Interactive Media - Conversion Course

Course Outline
The MSc in Interactive Media is a Conversion Course; it is an intensive taught course focusing on the practical and technical aspects of interactive media.

The broad aim of the course is to equip students from a wide range of backgrounds with a thorough understanding of the technology and industry-standard tools used in the digital media sector. Interactive digital media seeks to entertain, inform and inspire an audience. The creation of interactive digital media is a challenging and complex activity requiring a blend of creative and technical skills using a range of existing and emerging technologies.

On successful completion of the course, you will have a comprehensive knowledge of the underlying concepts, technologies and practices of interactive digital media and be able to apply these to create interactive digital media products.

The MSc (Interactive Media) is a taught programme that may be taken full-time over 12 months or part-time over 24 months from the date of first registration for the programme.

Course Practicalities
Lectures: 12 hours per week (full-time); 6 hours per week (part-time)
Laboratory sessions: 6 hours per week (full-time); 3 hours per week (part-time)
You are expected to undertake independent reading and study.

Postgraduate Diploma in Interactive Media

Students who successfully achieve the pass standard in the examination may opt not to proceed to the digital media project and may opt instead to be awarded the Postgraduate Diploma in Interactive Media.

Why Choose This Course
This Conversion Course is intended for graduates who do not have a Computer Science Degree and would like to attain skills that are in demand by the IT sector.

We aim to equip you with qualifications relevant to the multimedia, broadcast, games, web, social media and general ICT industries. Interactive media is a fast-changing discipline, so we actively engage with industry and the research communities to ensure that the content of the course is continuously evolving and relevant, preparing students for a productive future in the digital media industry.

Programme Structure

Students must attain 90 credits through a combination of:

Core modules (60 credits)
Dissertation (30 credits)
Core Modules

Full-time students 30 credits; part-time students choose three modules each year (15 credits), for a total of six separate modules over the two years (30 credits).

Modules - Semester 1

CS6100 Authoring (5 credits)
CS6101 Web Development for Digital Media (5 credits)
CS6102 Graphics for Interactive Media (5 credits)
CS6103 Audio and Sound Engineering (5 credits)
CS6104 Digital Video Capture and Packaging (5 credits)
CS6111 3D Graphics and Modelling (5 credits)
Modules - Semester 2

Full-time students: 30 credits; part-time students 15 credits.

CS6105 Future and Emerging Interaction Technologies (5 credits)
CS6113 Internet-based Applications (5 credits)
CS6114 Digital Video Compression and Delivery (5 credits)
CS6115 Human-Computer Interaction (5 credits)
CS6116 Mobile Multimedia (5 credits)
CS6117 Audio Processing (5 credits)
Note: Not all modules may be offered in a particular year and are subject to change.

Project Phase (After Period 2)

CS6200 Dissertation in Interactive Media (30 credits)
For more information see the University Calendar (Interactive Media).

Additional Teaching Mode Information
The part-time option will be taught during weekday working hours over 2 years.

Modules

Further details on the modules listed above can be found in our Book of Modules. Any modules listed above are indicative of the current set of modules for this course but are subject to change from year to year.

University Calendar

You can find the full academic content for the current year of any given course in our University Calendar.

Open to graduates of any discipline who have achieved at least a Second Class Honours Grade 2 in a primary honours degree (NFQ, Level 8), or those with an equivalent professional qualification, are eligible to apply, provided there is no significant overlap between their previous courses of study and the content of this course. Significant overlap may occur where candidates have pursued a Computer Science course with significant multimedia or digital media content. In these cases, the Selection Committee will decide the eligibility of the candidate. Applicants without the requisite primary degree will be subject to the approval of the School and the College of Science, Engineering and Food Science under Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL).

Candidates from Grandes Écoles Colleges are also eligible to apply if they are studying in an ENSEA or EFREI Graduate School and are eligible to enter the final year (M2) of their programme, provided there is no significant overlap between their previous courses of study and the content of this course.

English Language Requirements
Applicants that are non-native speakers of the English language must meet the university-approved English language requirements. Please visit our PG English Language Requirements page for more information.

For applicants with qualifications completed outside of Ireland
Applicants must meet the required entry academic grade, equivalent to Irish requirements. For more information see our Qualification Comparison page.

International/Non-EU Applicants
For full details of the non-EU application procedure visit our how to apply pages for international students.

In UCC, we use the term programme and course interchangeably to describe what a person has registered to study in UCC and its constituent colleges, schools, and departments.
Note that not all courses are open to international/non-EU applicants, please check the fact file above. For more information contact the International Office.

The closing date for non-EU applications is 16 February 2023

How Do I Apply
1. Check Dates: Check the opening and closing dates for the application process in the fact file boxes at the top of the page.

For Irish and EU applicants we operate a rounds system and you can check the rounds closing dates here.
Note that not all our programmes are subject to the rounds system so check the opening and closing dates for your specific programme in the fact file boxes above.

2. Gather Documents: Scanned copies of supporting documents have to be uploaded to the UCC online application portal and include:

Original qualification documents listed on your application including transcripts of results from institutions other than UCC.
Any supplementary items requested for your course if required.

3. Apply Online: Apply online via the UCC online application portal. Note the majority of our courses have a non-refundable €50 application fee.

Any questions? Use our web enquiry form to contact us.

Postgraduate Diploma in Interactive Media
Students who successfully achieve the pass standard in the examination may opt not to proceed to the digital media project and may opt instead to be awarded the Postgraduate Diploma in Interactive Media.

1 year full-time.

Start Date: 7 September 2020

Skills and Careers Information
The ICT sector in Ireland is a thriving and growing industry with the top 5 global software companies, the top 3 global enterprise software companies, and 9 of the top 10 US ICT companies maintaining a presence in Ireland (IDA Ireland).

This sector is one of the country's most prevalent employers with over 75,000 people employed by ICT companies in Ireland. There are currently 5,400 ICT companies in Ireland, 233 of which are foreign-owned. The sector is amongst the top three Irish growth industries, with both indigenous and international companies creating large bases in the country (Enterprise Europe).

Numerous reports, both national and international have highlighted the digital media industry as one of the fastest-growing industries in a high-value sector with significant employment and strong revenues.

Our graduates take up employment in areas such as:

Graphic Design & UI/UX Development
Senior Developer, Designer, Architect, Management
Social Media / Digital Content
Product Management
Digital Analytics / Visualisation
Data / Statistical Analysis, Business Intelligence Specialist
Companies actively recruiting our graduates include the following:

ABB Group, Amazon, Apple, capSpire, ChyronHego Corporation, Connecta Ireland, Core International, Eden Recruitment, General Motors, Ignite Programme, University College Cork, Johnson Controls, Media HQ, MMD Distribution, Pentagon 2000, PFH Technology Group, Retail in Motion, SANA Consultants, Screendragon, Search4Less, Teamwork, TPx, User-X Ltd, VMware, Wave Break Media, Xanadu Consultancy, Zahra Media Group, and more.