APPLY FOR THE iMEDIA PROGRAM
The 12 course Interactive Media program runs from August to May. Students without prior undergraduate courses in media law, ethics and media writing will be required to take preparatory classes.
The iMedia curriculum is divided into four stages: media tools, classroom interactions, team projects, and individual capstone projects.
The M.A. in Interactive Media is accredited by the Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communications. Elon is one of only nine private institutions in the nation with an accredited graduate communications program.
Applications are evaluated on a rolling basis throughout the year, and are due on or before June 1. Scholarships are available for qualified applicants. For a full list of admissions requirements and financial information visit elon.edu/imedia.
Does completing a master’s degree in 10 months sound impossible?
Think again. This feat is accomplished by students in Elon University’s Master of Arts in Interactive Media program every year.
The iMedia program accepts working professionals and recent graduates hoping to pursue a graduate degree in interactive media, no matter their undergraduate major.
The program teaches up to 36 students every year about creative technology use. The program runs from August to May, with a week break in January where students travel abroad and work with a non-profit or NGO on a digital project.
Some past digital projects have included creation of a website to sell the art of disabled Colombian citizens struggling to earn a living wage, and a website for a Netherlands-based nonprofit aiming to bring awareness to different languages and cultures in Europe.
Upon acceptance, students spend the first portion of their time taking prerequisites and general courses. Then, after completing their global project, students spend the last portion of the program tailoring their studies to their professional interests.
Students can pick from specialization classes in application development, SEO optimization or UX and UI experience.
"My favorite class in the iMedia program has been Visual Aesthetics," said Michael Hemstreet, a current iMedia student. "It helped me gain an in-depth knowledge of the theory behind successful graphic, web, and user experience design. We then applied these theories to different interactive digital projects that feature a variety of industry-standard software."
In addition to a study abroad project, students in the program complete a capstone project before graduation.
The iMedia program boasts a 97 percent placement rate in the interactive media field, with most students finding jobs directly after graduation.
“Without question, the skills I gained through the iMedia program got me the job at NASCAR,” said Mike Sales, a 2011 graduate of the program and the senior director of creative design for NASCAR.
“The program was completely transformative and I gained extremely valuable front-end development and interactive design skills. I remember browsing jobs and naming this exact position as my dream job. It never would have been possible without the skills I gained at iMedia,” said Grace Krafte, a 2014 graduate and interactive designer for Google.
Students in the program have access to state-of-the-art facilities including a fibered control room, television studios and a film screening theatre.
Every applicant is considered for scholarships, and the program gave out more than $132,000 in merit-based awards to the 2019-20 class of interactive media students.
"The program is really helping me prepare to be a leader in the dynamic world of digital media," said Hemstreet.
