Newcastle University offers a varied suite of Masters level Cross Cultural Communication pathways. The aim of the MA in Cross-Cultural Communication (CCC) is to enable those enrolled to meet the growing need for increased knowledge about, expertise in and communication-focused training in cross-cultural communication.
For reasons as varied as tourism, employment, trade, humanitarian aid, tourism, entertainment, sport, education, and even for reasons of love, people nowadays migrate, relocate, and travel more than at any other time in human history. Changing social conditions and circumstances may require new ways of dealing with people, and fresh ways of interacting and communicating with people of other cultures. Perhaps more than anything else, ours is the age of cross-cultural communication.
Given this state of affairs, there is an urgent need to improve our knowledge and understanding of the processes and issues involved in cross-cultural communication, and to discover how such knowledge can be effectively applied in the everyday experiences of communicating cross-culturally. What this means in practice is that we need to develop our knowledge of why and how communication 'works' and how and why it sometimes does not 'work'.
Target Group
The MA in CCC will be relevant for persons who wish to take seriously the study of communication, language and culture, as well as those intending to work, or already working, in international and cross-cultural environments where communication is an essential aspect of that work (e.g. communications consultants, interpreters, social workers, international sales representatives, marketing personnel, journalists, medical professionals, humanitarian aid staff), and in work environments where cross-cultural and international encounters are commonplace (e.g. schools, police, immigration agencies, local authority care work, health workers).
Course Structure
Students enrolled on the MA in CCC are presented with a range of up-to-date theoretical and communication-related issues relevant to the study of cross-cultural communication. The course is both theoretical and practical in orientation and allows selection of one of six specialisms, these being
Students follow courses dedicated to CCC as well as those dedicated to their chosen specialism.
Emphasis is placed on developing awareness and understanding of theoretical issues in cross-cultural communication. This entails addressing questions such as: What does it mean to 'understand' and 'misunderstand'? What are 'cultural mind sets'? Why does 'culture shock' arise? What are the connections between communication and culture? How can miscommunication be prevented and/or minimised? The MA in CCC also stresses the importance of being able to assess and describe problems arising in cross-cultural communication encounters. Teaching thus includes 'hands-on' analyses of communication encounters in a range of intercultural and international work settings.
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Dr Adam Brandt
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Dr Alan Firth
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Dr Peter Sercombe
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Dr Tony Young
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Contact us:
King George VI Building
School of Education Communication and Language Sciences
Queen Victoria Road
Newcastle upon Tyne
NE1 7RU
Tel: +44 (0) 191 222 6569
Fax: +44 (0) 191 222 6546
Email: ccc@ncl.ac.uk