Description
Have you ever thought about a career in the children’s media industry? This is a growing area of the media industry and includes companies such as Nickelodeon, Sesame Workshop,TikTok, Fortnite, Mattel, Kidz Bop, PBS Kids and others. The Certificate in Children’s Media can help prepare you. The Certificate in Children’s Media offers academic courses that focus on a range of industry areas in which individuals conduct research, learn to manage media platforms, and create media content for children and youth, including television, streaming services, social media, video games, apps, advertising, marketing, consumer insights research, journalism, public relations, podcasts, and more.
The Children’s Media Certificate is open to all Temple University students. In addition to Klein College students, students majoring in education, psychology, and other areas focused on children may be interested in the certificate.
Program
Students complete 13 hours of children’s media-related courses, including a final capstone project.
The Certificate in Children’s Media is available to students at the sophomore, junior, or senior levels, or students who have completed at least 45 credit hours. All students must be in good academic standing with a 3.0 cumulative average to pursue the certificate.
Curriculum
The Certificate in Children’s Media requires a minimum of 13 credit-hours.
Required courses:
MSP 1251: The Children’s Media Industry (3 credits)*
MSP 2451 /ADV2451: Media and their effects on Children (3 credits)
ADV 3006: Representation in the media (3 credits)
MSP 4259: Children’s Media Capstone (1 credit)
*Students are strongly encouraged to take MSP 1251: The Children’s Media Industry first.
Elective Courses
(1) 3-credit elective from the list below. The elective course must be selected from outside of the students designated major. Courses listed as requirements in the students major and the certificate program may be counted towards one or the other, but not both.
| Course number | Course name |
| KLN 0873 | Media in a Hyper-Mediated World (GenEd) |
| CSI 3702 | Communication, Culture and Identity |
| JRN 2702 | News Literacy |
| JRN 3101 | Journalism Law and Ethics |
| JRN 3704 | Ethical Issues in Journalism |
| MSP 1001 | Video Production for Non-majors |
| MSP 2701 | Intermediate Video Production |
| MSP 2751 | Audio for Media |
| MSP 3471 | Media and Cultural Differences |
| MSP 3771 | Podcast and Radio Production |
| MSP 4182 | Independent Study |
| MSP 4252 | Law and Ethics of Digital Media |
| MSP 4497 | Media and Children (WI) |
| MSP 4741 | Emergent Media Production |
| MSP 3590 MSP 8657 | The Children’s Media Industry: Trends and Opportunities (study away) |
| PR 2551 | Research Methods |
| College/ Dept/ Course number | Course name |
| CLA/SOC 2168 | Sociology of Popular Culture |
| CLA/ENG 2112 | Children’s Literature and Folklore |
| CLA/ PSY 1001 | Introduction to Psychology |
| ANTH 0817 SOC 0817 EDU 0817 EDU 0917- honors | Youth Cultures (GenEd) |
| EDUC 0819 EDUC 0919-honors | Teens and Tweens (GenEd) |
| EDUC / ECED 2101 | Child Development: Birth to Nine |
| ECED 4106 | The Learning Community: Family and Community Relationships |
| EDUC 4401 | Discourse Practices in Diverse Communities. |
| JPNS 2017 | Stories of Parents and Children in Japanese Literature and Film |
| SPED 2231 | Introduction to Special Education |
Descriptions of required courses:
MSP 1251: The Children’s Media Industry (3 credit hours)
This course will introduce students to the business and entrepreneurship side of the children’s media industry. Combining case studies, content analysis, audience research, and exploration of industry trends, students will deepen their understanding of the business decisions and revenue focus that drives the creation of media for children, including social media, television, apps, video games, etc. Topics to be addressed include the massive migration of kids from television to YouTube and TikTok; why diversity of voices and characters makes good business sense; how artificial intelligence is changing youth interaction with media, and the ups and downs of government regulations. The course will consider the unique concerns of leading a media company in which the target audience is young, impressionable, and endlessly fickle children and youth. This is a required course for the Certificate in Children’s Media.
MSP 2451/ADV2451: Media and their effects on children (3 credit hours) How are children affected by the media they consume? This course will explore the key areas in which media affect children, including consumerism, violence, sexuality, representation of body image, gender, race, ethnicity, etc. The course will analyze the research on how media affects children and will include basic child development. This is a required course for the Certificate in Children’s Media
ADV 3006: Representation in the Media (3 credit hours) What are media representations, and why do they matter? What is the relationship between media representations and stereotypes, especially for children and youth? How do media represent diversity and its issues? What responsibility do we have – as media consumers, scholars, and future practitioners – to think about and address the problems of representation? This course will explore these questions by examining the relationship between media and representation, with a focus on children and youth.
MSP 4259: Children’s Media Capstone (1 credit hour) This is the culminating project for the certificate. The student’s capstone project must reflect the learning objectives and core themes of the children’s media certificate. The capstone should be a project or research that will position the student positively in their career search. The capstone course may be taken after successful completion of at least four other courses counting towards the certificate.
Assessment / Capstone Project:
Awarding of the Certificate is based on completion of the 13-credits of course work, including a one-credit Capstone.
The Capstone must include at least two of the following:
Content creation: Development and creation of a new children’s media property
Content analysis: Critical analysis paper evaluating an issue currently facing the children’s media industry or children’s media consumption
Entrepreneurship and Management: Development of a new children’s media platform or educational media resource
Successful students will produce a capstone project that reflects certificate learning outcomes. The capstone project will include a review by the faculty director and at least one other faculty member (preferably the capstone instructor). One or two industry professionals will also be invited to provide feedback. Student projects must receive a grade of ‘pass’ from this review to pass the capstone course, which is required for the certificate.
Additional opportunities
Students will have the opportunity to develop children’s media content for TUTV, Temple University Television, a broadcast and streaming lab. Students can test their creative concepts with expert leadership in the nations’ fourth largest media market, a market with a minimal amount of locally produced broadcast or digital content for children.
Children’s Media Symposium (Attend annually in the spring)
Assistance with securing an internship relating to children and media.
Interested in Signing Up for the Certificate?
If you’ve carefully reviewed the details provided and are eager to officially declare your pursuit of the Children’s Media Certificate, simply complete the change of program form below. This step secures your enrollment and ensures your place in the program. Access the form here.
For more information contact:
Sherri Hope Culver, Certificate director and general information. sherri.hope.culver@temple.edu
Jessica Castonguay, research. jessica.castonguay@temple.edu
Laura Zaylea, production. laura.zaylea@temple.edu
Paul Gluck, production. paul.gluck@temple.edu