Postgraduate taught courses in Film Studies

The Department of Film Studies offers two Masters programmes:

• Film Studies MLitt
• International Master in Audiovisual Studies (IMACS) MLitt

The Department was ranked first in the UK for Media and Film Studies by The Guardian Good University Guide 2025.

Teaching in the Department takes place in specially fitted teaching facilities, including a screening and seminar room with 3D projection. The Library holds an array of specialist resources, including a collection of over 9,000 audio-visual works.

Postgraduate students benefit from direct engagement with Sands International Film Festival of St Andrews, with opportunities in programming and marketing, as well as an active research culture of talks and events, and a faculty with connections to local and international organisations such as LUX Scotland, Dundee Contemporary Arts and the National Library of Scotland. The Department is also runs a chapter of Cinema Politica, which gives students access to a highly international database of films in order to run public events in collaboration with the local community.

Our graduates go on to further postgraduate study, as well as employment in the arts sector, for example, director of Cornell Cinema at Cornell University and Production Coordinator at Industrial Light and Magic.

Film Studies MLitt

The St Andrews MLitt in Film Studies is a one-year Masters programme with some of the world's leading film scholars.

Our MLitt programme is designed to cover a variety of different topics and methods in the study of film and other media, giving in-depth engagement with the history, present and future of the discipline. Modules feature research-led teaching on cutting-edge topics in the field, such as ecocinema and environmental humanities, feminist and decolonial media histories, media archaeology and archives, political cinema and non-fiction film. Modules are taught by Department staff who are internationally-recognised scholars, and who regularly bring their collaborations and connections into their teaching, whether through filmmaking workshops or specialist guest speakers from archives, film and television industries or festivals. The programme culminates in a 15,000 word Masters dissertation supervised by a staff member in the student's chosen area of interest.

The MLitt programme is a great way to complete an accelerated Masters degree and supports a variety of professional paths, from further PhD study to film programming and curation, from working with film festivals to writing film criticism and journalism.

IMACS MLitt

The Department offers an International Master in Audiovisual Studies (IMACS) MLitt, which provides a unique opportunity to obtain global training in film and media studies.

In this programme, students participate in a network of 14 leading programmes in film and media studies in Europe and Canada, including universities in Paris, Amsterdam, Rome and Montreal. This is a two-year MLitt degree; students enrolled in the programme spend two semesters at St Andrews and the remaining two semesters at two separate partner institutions across the world.

Postgraduate activities

MLitt students in the Department also benefit from contact with a large postgraduate cohort (currently counting 13 PhD students stemming from 5 continents). Postgraduate activities include:

• regular presentations by leading scholars and filmmakers
• a prominent student-run academic journal (Frames Cinema Journal)
• annual postgraduate conference
• weekly workshops, screenings, lectures and retreats

Departmental Scholarship

The Department of Film Studies is offering a Russo Brothers Scholarship (worth £7,500) to an MLitt student joining the Film Studies programme for the academic year 2026-2027.

Applicants can apply to either of the two Mlitt courses offered in the Department of Film Studies, the MLitt in Film Studies or the International Master in Audiovisual and Cinema Studies (IMACS). All applications to the programme received before 1 April 2026 will be considered for this scholarship funding.

For University-wide scholarships, please visit the Scholarships page.

The Eileen Rositzka Prize

Named in honour of a St Andrews Film Studies PhD alumna, Eileen Rositzka (1988-2021), the Eileen Rositzka prize recognises the highest performing PGT student in each cohort at the end of the academic year. It comes with a £100 prize and is recorded in the Graduation programme. Previous winners are:

• 2023/2024: Dan Flattery
• 2024/2025: Mikey Reid-Cain