Radio, Television & Film

Master's Degree Program

Opportunities for graduate studies

The radio, television and film program emphasizes the scholarly and research-oriented study of the mass media and documentary production. About 40 students are enrolled in the master's program. The department offers master of arts, master of science and master of fine arts degrees, with many programs of study:

• documentary studies and production including pre-production, production, post-production, history and theory
• media industry studies including economics of the mass media, media management, broadcasting law and regulation, audience research, television news, globalization and programming.
• history and criticism including film and television criticism, ethnicity in American film, genre studies, and media history and theory.

Faculty members are internationally recognized scholars, seasoned media professionals and award-winning filmmakers. Their research specialties include media history and criticism, international media, cultural studies and broadcast operations. They have written textbooks that are used in university courses throughout the world. Their film and video productions have been broadcast on television, selected for film and video festivals, and screened at numerous venues, including the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. Faculty members also serve on the boards of national and international organizations dealing with media education and film preservation.

Admission requirements

You must meet the admission requirements of the Toulouse School of Graduate Studies and the department's requirements, including an overall GPA of at least 3.0 in an accredited bachelor's program and acceptable GRE scores.

Official transcripts from all undergraduate institutions attended, GRE scores (sent by the testing service) and a completed graduate application form and application fee should be sent to the Toulouse School of Graduate Studies. The following materials should be sent to the RTVF director of graduate studies:

M.A. or M.S.

• a statement of purpose with career goals and an explanation of why you believe a master's degree in RTVF from UNT will help you achieve those goals
• a writing sample (research paper, professional report, substantial essay, etc.)
• two letters of recommendation

M.F.A.

• a statement of purpose with career goals and an explanation of why you believe a master of fine arts in RTVF from UNT will help you achieve those goals
• a portfolio of creative work (on VHS, DVD, DV, CD or DAT) that includes one completed work and a 10-minute sample clip reel
• a writing sample (research paper, professional report, substantial essay, etc.)
• three letters of recommendation

Degree requirements

The M.A. and M.S. degrees each require 36 hours of work, including 6 hours of thesis and an oral defense of the thesis. After obtaining this degree, you may want to pursue a Ph.D. in an area of media studies, teach media courses at the high school or community college level, or work in the field in some other capacity, based on talent and experience. In addition, if you are pursuing an M.A. degree, you must meet a foreign language requirement.

The M.F.A. degree requires 60 credit hours and will take you approximately three years to complete. The objective of the degree is to provide you the academic, aesthetic and technical training of production professionals. This program emphasizes documentary production and studies. In addition, the M.F.A. degree is considered the primary terminal degree for production faculty in college and university programs in the United States.

Co-curricular activities

KNTU-FM, the department's 100,000 watt radio station, serves the area with education, information and entertainment programming. All students at UNT are eligible to work at KNTU where they can learn skills in radio production, programming and station administration. More information is available at www.kntu.fm.

North Texas Television, NTTV, is a student-operated cable television channel where students produce video programs in a wide range of topics and formats, including news, sports, public affairs and entertainment. All students at UNT are eligible to work at NTTV.

The Center for Spanish Language Media has a three-fold mission of providing education, conducting and disseminating research, and offering development opportunities to existing Spanish Language Media practitioners. It sponsors many activities in pursuit of this mission. The center's website www.spanishmedia.unt.edu contains the most current information about projects and initiatives.

Financial assistance

A limited number of paid graduate assistantships are awarded each year to new and continuing graduate students. Typically, students assist in the teaching of large RTVF lecture classes. Opportunities are also available to assist in the management of KNTU-FM, NTTV and the Center for Spanish Language Media, and in the research and creative activity of RTVF faculty members. Teaching and research assistantships carry a stipend, an out-of-state tuition waiver and basic medical benefits. Decisions on assistantships are normally made in March for the following fall semester.