IIE Master of Arts in Digital Communication

The purpose of the Master of Arts in Digital Communication is to expand the students’ theoretical knowledge and practical skills in digital communication, incorporating social media, and to equip students with the ability to produce advanced communication strategies for engaging with organisation specific audiences. Graduates will be adept at using digital communication to react in an informed, strategic, flexible, and ethical manner to the ever-changing communication environment.

The qualification will advance critical thinking skills in relation to communication theory and the application thereof in a social media context to empower graduates with the knowledge and skills to ensure that organisations remain adaptable to rapidly changing economic environments. Critical readings of leading theorists in the field of communication in general, and the discipline of digital communication, including social media specifically, will contribute towards this advance of theoretical and practical knowledge. Graduates will be skilled in designing, selecting, applying, and evaluating the appropriate creative digital communication techniques, processes, and technologies.

The Master of Arts in Digital Communication will provide graduates with a pathway to further higher education studies with the inclusion of the research-based component in the form of a mini-dissertation. Graduates will be able to identify a research topic and propose suitable findings, based on reasonable arguments, to a question, problem, or proposition within the digital communication discipline, thereby contributing academically to the body of knowledge of the field within the South African and international context.

The Master of Arts in Digital Communication will also critically expound on the cultural milieu, digital ethnographies, ethical communication practices, various digital communication tools and platforms and current methodological approaches to digital communication practice for graduates to be strategic, purposeful, meaningful, disruptive, and reflective communicators in the digital communication landscape

For admission requirements please click here

The IIE Master of Arts in Digital Communication (Distance) is accredited by the Council of Higher Education (CHE) and is registered by the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) on the National Qualifications Framework (NQF) as a 180-credit qualification on level 9 (SAQA ID: 122308).

Graduates will be suited to higher level employment opportunities within the communication, research, writing, media, public relations, marketing and/or corporate communication fields in the public, private and entrepreneurship sectors. Graduates will thus be able to fulfil the higher-level digital communication roles required in most professional industries by working for a public relations/ marketing/ branding agency, as social media managers for organisations, or in a consultancy capacity.

The Master of Arts in Digital Communication will enable graduates to pursue and further their career opportunities at a senior level as:

• Advanced Content Strategists
• Communication Managers
• Digital Content Portfolio Managers
• Social Media Strategists
• Communication Specialist

The IIE is not only accredited in South Africa but its dedication to providing quality education also led to it being accredited by the British Accreditation Council (BAC) in 2014. The British Accreditation Council is an independent authority in the United Kingdom that accredits private providers globally, including Greece, Switzerland, Singapore, India, Mauritius and the United Arab Emirates. In 2017 The IIE had its accreditation status confirmed by the BAC as an Independent Higher Education Institution confirming our confidence in the international comparability of our standards.

South African students need to know, when they select a private higher education institution, that the standards offered are equivalent to those of a public University. Our students get this from our extensive local accreditation and registration. The students also benefit from knowing that we meet international standards too. The IIE is accredited as an Independent Higher Education Institution by the British Accreditation Council. Locally and internationally we have demonstrated the quality of what we offer.

The IIE’s Varsity College students can be confident that their IIE learning experience meets international best practice standards.

The IIE’s Varsity College Exam Centres

Eight IIE Varsity College Campus exam centres are available within South Africa for selection as the exam centre at which you would write exams. You will receive operational support from the Online Centre.

Alternative Venues

An alternative examination centre is only permissible for international students and those located in a province of South Africa where there is no IIE campus. It is your responsibility to identify an examination centre (educational or religious site or embassy or consulate) if you have not already done so. Once you have secured your examination venue, we require a letter confirming availability from the examination centre you have chosen. If a change of examination venue is required – it is again the student’s responsibility to locate a new venue and provide the confirmation letter together with the supporting documentation which details the reason for the examination venue change. Students registered in the distance mode must select an Examination Centre at which to undertake the sit-down summative assessments per module. These are usually scheduled at the close of each semester. A student based in South Africa may select any campus of The IIE’s Varsity College, Rosebank College, Vega, or IIE MSA as their Examination Centre. If there is no IIE campus within reach of the student, an alternative venue will need to be sourced by the student. For these non-IIE venues, there is an alternative venue levy per module.

Please note, once the examination venue is selected and confirmed, it cannot be changed within eight weeks prior to the summative examination.