Specialty and year of graduation. What sparked your interest in Communication Management? I was also working at the time as the head of communication at a human rights non-profit. This program offered me a useful combination of theoretical knowledge and practical skills, from understanding the interconnections of media and society to creating a communication strategy.
What is your current role, and what does it entail? How did you decide to pursue doctoral studies? Were you inspired to engage in research by the process of writing your thesis and participating in master seminars?
Now I am a junior research fellow at BFM and I am researching the connections between media and democracy. In fact, it was important for me throughout my MA studies to notice the connections to real life in each course, to think along, discuss, and find ways to contribute to what was being taught. For instance, when discussing organisational communication, I was able to add the non-profit perspective to the dominant business experiences of others. However, the work of a junior research fellow consists of more than studying your favourite topics as you can also grow in other aspects.
For example, I am currently supervising a BA student in their thesis writing, I am part of the Communication Management MA program admission committee, and I get to take part in the appointment of new academic staff at BFM. Therefore, even though I am continuing to study, I am now actually an employee, not a student, and my experience of university life is quite different.
As I said, in general terms, I am exploring the connections between media and democracy. My doctoral dissertation will consist of three studies, two of which will focus on the relations between mediated contact and civic participation, while one is part of the larger international project Mapping Media for Future Democracies or MeDeMap.
