) list. This must have been taken and passed within two years from the date the CAS is made.
English language requirements
- IELTS: 6.5 (min 6 in all areas)
- Pearson: 59 (59 in all subscores)
- BrunELT: 63% (min 58% in all areas)
- TOEFL: 90 (min 20 in all)
You can find out more about the qualifications we accept on our English Language Requirements page.
Should you wish to take a pre-sessional English course to improve your English prior to starting your degree course, you must sit the test at an approved SELT provider for the same reason. We offer our own BrunELT English test and have pre-sessional English language courses for students who do not meet requirements or who wish to improve their English. You can find out more information on English courses and test options through our Brunel Language Centre.
Please check our Admissions pages for more information on other factors we use to assess applicants. This information is for guidance only and each application is assessed on a case-by-case basis. Entry requirements are subject to review, and may change.
Fees and funding
2025/26 entry
UK
£12,125 full-time
£6,060 part-time
International
£22,320 full-time
£11,160 part-time
More information on any additional course-related costs.
Fees quoted are per year and are subject to an annual increase.
See our fees and funding page for full details of postgraduate scholarships available to Brunel applicants.
Scholarships and bursaries
Teaching and learning
This programme will be delivered in person on campus, through a mixture of lectures, seminars, individual and small group tutorials and drop-in sessions. Attendance is obligatory, but for study and revision purposes lectures are recorded and archived. We also have an online ‘coffee morning’ in the first semester for informal chats about what is happening in the world of PR, additional course-related discussions, perhaps the odd screening of a PR-related film and so forth, to build up good relations amongst the cohort and promote friendly staff and student interaction.
Students are strongly advised to purchase core texts from module reading lists, although copies are also available via Brunel Library.
Access to a laptop or desktop PC is required for joining online activities, completing coursework and digital exams, and a minimum specification can be found here.
We have computers available across campus for your use and laptop loan schemes to support you through your studies. You can find out more here.
The Public Relations and Media Strategies MA is taught through lectures, seminars, workshops, screenings and industry speakers.
Assessment and feedback
The MA will be assessed through a combination of essays, reports, case studies, campaign design and a dissertation.
Read our guide on how to avoid plagiarism in your assessments at Brunel.