PhD Creative and Cultural Industries / Programme details

Our PhD Creative and Cultural Industries programme supports advanced research into the social, economic, political and cultural dynamics shaping contemporary cultural production. The programme approaches the creative and cultural industries as fields of labour, policy, digital innovation and value making. It provides an interdisciplinary doctoral environment that brings together perspectives from the arts, humanities and social sciences.

You will undertake an original research project within the broad field of creative and

• cultural industries. Areas of research may include:
• creative labour, inequality and structural inclusion;
• digital transformation and artificial intelligence;
• cultural policy and governance;
• intellectual property and regulation;
• cultural leadership and organisational change;
• global creative economies and the creative industries in the Global South;
• creative-industry infrastructures and regional development;
• media, performance, festivals and events;
• cultural value, participation and sustainability;

You will benefit from supervisory expertise in creative justice, including inequalities of race and class, as well as cultural policy, digital cultures, creative labour, festivals and events, media and performance industries, and regional and global cultural production. You will also be able to participate in research seminars, workshops and interdisciplinary networks across the University.

The programme offers both a standard thesis route and a practice-based research route. The standard route comprises a thesis of up to 80,000 words. The practice-based route combines an appropriate practical component with a written thesis of between 20,000 and 50,000 words. Both routes are examined through the submission of the thesis or portfolio and a viva voce examination.

The programme is based primarily on independent doctoral research supported by regular one-to-one supervision. You will normally have a minimum of 12 supervisory meetings each year.

Alongside your individual supervision, you will participate in cohort-based training, research-led seminars and interdisciplinary workshops. You will have access to research and professional development opportunities offered through Methods@Manchester, My Research Essentials and the University’s Researcher Development Programme.

With the approval of your supervisory team, you may also audit selected MA Creative and Cultural Industries course units, such as Cultural Policy, Creative Labour and Global Cultural Industries, to strengthen your theoretical or methodological foundations. These units are non-credited and do not form part of the formal PhD award.

Throughout the programme, you will receive support in research design, methodology, fieldwork, academic writing, publication development and career planning. This training will prepare you for careers in academia, cultural policy and the wider creative economy.

Find out more about what it's like to undertake a postgraduate research degree at Manchester on our Humanities PGR blog .

Research and teaching in arts management is supported by rich resources within our library. Manchester is home to one of the UK's five National Research Libraries - one of the best-resourced academic libraries in the UK and widely recognised as one of the world's greatest research libraries.

Find out more about libraries and study spaces for postgraduate research students at Manchester.

We also have one of the largest academic IT services in Europe - supporting world-class teaching and research. There are extensive computing facilities across campus, with access to standard office software as well as specialist programmes, all connected to the campus network and internet.

Every student is registered for email, file storage and internet access. If more demanding computer access is required, our specialist computing division can provide high-end and specialist computing services.

Find out more about facilities for Institute for Cultural Practices students.