MA Digital Media, Culture and Society

Fees for entry in 2027 have not yet been set. For reference, the fees for the academic year beginning September 2026 were as follows:

• MA (full-time)
  UK students (per annum): £14,700
  International, including EU, students (per annum): £33,100
• MA (part-time)
  UK students (per annum): £7,350
  International, including EU, students (per annum): £16,550

The fees quoted above are fully inclusive of tuition, administration and computational costs.

Fees for entry are subject to yearly review. The University reserves the right to increase your tuition fee by up to 7% each year for courses lasting more than one year, including to reflect rising costs associated with delivering our educational and wider student experience. Postgraduate fees information .

Always contact the admissions team if you are unsure which fee applies to your qualification award and method of attendance.

International Student Course Deposit

International applicants will be required to pay a course deposit of £2,500 to secure their place on the programme. Full details of how and when to make this payment will be included in your offer letter. This deposit confirms your intention to study in the UK and replaces the need for a separate CAS deposit.

All students should normally be able to complete their programme of study without incurring additional study costs over and above the tuition fee for that programme. Any unavoidable additional compulsory costs totalling more than 1% of the annual home undergraduate fee per annum, regardless of whether the programme in question is undergraduate or postgraduate taught, will be made clear to you at the point of application. Further information can be found in the University's Policy on additional costs incurred by students on undergraduate and postgraduate taught programmes (PDF document, 91KB).

We know that student finance can be complicated. The links below provide further information to help guide you.

• Learn more about - student finance options for UK students.
• Learn more about - fees and finance for international students .
• Graduates of The University of Manchester and Manchester Metropolitan University can receive a 10% discount on their master's degree tuition fees as part of our Manchester Alumni Loyalty Discount scheme.

This unit will explore and examine the growing effect of artificial intelligence (AI) and algorithms on, and in, society. AI and algorithms are increasingly part of everyday life. From Midjourney to ChatGPT, AI is transforming the way people work, play, experience the world, and act within it. But what do AI and now dominant algorithmic methods such as machine learning (ML) involve, and what are the social, cultural, and political implications of their development and use? In this course unit we will creatively explore and examine what AI and algorithms do, and how artificial, algorithmic, and autonomous systems are being designed, developed, tested, funded, and built – with social, political, and cultural consequences.

• To introduce students to the role and effects of AI and algorithms in contemporary societies
• To offer an overview of current debates around AI and algorithms in society
• To provide a critical understanding of the possibilities, problems, and ethics of AI and algorithms

The unit consists of 1-hour lectures, 2-hour seminars, and 1-hour drop-in sessions. The lecture component will ordinarily consist of introductions to each AI topic, as well as key epistemological, ontological, political, cultural, and ethical debates around them. The seminar component will consist of (guided) practical workshops in which students will have the opportunity to creatively use, explore, and experiment with different AI tools, platforms, software, services, and platforms. The seminar component will also be used for students to develop their group projects, offering the opportunity for collaborative experimentation as well as the space for informal feedback and advice. All supporting material will be provided via a corresponding Canvas course unit page. Drop-in sessions will allow students to hone assessment work if desired.

• Critically evaluate the role of AI and algorithms in contemporary societies from a cultural, technical, and political perspective
• Examine how AI and algorithms are employed within contemporary societies, and how their use has different practical and ethical consequences
• Interpret and analyse how AI and algorithms are developed, designed, and operated
• Develop oral and written forms of interpretation and argumentation through a critical engagement with textual material, hands-on creative examination of technical objects, seminar discussions, and essay writing  

• Apply analytical skills to examine and analyse the effects of AI and algorithms in society
• Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of critical debates on AI and algorithms within media studies and related fields
• Articulate and explain key concepts concerning the implications of AI and algorithms for contemporary work, leisure, politics, culture, and the economy
• Demonstrate an awareness of innovative methodological approaches to understanding AI and algorithms, from different technical, cultural, and political perspectives

• Engage in oral and written debates on a broad range of AI and algorithmic topics
• Build argumentative frameworks for the analysis of AI and algorithms from cultural perspectives
• Use digital and non-digital research materials and resources and resources and tools to evaluate AI models and products. 
• Follow academic referencing standards and norms in academic writing assignments
• Perform independent research involving the careful selection of appropriate material, topic, and case studies

• Present information, ideas, arguments, and methodologies in respect to relevant parties
• Active and constructive participation in group activities
• Understanding and assessment of different perspectives
• Demonstrate analytical abilities
• Demonstrate critical evaluative skills in relation to AI, algorithms, and digital media

Amaro, R. (2022) The Black Technical Object: On Machine Learning and the Aspiration of Black Being. Berlin: Sternberg Press.

Amoore, L. (2020) Cloud Ethics: Algorithms and the Attributes of Ourselves and Others. Durham, NC: Duke University Press.

Andrejevic, M. (2019) Automated Media. London: Routledge.

Crawford, K. and Joler, V. (2018) Anatomy of an AI system. Anatomy of AI https://anatomyof.ai/

Golumbia, D. (2009) The Cultural Logic of Computation. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

Hayles, K. (2017) Unthought: The Power of the Cognitive Nonconscious. Chicago, IL: The University of Chicago Press.

Jaton, F. (2021a) The Constitution of Algorithms: Ground-Truthing, Programming, Formulating. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.

Mackenzie, A. (2017) Machine Learners: Archaeology of a Data Practice. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.

Roberge, J. and Castelle, M. (2020) (eds.) The Cultural Life of Machine Learning: An Incursion into Critical AI Studies. Cham: Palgrave Macmillan