Course summary
Earn a recognised postgraduate qualification in visual and cultural studies. Study online, flexibly, at your own pace. Join us online to investigate how comics, cinema, music, popular culture, and subcultures shape societies, express identities, and respond to global crises. In this flexible postgraduate certificate (PgCert), you’ll explore visual and popular cultures from a uniquely international perspective. You’ll join experts from across disciplines to:
- learn about important concepts in the fields of media studies and cultural studies
- apply these concepts to global visual media, music, cultures, and subcultures, and
- develop your skills in comparative visual and cultural analysis.
- New German Cinema
- Spain’s countercultural Movida Madrileña
- Scottish Gaelic song and fairy tales
- Victorian music hall, and
- contemporary popular music, from blues and K-pop to Eurovision.
Modules
You’ll work through two 30-credit courses to earn your PgCert. You can start your studies in September or January and progress at a pace that suits you. It takes a minimum of eight months to complete the PgCert, studying part-time. You can take a maximum of 30 credits per term. In this flexible PgCert, you can also take breaks between courses.
Assessment method
This PgCert is assessed online. You’ll be assessed throughout your studies via methods including:essays, projects, and your contributions to discussion boards.
How to apply
International applicants
This distance-learning Programme is delivered flexibly, 100% online. You can learn with us anywhere, no student visa required, and manage your study hours to suit you
Entry requirements
The minimum entry requirements are a 2:2 UK honours degree (or equivalent) in a relevant subject. You’re also welcome to apply if you have other relevant qualifications, and professional experience or interests.
English language requirements
| Test | Grade | Additional details |
|---|---|---|
| IELTS (Academic) | 6.5 | Overall - 6.5 with: Listening - 5.5 or above; Reading - 6.0 or above; Speaking - 5.5 or above; Writing - 6.0 or above. IELTS Indicator or IELTS General Training are not accepted. |
| TOEFL (iBT) | 90 | TOEFL iBT and TOEFL iBT Home Edition: Overall - 90 with: Listening - 17 or above; Reading - 21 or above; Speaking - 20 or above; Writing - 21 or above. DI code is 0818 |
| PTE Academic | 62 | Overall - 62 with: Listening - 59 or above; Reading - 59 or above; Speaking - 59 or above; Writing - 59 or above. Online test is not accepted. |
| Institution's Own Test | Academic English Pre-sessional Programme (PSE) - Pass (valid for 1 year). Academic English Preparation Programme undertaken at other UK HEI - accredited by BALEAP and within 1 year of start of course. | |
| Cambridge English Advanced | C | Overall - 176 with: Listening - 162 or above; Reading - 162 or above; Speaking - 162 or above; Writing - 169 or above. |
To study for a postgraduate degree at the University of Aberdeen it is essential that you can speak, understand, read, and write academic English fluently. These skills will allow you to understand lectures, produce high standards of written work, and perform well in examinations. We can assess your English language proficiency through a variety of means: through your nationality, through the qualifications you gained in high school, through the degree you undertook or are undertaking at university, or through a recognised English language test. Postgraduate Higher requirements are used by the Schools of Business; Divinity, History and Philosophy; Education; Language, Literature, Music and Visual Culture; Law; and Social Sciences. The MSc in Oil and Gas Enterprise Management and the MSc in Integrated Petroleum Geoscience also make use of the Postgraduate Higher requirements. Please note certification must be within the two years prior to commencement of your degree programme, unless otherwise stated.
Please use the checklist at the following webpage to determine how you can meet our English language requirements:
https://www.abdn.ac.uk/study/international/requirements-pg-266.php
Fees and funding
Tuition fees
| EU | £2740 | Year 1 |
| International | £2740 | Year 1 |
| England | £2740 | Year 1 |
| Northern Ireland | £2740 | Year 1 |
| Scotland | £2740 | Year 1 |
| Wales | £2740 | Year 1 |
| Channel Islands | £2740 | Year 1 |
| Republic of Ireland | £2740 | Year 1 |
Tuition fee status depends on a number of criteria and varies according to where in the UK you will study. For further guidance on the criteria for home or overseas tuition fees, please refer to the UKCISA website .
Additional fee information
This indicative cost is based on 30 credits of study per term, starting in January 2026. The fee quoted above is based on you starting your studies with us in the 2025/26 academic year.
Our tuition fees will rise by 3% for the 2026/27, 2027/28 and 2028/29 academic years. Our indicative cost includes a 3% fee rise each year.
Sponsorship information
Eligible self-funded international Masters students will receive the Aberdeen Global Scholarship. Visit our Funding Database to find out more and see our full range of scholarships: www.abdn.ac.uk/study/funding/. The University of Aberdeen provides an Alumni Discount Scheme: The University of Aberdeen is very pleased to offer a 20% discount on postgraduate tuition fees for all alumni who have graduated with a degree from the University of Aberdeen.
Provider information
University of Aberdeen
Directorate of Global Engagement, Marketing and Recruitment
King's College
Aberdeen
AB24 3FX