The Master's program in Worlds of the Book explores the world of books in the digital age: in addition to specialized seminars, it offers an introduction to publishing, cultural mediation, content creation, and heritage promotion. Based in Réunion, it fosters creative dynamics and collaborations in the Indian Ocean, at the crossroads of cultures and languages.

Educational goals :

• Training professionals in the book and culture sectors capable of evolving in the sectors of publishing, libraries, mediation, written heritage and digital creation.
• Develop general skills through specialist seminars that approach the worlds of books from the perspective of literature and the arts.
• Developing transferable skills with the help of tutorials (TD) in methodology, foreign language (LVE), internships and the dissertation.
• Promote a critical and multilingual approach of the book as a cultural, social and economic object, in local and international contexts.
• Anchoring the training in the Réunion territory by promoting heritage funds, island publishing dynamics and cultural issues specific to the Indian Ocean region.
• Encourage regional and international cooperation, by opening students up to partnerships and mobility opportunities in the Creole-speaking, French-speaking and English-speaking world.
• Supporting professional integration through two internships and an introduction to a practical dimension in teaching

Training opportunities:

The creation of a Master's program in Literature and Book Studies in Réunion represents a strategic opportunity at the crossroads of cultural, economic, and territorial dynamics. Locally, this program addresses a growing need for professionalization in the publishing, cultural mediation, library, and archive sectors, within a context of expanding publishing initiatives and public reading policies. Réunion's socio-professional landscape, characterized by a diversity of associative, institutional, and private actors in the book industry, provides fertile ground for internships, partnership projects, and professional integration. This Master's program would also serve as a catalyst for promoting the written heritage of the Indian Ocean, in connection with the island's diverse historical narratives. Internationally, Réunion benefits from a unique geostrategic position that facilitates exchanges with the Creole-speaking, Francophone, and Anglophone worlds of the Africa-Asia region. The program could thus play a pivotal role, fostering cross-disciplinary collaborations, particularly with Madagascar, Mauritius, and the Comoros. Finally, this training offering would enhance the academic appeal of Réunion, in line with the island's ambitions for cultural and scientific influence.

The Master's program in Worlds of the Book at the University of Reunion Island presents a strong identity, built around a threefold foundation: territorial, critical, and creative. It distinguishes itself from similar programs in mainland France through the explicit integration of the cultural and publishing dynamics of the Indian Ocean region, notably through a dedicated course unit on: The World of the Indian Ocean Book in the Global Context. This South-South perspective allows students to consider the book from a decentralized viewpoint, in connection with the linguistic, cultural, and postcolonial realities of the region. The critical approach is further strengthened by the introduction of a course on gender studies.) in Francophone literatures, demonstrating a concern for updating content in light of contemporary issues. Another distinctive feature: the place given to the transmedialityWith two course units exploring the transitions from book to film and from text to stage, the program fosters a broader understanding of cultural practices. The curriculum also places a central emphasis on creation, publishing, and writing through workshops spread across the three semesters. The progressive support provided for student projects, the continued use of modern languages, and close ties with local socio-professional stakeholders ensure effective integration into the book industry, while also promoting collaboration within the Creole, French, and English-speaking communities.

Total student hours: 506

The Worlds of the Book track within the Master's in Literature Research offers training that closely integrates research skills in classical and contemporary literature with critical, theoretical, and creative exploration of literary objects in their editorial, media, and cultural forms. Far from being limited to a traditional approach to the book as a mere medium or vehicle for texts, this track examines how literatures are embedded in material, symbolic, historical, and geographical worlds, and how they reshape their contours. The program thus combines poetic and critical reflection on texts with a constant focus on the conditions of their production, dissemination, reception, and transmission.

From the first semester of the Master 1 program, students are introduced to research methods (UE1) and supported in developing their professional project (UE2). This support continues in the third semester with UEs 17 and 18: Research Remediation and Personal Project (PPI). They also consolidate their foreign language skills (UE3, then UE10 and UE19) to enable them to thrive in an internationalized literary and scientific field. The program is based on core courses related to contemporary literatures (UE4 and UE5), which respectively introduce the specificities of children's literature, particularly the rapidly growing field of young adult literature, and gender studies applied to Francophone literatures of the Indian Ocean. These courses allow students to consider the interplay between narratives, identities, readerships, and contexts of production, while exploring marginalized or under-researched corpora in traditional academic programs.

The core of the program is built around a progressive specialization in the world of books. Module 6 (UE6) explores literary centers and peripheries within the Indian Ocean region, examining the flows, imbalances, and geopolitical reconfigurations that affect the visibility of literature. Module 7 (UE7) places students in the creation or analysis of publishing projects, from writing to publication, including the processes of editing, manuscript selection, production, and distribution. This approach is extended in the second semester (UE15) with a specialization on the challenges of publishing in/about the Indian Ocean, through case studies and meetings with professionals.

In parallel, students can take a minor course in transmediality. The first semester (UE8) is devoted to the transition from book to film: adaptations, screenwriting, rewriting, and the tensions between visual representation and respect for the original text. These questions are explored in greater depth in the following semester with the study of the relationship between text and theatricality (UE16), and are further developed in the second year of the Master's program (M2) with an approach to digital and sound humanities through podcast writing (UE24).

The second semester of the first year of the Master's program also introduces a more conceptual dimension with Module 12, which offers a path ranging from literary utopias to the writing of personal utopias. Module 13, meanwhile, focuses on theories of interpretation. Module 14 explores the links between literature and the press, examining the place of fiction in periodicals, the practices of fragmentary publication, and so on.

In the second year of the Master's program, students are invited to deepen their critical skills through specialized seminars focusing on literary representations of Francophone insularities (UE20), poetic creation (UE22), and graphic and visual narratives (UE23). UE21 provides a creative space dedicated to the short story, a brief genre that is both challenging and stimulating for aspiring writers. Students receive guidance in writing their thesis (UE26), which can be a research thesis or a creative thesis, and are encouraged to explore various forms of presentation (podcasts, critical editions, interviews, publishing projects).

Finally, the internships scheduled in the first year of the Master's program (M1) and the second year (M2) (UE9 and UE25) allow students to temporarily integrate into publishing, cultural, or scientific organizations and expand their professional network. The program thus trains researchers, critical mediators, or book professionals with a nuanced understanding of contemporary issues related to literature and its forms of visibility.

The skills acquired during this training are in line with those of the RNCP record

A 120-hour internship: 40 hours in M1 S2 and 80 hours in M2 S4

Registration fees are set annually by the Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Space and are available on our institution's website: Register at the University of Reunion

• Students with a degree in Modern or Classical Literature are given priority: they must demonstrate results above 10 in their subject-specific modules. Students with a degree in another field (Social Sciences, Information and Communication, History, Geography, English, or Spanish) must demonstrate results above 12 in their subject-specific modules.
• Demonstrate a very good command of the French language, a solid general and literary culture, writing and synthesis skills, and the ability to work independently on corpora or cultural objects.
  Being able to mobilize the methodological and technical tools of research (text analysis, writing, layout, digital tools).
• Ability to work in a team, to demonstrate autonomy, intellectual curiosity, rigor and a sense of responsibility.
• Demonstrate consistency between one's academic project and the training
• To promote the richness of his experiences and his career path

• Particular attention will be paid to the grades from the different years of the candidate's post-baccalaureate course, especially in methodology or expression techniques modules for students from other Bachelor's degrees than Modern Literature.
  For Modern Literature students, grades will be taken from the course units.
• Grades in literary or methodological disciplines (expression techniques, etc.) requiring writing skills involving a very good command of the French language will be scrutinized.
• Results obtained in the transversal modules of the previous course.
  Activities mentioned in the Curriculum Vitae (CV).
  Possible annual teacher evaluations
• A cover letter and a research proposal consistent with the disciplinary specializations included in the training are required.
• The CV will allow the candidate to highlight the specific features of their career path

Degrees in Modern Literature, Social Sciences, Information and Communication, History…

Depending on the student's situation, applications for admission to the first year of the Master's program (M1) follow three specific procedures (the national platform MonMaster, Études en France, Validation of Acquired Experience). For more information, please consult the university's student services page. Enroll in the first year of a Master's program

Baccalaureate + 3 or equivalent

• Graduates in literature, languages, humanities and social sciences : students with an interest in books, culture, mediation or text analysis.
• Students in information and communication, history or heritage : sensitive to issues of transmission, archiving, digital culture or enhancement of collections.
• Students from Réunion wishing to stay on the island to train for cultural or publishing jobs, without having to go to mainland France.
• International students, particularly from the Indian Ocean (Madagascar, Mauritius, Comoros, Seychelles) interested in a French-language Master's level course in the field of books.

30 seats

The admission dates for the first year of the Master's degree (M1) are set nationally each year and are available on the platform. My Master

For admission to the second year of the Master's degree (M2), the schedule is determined by the institution. It is available on the student services page of the university website: Students re-registering

90% in M1

70% in M2

Events

Doctorate

The sectors of activity and types of employment targeted by this training correspond to those listed in the RNCP record

Publishing (public or private)

• Editor (Book editor, editorial director)
• Editorial Assistant
• Proofreaderproofreader
• Collection Manager
• Editorial Communications Manager
• Digital publisher / transmedia project manager

Careers in libraries, archives and documentation

• Librarian (territorial, university, school, etc.)
• Library or heritage curator
• Archivist
• Documentalist (in business, education, etc.)
• Curator of heritage collections / manuscripts
• Library or media library mediator

Cultural mediation and heritage promotion

• Cultural mediation officer
• Cultural Project Manager (at the town hall, media library, cultural center)
• Book and reading facilitator
• Head of an educational department in a museum or library
• Programming manager at a literary festival
• Designer of exhibitions or cultural content

Digital professions related to books

• Digital Editorial Project Manager
• Web/e-book publishing manager
• Designer of cultural digital content

Bookshop and book distribution

• Bookseller (general, specialized, youth…)
• Department or store manager
• Bookseller Relations Manager
• Responsible for broadcast/distribution

Other possible career paths

• Cultural journalismliterary critic
• Project manager in a cultural organization
• Public writer / literary consultant
• Teaching / research (especially after obtaining a teaching qualification or a doctorate)