Narrative Futures: Art, Data, Society (Online Learning) PgDip

The University of Edinburgh

A new, interdisciplinary degree with the Edinburgh Futures Institute

We see and shape the world through narrative. The stories that mould our hopes and dreams, that direct our responses to climate change and our economic and political behaviour, are found everywhere: on the page, on the stage and on the screen, in offices, museums and classrooms, in computer labs and in the great outdoors, told by human beings and by algorithms.

If you want to investigate how narratives influence our lived realities and how they can create alternative ways of envisioning the future, then the Edinburgh Futures Institute Masters programme in Narrative Futures is for you. Whichever career you are based in or aspire to (creative, technical, governmental, academic), you will be able to apply the insights gained during your studies.

The programme will offer all the benefits of interdisciplinarity while maintaining a strong emphasis on integration by bringing together three broad areas of inquiry: art, data and society. You will learn how narratives are being transformed in a variety of artistic domains, from creative writing to game design; in different spheres of social life, from digital markets to religious or environmental discourses; and at the frontier of computational developments in artificial intelligence. And for your final project, you will apply your conceptual understanding of storytelling dynamics to produce a new narrative artefact of your own or to critically analyse an existing narrative medium or practice.

This bold new programme in Narrative Futures will combine hands-on creative and data skills development with research-led theoretical inquiry to help you master the narratives through which human beings perceive and (re)create the world.

Postgraduate Study at the Edinburgh Futures Institute

This programme is part of an interconnected portfolio of postgraduate study in the Edinburgh Futures Institute (EFI). EFI supports interdisciplinary teaching, learning and research that is focussed on complex global and social challenges. Our programmes are all taught by academic experts from many different subject areas, and as an EFI student you will develop creative, critical and data-informed thinking that cuts across traditional disciplinary boundaries. You will have the space to think deeply about questions linked to your own passions and professional goals, and will develop a project based on an issue that you care about.

As well as knowledge specific to your area of study, studying at EFI will give you the skills and understanding you need to become a creative, confident and critical citizen in a fast-changing world. These will include core data skills, data ethics, the ability to interrogate issues of global scope, and the creative and analytic approaches to knowledge that are vital for building better futures. You can join us regardless of whether you already have skills in the use and application of digital data.