Master in Culture, Communication and Globalisation

1: Preface

In pursuance of Act No. 960 of 14 August 2014 on universities (the University Act) with subsequent amendments, the following regulations and curriculum are stipulated for the Master’s programme in Culture, Communication and Globalisation

2: Basis in Ministerial orders

The Master’s programme is organised in accordance with the Ministry of Higher Education and Science’s Order no. 1328 of November 15, 2016 on Bachelor’s and Master’s Programmes at Universities (the Ministerial Order of the Study Programmes) with subsequent changes and Ministerial Order no. 1062 of June 30, 2016 on University Examinations (the Examination Order) with subsequent changes. Further reference is made to Ministerial Order no. 106 of February 12, 2018 (the Admission Order) and Ministerial Order no. 114 of February 3, 2015 (the Grading Scale Order).

3: Campus

The programme is offered in Aalborg.

4: Faculty affiliation

The Master’s programme in Culture, Communication and Globalisation belongs under the auspices of Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, Aalborg University.

5: Study board affiliation

The Master’s programme in Culture, Communication and Globalisation belongs under the auspices of the Study Board of International and Cross¿Cultural Studies

6: Affiliation to corps of external examiners

The Master’s programme is associated with the external examiners corps on International and European Studies

7: Admission requirements

Applicants with a legal right of admission (retskrav)

Admission to the Master’s programme in Culture, Communication and Globalisation is guaranteed for students who have completed a Bachelor degree in Languages and International Studies from Aalborg University.

Applicants without legal right of admission

Students with Bachelor degrees from the following programmes at Aalborg University are also eligible for admission to the Master’s programme in Culture, Communication and Globalisation: Danish with a minor subject; English with a minor subject; German with a minor subject; International Business Communication (French, English, Spanish, German); History with a minor subject; Humanistic Informatics; Social Sciences with a minor subject; Politics and Administration; Sociology.

Students with Bachelor degrees from the following programmes at other universities may be eligible for admission to the Master’s programme in Culture, Communication and Globalisation: Anthropology and Ethnography, English and Organisational Communication, International Business Communication: language and culture communication.

For further information, visit http://www.en.aau.dk

A further condition is that both Danish and English speaking students meet the university’s general minimum requirements for proficiency in English that apply to acceptance into English-language programmes.

Applicants who do not fulfil the conditions stipulated in subsections 1 and 2 may be accepted if, on the basis of an assessment of the case in question, the study board considers the applicant to possess comparable academic qualifications and/or language proficiency. In such cases, the study board may call in the applicant for an interview.

8: The programme title in Danish and English

The Master’s programme entitles the graduate to the Danish designation Cand.mag. i kultur, kommunikation og globalisering. The English designation is: Master of Arts (MA) in Culture, Communication and Globalization.

9: Programme specifications in ECTS credits

The duration of the Master’s programme in Culture, Communication and Globalisation is two years, equivalent to 120 ECTS points

10: Rules concerning credit transfer (merit), including the possibility for choice of modules that are part of another programme at a university in Denmark or abroad

The Study Board can approve that passed programme elements from other educational programmes at the same level replaces programme elements within this programme (credit transfer).

Furthermore, the Study Board can, upon application, approve that parts of this programme is completed at another university or a further education institution in Denmark or abroad (pre-approval of credit transfer).

The Study Board’s decisions regarding credit transfer are based on an academic assessment.

11: Exemptions

The Study Board’s possibilities to grant exemption, including exemption to further examination attempts and special examination conditions, are stated in the Examination Policies and Procedures published at this website: https://www.studieservice.aau.dk/regler-vejledninger

12: Rules for examinations

The rules for examinations are stated in the Examination Policies and Procedures published at this website: https://www.studieservice.aau.dk/regler-vejledninger

13: Rules concerning written work, including the Master’s Thesis

In the assessment of all written work, regardless of the language it is written in, weight is also given to the student's formulation and spelling ability, in addition to the academic content. Orthographic and grammatical correctness as well as stylistic proficiency are taken as a basis for the evaluation of language performance. Language performance must always be included as an independent dimension of the total evaluation. However, no examination can be assessed as ‘Pass’ on the basis of good language performance alone; similarly, an examination normally cannot be assessed as ‘Fail’ on the basis of poor language performance alone.

The Study Board can grant exemption from this in special cases (e.g., dyslexia or a native language other than Danish).

The Master’s Thesis must include an English summary. If the project is written in English, the summary can be in Danish. The summary is included in the evaluation of the project as a whole.

14: Requirements regarding the reading of texts in a foreign language

It is assumed that the student can read academic texts in his or her native language as well as in English and use reference works etc. in other European languages.

15: Competence profile on the diploma

The following competence profile will appear on the diploma:

A Candidatus graduate has the following competency profile:

A Candidatus graduate has competencies that have been acquired via a course of study that has taken place in a research environment.

A Candidatus graduate is qualified for employment on the labour market based on his or her academic discipline as well as for further research (PhD programmes). A Candidatus graduate has, compared to a Bachelor, developed his or her academic knowledge and independence so as to be able to apply scientific theory and method on an independent basis within both an academic and a professional context.

16: Competence profile of the programme

The Master’s programme in Culture, Communication and Globalisation is a research based fulltime programme that provides students with a basis for the execution of professional functions and qualifies them for admission to PhD studies. In particular, the programme prepares students for employment as communication officers, project managers or case officers in internationally or interculturally oriented private or public enterprises or organisations. In particular, it constitutes the basis for employment in areas of marketing and PR, aid work, tourism, culture dissemination and analysis, internal/external communication and human resources management.  

The Master’s programme focuses on the interplay and the relations between culture and communication in a globalised world. The aim is for students to acquire knowledge about globalisation processes and to develop competencies and skills relating to communication, culture and social analysis at an advanced level. Students should acquire the knowledge, skills and competencies necessary for the execution of academic job functions within a wide range of private and public organisations, institutions and enterprises.

Graduates will be capable of carrying out international and intercultural communication, information, analysis and clarification tasks; contribute actively to the internationalisation process of the organisation by supporting and initiating international cooperation relations (in terms of marketing as well as political, social and cultural aspects); analyse and evaluate development trends in the surrounding society, nationally and globally

Through the Master’s programme, students will have the possibility to compile the knowledge, skills and competences necessary to carry out the above tasks, either by specialising within one of the four disciplinary streams: ‘Consumption and Market Communication’; ‘Organisation and Leadership’; ‘International Relations and the Global Order’; ‘International Migration and Ethnic Relations’, or by not specialising by choosing the ‘Generalist Stream’ (cf. section 5, subsection 2).

During the study programme, students have the option of specialising within the area study Arctic Studies.

The specialisation in Arctic Studies comprises one elective module (5 ECTS) in the 7th semester on cultures, societies and histories of the peoples of the Arctic and one elective module in the 8th semester on the Arctic in the age of globalisation. In order to obtain the full specialisation, students must choose the topic of their internship/study stay abroad and their Master’s thesis from within the field of Arctic studies.

The overall objectives of the acquisition of knowledge and understanding are that students will be able to:

• acquire theoretical knowledge of cultural and social aspects of globalisation processes
• build theoretical knowledge of communication between cultures as well as social identity formation processes in the global world
• understand and reflect on a scientific basis on the knowledge of the disciplinary areas mentioned above and identify issues within these which may be the objects of study on a scientific basis.

The overall objectives for the acquisition of skills are that students will be able to:

• master scientific methods and tools and master general skills related to occupation within culture, communication and globalisation
• to critically assess and choose among theories, methods, tools and general skills within the above subject areas and set up new models for analysis and problem solving on a scientific basis
• analyse communication situations and communicate between and across cultures in the global reality
• communicate research based knowledge and discuss professional and scientific issues with both peers and non-specialists.

The overall objectives for the acquisition of competencies are that students will be able to

• operationalise acquired knowledge and skills within the subject areas of culture, communication and globalisation and thus be able to control work and development situations in international and intercultural environments which are complex, unpredictable and require new models for problem solving
• independently launch and implement disciplinary and cross-disciplinary collaboration within private and public organisations, institutions and enterprises
• assume responsibility for personal academic development and specialisation within the subject areas of the programme.

17: Structure and Contents of the programme

The duration of the Master’s programme in Culture, Communication and Globalisation is two years, equivalent to 120 ECTS points. The programme spans four semesters (semesters 7-10). The programme includes an optional project oriented course (internship) in Denmark or abroad. Study activities corresponding to 30 ECTS points at another university in Denmark or abroad may replace the project-oriented course. The Master’s Thesis (30 ECTS) must be completed during the 10th semester of the programme.

In this programme, English is the language of tuition.

The structure of the programme ensures that students acquire qualifications and extensive theoretical and methodological knowledge within one or a number of four disciplinary streams within which globalisation has rendered readjustment and understanding of modern communication processes between and across cultures distinctly relevant:

• Consumption and Market Communication: consumer studies and market communication, with a special focus on intercultural communication and culture studies

• Organisation and Leadership: organisational culture and management, with a special focus on intercultural understanding and multi-cultural management

• International Relations and the Global Order: international issues, with a special focus on global political, financial, social and cultural relations and processes

• International Migration and Ethnic Relations: International migration, with a special focus on issues relating to migration movements, integration policies and ethnic relations.

On completion of the Master’s programme in Culture, Communication and Globalisation, the student is awarded the Danish degree cand.mag. (candidatus/candidata magistrii) i kultur, kommunikation og globalisering. In English, the title translates into Master of Arts (MA) in Culture, Communication and Globalisation.

Upon completion of the programme within one of the disciplinary streams stated in Section 5, subsection 2, the designation a) Consumption and Market Communication, b) Organisation and Leadership, c) International Relations and the Global Order or d) International Migration and Ethnic Relations will be added.

Designations on specialisation are only added for students who have passed the following examinations within the same disciplinary stream: Semester Project (8th semester), applied methods (8th semester) project oriented course (9th semester), Master’s Thesis (10th semester).

Students may choose to attend one of the above disciplinary streams (cf. subsection 2) or to compile a generalist profile on the basis of the four streams. This individually compiled profile is designated the "generalist stream", but does not cause any designation of specialisation to be added to the academic title.

Students do not make their final choice of disciplinary stream until the beginning of semester 8.

Program structure 

The programme is compiled of modules and structured as a problem based and predominantly project organised programme within all streams of study. Study activities include compulsory modules of a total of 110 ECTS (regardless of stream), and elective modules of 5 ECTS each, of which students must select two. The modules in combination will make it possible for students to fulfil the objectives stated in section 4.

In semesters 7 and 8 of the programme, students will attend joint courses and stream courses which will constitute the basis of a project, as well as courses in ‘philosophy of science and methodology’ and ‘applied methods’, which are both completed with an examination. Finally, in each of the two semesters students will complete an elective module.

In semester 9 of the programme, students will attend a project oriented course (internship) in an enterprise/organisation/institution abroad or in Denmark. The project oriented course may be replaced by a mobility stay at a university abroad or in Denmark offering courses at master level within the central disciplinary areas of the programme corresponding to a minimum of 30 ECTS. Study activities and appertaining examinations at the selected university will then replace the module "project oriented course" and the appertaining examination.

Any plans as regards project oriented course/mobility stay must be prepared by the student and approved by the study board before the semester begins.

In the 10th semester of the programme, students will write their Master’s Thesis. Students must select a thesis subject from within the framework of the programme. The thesis subject must be approved by the study board on the basis of a synopsis including argumentation for the relevance

of the subject as well as theoretical and methodological points of departure, a description of the planned structure and outline, a preliminary bibliography and the choice of writing period/submission deadline.

Upon approval, a deadline for submission of the thesis will be set. Students cannot expect to receive any supervision after this deadline. Preparatory workshops for thesis writing will be offered with a special emphasis on methodological questions.

The student has the option to specialise in the field of Arctic Studies (AS). The focus of the area specialisation in Arctic Studies is the study of societies and cultures in terms of social and cultural encounters, intercultural communication, nation-building, international politics and globalization, governance and sustainable development. Lectures and seminars introduce Arctic communities and cultures as well as relevant theories. The theories are applied in the analysis of a number of studies from different parts of the Arctic, with more emphasis, however, on Greenland.

This programme will be conducted in English.

Compulsory modules

Elective modules, students will choose two of these modules*

*Students may seek the study board’s permission to replace one or both elective modules from the above list by an elective subject offered by other study boards at Aalborg University or other universities. This also applies for the general electives offered at Aalborg University. Regardless, elective modules must amount to a total of 10 ECTS. The stated elective modules will be offered if the study board finds that the number of applicants is sufficient.

17.1: Further general examination provisions

In the assessment of examinations, grades from the 7-point grading scale or a pass/fail grade will be awarded.

Examinations will be either internally or externally co-examined. If no other provisions are stated, examinations will be assessed by the examiner along with a second internal or an external examiner.

If no other provisions are stated, examinations will be conducted in English. This applies to both written and oral examinations.

Projects may be written jointly in groups of max. 5 students. 10th semester projects (master’s theses) may be written in groups of max. 3 students. Project examinations will normally take the following shape:

An oral examination on the basis of the written project, whether this is prepared individually or together with others. The project will be viewed as the joint responsibility of the group. Consequently, the project report is the basis for examination and assessment, and one combined grade will be awarded for the project report and the oral performance. At oral group examinations, the examination must be conducted in such a way that individual assessment of each individual student’s performance is ensured; cf. the Examination Order (Ministerial Order No. 1518 of 16 December 2013) section 4, subsection 2.

The examination will take the form of a conversation between the student(s), the examiner and the external examiner on the basis of the project report written by the student(s). Individual students may request to be informed of their grade without the presence of their group; however, this must be stated by the student at the beginning of the examination.

Where rules have been stipulated regarding the volume of written work, one page will correspond to 2400 typographical characters, including spaces. The stipulated number of pages only includes the actual body text of the report, as title page, preface, table of contents, bibliography and appendices will not be calculated. Whereas notes will be included in the calculation of pages, illustrations will not. The total page number must be stated on the title page.

The stipulated time intervals for oral examinations will include voting and announcement of the result.

In the assessment of written work, irrespective of the language in which this is written, the students’ spelling skills and fluency will be considered. The assessment of communicative performance will be based on orthographic correctness and correspondence with the norms of formal, academic writing standards and stylistic proficiency. The communicative performance will always be assessed as an independent dimension in the overall assessment. However, no assignment paper will be awarded an overall pass grade solely on be basis of good communicative performance, nor will an assignment paper usually be awarded a fail grade solely on the basis of poor communicative performance.

The study elements on which the individual examinations are based are rated as proportions of an annual full-time equivalent, this being calculated as the annual work of a full-time student, including holidays. An annual full-time equivalent is 60 ECTS.

Students who wish to register for the Master’s thesis examination must have successfully completed all previous examinations, incl. examinations of any electives (altogether equivalent to 90 ECTS).

In order for a student to graduate from the programme, each examination must be passed with a minimum grade of 02 or a ‘Pass’ grade. A weighted average will be calculated for the examinations assessed according to the 7-point scale, on the basis of the ECTS weight of each individual examination. So the average is defined as the sum of individual grades, each multiplied by the ECTS of the examination in question, divided by the sum of the ECTS points of the examinations included in the average.

Examinations assessed as pass/fail will not be included in this calculation. The average grade with one decimal digit will be stated on the examination certificate.

The examination provisions in these regulations and curriculum are subordinate to the examination regulations in force at any time at the Faculty of the Humanities.

18: Overview of the programme

19: Additional information

On its website, the study board displays and maintains more detailed information on the programme, including examination.

20: Commencement and transitional rules

These regulations were recommended by the Study Board of Cross-Cultural Studies and approved by the dean. The regulations will take effect from 1 September 2016 and apply to all students who commence Master’s studies on or after this date.

Students who have commenced their studies before 1 September 2014 will be transferred to these regulations for the remaining part of their Master’s studies.

The Study Board of Cross-Cultural Studies and/or the Humanities Faculty Office at AAU will determine when the last examinations will be held according to the previous regulations.

The Study Board and the Faculty of Humanities have incorporated changes in the curriculum which concern Section 7, subsection 4 and Section 13 on 1 September 2018.

21: Amendments to the curriculum and regulations

Minor editorial changes have been made in connection with the digitisation of the study curriculum.