Film and Television Studies MA

Find out more about our Film and Television Studies taught Master's degree at Warwick

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MA

1 year full-time;
2 years part-time

29 September 2026

Film and Television Studies

University of Warwick

The MA in Film and Television Studies at the University of Warwick has led graduates into diverse and creative roles within a wide range of industries. Warwick's Film and Television Studies has a worldwide reputation for the quality of its teaching and research within the fields of film and television aesthetics, history and theory.

Film and Television Studies at Warwick is regarded as one of the finest in the world and offers an unparalleled training in audio-visual literacy, an increasingly valuable attribute in today’s world.

Drawing on the internationally recognised expertise of our academics, primarily in the areas of Film and Television aesthetics, history and theory, this course enables you to familiarise yourself with key disciplinary issues and topics, and to prepare for application for PhD, if desired.

Later in the course, you have the opportunity to focus on an area of personal academic interest in your final dissertation.

Our MA in Film and Television Studies is not the same as Media Studies, Communications Studies or Journalism Studies. We offer modules which make more use of the kinds of methodologies employed in the study of English Literature, History and Art History rather than those practised in the sociological analysis of communications industries. This is a theoretical course and we do not offer any training in the skills of practical filmmaking.

During the Autumn term you will take a core module, Screen Cultures and Methods, in which a number of staff will introduce key methodological approaches, and illuminate how an element of their own research can then inform the theory under discussion. You then choose three further optional modules taken over the first two terms (one in the Autumn term and two in the Spring term).

The core elements of the Film and Television Studies curricula are supported by a programme of research seminars (departmental staff, PhD students and visiting speakers) and the wide range of screenings for other courses and more generally on campus. As postgraduate students, you are an important part of the research culture in the department.

The programme includes dedicated sessions in Skills Training and Research Workshops that will equip you with the necessary academic skills to excel in Master’s assignments, develop your scholarly aptitude and prepare you for PhD applications.

We have a superb staff-student ratio: for example, our taught MA is normally restricted to twenty students whilst there are thirteen full-time members of staff, and all MA students are allocated a personal tutor.

There is an average of 16 contact hours per week.

A combination of assessed essays and a 15,000 word dissertation.

Reading lists

If you would like to view reading lists for current or previous cohorts of students, most departments have reading lists available through Warwick Library on the Talis Aspire platformLink opens in a new window.

You can search for reading lists by module title, code or convenor. Please see the modules tab of this page or the module catalogue.

Please note that some reading lists may have restricted access or be unavailable at certain times of year due to not yet being published. If you cannot access the reading list for a particular module, please check again later or contact the module’s host department.

Your timetable

Your personalised timetable will be complete when you are registered for all modules, compulsory and optional, and you have been allocated to your lectures, seminars and other small group classes. Your compulsory modules will be registered for you and you will be able to choose your optional modules when you join us.

2:1 undergraduate degree (or equivalent) in an adjacent subject.

All applicants are asked to provide us with a sample piece of written work of around 1,500-3,000 words (preferably, though not necessarily, on a film/TV-related subject) and a short (c. 200-300 words) description of the kind of research topic(s) they would be interested in studying for the mandatory 15,000 word dissertation undertaken by our students on the MA in Film and Television Studies.

For a speedier decision on your application, we advise you to provide us with these supplementary documents when you apply. This supplementary material can be uploaded in one document to your application.

• Band B
• IELTS overall score of 7.0, minimum component scores of two at 6.0/6.5 and the rest at 7.0 or above.

There are no additional entry requirements for this course.

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