The Master of Arts in Experimental Digital Media (MA-XDM) is dedicated to exploring the creative and critical processes provided by digital media. The XDM program emphasizes a lab-based, hands-on approach to digital technology. Students in the program learn to use digital media as a critical tool, combining theory and practice in the production of objects-to-think-with. The program's rich mix of theoretical and practical study prepares graduates for a variety of careers in media industries, as well as in digitalsocial media positions within more traditional fields—private industry, government, educational organizations, and non-governmental organizations. Other students go on to doctoral programs, taking the creative methods and theories of the XDM program with them to craft innovative PhD projects. Experimental Digital Media (XDM) is an MA degree offered by the University of Waterloo's Department of English Language and Literature, which is committed to critical thinking, laser-sharp communication, and creative experimentation. Waterloo English is a uniquely interdisciplinary department, offering courses and degrees in literature, rhetoric and communication, and digital studies. XDM students spend most of their time working at the Critical Media Lab, a collection of labs and studios surrounded by Kitchener-Waterloo’s burgeoning tech culture.
Courses in the XDM program give you a broad grounding in digital studies, critical theory, and literary and rhetorical studies. Your coursework will not only give you the intellectual tools to go wherever you want to go, but will point you in exciting new directions you hadn’t even considered. And if you want to combine work experience and education, University of Waterloo’s Co-op program, the largest in the world, will give you an opportunity to apply your knowledge, acquire new skills, and make professional connections. The co-op stream gives students the ability to gain real-world experience while earning money to pay for university. Any of the English MA degree may be taken in the co-op stream. We invite you to study in the mode that best suits you, regular or co-op.
