Media & Business

Choosing the master’s in media & business at Erasmus was an easy decision for me. I first discovered this university in 2020 during my bachelor's exchange, and when I first walked around campus, I sensed that this was the right place for me. My instincts were spot on, as I had an amazing experience during my bachelor's, encouraging me to return for my master's degree.

An unmatching experience

The remarkable quality of education, the charming campus, and the vibrant international atmosphere collectively create an unmatching experience at Erasmus. What truly attracted me about the programme was the flexibility it offers. The Media and Business programme empowers you to shape your master's to align with your goals and interests. The array of enticing electives enables you to explore diverse areas, and the course structure provides a solid theoretical foundation that is actively applied and debated in tutorials – a dynamic and effective way of learning.

Balancing academic and personal life

Nevertheless, the programme can pose some challenges. Personally, these involved time management matters. Balancing academic and personal life can be a bit overwhelming, especially for international students. However, with effective organizational skills and supportive friends, these challenges can be overcome.

Overall, the master’s in media & business at Erasmus offers an enriching educational environment that not only provides you with valuable knowledge but also fosters personal growth. If you're seeking a programme that combines academic excellence with a vibrant international community, this is the ideal choice.

An innovative approach to research applications

I chose the study programme because I wanted to study Media and Business at a university that understands the needs of students going into the current job market whilst maintaining a strong research background. I feel that sometimes education is either immensely practical or immensely research heavy. The Media and Business program takes both to provide students with the relevant knowledge to do both effectively. 

Wide Variety of Courses

In the Media and Business programme I can choose electives from a wide variety that allows me to complete my degree with the knowledge I chose. For example, I am really interested in business culture and digital news media (journalism, etc), and I have fellow classmates who are interested in digital fashion activism and data analytics, and those are all courses we can chose and take in the one-year Master. Even within the research-focused courses, you can pick topics that most appeal to you within a certain research style (qualitative/quantitative) and you are fully supported by professors to be creative within the topics. 

Supportive Professors 

I must say a highlight has been how supportive the teaching professors have been. They are interactive in lectures but especially seminars, and they truly care that students fully understand concepts and information, whilst also being open minded to creative ideas for presentation and essays as well as in discussions. This was immensely important for me when I started and it’s really pleasing to experience coming to class and feeling pride in your work that the professor creatively backed up. 

After finishing my bachelor’s in Communication Sciences I was unsure which master to choose. I knew my passions and interests lay in organisational communication, however, I was uncertain as to how I could dive deeper into this area while acquiring complementary knowledge which could enrich my path to building a career.

Futuristic approach to teaching

After researching and comparing different master programmes, I noticed that Media & Business was one of the few which addressed a wide range of fields of study related to new media and corporate management, ranging from surveillance and artificial intelligence to corporate social responsibility and marketing. The entrepreneurial nature of the courses’ content is also something that I have come to love about the master specialisation. But in my opinion, one of the most exciting aspects of Media & Business is its futuristic approach to teaching. Students learn about the role and impact of media within organisations, however, they are also encouraged to critically think about how future technologies might impact organisations of the future.

Self-learning capabilities

During my previous studies I got familiar with mostly in-class learning which meant a higher load of classes per week. The weekly Schedule of Media & Business, on the other hand, is much less overwhelming with classes highly relying on the students’ self-learning capabilities through the materials provided in the university’s platforms. At first, I struggled with this teaching style, as I had encountered some time management issues during my bachelor's. However, this method has allowed me to learn how to best manage my responsibilities while balancing my personal and academic life.

International environment

Lastly, the international environment of both the university and the master specialisation allows students to exchange experiences and opinions in and out of class. This exchange has especially helped me gain a global view of how new technologies are impacting different countries at different rates and in different ways.

After moving from Finland to France, and later to the Netherlands, I was certain I wanted to complete my university education abroad. After completing my bachelor’s degree, making the choice for the right master’s programme followed. What stood out to me from Erasmus University Rotterdam and Media & Business, in particular, is the way the specialisation incorporates theoretical courses while keeping the focus on the professional field.

A variety of research methods

Having a background in Media and Culture Studies, I enrolled in Media & Business to broaden my knowledge of media from an organisational perspective, focusing on communications and digital transformations. What I encountered from the start was the emphasis on the different research methods. While I didn’t work with some of these methods, such as the quantitative methods, during my bachelor’s, we were able to practise them from the beginning. Exploring new methodologies was both challenging and useful for upcoming courses as well as for conducting a master’s thesis later in the year.  

Broadening your interests

Media & Business offers a range of courses suitable for my future, as I later aim to start my professional career within the field of communications. However, since the start of the specialisation, I have taken part in courses such as Media Economics and Media Management, which have broadened my understanding of the economics of media companies. This course gave not only many ideas for a possible master’s thesis, but also career prospects after the specialisations. For this reason, I also encourage future students to explore topics outside of their planned trajectory.

The story about why I chose this specialisation, and the city of Rotterdam is actually quite romantic. Last year, while I was living in Belgium, I had the chance to visit some cities in the Netherlands and I immediately fell in love with Rotterdam.

International and stimulating environment

It was such a big feeling of belonging that I checked the website of Erasmus University Rottedam and found out that the master specialisation Media & Business suited perfectly with what I wanted to do. I’ve always loved living and studying in an international and stimulating environment and everyone told me that Erasmus University Rotterdam was the first and best choice. I did a Bachelor in Italy, in IT and Communication. After finishing my bachelor and my exchange, I was finally ready to take on a new challenge and start a new academic adventure abroad.

Communication and speaking in public have never been a problem for me and I have chosen Media & Business to improve my skills in Public Relationships, Brand Communication, Corporate Communication, Advertising, and Media Transformation, which are all subjects I am very fond of.

Create your personal path

Moreover, this master specialisation offers a real international and dynamic experience with other students from all around the globe. But also, with international professors which gives you an analytical and entrepreneurial perspective on the new business of media. Furthermore, this specialisation allows you to create your personal path by attending different workshops and courses.

It could be a hard choice, deciding to move to another country with a different academic and study approach, changing downright your life. I strongly believe that all the efforts will be rewarded, and I would choose this Media & Business again and again.  

Prior to enrolling in the master specialisation Media & Business, I completed a bachelor’s in international studies at a different research university in the Netherlands (Leiden University). This is a multidisciplinary bachelor with focus on economics, politics, history, and culture.

Unique combination

I decided to study Media & Busniess because it feels to me a unique combination of media and business, two fields that I am equally interested in. I wanted to get a sense of the interplay between them and have the opportunity to work on entrepreneurial and business-oriented projects, while learning about communication and media markets.

Many strong assets

Media & Business has many strong assets, including the interesting curriculum, the engaging teaching style, the possibility to do an exchange program, the freedom to select topics for assignments, and the international crowd.

Yet, what I consider the most valuable aspect is the practical side that this master specialisation offers to the student. From start to finish, the student is encouraged to be a self-starter and get hands-on experience. In this way, the master’s seeks to bridge the gap between theory and practice. For the most part, teachers treat students as partners, being curious about their ideas and turning the classroom into a dynamic project field for real-life cases.

Media Economics and Media Management

My favourite course is Media Economics and Media Management. This course discusses multiple economic and business principles applied to media markets. The lecturer makes it relevant and fresh, by bringing cutting-edge examples from diverse industries. The projects proposed as part of the course are motivating and encourage the student to think outside-the-box and apply the theory into practice.