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All qualifications and part qualifications registered on the National Qualifications Framework are public property. Thus the only payment that can be made for them is for service and reproduction. It is illegal to sell this material for profit. If the material is reproduced or quoted, the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) should be acknowledged as the source. |
| SOUTH AFRICAN QUALIFICATIONS AUTHORITY |
| REGISTERED QUALIFICATION: |
| Doctor of Philosophy in Media and Communication |
| SAQA QUAL ID | QUALIFICATION TITLE | |||
| 120988 | Doctor of Philosophy in Media and Communication | |||
| ORIGINATOR | ||||
| Cape Peninsula University of Technology | ||||
| PRIMARY OR DELEGATED QUALITY ASSURANCE FUNCTIONARY | NQF SUB-FRAMEWORK | |||
| - | HEQSF - Higher Education Qualifications Sub-framework | |||
| QUALIFICATION TYPE | FIELD | SUBFIELD | ||
| Doctoral Degree | Field 04 - Communication Studies and Language | Communication Studies | ||
| ABET BAND | MINIMUM CREDITS | PRE-2009 NQF LEVEL | NQF LEVEL | QUAL CLASS |
| Undefined | 360 | Not Applicable | NQF Level 10 | Regular-Provider-ELOAC |
| REGISTRATION STATUS | SAQA DECISION NUMBER | REGISTRATION START DATE | REGISTRATION END DATE | |
| Registered | EXCO 0917/23 | 2023-07-04 | 2026-07-04 | |
| LAST DATE FOR ENROLMENT | LAST DATE FOR ACHIEVEMENT | |||
| 2027-07-04 | 2030-07-04 | |||
| In all of the tables in this document, both the pre-2009 NQF Level and the NQF Level is shown. In the text (purpose statements, qualification rules, etc), any references to NQF Levels are to the pre-2009 levels unless specifically stated otherwise. |
This qualification does not replace any other qualification and is not replaced by any other qualification. |
| PURPOSE AND RATIONALE OF THE QUALIFICATION |
| Purpose:
The purpose of the Doctor of Philosophy in Media and Communication is to allow learners to contribute to the development of the field of media and communication by encouraging innovation in thinking within the global systems of the local, regional, and continental African context and the globalised spaces in which media and communication play out. The new knowledge produced will be inter- and cross-disciplinary and will include innovative thinking pertaining to all kinds of visual and written media and communication spanning the film and photographic arts, news and actuality, entertainment media on broadcast and networked media channels, and public relations communications within a complex business, cultural and social environment. The interdisciplinary qualification will allow learners to develop high-level research capabilities and to make a significant and original academic contribution at the frontiers of the field of media and communication. It seeks to encourage critical engagement to the highest, internationally competitive level of cognitive complexity and research skill, as benchmarked against comparable programmes both locally and internationally. Learners will have a deep understanding of the interconnectedness of relevant fields and ethical awareness of research and professional conduct. They will be equipped with skills in the evaluation, selection and application of appropriate research approaches, methodologies, and processes in the pursuit of a research objective. Learners will have strong abilities in self-reflection and autonomy; as well as excellent communication skills and honed critical and analytical thinking skills for problem-solving. In line with the HEQSF, the qualification will provide training for an academic career by developing proficiencies in undertaking research at the most advanced academic levels. Graduates' original contributions to both media and communication studies will prepare them to become the next generation of lecturers, scholars, and industry thought leaders, thereby building the field, the profession of media production, the creative arts and the business of cultural production more broadly. On the completion of the qualification, the qualifying learners will be able to: Rationale: The media, creative and cultural industries are undergoing radical change locally and internationally due to the complex shifts between politics, economics, social and cultural norms on the one hand, and changes in technology on the other. Previously different sub-disciplines like journalism, film production, photography and public relations communications are responding to drastic changes in the kinds of communication produced, the means of production and distribution, and the effects such communication has on society broadly. To produce deeply theorised knowledge that speaks productively to both local and international shifts and trends in what constitutes media and communication, how it is produced and the effects it has on society, the economy and the world, scholars and industry leaders in media and communication alike must be able to critically analyse the economic, socio-cultural, technological, political and creative environments, and must have an advanced understanding of the influences and flows of practice across a range of disciplines. There is a strong need for a qualification offering that encourages and supports the discipline of media and the field of communication at the highest level, in support of the values and objectives of the National Development Plan (2030) of South Africa, the aim of which is to empower learners to become active participants in national economic development through the prioritizing of "improving the quality of education, skills development and innovation". The need was conveyed through focus groups with academic staff who are active in the field of media and communication, informal consultation with industry experts and both local and international academics at benchmark institutions that host comparable programmes. This need was further informed by discussions with alumni and the advisory boards that represent a broad base of industry specialisations in film and photography, (including corporate films, documentaries, commercials, feature films, and film and photographic servicing of foreign productions), as well as in journalism (including text-based, broadcast, and online media) and public relations. Communication and media are listed as critical skills in a Technical Report for the 2020 Critical Skills List. The qualification is intended to attract candidates who want to obtain the highest-level knowledge of media and communication that they can use as lecturers, scholars and industry thought leaders. They will have had substantive experience working in the media and communication sector and might have been trained as journalists, photographers, videographers, archivists, public relations professionals, and graphic designers. Learners will benefit from the qualification's clear focus on the field of media and communication that provides a space for theoretical engagement with the intersections between the social sciences and arts in the context of where meaning is constructed through the design, production and distribution of media and communication artefacts, whether digital or analogue. They will be welcomed to explore media and communication-based research in Human, Health, and Social Dynamics; The Digital Society; and The Environment, Climate Change and Sustainability. They will benefit from the skills they obtain in conducting complex research and developing innovative knowledge in these areas, especially as it relates to the growth of the media industry, the international media sphere, and new media products that encourage sustainable business. Learners from disadvantaged backgrounds will benefit from the qualification as it will widen access and achieve the appropriate levels of demographic diversity in the learner profile regarding class, gender, race, and economic circumstances. Access will further be widened through admitting doctoral candidates who do not meet the formal admission requirements but have made significant professional achievements in the media and communication sphere or have other relevant high-level prior learning and have demonstrated relevant understanding and skills in research and knowledge production at the appropriate level of cognitive complexity. Given the need for funding offered for qualification for people from previously disadvantaged groups and the need to upskill and change the demographic profile of scholars in the field of media studies, partnerships with various funding organisations to provide scholarships will be established. Graduates will benefit society by being able to exhibit the technological, ethical, and relational capabilities identified in the Charter of Graduate Attributes, which include: The qualification will focus on responding to the scholarship of media and communication in ways that feed into graduate attributes relevant to postgraduate qualifications of resilience and research capability. Graduates will have technological capability and foresight, resilience and problem-solving, relational capability, and ethical capability, which are central to the institution's Graduate Attributes (2017) aims at the construction of knowledge that is innovative and driven towards technological and environmental awareness and social responsibility. As contributors to knowledge production in the field and discipline, graduates will conduct research that is theoretical and practice-focused in the media and cultural spheres, thereby honing skills as scholars, high-level strategists and thought leaders who have a high level of autonomy and critical thinking skills obtained through a carefully supervised understanding of research methodology, epistemology, and ontology. Graduates will, in turn, benefit the economy by producing new knowledge that supports the values and objects of the National Development Plan (2030) of South Africa with its aim to empower learners to become active participants in national economic development through their high-level understanding of media and communication. This is in line with the NDP's prioritizing of "improving the quality of education, skills development and innovation". The qualification is central to developing a key area of specialisation in the knowledge economy. The qualification will enable the production of new knowledge that addresses the shifts and changes in the field of media and communication through the development of high-level skills in research processes, analysis and synthesis of knowledge related to the discipline, and high-level communication skills. Graduates with these skills will shape both scholarship and the creative and cultural industries through their deep level of understanding of and ability to produce high-level critical and creative contributions to the theories and practices that relate to the communication and media industry in South Africa, which is touted to reach R177bn in turnover by 2022 (Price Waterhouse Coopers' Entertainment and media outlook: 2018-2022). |
| LEARNING ASSUMED TO BE IN PLACE AND RECOGNITION OF PRIOR LEARNING |
| Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL):
The institution has an approved Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) policy which applies to equivalent qualifications for admission into the qualification. RPL will be applied to accommodate applicants who qualify. RPL thus provides alternative access and admission to qualifications, as well as advanced standing within qualifications. RPL may be applied for access, credits from modules and credits for or towards the qualification. RPL for access: Entry Requirements: The minimum entry requirements for this qualification are: Or Or Or Or |
| RECOGNISE PREVIOUS LEARNING? |
| Y |
| QUALIFICATION RULES |
| This qualification consists of the following compulsory modules at National Qualifications Framework Level 10 totalling 360 Credits.
Compulsory Modules, Level 10, 360 Credits: |
| EXIT LEVEL OUTCOMES |
| 1. Demonstrate expertise and critical knowledge in an area at the forefront of media and communication studies.
2. Demonstrate the ability to conceptualise ethically new research initiatives and create new knowledge or practice in the field of media and communication studies. 3. Demonstrate the ability ethically to make independent judgements about managing information, including incomplete or inconsistent information or data in an iterative process of analysis and synthesis. 4. Demonstrate the ability to apply specialist knowledge and theory in critically reflexive, creative, and novel ways to address complex practical and theoretical problems, and to develop significant original insights into new, complex, and abstract ideas, information, or issues. 5. Demonstrate the ability to contribute to scholarly debates around theories of knowledge and processes of knowledge production in an area of study or practice, through a communication strategy for dissemination and defence of research, strategic and policy initiatives and their implementation to specialist and non-specialist audiences using the full resources of academic and professional or occupational discourse. 6. Demonstrate the ability to produce a complex media or communication product that exhibits a novel response to the defined research problem and/or its potential solutions based on knowledge of the scholarship of the field and complex argumentation. 7. Demonstrate the ability to produce substantial, independent, in-depth, and publishable work which meets international standards, is new or innovative by peers, and makes a significant contribution to the discipline, field, or practice. |
| ASSOCIATED ASSESSMENT CRITERIA |
| Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 1:
Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 2: Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 3: Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 4: Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 5: Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 6: Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 7: |
| INTERNATIONAL COMPARABILITY |
| The international comparison was conducted to explore similar offerings at similar institutions as per institutional requirements and guidelines that include determining the scope of the comparison exercise, and the selection of a variety of reputable Higher Education international institutions. The selection of comparable qualifications and aspects from these qualifications; analysis and evaluation of qualification design of the selected qualifications; conclusions and recommendations for the qualification.
Country: United Kingdom Institution: University of Brighton Qualification Type: Doctor of Philosophy in Media and Communications Duration: Three years full time Entry Requirements: Rationale: Media and communication studies is a multi-faceted research area that examines the ways in which the media represent and influence social, cultural, and political lives. Research in media and communications critically analyses the role of media institutions, as well as the changing landscape of media industries and cultural production. The research examines audiences and reception, television and screen studies, digital media, gender, and communication, communication, and democracy, as well as media history, policy, and law. Critical investigations of media phenomena or practice-based work through digital arts and sciences, photography and film can also be aligned to cross-disciplinary work with, for example, art practices, architecture, heritage technologies, cultural studies, human geography, politics, and philosophy. The university supports Media and Communications PhD learners to research their area of interest across a wide spectrum of media research, drawing on the expertise of cutting-edge academic research. Successful graduates of these programs will be employable, ethical, and competent communicators in the always-evolving communication industry environment. Exit Level Outcomes: On completion of the qualification, qualifying learners will be able to: Similarities: Country: Germany Institution: Humboldt University Berlin Qualification Type: Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Communication, Cultural and Media Studies Duration: Three years full-time Entry requirements: Or Purpose: This qualification allows learners to explore and pursue a research project built around a substantial piece of work, which must show evidence of original contribution to knowledge. Completing the qualification can give learners a great sense of personal achievement and help them develop a high level of transferable skills which will be useful in their subsequent careers, as well as contribute to the development of knowledge in the chosen field. The qualification will develop a critical perspective on how communication, media and film represent and shape our lives. You will also gain marketable research and communication skills. This thesis-based degree is designed for learners who want to pursue a research or scholarly career. This qualification of research culminates in the production of a large-scale piece of written work in the form of a research thesis that should not normally exceed 80,000 words. Research in Communication, Cultural and Media Studies focuses on a wide range of aspects of the interplay between media audiences, industries, technologies, and texts. The institution has significant expertise in contemporary digital media and culture, including the internet and social media, and its impact on legacy media, such as journalism, film, and TV. As well as focusing on contemporary developments, the institution can also supervise projects interested in exploring the histories of communication, culture, and media. The institution is well-placed to supervise topics across a range of media and cultures, as well as interdisciplinary topics that cross the boundaries between different forms of communication, culture, and media. Audiences, Fans and Participatory Culture: addressing how people are engaging with and responding to a rapidly changing media culture; exploring people's affective relationships with media and how these are created, managed, and enabled by industry; examining the cultures, practices and identities associated with cultural participation, social media use and fandom. Politics, Journalism, Gender, and Identity: addressing the global political upheaval characterised by the rise of populism, identity politics and new forms of media and communication; exploring questions of gender, identity, equality, diversity, and inclusion as they pertain to media industries, audiences/fans, technologies. Exit Level Outcomes: Upon graduating with the qualification, learners should be able to: Similarities: Both qualifications share similar exit-level outcomes. Difference: The HUB also allows applicants who completed the Honour's Degree in the cognate field while the SA qualification does not consider applicants who hold the Honour's Degree Country: Australia Institution: University of Sydney Qualification Title: Doctor of Philosophy n Media and Communication Duration: Three years Entry Requirements: Master's degree with honours Or Bachelor's degree with honours (equivalent to 4 years of study) Purpose: Candidates for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) research and write a thesis on an approved topic. It is also possible for candidates to conduct a practice-led PhD with the thesis made up of a written component and substantial creative work. All research is conducted with the support of a supervisory team of academics. The researcher graduate qualities focus on building deep disciplinary expertise and a range of broader, transferrable skills that will enhance the research activities and career possibilities. The eleven qualities cover cultural competence, interdisciplinary effectiveness, professional, ethical, personal identity, influence, critical thinking and problem-solving, communication, information and digital literacy, inventiveness, engagement and project planning and delivery. Similarities: Country: Kenya Institution: Moi University Qualification Title: Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Communication Studies Duration: Three years full time Entry Requirements: Purpose: The qualification aims to provide expertise in theories of Communication Studies in relation to the broader Philosophies of Social Science while also exploring the link between these philosophies/theories with principles and techniques of Communication in various platforms and contexts. The specific objectives of the qualification are to: Exit Level Outcomes: At the end of the qualification, the graduates will have gained: Qualification structure: Similarities: Difference: The MU qualification consists of both compulsory and elective modules while the SA qualification is by research only and no course work. |
| ARTICULATION OPTIONS |
| This qualification allows possibilities for horizontal articulation.
Horizontal Articulation: |
| MODERATION OPTIONS |
| N/A |
| CRITERIA FOR THE REGISTRATION OF ASSESSORS |
| N/A |
| NOTES |
| N/A |
| LEARNING PROGRAMMES RECORDED AGAINST THIS QUALIFICATION: |
| NONE |
| PROVIDERS CURRENTLY ACCREDITED TO OFFER THIS QUALIFICATION: |
| This information shows the current accreditations (i.e. those not past their accreditation end dates), and is the most complete record available to SAQA as of today. Some Primary or Delegated Quality Assurance Functionaries have a lag in their recording systems for provider accreditation, in turn leading to a lag in notifying SAQA of all the providers that they have accredited to offer qualifications and unit standards, as well as any extensions to accreditation end dates. The relevant Primary or Delegated Quality Assurance Functionary should be notified if a record appears to be missing from here. |
| NONE |
| All qualifications and part qualifications registered on the National Qualifications Framework are public property. Thus the only payment that can be made for them is for service and reproduction. It is illegal to sell this material for profit. If the material is reproduced or quoted, the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) should be acknowledged as the source. |