About the study

Bachelor Communication Science

Communication is vitally important to many people and organizations and takes place in all kinds of contexts: between individuals, within and between organizations, or between the government and the general public. All kinds of strategies are used for this, from images and text to digital and other media and new technologies.

What is Communication Science?

Communication can be the difference between effective and ineffective organizations and between successful and failed products. In this course, you will study communication questions from real organizations. At the University of Twente, we look at communication from the perspective of an organization. The course focuses on the themes that are most important to communication professionals within organizations:

  • Marketing communication: How do people handle advertising messages, what do they base decisions to buy a product on, and how do you apply that knowledge to create effective advertisements?

  • Corporate communication: How do you ensure effective communication within an organization, and how do employees perceive that communication?

  • Technical communication: How do people use technical products and how can you develop effective support for these users?

Digital and other media and technology have become indispensable within all three of these themes. What role do social media play in people’s everyday lives, for instance? And how can you using that knowledge to advise organizations about the use of digital media?

Communication Science at a technical university

The way in which people and organizations communicate is changing. The rapid emergence of new communication technologies and communication trends forces organizations to adapt continuously. In order to do this successfully, they need professionals who combine a thorough knowledge of communication with insight into the significance and capabilities of technological developments. At the University of Twente, we train communication scientists who have just that profile. Our combination of communication with digital media and technology is unique.

Why you should study Communication Science at the University of Twente

  1. At Twente, you will follow an applied communication science course: you will not only learn the theory, but also how to use it in practice

  2. Focus on digital media and communication technology

  3. Communication by organizations

  4. Internationally oriented study programme

  5. Small-scale and project-based education

  6. Proper preparation for an international career in communication

  7. At the University of Twente, you study at a campus university

Master Communication Studies

The one-year Master’s in Communication Studies is an internationally oriented programme and is taught entirely in English. You can start in September and February. Across the globe, organizations rely on effective communication to be successful. This programme combines academic rigour and practical relevance to make you a fully-fledged communication expert. The Master’s in Communication Studies gives you the theoretical grounding and practical know-how to tackle today’s communication challenges. It focuses on the themes that matter most to communication professionals.

Research and specialization

The programme has close ties with the university’s Communication Science research programme, with a special focus on the organizational context and the relationship between communication and technology (high-tech, human touch), all with a strong international flavour. The Master’s programme has three specializations:

Organizational Communication & Reputation

The mission of the specialization in Corporate Communication is inspired by the belief that sustainable communication is essential for healthy organizations. This sustainability needs to be established within a context that is characterized by two fields of tension. Firstly, there is the tension between the organization and its environment (e.g. issues of positioning, reputation and strategy). Secondly, there is the tension of keeping things running smoothly within an organization where a broad range of interests are at stake (e.g. those of employees, different departments and locations).

Digital Marketing Communication & Design

Marketing Communication is all about explaining, predicting and influencing consumer behaviour. Understanding the effects of advertising and marketing stimuli is central to this specialization.In this specialization, you will examine the following issues and questions:

  1. How do consumers acquire information from the market, and which psychological processes play a role in processing this information?

  2. What kind of information is most effective in helping consumers with their decisions about products or services that will have a significant impact on their lives (e.g. a new car, major surgery, a new mortgage, planning a holiday)? What information is best suited to promoting products that are purchased on a daily basis (fast-moving consumer goods) or to influencing routine buying behaviour?

  3. What role can the internet play in consumer loyalty and communicating with the consumer?

A great deal of advertising and marketing communication aims to create positive ideas about a certain brand among consumers. Customers are more likely to buy a brand that makes a favourable impression on them. Marketing communication avails itself of a range of channels, such as printed advertising, television commercials, personal sales, shop design and ICT.Marketing communication is all around us, a domain that we, as consumers, are part of. This represents the biggest challenge: understanding the often unconscious psychological processes that affect every consumer and play such an important role in marketing communication.

Technology & Communication

Technology & Communication prepares students for a range of professions which involve the relationships between people and technical systems, such as technical communication and information design.It is almost impossible to imagine our society without technology. Every household is full of technical products designed to make our lives easier or more pleasant. In most jobs, computers or other electronic devices are central to the daily routine, while in the healthcare system, patients often find themselves confronted with the latest medical technology, some of which is intimidating to say the least. The creative industry is continuously working to develop new technical products, with new or improved functionality. In such a highly technologized society, communicating effectively about technology is more important than ever. For instance, the underuse of the functionality offered by technical products is a recognized problem. People are willing to pay (or have no choice but to pay) for the newest functionality, yet often hardly use it and may not want or even need it.

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