Fashion and Beauty Journalism with a Foundation Year - BA (Hons)
- UCAS Code: P50G
- Level: Foundation
- Starting: September 2021
- Study mode: Full Time (4 years)
- Location: City Centre
Studying with us in 2021/22
It is possible that the 2021/22 academic year may be affected by the ongoing disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Any arrangements put in place by the University for the 2021/22 academic year will be in accordance with the latest government public health advice, pandemic-related/health and safety legislation, and the terms and conditions of the student contract.
Get practical preparation for a career reporting on the fashion and beauty industry with our BA (Hons) Fashion and Beauty Journalism with Foundation Year degree course. You’ll develop the skills to cover a range of topics for print, digital, TV and radio, including live events, interviews and running collaborative liveblogs. You’ll also explore the global impact of fashion and beauty journalism on audiences. Students will be armed with mobile reporting kits to work as real reporters from day one.
We pride ourselves on teaching creative, contemporary journalism underpinned by traditional values and skills. That means learning the core media and communication skills that every working reporter needs before you specialise in an area that interests you.
You’ll be challenged academically – often by some of the industry’s leading names – and you’ll be expected to undertake meaningful work experience placements in media environments, and work on live stories, learning how to craft a story in a way that engages the audience.
By the time you graduate, you’ll be a thinking journalist with a specialism in fashion and beauty. You’ll also be adaptable to the changes that the industry faces. Birmingham City University's journalism graduates have gone on to work for Sky, BBC, Trinity Mirror and a wide range of regional newspapers. Others have scooped prestigious awards at the Midlands Media Awards while still studying.
About foundation courses
This four year programme has been specifically designed to allow you to undertake additional level 3 study, to ensure you are successful on your chosen degree programme. The foundation year helps you to develop skills such as academic writing, referencing and researching, as well as important transferable skills such as project management and team work.
After successful completion of your foundation year, you will have the flexibility to switch (should you wish to change direction) onto a number of related undergraduate degree programmes within Birmingham School of Media.
What's covered in the course?
BA (Hons) Fashion and Beauty Journalism is delivered by industry experts from broadcast, print and digital and provides a strong foundation for a future professional career with a range of related outlets, from magazines to online platforms.
The Live Newsroom modules will get you to the heart of the action, covering a range of stories across a wide variety of fashion and beauty areas and preparing coverage for our award-winning Birmingham Eastside website and other partner outlets. You will get the chance to apply practical mobile reporting skills in a real-world environment for platforms including TV, radio, print and digital. Our strong links with key journalism organisations means you’ll also get the chance to work on live briefs and projects throughout the course.
Teaching is delivered in state-of-the-art studios and facilities, as well as on location. Our newsroom media hub allows for collaborative work as part of the wider Birmingham City University journalism community, while access to the University’s innovative School of Fashion and Textiles will also offer a whole host of opportunities on your doorstep.
Through our Global and Community Impact modules there will be a chance to undertake placements as well as embed yourself within communities and fashion organisations to tackle key issues in real depth.
The focus on innovation and entrepreneurship will encourage you to think critically about the journalism landscape. This will allow you to be one step ahead of future trends in world of fashion and beauty journalism.
Why Choose Us?
- Our unique partnership with HuffPost UK will give you the chance to receive tutorials and masterclasses from the HuffPost UK team, as well opportunities for placements and visits to their bureaus.
- Industry-standard facilities including six radio studios, four TV studios, the largest free-standing green screen in Europe, edit suites, music production studios, a newsroom media hub, and photography studios.
- You’ll receive a mobile journalism kit on arrival, allowing you to learn cutting edge skills across multiple platforms and experience the thrill of live reporting from day one.
- Teaching by active journalists who are industry-leading specialists in their field, including data journalist and author Paul Bradshaw, hyperlocal reporting award-winner Ross Hawkes and former News Anchor for Sky News, Marverine Duffy.
- The course’s experimentation ethos means you’ll learn to push the creative boundaries to tell stories to a range of real audiences in a new and innovative ways.
- The chance to see your work published on the award-winning Birmingham Eastside platform.
- A range of guest speaker masterclasses from across the journalism industry. Previous sessions have been delivered by editors and reporters from the likes of the BBC, Trinity Mirror, Twitter and Google.
This course is open to International students

Discover the Birmingham School of Media
Visit our School site for more student work and extra information.
Where our students go
Our students have gone on to work with companies such as:
- Retail Birmingham
- BBC
- Express & Star
- Spark 44
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And in jobs such as:
- Digital content producer
- Reporter
- Deputy web editor
- Social media editor
- Trending video editor
Entry Requirements
We accept a range of qualifications, the most popular of which are detailed below.
Essential Requirements
80 UCAS points |
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LEVEL 2 QUALIFICATIONS | ||
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GCSE |
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Irish Leaving Certificate (Ordinary Level) | See level 3 entry under Irish Leaving Certificate for full details | |
Scottish National 5 |
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IELTS |
Minimum overall score of 6.0, with 6.0 in writing and no less than 5.5 in the remaining three skills. |
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Plus one of the following Level 3 (and above) Qualifications | ||
A Level and Advanced VCE |
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AS and AS VCE | Considered with a maximum of 3 other Level 3 qualifications (AS Levels must be in different subject to A-Levels) to obtain 80 pts | |
Access to HE Diploma |
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MMP | |
Foundation Studies (Art and Design, and Art, Design & Media) |
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IBO Certificate in Higher Level |
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International Baccalaureate Diploma |
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Irish Leaving Certificate (Highers) | Pass the Irish Leaving Certificate with a minimum of 80 tariff points, achieved in five Higher level subjects. This must include English Language taken at either Ordinary Level (minimum grade O1-O4 (or A-C/A1-C3)) or Higher level minimum grade H1/H7 (or A-D / A1-D3 up to and including 2016 | |
OCR Cambridge Technical Extended Diploma | MMP | |
Scottish Advanced Higher |
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T-Levels | Pass overall (C or above on the core) | |
UAL Extended Diploma in Art & Design | Merit overall | |
UAL Extended Diploma in Creative Media Production & Technology | Merit overall | |
UAL Extended Diploma in Performing and Production Arts | Merit overall | |
Other qualifications | ||
If you have a qualification that is not listed in the table please refer to our full entry requirements on UCAS. Further guidance on tariff points can be found on the UCAS website. |
Additional information for EU/International students
Essential | ||
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Please see your country page for further details on the equivalent qualifications we accept. In addition to the academic entry requirements listed above, international and EU students will also require the qualifications detailed in this table. |
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EU/Non-EU (International) Qualifications | Requirements | |
IELTS |
Minimum overall score of 6.0, with 6.0 in writing and no less than 5.5 in the remaining three skills. If you do not meet the required IELTS score, you may be eligible for one of our pre-sessional English courses. Please note that you must have a Secure English Language Test (SELT) to study on the pre-sessional English course. More information. |
Mature Applicants
Applications from mature students (21+) with alternative qualifications and/or considerable work experience will be considered on their merits.
- UK students
- International students
Award: BA (Hons)
Starting: Sep 2021
- Mode
- Duration
- Fees
- Full Time
- 4 years
- £9,250 per year
- Apply via UCAS
Award: BA (Hons)
Starting: Sep 2021
- Mode
- Duration
- Fees
- Full Time
- 4 years
- £13,200 per year
If you're unable to use the online form for any reason, you can complete our PDF application form and equal opportunities PDF form instead. The University reserves the right to increase fees in line with inflation based on the Retail Prices Index or to reflect changes in Government funding policies or changes agreed by Parliament up to a maximum of five per cent.
Guidance for UK students

UK students applying for most undergraduate degree courses in the UK will need to apply through UCAS.
The Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) is a UK organisation responsible for managing applications to university and college.
Applying through UCAS
Register with UCAS
Login to UCAS
Complete your details
Select your course
Write a personal statement
Get a reference
Pay your application fee
Send UCAS your application
Portfolio Guidance
You are not required to submit a portfolio for this course.
Additional costs
Our courses include activities such as performance, exhibitions, field trips and production of works or artefacts which may require you to purchase specific equipment, instruments, books, materials, hire of venues and accommodation, or other items.
Based on the past experience of our students, you might find it helpful to set aside about £50 for each year of your studies for your personal stationery and study materials. All our students are provided with 100 free pages of printing each year to a maximum total value of £15.
Accommodation and living costs
The cost of accommodation and other living costs are not included within your course fees. More information on the cost of accommodation can be found in our accommodation pages.
Foundation year
In order to complete this course you must successfully complete all the following CORE modules (totalling 120 credits):
Year one
In order to complete this course you must successfully complete all the following CORE modules (totalling 120 credits):
Year two
In order to complete this course you must successfully complete all the following CORE modules (totalling 100 credits):
In order to complete this course you must successfully complete at least 20 credits from the following list of OPTIONAL modules:
Year three
In order to complete this course you must successfully complete all the following CORE modules (totalling 120 credits):
The course will see you study practical journalism elements alongside theoretical exploration of key issues and concepts.
In year one you’ll learn everything you need to know about the industry you’re entering in our Fashion Publications module, as well as the core skills in Journalism Law and Ethics to create a solid foundation for your future studies and career. The first of the Live Newsroom modules that run throughout the three years of study will give you the core skills needed to operate as a journalist. You’ll then get the chance to put your knowledge into practice by taking part in our live production days where you’ll work as part of a real reporting team covering a range of fashion and beauty topics and stories.
The Global and Community Impact modules give you the chance to explore the power of journalism, be it through giving a voice to an under-represented community or section of the fashion and beauty industry, or investigating an issue in depth on a local, national or international stage. Our modules also explore theoretical concepts and key debates around your journalism learning, giving you the chance to cast a critical eye over the future of the fashion and beauty journalism industry and the platforms it is delivered on.
Year two continues the culture and community of experimentation and creativity as you develop and study alternative type of fashion and beauty journalism such as YouTube channels, Snapchat storytelling and Instagram brands in the Disruptive Publishing module, while Journalism Futures continues to give you the chance to explore the issues around where fashion and beauty reporting will go next by developing skills around data journalism and long-form reporting.
There’s also the chance to shape your own development through an optional module in an area of interest that could relate to music, sport, fashion, photography, radio or TV.
The third year of study will see you apply your interests and career progression plans in modules designed to help you step into the industry. Journalism Innovation and Entrepreneurship will look at ways alternative formats can co-exist to enhance storytelling around fashion and beauty, while the Major Project is a chance to create a calling card to take forward to your professional journalism career or further study.
Teaching is conducted across a range of environments, including a newsroom media hub, radio and TV studios, editing suites, computer classrooms, lecture theatres, seminar rooms and online learning environments. Thanks to the mobile reporting kits you’ll be armed with there’s also the chance to learn with classes held ‘on location’.
You will use a range of social and interactive media to support your work and self-development, while also producing real content with your mobile journalism pack.
All staff are established journalism professionals and academics who bring with them a range of expertise from across the industry. They are able to recognise and respond to the rapidly changing demands of the journalism landscape, ensuring that the course remains relevant. The programme maintains close contacts with a variety of media organisations including Sky, BBC, Future Publishing and Trinity Mirror. Visiting tutors and guest speakers regularly hold masterclass sessions to enhance and enrich learning.
There is a thriving and inclusive research culture that includes academic staff who are research active, as well as undergraduate and postgraduate students. The Birmingham Centre for Media and Cultural Research (BCMCR) in the School of Media, welcomes visiting researchers from across the world and holds regular research seminars which mix presentations from staff, PG students and speakers from a range of our collaborative partnerships. BCMCR welcomes all students to research seminars, which are free to attend.
Our Classes
We pride ourselves on giving students real journalism experience through practical activities. These have included reporting live on breaking news stories, as well as, planning and implementing coverage of major sporting, cultural and political events alongside professional outlets.
You will also get the chance to see your work published on the award-winning Birmingham Eastside website which is run by students on our journalism modules.
Examples of activities
Mobile reporting
The mobile reporting kits allow students to explore journalism in real time, with some sessions delivered on location. This gives students a chance to experience as well as understand the opportunities for covering stories in alternative ways.
Collaborative working
All modules encourage students to collaborate with their peers, lecturers and external organisations. Live briefs from the journalism industry allow students to explore real-world challenges.
Virtual newsroom
The virtual newsroom lives alongside our physical space and allows students to access a wealth of support, advice and materials to ensure that learning continues beyond the class sessions.
Masterclasses and extra-curricular activities
Through collaboration with students, guest speakers and topics are identified to create additional talks and sessions.
Our Students
A partnership with other local news organisations has seen students create and run live blogs on issues such as local and general elections.
Students are using virtual reality and 360 degrees technology to tell stories in innovative ways – work which has led to coverage on a leading industry website.
Multiplatform reporting is allowing our students to create unique and powerful ways of telling real stories using a range of skills and different types of media.
Further Study
As a School, we invest significantly in our postgraduate provision as we recognise that more specialist and professional courses are required across the media industry. Our postgraduate courses include:
Trips and Visits
Previous visits have included BBC newsrooms in Salford, London and Birmingham, helping provide a first-hand glimpse of how professional journalists operate. You will also get the chance to visit places where the news happens, such as courtrooms and live events across Birmingham.
The Global and Community Impact modules also offer the opportunity for field trips abroad, where students will gain an insight into the working practices of journalists in alternative arenas.
Enhancing employability skills
The course will equip you with first-hand practical expertise and provide you with the rigorous academic knowledge you’ll need to fulfil a career in your chosen communications and journalism field.
Our track record for graduate employment is excellent, with the majority of graduates going into a media-related role. The course opens up specific employability avenues related to the production route chosen. A number of journalism graduates from Birmingham City University have gone into roles such as social media editor, reporter, and trending video editor.
Links to industry
Regular guest speakers and visiting lecturers from newspapers, broadcast, magazines and online publications will provide you with an insight into the modern journalism industry. By working with specialists in their field you will be able to learn how to bring stories to life.
You’ll also get the chance to engage directly with industry through activities such as hack days and projects with the likes of the BBC, The Times and Trinity Mirror. We have excellent links with a number of national, regional and local outlets, with students regularly taking up placements with the likes of Sky and the BBC.
Graduate job successes
Students from the School of Media have been making headlines after landing journalism jobs before they’ve even graduated.
Thomas Lynch (pictured in his new workplace) and Lillian Keen have become trending video reporters with Trinity Mirror, while Elis Sandford is now a news reporter with the company. They join 2016 graduate Charlotte Smith who began working with the national newspaper group earlier this year.
Thomas said: “I handed in my production project on the first Friday of May and the following Monday, I was a trending video producer. If you work hard enough and take advantage of what your university offers you, there is success to be found. Who said it was difficult to find a graduate job?"
There has also been success for another soon-to-be graduate after Thomas Chapman began working as a news reporter with the Eastern Daily Press.
Placements
The School strongly believes in the practical application of learning and is fortunate to have very strong links with employers and the media industry. Students on placements have worked with a wide range of organisations including the BBC, Maverick Television and Trinity Mirror.
OpportUNIty

OpportUNIty: Student Jobs on Campus ensures that our students are given a first opportunity to fill many part-time temporary positions within the University. This allows you to work while you study with us, fitting the job around your course commitments. By taking part in the scheme, you will gain valuable experiences and employability skills, enhancing your prospects in the job market.
It will also allow you to become more involved in University life by delivering, leading and supporting many aspects of the learning experience, from administration to research and mentoring roles.
Graduate jobs
Our courses are highly respected in the industry and will prepare you well for a career in your chosen media field. You’ll complement your studies by building contacts in the industry, and working on live, meaningful projects. It’s what makes our graduates highly sought after by employers. Our graduates have gone to pursue careers with respected organisations such as the BBC, Sky, Trinity Mirror, and the Midlands News Association.
Birmingham City University is a vibrant and multicultural university in the heart of a modern and diverse city. We welcome many international students every year – there are currently students from more than 80 countries among our student community.
The University is conveniently placed, with Birmingham International Airport nearby and first-rate transport connections to London and the rest of the UK.
Our international pages contain a wealth of information for international students who are considering applying to study here, including:
- Explore some of the good reasons why you should study here.
- Find out how to improve your language skills before starting your studies.
- Find all the information relevant to applicants from your country.
- Learn where to find financial support for your studies.
Birmingham City University International College (BCUIC)
International students who have a serious interest in studying with us but who perhaps cannot meet the direct entry requirements, academic or English, or who have been out of education for some time, can enter Birmingham City University International College (BCUIC) and begin their degree studies.

BCUIC is part of the global Navitas Group, an internationally recognised education provider, and the partnership allows students to access the University’s facilities and services and move seamlessly through to achieving a Bachelor’s degree from Birmingham City University.
Popular home countries
Our students come from around the world but our media and communication course is most popular with international students from:
Birmingham School of Media is also particularly popular with students from as far as Brazil and Hong Kong. The diversity of our student group provides further dynamism to the course, with understanding of different journalism markets and broadening horizons.
Our Facilities
When you join Birmingham City University, the first thing you will notice is the high standard of our campuses.
With an investment of £340 million across our buildings and facilities, we are committed to giving you the very best learning environment to help shape your experience.
State-of-the-art facilities
You will learn in our state-of-the-art facilities - including the £62m fully-digital Media Centre - located on the City Centre Campus. You will enjoy access to extensive studio and workshop space including four TV studios, six radio studios and broadcast-standard edit suites, as well as cutting-edge equipment and software.
Facilities include the largest TV floor of any university in the UK, a ‘green screen’ and the MILO motion control camera - we are one of just two universities in Europe to offer MILO technology.
Our Staff
Our teaching staff comprises specialists in their respective fields, including academics and industry professionals, all of whom are perfectly placed to offer a wealth of experience and knowledge. Birmingham School of Media students also benefit from access to high-profile guest speakers from across the industry.
A dynamic community that is responsive to the changing face of the media industry, Birmingham School of Media is the perfect starting point to your media career.

Ellie Tomsett
Lecturer – Course Director for Foundation in School of Media
Ellie is a lecturer in media and course director for the School of Media's Foundation Programme. Before joining BCU Ellie worked in Higher Education for four years. Ellie taught film studies and screenwriting students at Sheffield Hallam University and contextual studies to filmmakers, animators and photographers at Manchester School of Art. Before teaching in HE Ellie worked in the UK film education sector, during this time she delivered training to teachers, youth workers and professional filmmakers across the country and organised filmmaking and theory activities for large organisations such as The BFI, The Industry Trust and Transformation Trust.
Ellie's research is focused on contemporary feminisms and stand-up comedy and she has been Researcher in residence with the UK Women in Comedy festival since 2014. In 2017 she co-founded Mixed Bill a comedy and gender research network which seeks to engage comedy industry professionals, researchers and members of the public in discussions and activities that address the under-representation of minority groups within the comedy industry. She has published on feminist and post-feminist stand-up comedy, self-deprecatory comedy and body positivity as well as more recently exploring comic reactions to the Brexit

Robin Kay
Lecturer
Robin is a Lecturer in Media and Communication with a New Media specialism. He has a background within the music industry having worked for several notable record labels and industry organisations including: Ministry of Sound Recordings, Defected Records, Sanctuary Records and PRS. He has extensive experience within education and teaches creative and digital media subjects focused around web authoring, visual communication and immersive media. With an interest in interactive and immersive media, he is currently working on several projects involving emerging and innovative technology within an educational context. Robin is currently working with BCU’s STEAMhouse as an Academic Coordinator to support their immersive media provision and is engaged with the Reality Enhanced Augmented Learning Faculty Learning Community (REAL FLC) situated in the Faculty of Health, Education and Life Sciences.

Dave Harte
Deputy Head of School and Associate Professor in Journalism and Media Studies
Dave Harte is Associate Professor in Journalism and Media Studies. He researches the emerging trend of local community ‘hyperlocal’ news websites and has published widely on the subject. Within the School of Media he leads on teaching and learning initiatives and teaches modules on Journalism Studies, Social Media, and Alternative and Community Media. He supervises PhDs in the areas of journalism and community media.

Dr Sarah Wood
Head of Birmingham Institute of Media and English
Sarah Wood holds degrees from JMU, the University of Liverpool, and Birmingham City University, where she gained her PhD. Her research interests are in feminism and science fiction.
She has an article on Octavia Butler forthcoming in FEMSPEC and is working on further studies of Butler as well as of Nalo Hopkinson and slave narrative.
Ross Hawkes
Ross leads the journalism pathway. He was previously a sports writer, sub-editor, page designer, news reporter, web editor, features writer and editor, before leading Trinity Mirror's digital programme in the Midlands. He also founded and currently runs award-winning hyperlocal website, LichfieldLive, which has been used an example of excellence in the hyperlocal scene.