About

The Department of Language and Communication is among the departments under the Faculty of Education and Media Studies. It is also the workhorse department at the Polytechnic. Just about every student who has graduated from Poly has had to take communications courses, and it is the dedicated academic members of staff under this Department that offer these courses by serving the other departments.

Established in 1965 specifically to offer these language courses, the Department started offering a bachelor’s in journalism in 1999, thirty-four years later. Since then, the developments have come in somewhat quicker succession. In 2002, the Journalism Department evolved from the Language and Communication Department, becoming a separate department all together, and taking along the journalism degree. 

What We Offer

The Department continues to fulfill its mission of offering language modules to students under the various departments and faculties at Poly. It also certifies the English language proficiency of students seeking to go for further studies abroad. 

In 2012, the Department started offering a bachelor’s degree in business communication. The degree is a response to the business, marketing and organisational communication needs of industry and other stakeholders. The goal is to reduce the shortage of communication specialists in public and private sectors in the country by training specialists in business communication who can communicate with different stakeholders.  

The Department also offers a master’s degree in health and behaviour change communication, which started in 2015. This is in response to the continued challenges brought on by the HIV/AIDS epidemic, among many other health, social and environmental challenges. The aim of the programme is to fill the gap and the need for well-qualified and skilled professionals in health, social and behaviour change communication (HSBCC) by equipping postgraduate students with advanced knowledge, expertise for designing, implementing and managing social and behaviour change interventions in Malawi. 

Other Ventures 

Besides carrying out their teaching duties, members of staff also conduct consultancies and research in areas such as language literacy, radio for development and media regulation, among many others.