The Emerging Media Studies PhD program is not accepting applications for the fall 2026 admissions cycle. Please check back for future cycles.
Program Notes
- Degree: PhD
- Credits: 68
- Format: On campus, full time
- GRE: Required
- Prerequisites: Master’s degree required
- Funding: Full tuition + stipend + health insurance, up to 5 years
- Teaching: Teaching fellow appointments required (minimum 2)
- Applications: Not accepting applications for fall 2026; check back for updates
What makes this PhD different?
It’s the first of its kind—founded in 2014, BU’s PhD in Emerging Media Studies was created to study technologies and platforms that evolve faster than traditional disciplines. Rather than adapting an existing communications PhD, faculty built a new field designed around the questions emerging technologies raise for society.
It crosses into data science—master computational text analysis, psychophysiology, and network science in optional Computing & Data Sciences courses. Or select from electives, labs, and certificates across business, health, policy, engineering, and Boston’s wider ecosystem, at no additional tuition cost.
It’s small by design—Cohorts of roughly three to four students mean you’re co-authoring, co-teaching and co-presenting with faculty, not waiting in line for mentorship.
What you’ll do here
Doctoral students don’t just study emerging media – they design studies, collect data, publish findings, present at conferences, and work alongside faculty on active research projects.
EM777 Collaboratory — A year-long industry lab where you scope, execute, and present a full research study for a real client: academic institutions, nonprofits, media companies, tech firms, or public interest groups. Past clients have ranged from TikTok to the Boston Globe.
Communication Research Center — Access biometric sensors, VR rigs, and a focus-group room to capture real-time media effects. One of the longest-running and most active communication research hubs in the country, established in 1959.
Zimmerman Family Social Activation Center — COM’s social media research environment, outfitted with analytics tools that let you mine live data from TikTok, Instagram, X, YouTube and more to track trends, gauge sentiment, and develop real-time insights.
Center on Media Innovation for Social Impact — For students working at the intersection of technology and public good: health, climate, civic engagement.
#ScreentimeBU Conference — The annual student-run research showcase where Emerging Media Studies students present to scholars, industry practitioners, and the public. View past conferences.
Curriculum Overview
The curriculum combines advanced theory, research methods, and independent scholarship to examine how emerging technologies shape individuals, organizations, and society. Mentored, independent projects hone advanced research skills. Recent dissertations span robot perception, binge-watch effects, and media framing of direct-to-consumer genetic tests.
Recent student research
PhD candidates here aren’t waiting until graduation to do meaningful work. Recent research includes:
- How self-tracking wearables reshape identity and social life in VR
- AI ethics in algorithmic news curation, based on interviews with US editors
- Eye-tracking and biometric analysis of partisan differences in political ad processing
Students publish in journals including New Media & Society and IJHCI, and present at conferences including ICA, NCA, and more.
Conference Presentations
Our students regularly present original research at leading conferences before completing their dissertations. Here’s a small sample of presentations from the International Communication Association (ICA) 2025 conference:
- Crissman, J. (June 2025). How European Union Media Frames the Challenges of the Artificial Intelligence Act.
- Jia, Y. D., & Wang, Y. (June 2025). Predictors and Effects of Short-Form Video-Induced Procrastination Among College Students.
- Mays, K. & Novozhilova, E. (June 2025). AI Humanizers, Pragmatists, Skeptics: A Cluster Analysis of Normative Attitudes for AI’s Capabilities and Roles.
- Yang, J., Wang-Sun, J., Wang, Y., & Lin, J. (June 2025). Don’t Browse It, Experience It: Spatial Presence Mediated the Effect of 3D Marketing Websites.
- Xu, K., Chen, Y., Li, J., Chan-Olmsted, S., & Liao, T. (June 2025). Tracked but Not Trapped in VR: Negotiating Body Tracking Technologies for Embodiment and Privacy Protection.
Where graduates go
Graduates of the PhD in Emerging Media Studies pursue careers in academia, research, technology, public policy, and industry. Alumni hold faculty positions, postdoctoral appointments, research leadership roles, and applied research positions across higher education, nonprofit organizations, and technology companies.
Postdoctoral positions: University of Michigan, Penn, Georgetown, Harvard, and more.
Employers: NIH, NSF, Meta Reality Labs, UN Development Programme, MIT Media Lab, Nielsen, Organization for Social Media Safety, Hariri Institute, Syracuse University, University of Vermont, and institutions of higher education worldwide.
Roles: Research scientist, assistant professor, AI ethics lead, data insights director, UX researcher, policy analyst.
“The doctoral program provided me with a strong training in both theory and research methods. But perhaps more importantly, EMS showed me the importance of a respectful, collaborative, and kind learning community. I consistently felt supported, encouraged, and heard by the faculty and my peers.”
—Dr. Sarah Krongard (’19)
Vice President of Programs, Organization for Social Media Safety
The faculty
Study with top EMS scholars whose work shapes conversations about AI, social media, virtual reality, political communication, disinformation, and human-technology interaction.
A few examples of what they’re working on right now:
Joan Donovan founded the Critical Internet Studies Institute to develop and test disinformation countermeasures, and has advised Congress on networked incitement.
James Katz co-created the Robot Rights and Responsibilities Scale – the first metric quantifying public support for granting robots civil rights.
James Cummings runs lab studies on how VR presence and task switching influence empathy and persuasion, with implications for XR storytelling and design.
Ayse Lokmanoglu investigates how supremacist ideologies spread online through state and nonstate actors, with funding from the Global Network on Extremism and Technology (GNET) and the National Institute of Justice (NIJ).Students leave saying the program was more intense than they expected and that they feel transformed in profound ways.
Study in Boston’s tech and media ecosystem
Boston gives doctoral students access to one of the country’s most concentrated ecosystems of universities, hospitals, technology companies, startups, media organizations, and research centers.
Whether your interests involve AI, digital platforms, public health, policy, journalism, or human-computer interaction, opportunities for collaboration exist well beyond campus.
Common questions about the PhD in Emerging Media Studies
Do I need a master’s degree to apply?
Yes. The PhD in Emerging Media Studies is designed for students who already hold a master’s degree, typically in communication, media studies, sociology, psychology, or a related field.
Is the PhD fully funded?
Yes. All admitted students receive full tuition, a stipend, and health insurance credit for up to five years, in exchange for teaching and research obligations. No separate fellowship application is required.
How large are the cohorts?
Cohorts are intentionally small – typically three or four students — to support close faculty mentorship, co-authorship, and collaborative research.
What research methods will I learn?
Students develop expertise in computational text analysis, psychophysiology, network science, survey methods, and experimental design, among others. Cross-registration in BU’s Computing and Data Sciences program is available for students who want deeper technical training.
What kinds of research topics do PhD students study?
Research topics span artificial intelligence, social media, platform governance, virtual and augmented reality, digital politics, misinformation, online communities, media psychology, human-computer interaction, and emerging technologies that have yet to be fully understood.
When is the next application cycle?
Please request information to be notified when the next cycle opens.
