English and New Media Studies Major - Bachelor of Arts
If you love writing and using digital and social media to communicate, the English and New Media Studies major can help you turn your passion into a rewarding career.
Social media, the internet and digital technologies have massively changed how we communicate. There’s high demand for people who can communicate across different digital and social media channels – from blogs to wikis and web pages.
You’ll develop skills in web-based writing, theories of language, digital media, storytelling, language and culture, information and communication technologies, online research, new literatures, and digital performance.
This is part of the Bachelor of Arts.
Start date: 2021
- Download our Language and Culture programme guide [PDF, 3.1 MB]
Start date: 2022
- Download our Culture & Society programme guide [PDF, 3.7 MB]
You'll learn how language is linked to power and how to communicate powerfully and persuasively. Many assessments are submitted in new media, including enhanced podcasts, videos, blogs and webpages.
Core courses
All students in the Bachelor of Arts complete core courses that cover effective communication, critical thinking and other transferable skills you'll need for your future career. For a list of core courses refer to the Bachelor of Arts overview.
English and New Media Studies courses
Courses you could take over your three years of study include:
ENGL500 Contemporary Language Studies
ENGL502 Reading New Zealand
ENGL600 Literature/Desire
ENGL601 Language and Communication
ENGL602 Popular Genres
ENGL700 Global English
ENGL701 New Literatures
ENGL702 Modern Rhetoric
Additional/Elective courses
CLSY501 Film Club: Flashforward
ENGL501 Critical Media Studies
ENGL503 A Pacific Reader
LNGT601 Methodology of Language Teaching
LNGT602 Classroom Practice
COMM651 WeSpeak: Pronunciation, Phonology and Effective Communication
ENGL603 Language in Society
COMM701 Graduate Academic Writing
COMM702 Graduate Oral Communication
LNGT701 Focus on Language Teaching
Workplace experience
Workplace experience (the Work Integrated Learning course) is the final part of your degree and takes a full semester. This is a supervised work placement related to your major(s), for an organisation of your choice.
Recent placements included:
- United Nations Association of New Zealand
- Global Gurus
- Namseoul University
- Citizens Advice Bureau
- Gaming narrative designer
- Virtual and augmented reality content producers
- Immersia Ltd
- Booktrack, San Francisco
- Social media management
- Web content management
- Advertising
- Diplomacy
- Education
- Journalism
- Media
- Public relations
- The arts and cultural industries
- Trade
- Travel and tourism
- Gaming narrative designer
- Virtual and augmented reality content producers
Find out more about industry trends, job descriptions and what employers may be looking for.
Other majors in the Bachelor of Arts
- Chinese Studies
- Conflict Resolution
- Creative Writing
- Criminology and Criminal Justice
- Culinary Arts
- Economics
- Education
- Event Management
- International Studies
- Interpreting
- Japanese Studies
- Māori Development
- New Zealand Sign Language & Deaf Studies
- New Zealand Sign Language - English Interpreting
- Psychology
- Social Sciences
- Communicate effectively through podcasts, prezis and blogs, wikis and webpages
- Only major of its kind in New Zealand
- Develop an e-portfolio to show your achievements
- Workplace experience in your final semester
- Innovative
- Media informed
- Connected and confident in the digital world
- A communicator and writer
The information on this page was correct at time of publication. For a comprehensive overview of AUT qualifications, please refer to the Academic Calendar.