BA in Communication and Media Studies
Are you interested in working in the media industry? In the BA in Communication and Media Studies, you learn how to tell stories, shape brands and motivate communities.
Do you have a burning desire to produce multimedia stories? Would you like to hone your public communication skills? Or do you have a yearning to get involved in investigative research and make a difference in society? If the answer to any of these questions is yes, the BA in Communication and Media Studies is the perfect programme for you. Regardless of whether you are looking for a career in journalism, marketing or corporate communication, this programme brings communication to life.
Our BA in Communication and Media Studies enables you to gain all the skills you need to succeed professionally in the world of communication and media, regardless of whether you are working on digital channels or find yourself in front of a camera or behind a microphone. You learn to write in a stylistically assured manner and develop design solutions that are tailored specifically to their target group. Upon graduating, you will also be ready to produce audiovisual content, tell multimedia stories and present with confidence. Drawing from state-of-the-art technologies, tools and trends, we provide our students with technical knowledge and encourage them to think critically and be creative in how they use new technological advances.
Career
Your Bachelor’s degree will open up a wide range of opportunities in the communication and media industry:
Journalists deliver relevant information to the public across various channels, moderate the public discourse and present complex topics in an understandable manner.
Communication officers utilise all channels and in different formats to shape the image of companies and organisations and keep employees up to date
Content marketing managers bring brands to life, inform and entertain communities and interact with them on platforms such as social media, websites and apps.
In all professional fields, a gift for languages, creativity and a flair for current trends and new technologies are crucial.
What our graduates say
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«Ich bin sehr dankbar, dass mein Partner mich aushält, wenn ich nervig bin, weil ich in einer Krise stecke. Er reagiert zum Beispiel mit Humor. Er nimmt mich ernst, aber die Situation an sich ...
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«Ich bin sehr dankbar, dass mein Partner mich aushält, wenn ich nervig bin, weil ich in einer Krise stecke. Er reagiert zum Beispiel mit Humor. Er nimmt mich ernst, aber die Situation an sich ...
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Weihnachtsgeschenke – Wie kosteneffektiv ist unser Schenken wirklich? Rechtzeitig zum grossen Fest wagt der WIG-Blog einen Blick über den Tellerrand, weg vom Gesundheitswesen, hin zum Schenken. Sehr ...
Programme
In seminars, lectures, newsrooms, hands-on workshops and the MediaLab, you learn and receive training in the following areas, among others:
- Multimedia storytelling (text, image, audio, video)
- Media production (print, web, radio, TV, apps, AR/VR)
- Live appearances (for presentations and hosting assignments both in front of and behind the camera)
- Social media management
- Content marketing
- PR and marketing
- Visual communication and media design
- Design methods and design thinking
- Entrepreneurship
- Data analysis, statistics and reporting
- Empirical research
- Scientific work
- Professional writing in German and English
Further information about the degree programme can be found on our German-language websites:
About the BA in Communication and Media Studies
Programme structure
Module overview
Admission
Costs
Registration for the information event
Application for the degree programme
Graduation ceremonies
Stories about the BA in Communication and Media Studies and insights into what it is like to study on the programme can be found on Instagram and in our blog
Specialisations
Our Journalism, Corporate Communications and Content Marketing specialisations will allow you to fine-tune your profile and equip you with the skill set you need to succeed in the professional world.
Journalism
Students expand their skills in the areas of digital storytelling and multimodal production. They acquire in-depth knowledge of research and fact-checking, which enables them to work in an investigative manner. They also learn how to present themselves confidently in interview situations and develop stories.
Corporate Communications
Students expand their skills in developing PR strategies and campaigns, multimedia storytelling, community management and professional writing – always keeping an eye on the latest technologies. They also understand what is involved in internal and external communication.
Content Marketing
Using state-of-the-art technologies, students learn to plan and produce attractive multimedia content for social media, websites and apps. In the process, they gain in-depth skills in the area of content strategy. They also train in the fields of cross-media and trans-media storytelling and UX writing.
The MediaLab
The MediaLab is an incubator for ideas and innovation. It provides space for our students to deal with digital technologies, social trends and new formats and to realise projects in the professional fields of journalism, communication and content marketing. Students benefit from coaching and supervision as well as wide-ranging expert knowledge as they work on their own projects or fulfil client requests. This allows them to learn how to think and act entrepreneurially and experience what it is like to collaborate as part of interdisciplinary teams.
Insights into the degree programme
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Praxisorientiert studieren: Die Verbindung von Theorie und Praxis für eine erfolgreiche Karriere
Praxisorientiertes studieren gewinnt immer mehr an Bedeutung. Wieso? Es verbindet theoretisches Wissen mit praktischer Anwendung und ermöglicht eine Ausbildung, die sich an Problemen und ...
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Von der ZHAW in die Startup-Welt: Alyssia Kugler im Alumniporträt
Alyssia Kugler, Alumna des Studiengangs Kommunikation (neu: Kommunikation und Medien), hat einen beeindruckenden Weg zurückgelegt: von ihrem Studium, das sie 2020 abgeschlossen hat, zur heutigen ...
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ProjektPlus: Gegenwart und Zukunft einer Eventfirma beleuchten und Lösungen erarbeiten
Das ProjektPlus-Modul bietet im 4. Semester die Möglichkeit, an realen Projekten mitzuwirken oder ein eigenes Projekt einzureichen. Diese Chance nutzte ich, um mich intensiv mit der Weiterentwicklung ...
Our podcast
At a glance
Before the study
- Download: fact sheet(PDF 126,5 KB)
- Admission: the admission requirements for the Bachelor’s degree programme
- Application deadline: 30 April
- Tuition fees: CHF 720 per semester + additional costs related to the programme
During the study
- Programme start: autumn
- Location: Winterthur, centrally located near the train station
- Number of credits: 180 ECTS credits
- Duration: 6 semesters (full-time) or 8 semesters (part-time)
- Legal basis: academic regulations and annex (in German)
After the study
- Title: Bachelor of Arts ZHAW in Communication and Media Studies
- Graduate and continuing education programmes: Master of Arts in Applied Linguistics and others
Information events
Admission
Admission requirements
To be admitted for enrolment in this programme, you will need to meet the following requirements:
- Present either a Swiss higher secondary education certificate (Matura) – which may be either a Swiss general baccalaureate (in German, “gymnasiale Maturität”), a Swiss specialist baccalaureate (in German, “Fachmaturität”), a Swiss vocational baccalaureate (in German, “Berufsmaturität”) – or an equivalent qualification from another country.
- Pass the aptitude test.
You are not required to demonstrate practical professional experience (e.g. a year of work experience) in order to be admitted to the BA in Communication and Media Studies.
Exceptions to this rule exist for the following higher education degree certificates:
- Candidates with a recognised Swiss diploma from a college of higher education (HF) are eligible to take the aptitude test.
- Candidates with an Advanced Federal Diploma of Higher Education (HFP) or a Federal Diploma of Higher Education (BP) must pass the aptitude test and the entrance examination to establish equivalency of the school-leaving certificate(PDF 96,6 KB).
Admissions procedure
Students on the BA in Communication and Media Studies are required to have above-average language skills. In addition to meeting the general admission requirements for a Bachelor's degree programme by holding a Swiss higher secondary education certificate (Matura), candidates must also pass an aptitude test in order to be admitted to the BA in Communication and Media Studies.
In this aptitude test, the language skills relevant to the degree programme are examined. The test language is German. The test takes four hours and costs CHF 200. The written test comprises several parts and examines language knowledge and situation-specific communication. The test is held at the IAM in Winterthur.
For prospective students outside Switzerland
Regular degree programme at the ZHAW with a foreign university entrance qualification
If you have gained a foreign qualification either abroad or in Switzerland which allows you access to higher education (e.g. Abitur or International Baccalaureate), please submit the documents requested by the academic office responsible for the degree programme you have chosen so that your qualification can be checked for equivalency. This equivalency recognition process follows the Guidelines on Equivalency Recognition for Bachelor’s Degree Programmes and takes place after your application has been submitted. If you have any questions, please contact the academic office. There are no quotas on students from other countries.