MFA in Film and Television Studies

Film and television endure as cultural and artistic touchstones despite rapidly changing viewing habits and technologies. What moves you to know more about the meanings they impart and the transformations they have undergone?

No GRE Required.

The Boston University Master of Fine Arts in Film & Television Studies offers you a chance to study what you love -- and then turn that passion into a career.

COM’s four-semester MFA program inspires students to view the field’s changing landscape from multiple perspectives. You’ll develop a critical eye for film, television, podcasts, and online media as art forms and commodities while examining their historical, political, and sociocultural dimensions.

With only four required classes, students focus on aspects of the field that most appeal to them as they prepare for future professional and academic success. Possible topics to explore: film and television history; critical and cultural theory; the media industries; American independent film; avant-garde film and experimental media; sports media; religion and television; queer theory; and popular genres such as comedy and horror.

Students find a special emphasis on television history and industry and on global cinema history—particularly the films of Latin America, Western Europe, and Asia—as well as courses on international movements and new waves.

Scholars and Makers

COM professors, as a group, offer a rare combination of academic rigor and industry experience -- a mix that enriches film and television student education. They are widely published in both the academic and popular press, and offer years of experience teaching and mentoring new generations of film and television enthusiasts preparing for careers and further study.

Reel Resources

Opportunities for experience abound. Students attend Cinemathèque, COM’s series of screenings and conversations with filmmakers and television-makers, and have full access to BU’s Kasker film and video resource center with 16mm prints and rarities at the Mugar Memorial Library on campus. They enjoy complimentary screenings, too, at the nearby Harvard Film Archive, the Museum of Fine Arts, and the Brattle Theatre.

The program also offers a structured teaching assistantship experience with training to help you develop your skills in the classroom. If you aspire to enter a Ph.D. program, our one-on-one mentorship and professionalization workshops help prepare you for this next step.

Communicate for understanding

Do you love films and television? Social media? News? Telling stories? Changing minds—and maybe history? Boston University College of Communication (COM) is for you.

We’ve been educating professional communicators since we offered the world’s first degree in public relations in 1947 and the first master’s and Ph.D. degrees in emerging media studies in 2015. Today, our alumni occupy the highest levels in a multitude of fields. Tomorrow? We’re training the next generation of leaders in advertising, emerging media, film, and television, journalism, media science, and public relations.

We do this because COM students, faculty, and alumni share a simple but powerful belief: communication builds understanding — among people and throughout society.

Storytelling Skills for Career Success

If you’re a student here, you’ll gain the skills, knowledge, and opportunities to turn your love of communication and storytelling into a successful career. You’ll gain a deep understanding of the many forms of media. You’ll become proficient in writing, speaking, visual communication, and digital media skills. All combined with a solid grounding in the liberal arts hone your mind and free your imagination. And you will gain practical, real-world, hands-on experience outside the classroom through our extensive internship programs and COM activities such as AdLab, PRLab, PRSSA, WTBU, BUTV10, BU News Service, Hothouse Productions, and the Daily Free Press.

Yes, our faculty teach — but also they also do. They include best-selling authors and Pulitzer-winning journalists. Others are internationally recognized thinkers and researchers in the fields of emerging media, technology, and misinformation. And others have written and directed movies and series for every major broadcast network and HBO, as well as for films and documentaries screened at film festivals around the world.

COM alumni have won numerous prizes, awards, and citations from Pulitzer to Emmy to Clio. Among them are CEOs, Hollywood directors and screenwriters, stars in television and radio, and White House staffers. In fact, our graduates sit at the top of major companies in all areas of communication. They include Bonnie Hammer, vice chairman at NBCUniversal; David Lubars, chairman/chief creative officer of BBDO; Nancy Dubuc, CEO of VICE; and Kevin Merida, executive editor of the Los Angeles Times. In all, COM has more than 30,000 alumni worldwide with far-reaching connections in every area of communication and beyond.

Our Mission

We build understanding through communication education, practice, and discovery.

We prepare students to lead, adapt, and share their voices in a transformational media world.

We generate knowledge through research and theory-building.

We integrate professional and academic experiences across communication disciplines.

We nurture a culture rich in diversity, critical thinking, and creative expression.

We champion communication grounded in truth, authenticity, effectiveness, and purpose.

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

The College of Communication Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee exists to elevate and ensure a culture of inclusion in which all members of our community are valued and respected. We strive to create an inclusive and equitable environment that recruits, supports, and retains a diverse community of students, faculty, and staff. We celebrate the diversity of identity, culture, perspective, and expression in our community. As professional communicators, we have a responsibility to:

Foster an environment that cultivates diverse storytellers, Promote the value of research and telling stories in academia and the various fields of professional communication that emphasize diversity, equity, and inclusion, and; Inform, enlighten, and prepare the next generation of communicators to thrive in a diverse and inclusive world.