Program Notes
- No GRE required.
- Merit scholarships available, with no additional application required.
- International students: This program is eligible for the OPT STEM extension. (Students in F-1 status may be able to apply for a 24-month extension of their 12-month Optional Practical Training (OPT) employment authorization.)
Choose an Innovation and Entertainment Industry Degree for Media Innovators
Master media innovation—establish yourself at the convergence of media and technology. Develop ideas that cross platforms and anticipate new ones. This degree provides more flexibility than a typical product development master’s degree or media entrepreneurship degree, with alumni working as CEOs, product managers, marketing managers, and more.
Connect with media companies from Boston to LA—learn from faculty in Boston with deep industry experience. Create, test, and refine your venture with their support. Then head to Los Angeles for classes and spring and summer internships at start-ups or large media companies.
Pitch your idea to entertainment industry execs—your program may very well end with your big break. Pitch your new media venture or brand extension to a panel of leading media executives and entrepreneurs in LA at Pitchfest.
Join BU Alumni in Top Media and Entertainment Roles
Ready to follow in the footsteps of alums working in strategic, creative positions at places like Hulu, Apple, YouTube, Bloomberg, Twitter, and Pluto TV? Get the know-how, skills, contacts, and confidence to launch the next phase of your career. This innovation and entertainment industry degree has proven outcomes.
Example Alumni Employers
Alumni work as Head of Entertainment, XR/VR Product Manager, Head of Content Strategy, Global Studio Manager, Head of Merchandizing and Licensing, Managing Director of Original Content, and more at companies that include:
- Amaze VR
- American Express
- Apple
- AT&T
- Bloomberg
- Bloomerang
- Dish
- General Assembly
- Hubspot
- Hulu
- Komodo Global Social Agency
- Lionsgate
- Miramax
- Netease Games
- Netflix
- Paramount+
- Skybound Entertainment
- Sony
- Spotify
- Wiip
- YouTube
You’re Prepared for Diverse Roles in Media Innovation
MS in Media Ventures alumni are chief executives, marketing managers, public relations specialists, supply chain specialists, software developers, graphic designers, creative writers, and more—all within the industry.
You’re Skilled in Key Areas for Media Innovation
Students build the practical entrepreneurial tools and strategies needed to test and refine a new venture concept or existing product innovation. Alumni are highly skilled in innovation within and beyond the industry. Skills include media product innovation, distribution, market research, marketing, data analysis, social media, public speaking/presentation development, management, content creation, business development, and more.
The most impactful moment I had during my time at BU would definitely be Pitchfest. . . . [It] was something that many of us were incredibly nervous for, as it was what we were working towards since the beginning of the program. After my pitch, I felt an incredible sense of accomplishment and validation that I had chosen the right career path. I realized how much the program had allowed me to grow and learn, and I could not be more grateful. . . I am so thankful for the program as well as the people I met along the way, including my incredible mentors Jodi Luber and Margaret Wallace, who have been there to cheer me on as I make my journey into my career.
Julia Meacham, Alumna and Social Media Assistant at Up High
What You’ll Learn in This Innovation and Entertainment Industry Degree
This is no passive program. The Master of Science in Media Ventures is designed by leading media and entertainment industry executives to help you master media innovation hands-on. Media Ventures faculty, COM alumni, and biz-savvy mentors coach you through the innovation, development, and pitch process, one on one.
Pursue your unique ideas in a program that stretches beyond the confines of a typical product development master’s degree or media entrepreneurship degree. In 11 months (3 semesters), you’ll learn:
- Strategies to bring new ideas to the media marketplace
- How to use content and technology to create something original and profitable
- Practical entrepreneurial tools needed to test and refine a new venture concept or existing product innovation
- How to grab the attention of high-level media and entertainment industry executives to get buy-in and move your idea forward
Spend the fall in Boston, a top US city for start-ups and venture capital investment. Boston boasts one of the highest amounts of venture capital per capita in the country. Take classes, gain mentors, hone your innovation skills, and lay the groundwork for your entrepreneurial thesis project. Courses include:
- The Media Money Trail
- Fundamentals of Interactive Media
- Market Analysis for Creative Ventures
- Creating New Ideas
In the spring, you’ll head to LA to experience innovation in the entertainment industry. Firm up your idea. Connect with real power players. See what it’s like to work in LA. Courses include:
- Entertainment Marketing and Promotion
- Careers in the Entertainment Industry
- Graduate Media Ventures Seminar
- Thesis Project
- Professional Internship
During the summer semester, all MS in Media Ventures students complete an internship, thesis, and gain industry contacts in LA. Summer at BU COM helps you make a media innovation career a reality.
Recent Internship Examples
- AmazeVR
- Baobab Studios (Development)
- Black Box
- Brand Knew
- Civic
- Double Elvis
- Legacy Games
- Macro
- Red Wagon Entertainment
- Sony
- Studio 71
- Trade Zing
Explore our courses and curriculum.
Select an MS in Media Ventures That Means Real Experience
In this program, you’ll do the work of making your idea a reality.
Demystify the Industry with Professional Projects
Learn how the business side of the media and entertainment industry works through professional projects. Brainstorm new apps. Innovate for Netflix, Hulu, or Disney Interactive. Pitch the next show, podcast, or VR experience. This innovation and entertainment industry degree allows you to do lots of hands-on work. It leads to more diverse career pathways than many product development master’s degrees or media entrepreneurship degrees.
Example Alumni Thesis Projects and Outcomes
AveNews shows users news from their neighborhood, or “avenue.” The site and application allows users to search an address and radius around it for geographically pinpointed news outlet links, public service announcements from town officials, and short “citizen” posts from fellow users in the area.
Outcome: Alum is now Audience Growth & Content Strategist/Marketing Manager at HubSpot.
InventiveBit incorporates VR/AR into children’s stories.
Outcome: Alum is currently Global Head of Learning Design and Development at CreatorUp.
Spotify Festival Gates is a brand extension of Spotify that allows subscribers to access festival video content.
Outcome: Alum is currently in business and legal affairs for wiip, which recently produced Mare of Easttown for HBO.
HBO Immersive is a brand extension for HBO where subscribers access VR experiences of HBO content.
Outcome: Alum is currently working in venture capital in South Africa.
BecomeLouder is a platform to showcase the comedy of Indian women.
Outcome: Alum has worked for Netflix, Sony Pictures, and is currently Producer Writer at Golden Caravan in Mumbai.
Work in the LA Media and Entertainment Industry
You’ll complete two LA internships at start-ups or traditional media companies. You’ll gain crucial real-world experience and a network of industry contacts.
Present Your Idea in LA at Pitchfest
You’ll spend most of your 11-month program creating a media venture from scratch or a brand extension for an existing media company. At the end of the program, you’ll present your idea to a panel of industry experts at Pitchfest in LA. Many of these presentations have led to jobs in innovative media companies for new BU graduates.
Insta Event: Revolutionizing event discovery with a user-friendly app that integrates with Instagram, offering real-time updates and personalized recommendations for Gen Z and Millennials.
Full of Chai: A community-led content platform that primarily features a subscription box to help Indians reconnect with their diverse and rich culture from back home.
Find Yourself: A community app for LGBTQ+ women offering safe spaces, events, and resources to empower them to proudly and wholeheartedly embrace their identities.
Spotify Social: A brand extension of the music streaming service Spotify that produces events based on consumer analytics for young adults looking for community.
Syncln: A platform that helps connect independent musical artists/technicians of all stages to collaborate on projects in real time.
amapa: An Amazon Prime Video extension that provides an interactive map of story locations, allowing viewers to immerse themselves in the worlds of their favorite movies—and giving Amazon a creative way to build additional shopping opportunities.
RemArt: A cloud-based art platform that allows comic, manga, and graphic novel artists and teams to simplify their art processes, find collaborators, and work with each other in real time.
RightsNest: An AI-powered platform for creator management.
Mous: A preproduction tool for small indie filmmakers that improves efficiency and collaboration when it comes to location characteristics, such as outlets, parking, day/night lighting, etc.
FuseXR: A cutting-edge digital production platform for creators, advertisers, and technologists to come together to envision, craft, and deliver awe-inspiring XR and AR solutions for audiences.
Xenon: An extension for the VSCO app that helps young professional photographers personalize and deliver photo galleries to clients easily, professionally, and efficiently.
Showcasing Media Innovation
Students are drawn to COM’s MS in Media Ventures program for one reason: They want to be part of the…
Level Up with Mentorship from Experienced Media Ventures Faculty
BU COM faculty are experienced in media innovation. MS in Media Ventures program director Jodi Luber is a media entrepreneur herself. She secured $17 million in venture funding from Vantage Point Venture Partners. She has also written and produced for cable television.
Professor Margaret Wallace is a tech exec and creator of video games, apps, and other interactive experiences across interactive entertainment, mobile games, health tech, education, impact, and experiential tech.
Working in video games, technology, and interactive entertainment is incredibly fun and satisfying. . . . The work involves a dynamic blend of creativity, grit, and design thinking. The rapid pace of innovation that partly defines these sectors requires constant learning and active engagement with creators, business communities, and audiences to stay relevant. Developing a game involves close collaboration with your team and a healthy dose of openness and adaptability. Every day there’s something new to focus on to keep moving things forward—it’s never a dull moment. This continuous evolution offers endless opportunities to leverage original IP and established brands in fresh and engaging ways.
Margaret Wallace, Associate Professor of the Practice, Film & Television
Experience the Advantage of East Plus West
Get the best of two locations. Consistently ranked among the most livable cities in the world, Boston is a top 10 US media market and leads in innovation and per-capita venture capital. It’s home to some of the world’s best creative agencies, media companies, and leading employers. It’s also a hub for innovation. Of course, LA—where you’ll hold internships—is the world capital for entertainment media.
