MA Digital Futures
The Digital Futures MA Online teaches how to identify and analyse consumer trends, and examining how the latest digital developments can tackle crucial issues related to sustainability, profitability and ethics.
2 years
Part Time
Tuition: GBP 17,223
Paid Monthly: Pay in Instalment
Intakes: Sept 2026
Deadline: 28 Aug 2026
Course overview
In a rapidly changing world, digital expertise is more crucial than ever. Businesses and organisations need individuals who can envision and implement impactful digital solutions that meet user needs, add value, and enhance our lives.
Regardless of your career sector, understanding the current digital landscape and its opportunities and challenges is essential.
This MA programme immerses you in digital trends across various industries, including cultural, creative, media, and gaming sectors. You’ll explore today’s most pressing topics such as health and wellbeing, activism, politics, and ecology.
From AI to smart cities, you’ll examine the latest digital developments and tackle crucial issues related to profitability, sustainability, and ethics.
MA Digital Futures
MA Digital Futures
Assessment
- Assignments (no exams) and dissertation project
Benefits
This forward-thinking MA is designed to boost your digital and professional expertise. You’ll gain skills that prepare you to lead digital initiatives and understand the key drivers, changes, and opportunities in the digital landscape.
Course content includes:
- Digital innovation and AI
- Digital media and creativity
- Sustainability and ethics
- Communication and social media across various industries
Equip yourself with the knowledge and skills to navigate and shape the future of digital solutions, enhancing your career prospects and making a significant impact in your field.
Career path
As digital technologies transform the world around us, it’s becoming increasingly clear that hard tech skills alone are simply not enough to lead a successful digital future. The future of digital development doesn’t just lie in coding and website building. For the most part, it lies in human-centric digital skills like critical thinking, sustainable approaches, emotional intelligence, creativity and teamwork.
From research conducted by AND Digital to initiatives spearheaded by UNESCO, evidence of a human-centric digital skill-gap is everywhere – and this degree is designed to help you fill it.
You may be seeking senior management or strategic roles or looking to pursue specialist digital roles, such as digital strategy, communications, policy and advocacy. It could lead to careers in research, consultancy, policymaking, civil society, the cultural heritage industries or within the media and creative industries, in publishing houses or digital media/marketing companies.
With a keen eye for key changes and opportunities and a unique position at the forefront of digital innovation, here are just a few of the job roles you could pursue as a graduate of this course:
- Digital Innovation Manager
- Digital Ethics and Sustainability Consultant
- Digital Media and Content Strategist
- Digital Marketing Manager
- Cultural and Digital Heritage Consultant
- Digital Communications Specialist
Eligibility
Standard entry requirements:
A high 2:1 (65% or above) honours degree (or above) or international equivalent in a social science, computer science/ informatics or humanities subject.
Non-standard entry requirements
You’ll need to meet one of the following criteria:
- A master’s degree at merit (or above) or international equivalent in a social science, computer science/ informatics or humanities subject.
- A master’s degree at merit (or above) or international equivalent in a non-related subject. Your application will need to be supported by a CV highlighting relevant experience (or related graduate qualification, e.g. PGDip) and a 500-word written statement (see details under ‘Written statement and supporting information’ below).
- A 2:2 honours degree or international equivalent in a related subject (as above). Your application will need to be supported by a CV highlighting relevant experience (or related graduate qualification, e.g. PGDip) and a 500-word written statement (see details under ‘Written statement and supporting information’ below).
- A 2:1 honours degree or international equivalent in a non-related subject. Your application will need to be supported by a CV highlighting relevant experience (or related graduate qualification, e.g. PGDip) and a 500-word written statement (see details under ‘Written statement and supporting information’ below).
- An ordinary or third-class honours degree or international equivalent in any subject area. Your application will need to be supported by a CV highlighting relevant experience (or related graduate qualification, e.g. PGDip) and a 500-word written statement (see details under ‘Written statement and supporting information’ below).
English language requirements
English language band: B
To study at King’s, it is essential that you can communicate in English effectively in an academic environment. You’re usually required to provide certification of your competence in English before starting your studies.
Nationals of majority English speaking countries (as defined by the UKVI) who have permanently resided in this country are not usually required to complete an additional English language test. This is also the case for applicants who have successfully completed:
- An undergraduate degree (at least three years duration) within five years of the course start date.
- A postgraduate taught degree (at least one year) within five years of the course start date.
- A PhD in a majority English-speaking country (as defined by the UKVI) within five years of the course start date.
Written statement and supporting information
Core Modules
The module explores current and emerging trends in the digital landscape, focusing on technological transformation concepts like trendsetting, prediction, and future casting. It uses a historically informed theoretical approach to examine social and technical changes through past, present, and future examples of emerging media.
Looking at the material aspects and functionalities of various media platforms and products, you’ll investigate the impact of innovations such as platformisation, automation, mediatisation, appification, and gamification on users’ lives.
You’ll develop analytical methods of critically and ethically evaluating digital phenomena, and a systematic understanding of digital contexts for your own investigations into alternative digital futures.
This module explores how digital technologies impact the sustainability of ecosystems, infrastructures, communities, and livelihoods. You’ll critically examine the exploitative and extractive aspects of digital culture, from raw material mining to the harvesting of training data for AI models.
Assessing the ecological impact of digital technologies, you’ll also analyse how digital platforms can exacerbate inequality and political instability. But the module isn’t just about recognising barriers to sustainability; it also challenges you to adopt a solutions-oriented stance, equipping you to imagine more ethical, equitable, and sustainable digital futures.
Drawing on case studies from green design, policy making, art and activism, you’ll collaborate with peers and develop proposals for positive change.
The Research Dissertation is a compulsory part of the Digital Futures MA. You’ll undertake a research project in an area related to one or more of the modules you’re taking.
You’ll be assigned a supervising member of staff who will initiate the project and seek out relevant collaborations, where necessary and possible, within the Schools and Departments participating in the programme.
The project will involve theoretical empirical work. A dissertation of up to 10,000 – 12,000 words is expected. Approval for any practical element should be obtained from both your supervisor and the Programme Director.
Specialist Modules
Artificial intelligence (AI) encompasses technologies including conversational interfaces, self-driving cars, and applications in policing, medical care, and social care. This overview explores AI’s diverse applications, along with its associated key issues and debates.
Consequently, you’ll develop a deep understanding of AI’s current developments. We’ll evaluate AI’s use in various fields, understand the technical concepts behind these uses, and address the societal challenges posed by AI.
We’ll also reflect on potential responses, including policy and regulations, to manage AI’s impact. In doing so, you’ll then be able to evaluate AI applications from a critical and ethical standpoint in your substantial investigations.
This module provides a critical introduction to the gaming industries and their intersecting cultures. We’ll treat the gaming sector as a series of industries across various platforms, with unique histories and contexts.
Topics include the development of industry sectors over time and space, global and regional structures, the nature of careers in gaming, and industry segments (e.g., AAA, casual, indie).
We’ll also cover media adaptation, localisation for different markets, and the complex interplay between gaming cultures and industry.
Key focus areas include diversity, representation, co-creation, places of play, eSports, streaming, and other emerging trends in gaming cultures.
This module examines the global circulation of physical and virtual media, highlighting the power of distributors and publishers to determine how audiences access and engage with media.
Offering insights into the mechanics of formal distribution, the module also shines a light on the informal distribution strategies of pirates, bootleggers and fan communities.
Drawing on media archaeology, infrastructure studies, and distribution studies, among other fields, you’ll explore how media are disseminated, archived, merchandised and repurposed today.
Focusing primarily on film and television, the module also addresses case studies from gaming, music, and the arts.
This module enhances your understanding of social media platforms and their impact on digital marketing. It covers the theoretical relationship between social media, platforms, and marketing, supplemented with case studies and practical exercises.
You’ll develop vital skills to evaluate social activity in the platform economy, examining phenomena like viral marketing, hype, and engagement within digital cultures.
The module focuses on critically appraising marketing practices and understanding their application in the digital domain. Additionally, you’ll gain hands-on experience in social media data analysis.
Course fee
Global:
- Course Fee: GBP 17,223
+VAT if applicable
Fees are determined by where applicants are currently working and residing
GBP is Great British Pounds
Academics
Refaat Kazoun
Philippe Riewer
Ajith Kumar
What our student say
Khaled Abdullah Ahmed Nusair
University of Leicester
MBA
It was an exciting, interesting journey within the University modules, staff, tutors and program. The staff at Stafford are very supportive, cooperative and professional, I am really thankful to all of them.
