Here’s How my Master’s Degree in Media and Politics Helps to Bolster my Role in Digital Marketing

When it comes to a Master’s degree, there are many key takeaways, skills and opportunities that this additional resource can offer.

A Master’s degree is a stepping stone to new career opportunities – with a greater earning potential. Aside from the new doors that this can open, in terms of having an additional asset to your CV, this degree advances specialised knowledge in the area of the sector you’re interested in and excels your personal development through new experiences, understanding and learning.

Prior to my extensive experience working in PR, I decided to do my Master’s degree in Politics and Media at the University of Liverpool as I was aware of the benefits that the additional degree would provide in terms of career development.

I didn’t want to be a post-graduate who found myself lost in the slow and competitive strive for internship or employment and was therefore keen to achieve an additional asset while challenging myself further. I was also aware of the careers in digital marketing that were possible to tap into with this further degree.

It was interesting to consider the ways in which key messaging was being communicated through the power of the media and the influence that different narratives had on the receiver. Educating myself to a higher level in ‘Politics and Media’ gave me a deeper insight into these systems that are integral to the way in which we operate and receive our understanding of the world daily.

This particular programme allows students to explore how journalists – and politicians – attempt to influence public opinion and how this impacts the desired audience. This crucial understanding is vital to my role as a digital PR strategist through developing my ability to recognise standpoints and agendas with an unbiased, educated mindset – which I apply to my strategy, press releases and media list creation when it comes to client work across all industries.

The programme offers an intensive exploration of the relations between politics, media and communications while enabling students to develop specific subject knowledge about how political systems work and showcasing to potential employers that they are willing to go the extra mile.

My Master’s in Politics and Media has provided me with transferable skills when entering my desired digital marketing sector – including the capability to identify and interpret global issues, political agenda and public opinion.

Below, I have outlined the most effective and key skills that I have taken away from this and implemented in my role as a PR strategist here at Embryo:

• Being a self-motivated and independent learner
• Debate and examine issues from all standpoints
• The ability to research, source and examine information thoroughly
• The capacity to critically analyse evidence and construct arguments
• Excellent written and oratory skills
• intellectual independence
• Team working skills
• A flexible and open-minded approach to work
• Dealing with complex, unpredictable issues that arise in the media
• Critically examining texts, extracting meaning and making informed decisions
• Communicating your ideas effectively in different ways to a range of audiences
• Understanding of B2B and B2C audiences
• Ability to cater writing effectively to all audiences in different narratives
• Ability to see both the bigger picture and recognise the granular details – while differentiating between the two to find a news hook
• Awareness of cultural trends
• Awareness of all sectors
• Research and Critical Thinking
• Taking responsibility for your own learning and development
• How to communicate a brand’s key messaging
• Working collaboratively with people
• Critical thinking and analysis
• Ability to work in a team
• Effective communication and presentation skills
• Creative problem-solving
• Quick thinking and reactiveness
• Taking constructive criticism and the ability to be adaptive
• Professionalism
• Time management
• Discipline and dedication
• Ability to earn the trust of both consumers and journalists

If you’re a digital professional who’s interested in joining our team then you can find out more about the vacancies we have available here.