PhD (Media and Communication)

Ph.D. Studies in Media and Communication
The Department of Media and Communication at CityU has an outstanding international faculty, including many world-renowned scholars in the field of media and communication. We are at the forefront of research in computational communication, health communication, media effects, new and emerging media, and political communication.   The Department hosts a large and renowned PhD program, currently having more than 30 students who all receive financial support for 3-4 years of study from either the Research Grants Council of Hong Kong (HKPFS) or from CityU or other sources. The program is highly selective with the acceptance rates of around 10% and offers outstanding opportunities for career development, in Asia and internationally. The student body is diverse, with current students representing 7 countries in Asia, Africa, Europe, and North America.   The students receive rigorous training in the Department, which offers two PhD-level research methods and statistics courses as well as two theory-focused courses. In addition, the program provides several extra-curricular learning opportunities for PhD students every year, including two regional symposia: the Honours Symposium for Asian PhD Students in Communication Research held in collaboration with Korea University, Nanyang Technological University, and Yonsei University, and Postgraduate Symposium of the Chinese Journalism and Communication Consortium. Furthermore, since 2015, the Department has been hosting the annual CityU Summer School in Social Science Research, which offers advanced methodological training to CityU PhDs and other graduate students from renowned universities worldwide.   Our PhD students are encouraged to attend international conferences and seek overseas research opportunities during their studies. Typically, each student receives financial support (up to HK$12,000 per trip) to attend three international conference during their period of study. In addition, the students can seek additional research training and experience for up to 6 months during their candidacy for which they will receive additional funding support. In recent years, PhD have gone on research exchange to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT),  The University of Vienna, the University of Cape Town, and the University of Michigan. The students are also entitled to receive up to HK$20,000 to fund their dissertation expenses, which can include data collection, travel and research assistance.