Colleges and Schools
Few areas of psychology are generating more interest or growing faster than media psychology, and Walden offers one of the nation’s first graduate programs in the field. Examine the role psychologists play in the media and explore the impact of media and technology on human behavior. Apply psychological theories and principles and increase your understanding of how marketing and communications impact modern media in a global society. This specialization gives you the opportunity to develop career options in such fields as media consulting, advertising, and media research.
Career Opportunities
- According to the American Psychological Association and industry publications, media psychology is the next wave in the field and is expected to become a major influence in psychology.
- Media psychologists consult with media personnel, research ways to improve the media, make new technologies more effective and user friendly, use technology to enhance clinical psychology, work in education or training, develop media standards, study sociological and psychological populations, or work with deviant or criminal populations.
Learning Outcomes
Based on completion of required coursework, you should:
- Understand and apply psychological concepts and principles to contemporary/global issues and social change.
- Apply ethics and multicultural understanding and competence to the use, influence, and impact of media.
- Apply principles of statistics and research design to the conceptualization, analysis, and evaluation of psychological research.
- Understand and apply communication concepts, principles, theories, and processes to the effective use, influence, and impact of media technologies.
- Analyze the impact of social conditions on human behavior.
Completion Requirements
- 56–63 total quarter credit hours
- Foundation course (1 cr.)
- Core courses (35 cr.)
- Specialization courses (15 cr.)
- Capstone (5 cr.) or thesis course (12 cr.)
- Program of Study
Estimated time to completion: Approximately 1.5 years, depending on individual progress and credits transferred. For a personalized estimate of your time to completion, call your enrollment advisor at 1-866-492-5336.
Walden offers frequent start dates so that you can begin when it’s convenient for you. Next Start Date: December 1. Admission policies vary by program. Call 1-866-492-5336 or apply now.
CurriculumThe courses are delivered in a prescribed sequence. Each quarter includes two concurrent 12-week courses.
| Course Code | Course Title | Credits |
| Quarter 1 | ||
| PSYC 6001 | Foundations for Graduate Study in Psychology | 1 |
| PSYC 6211 | Contemporary Issues in Psychology | 5 |
| Quarter 2 | ||
| PSYC 6205 | History and Systems of Psychology | 5 |
| PSYC 6760 | Modern Communication Technologies | 5 |
| Quarter 3 | ||
| PSYC 6305 | Statistics 1 | 5 |
| PSYC 6245 | Social Psychology | 5 |
| Quarter 4 | ||
| PSYC 6761 | Psychology of Effective Communication | 5 |
| PSYC 6310 | Research Design | 5 |
| Quarter 5 | ||
| PSYC 6701 | Culture and Psychology | 5 |
| PSYC 6762 | Psychology of Communication and Power | 5 |
| Quarter 6 | ||
| PSYC 6700 | Psychology and Social Change | 5 |
| PSYC 6393 | M.S. Psychology Capstone | 5 |
Thesis Option
This program does not require a thesis. However, upon consultation with an advisor, you may choose to take two 6-credit-hour thesis courses (PSYC 6390 Thesis) instead of PSYC 6393 M.S. Psychology Capstone. The thesis option extends the program by at least one quarter.
For more information about the thesis option and a personalized estimate of your time to completion, call your enrollment advisor at 1-866-492-5336.
