Environment, Culture & Communication (Dumfries campus) MLitt
This Masters in Environment, Culture & Communication explores the relationships we hold with our ‘wild’ environments, and how these evolved. You will develop a knowledge of environmental debates from both cultural and scientific perspectives, and learn to communicate environmental issues using a variety of tools and strategies. The programme is suitable for students with or without a specialism in literary or environmental studies.
- Academic contact: david.borthwick@glasgow.ac.uk
- Teaching start: September
- Dumfries campus
- MLitt: 12 months full-time; 24 months part‑time
Why this programme
- This interdisciplinary programme focuses on the emergent field of ecocriticism and the wider environmental humanities, and aims to enable students to understand environmental issues from multiple perspectives.
- The School of Social & Environmental Sustainability is one of the UK’s foremost pockets of expertise in interdisciplinary environmental teaching and research.
- The programme connects its activities to the wider environment in applied ways through fieldtrips to varied locations, including the Galloway and Southern Ayrshire Biosphere Reserve, the Galloway Forest Dark Sky Park, the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park, and the Lake District National Park. Dumfries & Galloway is also home to the world-class Crawick Multiverse, designed by the internationally renowned land artist Charles Jencks.
- Dumfries & Galloway, in south west Scotland, is an ideal location for environmental study and research. The unspoilt beaches, hills and forests provide a stunning and diverse outdoor classroom, while the region’s thriving artistic community, which specialises in environmental art, is a source of inspiration.
- The degree features a programme of guest speakers from relevant fields and publications.
Programme structure
You will take three core and three optional courses. There is a choice of project work: you can choose to engage with a particular contemporary environmental issue or case study, or to undertake a personal interaction with the features of a particular location, examining notions of place creatively. You will also undertake a dissertation, through which you can develop and demonstrate independent research skills or a work placement where you will undertake research in a relevant organisation or company.
Core courses
- Environmental Communication*
- Environmental Politics and Society*
- Reading the Environment: Old and New World Romanticisms
- Writing the Environment: Modern and Contemporary Nature Writing
*You must take at least one of these courses.
Optional courses may include
- A Cultural History Of Animals
- Ecology, Environment and Conservation
- Environmental Ethics and Behaviour Change
- Tourism Sustainability And Climate Change
Programme alteration or discontinuation
The University of Glasgow endeavours
to run all programmes as advertised. In exceptional circumstances, however, the University may withdraw
or alter a programme. For more information, please see: Student contract.
Career prospects
Graduates are prepared to enter fields from environmental journalism and education, to public relations, advertising and consultancy roles. The interdisciplinary nature of the programme means your skills are also tailored towards emerging fields such as negotiating between scientific fact and cultural understanding of climate change, and the ‘anticipatory history’ that must inform landscape management in the future. Graduates have gone on to work for environmental NGOs, ecological arts organisations, and undertaken further study at PhD level.
Find out more about careers paths and opportunities.
Fees & funding
Tuition fees for 2025-26
MLitt
UK
- Full-time fee: £11250
- Part-time fee: £1250 per 20 credits
International & EU
- Full-time fee: £25320
Deposits
International and EU applicants are required to pay a deposit of £2000 when an offer is made.
Deposits: terms & conditions
Additional fees
- Fee for re-assessment of a dissertation (PGT programme): £370
- Submission of thesis after deadline lapsed: £350
- Registration/exam only fee: £170
Funding opportunities
GREAT Scholarships 2025
The Snowdon Trust Master’s Scholarship
Banco de Mexico
Erasmus+ Master Degree Loans
DAAD-University of Glasgow 1-year Master’s grant
Colfuturo Fundacion para el Futuro de Colombia
Commonwealth Scholarship Schemes
Chevening Scholarship
CONICyT (La Comsion Nacional de Investigacion Cientifica y Tecnologica de Chile)
CONACyT (Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnologia) / FUNED Agreement
University of Glasgow African Excellence Award
University of Glasgow Caribbean Excellence Award
World Changers Glasgow Scholarship
Postgraduate Student Loan (Scotland and EU)
Postgraduate Tuition Fee Loans England only (PTFL)
Postgraduate Loans for Welsh Students
Alumni Discount
Postgraduate Access Scholarship
Global Leadership Scholarship
Glasgow Excellence Award (UK)
HESPAL Scholarship
Postgraduate Student Loan (NI)
World Changers Glasgow Scholarship PGT (EU)
The Clan Gregor Society Prize
The Dima Alhaj Scholarship
Sanctuary Scholarships
Travel Bursary for Forced Migrants
Glasgow Highland Society Scholarship
The scholarships above are relevant to this programme. For more funding opportunities search the scholarships database
Entry requirements
2.1 Hons (or non-UK equivalent) in any subject.
Prospective students with professional experience in communications/journalism may be considered, in complement to their academic qualifications.
All applicants must provide a personal statement (minimum 500 words) outlining your suitability for this programme.
International students with academic qualifications below those required should contact our partner institution, Glasgow International College, who offer a range of pre-Masters courses.
English language requirements
International students
We are proud of our diverse University community that includes students and staff from more than 140 different countries.
How to apply
To apply for a postgraduate taught degree you must apply online. We cannot accept applications any other way.
Please check you meet the Entry requirements for this programme before you begin your application.
Documents
As part of your online application, you also need to submit the following supporting documents:
- A copy (or copies) of your official degree certificate(s) (if you have already completed your degree)
- A copy (or copies) of your official academic transcript(s), showing full details of subjects studied and grades/marks obtained
- Official English translations of the certificate(s) and transcript(s)
- One reference letter on headed paper
- Evidence of your English language ability (if your first language is not English)
- Any additional documents required for this programme (see Entry requirements for this programme)
- A copy of the photo page of your passport
You have 42 days to submit your application once you begin the process.
You may save and return to your application as many times as you wish to update information, complete sections or upload supporting documents such as your final transcript or your language test.
For more information about submitting documents or other topics related to applying to a postgraduate taught programme, see how to apply for a postgraduate taught degree
Guidance notes for using the online application
These notes are intended to help you complete the online application form accurately; they are also available within the help section of the online application form.
If you experience any difficulties accessing the online application, see Application System Help.
- Name and Date of birth: must appear exactly as they do on your passport. Please take time to check the spelling and lay-out.
- Contact Details: Correspondence address. All contact relevant to your application will be sent to this address including the offer letter(s). If your address changes, please contact us as soon as possible.
- Choice of course: Please select carefully the course you want to study. As your application will be sent to the admissions committee for each course you select it is important to consider at this stage why you are interested in the course and that it is reflected in your application.
- Proposed date of entry: Please state your preferred start date including the month and the year. Taught masters degrees tend to begin in September. Research degrees may start in any month.
- Education and Qualifications: Please complete this section as fully as possible indicating any relevant Higher Education qualifications starting with the most recent. Complete the name of the Institution (s) as it appears on the degree certificate or transcript.
- English Language Proficiency: Please state the date of any English language test taken (or to be taken) and the award date (or expected award date if known).
- Employment and Experience: Please complete this section as fully as possible with all employments relevant to your course. Additional details may be attached in your personal statement/proposal where appropriate.
Reference: Please provide one reference. This should typically be an academic reference but in cases where this is not possible then a reference from a current employer may be accepted instead. Certain programmes, such as the MBA programme, may also accept an employer reference. If you already have a copy of a reference on letter headed paper then please upload this to your application. If you do not already have a reference to upload then please enter your referee’s name and contact details on the online application and we will contact your referee directly.
Application deadlines
September 2025
International & EU applicants
- 25 July 2025
UK applicants
- 22 August 2025