Master of Arts in Intercultural and International Communication

Program Description

This 36-credit program is designed for self-starters and independent thinkers; students who want to further their career in intercultural or international communication, including Strategic Communication, Health Communication, and Communication for Development. The program is delivered by faculty with professional and practitioner-industry insight, providing a functional, real-world understanding of the fundamental and advanced concepts related to intercultural and international communication issues.

The MA in Intercultural and International Communication program will give graduates the skills necessary to communicate effectively in complex circumstances, through the use of diverse media and communication genres and engaging different audiences across multiple cultural settings.

Graduates will be familiar with non-governmental, civic, and business organizations and will have an understanding of how the making and shaping of meaning is fundamental to the reproduction of culture.

Course themes include:

• Intercultural and International Communication
• Intercultural Competence
• Media Relations in a Global Context
• Public Affairs and Advocacy
• Social Marketing
• Sport for Society
• Communication for Health and Well-Being

This program is delivered in two formats: an 18-month on-campus program, or a two-year blended program incorporating online learning with one on-campus residency, with the opportunity for an internship or research course. As well, this program features an intercultural field study experience to ensure you have opportunities to apply your learning in both intercultural and international contexts.

This program is recognized as full-time by Student Aid BC, meaning B.C. residents on this program are eligible for full-time government student loan assistance.

Who it’s for

The MA in Intercultural and International Communication program is for strategic and independent-thinking communication managers looking to improve their ability to assist organizations to respond to the rapidly changing global environment, as well as individuals with an arts or science undergraduate degree who want to pursue or advance their career in professional communication in the intercultural or international sphere. This program is designed to balance Intercultural Communication with International Communication to better integrate theory and practice.

There are two learning models available for this program, with each model traditionally attracting slightly different students:

• Two-Year Blended Model – The students that lean towards this option tends to have significant professional experience, and have a background as communication managers and leaders.
• 18-Month on-Campus Model – Shortly after completing their bachelor's degree, the students that tend to take up this model have a solid understanding of the theoretical aspects of communication, with some relevant work experience as communication specialists and liaisons.

Through our Flexible Admission process, significant professional experience in lieu of academic requirements is also considered. Please visit the Admission Requirements page for more information.

Courses

• IICSIP: Internship Preparation
• ITAI: Introduction to Academic Integrity
• IICS515: Intercultural Theory and Practice
• IICS551: Organizational Communication, Culture, and Development
• IICS560: Global Thought and Communication
• IICS565: Media Relations in a Global Context
• IICS575: Social Marketing
• IICS615: Sport for Society
• IICS605: Public Culture
• IICS621: Intercultural Communication Competence
• IICS625: Communication for Health and Well-being
• IICS627: Enhancing Communication Creativity and Diversity
• IICS630: Communication Research Methods
• IICS637: Digital Data and Social Media
• IICS638: Graduate Seminar in Intercultural Settings
• IICS645: Migration and Diaspora Studies in Global Contexts
• IICS660: Research Paper in Communication
• IICS670: Intercultural Communication Learning Project
• IICS672: International Relations and Public Diplomacy
• IICS680: Internship
• PCOM633: Strategic Communication
• PCOM635: Communication for Development and Social Change
• PCOM660: Research Paper

The MA in Intercultural and International Communication prepares individuals for work in:

• International or multicultural governmental or non-governmental organizations (NGOs);
• International journalism and documentary-reporting;
• Multi-ethnic and multicultural communities;
• International media;
• Intercultural conflict management;
• International communication enterprises;
• Social marketing and development aid;
• International relations;
• Community activism;
• Sustainable international and intercultural development;
• Cultural interpretation and mediation;
• Further studies in any of these fields.

Graduates will gain:

• Knowledge of both the fundamental and advanced concepts related to intercultural and international communication and an ability to communicate successfully through multiple modes (e.g. through written and oral discourse, visual language, multimodal media) across culturally diverse settings.
• The ability to use computer-mediated technology to manage the processes required for the production and reproduction of culture.
• Knowledge of traditional and new media and their operation across diverse audiences.
• Knowledge of government, non-government, civic, and business organizations and an understanding of how meaning-making is fundamental to the operation of these.
• An understanding of the social forces shaping the globalization of the world, combined with a practical understanding of how processes such as transnationalism, travel and tourism, global commerce, migration, diaspora, refugee movement, global identity politics, information flows, postcolonial governmental relations, and much more, shape communities worldwide.
• An understanding of the cultural dynamics underpinning the formation of local, regional and national communities with regard to issues such as the formation of cultural identities, the shaping of gender inclusion, racialization, multicultural policy and education, ritualization, language protection and cultural revival, multicultural health communication campaigns, environmental culture, political culture, indigenous governance, sustainable development, and all forms of cross-cultural interaction.
• An understanding of culture, international and intercultural communication, negotiation and conflict management. An ability to communicate ethically in diverse and difficult circumstances.

Upon successful completion of the MA Intercultural and International Communication program at Royal Roads University, you will have demonstrated your competency at a professional and international level, and that you are prepared to meet the challenges facing communication managers in today’s fast-changing cultural, socio-economic, and political environments.

The Master of Arts in Intercultural and International Communication program at Royal Roads University will prepare you for a career that requires the knowledge, skills, and applied approaches to problem-solving global communication issues. Our graduates are working at national and international levels in the public and non-profit/Non-Government Organizations (NGOs) sectors. MAIIC graduates lead and support organizations to develop creative communication activities in the growing intercultural and international contexts.

The potential fields of practice for graduates are varied, and include:

• Communications officers for government and non-government institutions;
• Communications directors for corporations and marketing organizations;
• Professional writers of newsletters, trade publications, journals, instructional manuals, political speeches;
• Organizational development and training consultants;
• Human resources training and development specialists;
• Editors, freelance or for in-house publications or correspondence;
• Publishers of print or online journals, magazines;
• Teachers of communication skills courses at community colleges;
• Media consultants, correspondents, or journalists;
• Public relations officers;
• Marketing managers and advertisers;
• Administrative assistants for information-based production credits,
• Development communication consultants to foreign assistance funded projects.