Master in Media and Convergence Management

The Master’s program teaches key skills in the fields of media and communication, management, marketing, and technology. The program focuses on the fields of technical, media, content-related and cross-industry convergence. End devices such as smartphones and tablets take center stage in technical or media convergence. Content-related convergence relates to the multiple uses of content (e.g. film, computer games, books with similar themes/contents) and cross-industry convergence relates to the blurring of boundaries in the TIMES sector (technology, information, media, entertainment, and security). These forms of convergence constitute new challenges for companies, which is why skills in the fields of cultural studies and media studies, economics, and technical sciences are increasingly important.

By imparting these competencies to students, the Master‘s degree offers a powerful response to the media industry’s demands for qualified employees. And yet, the courses offered are not limited to the media sector. Convergence processes affect virtually all sectors and bring with them changes in corporate organizational structures and processes, for instance in communication and media studies (content and editorial management, public relations, cross-media management, corporate social responsibility, and sustainability), in management and economics (strategic and operational marketing, advertising, market research, and innovation management), and in IT. The Master’s program provides students with the interdisciplinary skills they need to manage these changes and challenges.

Many areas, such as network management, mass customization, etc. or the areas mentioned above are examined from the perspective of the humanities, management studies and economics, and technical sciences, to ensure that students are familiarised with the fundamentals of each of these realms and learn to link them together.

Particularities

• Cooperation of the three faculties of Humanities, Management and Economics, and Technical Sciences.
• One-of-a-kind degree with a limited number of participants.
• A wealth of opportunities to become acquainted with other cultures in the course of excursions or study periods abroad.
• The degree program conveys theoretically sound knowledge that is practically reflected.
• Excellent supervision arrangements.

Daniel Waschnig / aau

Study objectives

The degree program aims to convey fundamental theoretical principles while also demonstrating their practical application. Students are able to:

• comprehend and optimize particular characteristics of value-creation-chains in the media industry.
• link areas from media and communication sciences with economic and technological areas and conduct independent research in these fields.
• manage the intersections between organizational communication, media economics, media management, marketing, advertising, and technology.

Prerequisites

Due to the fact that the degree program is offered in cooperation with three faculties, students with a background in humanities, social or economic sciences, or technical sciences are encouraged to apply. Graduates of the following AAU Bachelor degrees qualify Media and Communications, Applied Informatics, Applied Business Administration, Business and Law, Information Management, etc. Moreover, candidates who have obtained a similar degree at another post-secondary institution are welcome to submit their applications.

English language level C1

Careers and occupational profiles

Graduates are qualified to occupy leading positions at middle and upper management levels. Typical fields of activity include:

• media and telecommunication companies
• ICT companies
• branded goods companies
• information technology
• responsible activities in small and medium-sized companies working in the fields of advertising, organizational communication, and convergence.

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Campus and student life

There’s more to student life than lectures and exams. The University of Klagenfurt is located in western Klagenfurt, close to Lake Wörthersee. The university is one of the few campus universities in Austria and enjoys excellent transport links with Klagenfurt city center. There are also a large number of restaurants and housing options in the area surrounding the campus. Since 2007, the campus has also been home to Austria’s most contemporary University Sports Institute (USI), which has an area of 1156 m² available for sporting activities. The USI offers a wide range of sports on campus, as well as a variety of sports camps all across Europe.

What other campus offers you the chance to:

• Hike and ski in the mountains within 30 minutes?
• Swim in the Italian seas within two hours?
• Be at the Venice Biennale within two and a half hours?
• Stroll through the Old Town in Rovinj, Croatia, in three hours?

“Working as marketing manager, the interdisciplinary MCM program has been the perfect preparation for my interdisciplinary projects – ranging from cross-media campaigns to the conceptualization of web-applications. Exploring new avenues in marketing and setting up a marketing department, I am happy to have learned especially about media, marketing, and advertising, consumer behavior, qualitative methods, customer personas, and leadership communication.”



Christina Farcher
Marketing Manager, REKORD Fenster Österreich, Austria