
English and Journalism with a Foundation Year - BA (Hons)
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September 2023 — UCAS code Q30C
Get practical, professional preparation for a career in journalism with our BA (Hons) English and Journalism with Foundation Year degree course. The course is housed in the School of English where you will be taught by world-leading academics and practitioners offering a diverse range of modules in literary studies, linguistics, creative writing and drama....
72 points required
Calculate UCAS pointsClearing 2023
There are places available on this course.
- Level Foundation
- Study mode Full Time
- Location City Centre
- Award BA (Hons)
- Start date September 2023
- Fees View course fees
- School School of English
- Faculty Faculty of Arts, Design and Media
This course is:
Overview
Clearing 2023
72 points (or equivalent) is the minimum you will need to be considered for this course in Clearing.
Use the UCAS Tariff Calculator to work out your points.
Get practical, professional preparation for a career in journalism with our BA (Hons) English and Journalism with Foundation Year degree course.
The course is housed in the School of English where you will be taught by world-leading academics and practitioners offering a diverse range of modules in literary studies, linguistics, creative writing and drama. Your degree will allow you to tailor your studies to your individual interests and career aspirations with both a local and global outlook.
The programme focuses on the development of core knowledge and skills for English study and work experience placements on live stories in media environments will teach you 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 news, broadcasting, features, or design. You’ll also be adaptable to the changes that the industry faces. Our 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 their chosen degree programme. The foundation year helps students 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.
Alongside this you will develop core skills in research, critical analysis, planning and evaluation, creativity and effective communication. Understanding how English is studied in context, developing that knowledge and applying it through a range of assignments and assessments, will provide you with a strong foundation upon which to progress to degree-level study at the School of English.
What's covered in this course?
The course brings together a study of English with knowledge of journalism practice and professional development. Combining the study of literature, language, drama and creative writing from the School of English with the development of skills to become a thinking media worker with the School of Media, you will benefit from subject knowledge and transferable skills from both disciplines.
Through study of English you will develop an ability to work as an independent researcher, to communicate effectively in spoken and written discourse, to critically evaluate the work of others and respond imaginatively to original briefs.
Understanding how language works in practice and how language and literature engage with societies are both vital aspects in understanding how the discipline connects with the wider world, enabling you to focus on the production, interpretation and negotiation of meaning.
These skills are transferrable to the journalism component, where you will publish your stories, use blogs - including the student-run Birmingham Eastside website, runner-up in the Guardian Student Media Awards - create wikis, and employ social media channels and other interactive media to support your work and self-development.
Work experience placements on live stories in media environments will teach you how to craft a story in a way that engages the audience.
Teaching for the journalism component takes place in radio, TV and photography studios, editing suites and computer suites in our £62 million Parkside Building, part of our City Centre Campus, where you will build on your skills as you begin to make contacts in the industry and make your first moves into media work.
This course reflects the fast-paced and ever-changing world of journalism, dealing with the challenges and opportunities facing the modern reporter. Be it news or sport, this course will allow you to be prepared for the future of multi-platform journalism.
Robert Lawson, Course Leader for Journalism
Why Choose Us?
- Top 15 for English student satisfaction and graduate prospects (Complete University Guide 2023).
- You will benefit from student-focused and research-informed teaching in a friendly and supportive learning environment where you will be taught by world-leading academics and expert practitioners.
- English at the University is, by definition, interdisciplinary. Students can collaborate across disciplines to gain new perspectives on the relevance of their study in the wider world.
- English is a global language; its culture has an international reach. Understanding how English has been shaped and reshaped by its engagement with the world at large is a key principle of the programme. You can also apply to undertake part of your studies abroad to experience life and studying in another country at one of our exchange partner universities.
- By the time you graduate, you’ll be a thinking journalist with a specialism in news, broadcasting, features or design. You’ll also be adaptable to the changes that the industry faces. Our graduates have gone on to work for Sky, BBC, Trinity Mirror and the Express & Star. Others have scooped prestigious awards at the Midlands Media Awards and have seen their work appear on a number of national and regional outlets.
- You will have access to state-of-the-art media and production facilities throughout your studies, and visiting lecturers from specialist areas, such as national newspapers, TV, radio, data, online and mobile journalism, offer in-depth advice on a range of topics. You also have the opportunity to be taught by undercover reporters, current BBC reporters, freelancers and mobile journalism experts.
Open Days
Join us for an on-campus Open Day where you'll be able to meet us in person, hear from our trailblazing academics and explore our innovative £340m facilities.
Next Open Day: 21 October 2023
Entry Requirements
These entry requirements apply for entry in 2023/24.
All required qualifications/grades must have been achieved and evidenced at the earliest opportunity after accepting an offer to help confirm admission and allow for on-time enrolment. This can also include other requirements, like a fee status form and relevant documents. Applicants can track their application and outstanding information requests through their BCU mySRS account.
72 points (or equivalent) is the minimum you will need to be considered for this course in Clearing.
Use the UCAS Tariff Calculator to work out your points.
We accept a range of qualifications, the most popular of which are detailed below.
UK students
Essential | ||
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80 UCAS tariff points. |
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Level 2 qualifications | ||
GCSE | GCSE English Language and GCSE Maths at grade C/4 or above. If you do not have these or are not undertaking them, we accept other Level 2 equivalents, or we may ask you to pass BCU's GCSE equivalency tests. | |
Irish Leaving Certificate (Ordinary Level) | See level 3 entry requirements under Irish Leaving Certificate for full details. | |
Scottish National 5 | English Language and Maths at grade C or above. If you do not have these or are not undertaking them, we accept other Level 2 equivalents, or we may ask you to pass BCU's GCSE equivalency tests. | |
Plus one of the following Level 3 (and above) qualifications | ||
A Level and Advanced VCE |
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AS and AS VCE |
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Access to HE Diploma |
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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 Ordinary Level (minimum grade O1-O4 (or A-C/A1-C3)) and Higher level minimum grade H1/H7 (or A-D / A1-D3 up to and including 2016 | |
OCR Cambridge Technical Extended Diploma |
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Scottish Higher/Advanced Higher |
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T-Levels |
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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.
Fees & How to Apply
UK students
Annual and modular tuition fees shown are applicable to the first year of study. The University reserves the right to increase fees for subsequent years of study in line with increases in inflation (capped at 5%) or to reflect changes in Government funding policies or changes agreed by Parliament. View fees for continuing students.
Award: BA (Hons)
Starting: Sep 2023
- Mode
- Duration
- Fees
- Full Time
- 4 years
- £9,250 in 2023/24
International students
Annual and modular tuition fees shown are applicable to the first year of study. The University reserves the right to increase fees for subsequent years of study in line with increases in inflation (capped at 5%) or to reflect changes in Government funding policies or changes agreed by Parliament. View fees for continuing students.
Award: BA (Hons)
Starting: Sep 2023
- Mode
- Duration
- Fees
- Full Time
- 4 years
- £13,980 in 2023/24
Online applications are now closed
Our Clearing hotline will open on Thursday 17 August at 8am.
0121 331 6777
Places available to start in September 2023
If you'd like to start this course full-time this September, you can apply through Clearing.
International and part-time students can apply online as normal using the links above.
Want to start in September 2024? You can apply via UCAS from September 2023.
You are not required to submit a portfolio for this course.
Course in Depth
Foundation year
During your foundation year you will be taught in small classes where active participation is part of the teaching methodology.
Your study will involve reading and analysis, discussion and debate, and practical activities which allow you to test and implement your skills and knowledge. In addition to attending classes you will be required to complete preparation and follow-up tasks and activities to support your learning.
In order to complete this course you must successfully complete all the following CORE modules (totalling 120 credits):
This module builds upon the knowledge gained in the Language and Texts module. In Language and Creativity you will use your knowledge of linguistic theory to produce your own texts across a range of forms and genres. You will consider topics including persuasive language, metaphor and parody, as well as humour, puns and other wordplay. You will also explore language change over time: how new words are formed and how existing words develop new meanings. You will study and create literary texts as well as non-literary texts, such as advertisements, political speeches, newspaper headlines, comedy sketches, song lyrics, graffiti and memes.
This module is designed as an introduction to English Language study. Instead of looking at abstract theories about language rules, you will learn through the close analysis of real texts. These will include literary texts such as novels and non-literary texts such as newspaper articles, advertising and social media. We adopt a broad definition of ‘text’ which also includes multimedia texts like videos and memes. You will examine these texts in terms of their structure, the words used within them, and their impact on the reader (introducing you to the linguistic concepts of lexis, semantics, syntax, grammar and pragmatics). In doing this you will develop core skills in data collection and analysis, and in summarising and evaluating key findings.
This module will provide you with the knowledge and skills to identify and discuss examples of literature which are drawn from different cultural contexts. You will study a range of texts which will provide you with a broad knowledge of the relationship between literature and culture and you will identify and discuss the ways in which literary form has been adapted and appropriated to accommodate different cultural contexts and the retelling of canonical tales. You will do this by studying a range of paired texts which offer contrasting and often competing viewpoints and which reflect upon both literature’s place within the world and its power to shape the world.
This module will provide you with the knowledge and skills to identify and discuss specific examples of literature as part of major literary movements within a specific historical context. You will study a range of texts which will provide you with a broad knowledge of how they respond to their own time period and to literary movements specific to that age. As you will study literature from different time periods you will also be able to draw connections between different literary movements and discuss their relationship to one another. You will also focus on different literary genres, for example plays, novels, poems and nonfiction, and be able to identify their specific formal features and discuss their creative use.
This module will provide you with the knowledge and skills to identify appropriate research methods and material for the study of English. You will learn how to select research material, discriminate between sources, evaluate their relevance and summarise and explain key ideas. You will do this by developing skills which are integral to the study of English at university-level, such as close reading, critical analysis and data compilation and evaluation.
This module will develop the research skills acquired in the semester 1 module ‘Researching in English’ by focusing on the practical application of your knowledge and ideas through the production of a series of formative pieces of academic writing, which will culminate in the submission of a longer length piece of written work. You will develop core subject skills in the effective communication of ideas and will progress from writing about concrete objects to discussing abstract ideas. To do this you will focus on integral steps such as planning and ordering ideas, prioritising points, developing ideas, relating points to evidence and formulating and communicating clear arguments. You will also develop your knowledge of scholarly conventions and matters of presentation.
Year one
In order to complete this course you must successfully complete all the following CORE modules (totalling 100 credits):
This module will introduce you to some of the key topics in contemporary linguistics and language studies, such as pragmatics, sociolinguistics, and psycholinguistics. You will learn to apply linguistic concepts and terminology to real-life examples of spoken and written language in use. You will study a wide range of analytical frameworks which will deepen your understanding of the structural characteristics of English, and will be introduced to the role language plays in other areas of English studies and the humanities. The module will help you develop your skills in critical thinking, in analysing different forms of data, in identifying and synthesising information from a variety of sources, and in presenting your findings in a coherent and well-organised way.
This module will introduce you to how theoretical texts and literary criticism can improve the tools with which we carry out close reading. Each week we will read a theoretical text that covers a different concept and learn how to apply that knowledge to literary writing. You will develop the skills to close read and analyse both primary texts (literature) and secondary texts (criticism and theory). This module will help you to critically reflect on both types of text, as well as on what we bring to a text when we read it, and to pay careful attention to literary form, style, and genre.
This module is designed to help you to develop an understanding of Freedom of Expression and the way it is balanced by the legal, regulatory and ethical constraints on news reporting and the media in general. It is specifically designed for journalists and other media professionals in that it approaches law and ethics from a journalistic perspective rather than that of a lawyer.
In Live Newsroom 1 you’ll be introduced to the core skills of journalism production, such as news gathering and news production. In the first phase of the module you’ll explore the organisational structures and roles within journalism newsrooms, before being introduced to the basic concepts of structuring stories and creating content using different formats. You’ll then put these into practice in semester 2 with a series of regular live digital production days designed to help you develop a practical knowledge of the skills required to work as a mobile journalist with a real audience and real deadlines to adhere to.
In order to complete this course you must successfully complete at least 20 credits from the following indicative list of OPTIONAL modules:
This module will introduce you to a number of advanced topics in contemporary linguistics and language studies, such as phonetics, grammar, and corpus linguistics. You will expand your knowledge of linguistic concepts and terminology and develop your ability to apply this knowledge in the analysis of real-life examples of spoken and written language in use. You will be introduced to the phonetic and grammatical characteristics of English and you will analyse these phenomena in context. The module will help you develop your skills in critical thinking, in analysing different forms of data, in identifying and synthesising information from a variety of sources, and in presenting your findings in a coherent and well-organised way.
In this module, you will explore key elements of effective writing, such as character, setting, action and dialogue, and the techniques used to create and control style on the page, such as showing and telling, detail and description, imagery and viewpoint. You will examine each element or technique in a given text and then apply what you have learned in your own writing. Each lecture and workshop will inform a different element of your writing technique, feeding into three new pieces of writing to be submitted for assessment at the end of the semester. This module provides a strong foundation for further study and practice in creative writing in years 2 and 3.
This module focuses on a period of theatre history characterised by formal innovation and revolutionary ideas. You will learn about the intersection between notions of ‘modernity’ and dramaturgical styles associated with ‘modernism’. You will engage with the artistic movements that developed in Europe from the late nineteenth century and identify key playwrights and practitioners that brought significant changes to the stage, on the continent and in Britain. You will examine seminal works from this era, both as written texts and in performance, concluding the process with your own practical interpretation of a chosen play, which will be informed by historical and critical research.
This module seeks to engage you with a focused analysis of poetry, drama, the novella and the novel as specific forms and to equip you with the scholarly tools used to investigate them. We will examine a range of genres and periods, exploring the concept of conflict from war and revolution to social class and gender, as well as at a psychological level. Conflict creates dramatic interest in narrative, but many forms of criticism assume that conflict should ideally be resolved. We will query this and consider how more overtly ideological criticism might explore the contradictions within a text and disclose what the text itself cannot say. This may lead to questioning of conflict, resolution and even how a historical understanding of conflict is important in our contemporary world.
Core modules are guaranteed to run. Optional modules will vary from year to year and the published list is indicative only.
Year two
In order to complete this course you must successfully complete all the following CORE modules (totalling 80 credits):
This module examines different forms of writing that engage critically and creatively with ‘nature’ and the ‘environment’. This module will enhance your understanding of reading and writing as practices through which people develop and debate their understanding of the world, and the place of people within it.
In this module you’ll explore alternative formats and examine the way they are challenging the traditional platforms of journalism. You will get the chance to engage with tools such as Snapchat, Youtube and Whatsapp to examine how traditional journalism is being influenced and reshaped by linear and digital platforms. This module combines theoretical study with practical production and requires students to demonstrate critical insight through research and apply knowledge by producing well-made products for a specific client or audience. The aim is to enhance your understanding of the industry and then help you to recognise how this can improve the quality of your creative and technical skills. Being able to grasp and operate within this expanding sector of the media industries will also help prepare you for the Journalism Major Product where you will face similar dilemmas and tensions between the conflicting interests at play in media production.
This module will build on the skills and knowledge you have learned in the Live Newsroom 1 module, by introducing new techniques and more collaborative, multi-platform reporting. You will work as part of a reporting team tackling production days across multiple outlets and platforms. You’ll also be working to real-world briefs to enable you to plan and produce content in response to original industry challenges. This will give you the chance to learn about planning coverage of key events and issues in depth via a series of stories. Students will also be required to embark and reflect on a work placement as part of this module. This will allow you to create a reflective evaluation of your progression through both the module and the placement you have undertaken, creating an understanding of your own learning and producing a plan for future development.
In order to complete this course you must successfully complete at least 40 credits from the following list of OPTIONAL modules:
This module explores two concepts central to our understanding of what makes us ‘modern’: gender and sexuality. We will challenge ‘common sense’ understandings of gender and sexuality by interrogating cultural identities, such as queer, heterosexual, homosexual, gay, lesbian, straight and trans. It will introduce you to gender studies and sexuality studies as theoretical, social, cultural, political and historical fields of investigation. There will be a broadly chronological approach to texts and theoretical approaches, moving between examples of twentieth-century fiction, popular culture and theory. You will be given an introduction to literature, culture, and theory as a dynamic field in which issues of gender and sexuality are debated and explored. We will begin by considering where studies of gender and sexuality stood at the start of the twentieth century, and then consider how a number of literary and theoretical texts explore and investigate gender and sexuality. Through these texts we will consider topics such as desire, identity, sexual classification, repression and liberation, the body, transgression, and normality and deviance.
This module will provide you with the knowledge and skills to critically evaluate the representation and function of the child and childhood in both literature for the child and that for an adult audience. You will study a range of texts which will provide you with a broad historical knowledge of the changing role and function of the child in literature and which you will read alongside sociological, philosophical or educational treatise on childhood. In doing so you will gain a broad historical knowledge of the development of ‘theories of childhood’ from the eighteenth century to the present day and examine how these are engaged with in the literature of the day. You will be able to identify and evaluate how literature has conversely figured childhood as a space of discipline, regulation, play, innocence, higher moral purity, and lived social experience. You will be able to apply these ideas to theoretically informed, critically evaluative readings of a range of texts.
Multicultural Writing focuses on the history of British multiculturalism in literature and criticism from the 1950s up to the present day. Exploring a range of Black, Asian and other multicultural writing, you will develop a critical awareness of how literature and criticism deal with questions of racism, stereotyping, colonial discourse, cultural hybridity, migration and asylum. The overall aim of the module is to develop your aesthetic, critical and historical awareness that will inform your critical thinking about, and imaginative responses to, contemporary multiculturalism. The module spans a diverse set of literary texts (poems, short stories, novels) produced primarily by ‘minority’ writers in Britain since the post-war era (e.g. Black, Asian and other groups who belong to the less established immigrant groups in Britain today). You will study these texts alongside relevant histories of migration, theories of representation, and critical debates about multiculturalism.
This module will provide you with knowledge of key social, political, religious and theatrical contexts relating to literature from the Early Modern period. You will combine this knowledge with key critical and textual analysis tools that will give you the skills to examine several historical, dramatic and poetic texts from the late fifteenth to the early eighteenth centuries. You will focus on the vital role of the early modern period in the formation and transformation of an English literary canon, and discuss key concepts such as materiality, versionality, collaboration and authorship. To do so, you will develop an ability to read closely and analyse textually the language and the literary techniques and devices of this key period, as well as formative skills in archive management.
This module will teach you the essential skills of, and principles behind, the writing of short films. Although these principles apply primarily to screenwriting for film and television, this module will instead be concerned with the writing of short films. You will study a number of freely available short guides to screenplay layout and formatting and be trained in the practical application of screenplay formatting software. You will write three short scripts, given as fortnightly writing exercises, and receive detailed formative feedback on one of the scripts, which you can use to improve and develop your work for your final portfolio. You will focus on visual storytelling, layout conventions, and the issue of writing to scale (budget). You will also be encouraged to analyse, but also critique, dramatic construction in terms of character function, motivation and genre.
The United Kingdom commissions, produces and broadcasts more audio drama – i.e. online, on digital and on radio – than any other country in the world. In this diverse and dynamic medium, writers are able to tell human stories set anywhere in time and space, at a fraction of the cost of television and film production. What’s more – as an old industry saying goes – ‘you see it better on radio’. In this module you will learn how to write compelling audio drama scripts, and engage practically and theoretically with the key principles and techniques involved. You will also be introduced to editorial collaboration, the pitching of projects, and appropriate methods of presentation. Through your workshops, you will learn how to communicate ideas clearly, accurately and effectively both orally and in writing. In devising, developing and writing your own audio drama scripts, you will initiate, manage and complete an independent creative project.
This module will provide you with knowledge and critical understanding of one of the most enduring forms of socially engaged performance: documentary drama. You will study different styles of factbased drama for stage and television, both historical and contemporary, and will be able to identify associated traditions such as ‘tribunal’, ‘verbatim’ and ‘testimonial’ plays; ‘dramadoc’ and ‘docudrama’. You will discuss the balance between fact and fiction in documentary work, the ethical dilemmas and responsibilities involved in creating drama from real-life stories, and the political and artistic value of this type of performance. You will apply this knowledge to the development of your own documentary project, derived from factual material to be compiled, shaped and delivered as a stage performance.
This module will introduce you to the different intersections of language and society and outline the ways in which language can vary according to class, gender, and age. You will develop your understanding of how to collect, analyse and present language data and results in an ethically responsible and methodologically sound way. You will also examine how language is used to construct social identities, the role of language in wider contemporary society and how sociolinguistic research can be utilised in a non-academic context. You will develop your skills of visual communication, data analysis and data presentation, alongside a careful understanding of the body of research literature within sociolinguistics and how it informs your own work. This module will ultimately allow you to critically evaluate different approaches to the study of linguistic variation and apply your knowledge in designing a research project to investigate language in society.
OR to pursue the Journalism route, you can choose to successfully complete at least 20 credits from the following list of OPTIONAL modules:
This optional module will help prepare you for undertaking a drama related final Major Project in your final year, in either radio or television.
Studying the Bi-Media Drama module will enable you to develop specialist, and integrated skills in radio and television drama production. You will undertake a series of practical workshops, including developing ideas for drama, structuring dramas, directing fiction for radio and television, producing actors, foley work, audio mixing, camera movement.
This module will help prepare you for undertaking a television studio related final Major Project in your final year.
Studying the Television Studio module will enable you to develop editorial and integrated skills in television studio production. You will undertake a series of practical workshops, including developing ideas for entertainment, magazine and chat show formats and content, the commissioning process, production team structures and roles, casting presenters and contributors, celebrity booking processes, research and editorial skills, scriptwriting, commissioning music and graphics and the technical framework and processes for studio production.
This module explores the emerging media which sits at the boundary between journalism and public relations. You will consider the range of different motivations which drive this type of media production and how they influence both the product and process of creation.
Campaigning and Investigation Journalism is an optional module for all journalism specialists which provides a grounding in key concepts and techniques in the process of journalistic investigations and campaigns.
The ways in which we consume, conceptualise, and interact with music is being constantly redefined in the face of rapid technological change. This Level 5 module, Music, Media, and Digitalisation invites you to engage with a range of contemporary arguments and challenges relating to the digitalisation of music as a media form, and to consider the implications that these arguments and challenges bring to bear on the ways in which you, and others, understand and engage with music.
On this module you will explore the topics of innovation, online community and interactivity through consideration of new and emerging media distribution techniques. You will experiment with new forms of storytelling and will look at a range of distribution tools and networks.
This module is available as an option to all students who wish to advance their graphic design abilities.
A series of skills workshops and directed study tasks will enable you to refine your understanding of the principles of graphic design and develop your ability to apply those principles within the context of your own practice. During the course of this workshop, you will explore professional working practices and current creative stylistic approaches with due consideration to client needs, key practitioners, and current and future developments that inform production.
Building upon on a number of media production skills established at Level 4, Music Industries Promotional Practices will introduce you to concepts, principles, and practices related to the promotion of music, and musical acts. In this module you will explore and develop promotion and PR techniques and gain insight into how music industries workers build successful working relationships with music and other interrelated media.
This module develops a ‘real world’ understanding of contemporary approaches to commercial production for radio and audio platforms. Topics include idea generation, producing scripts / copy, multi-track digital editing, use of music and sound effects, voice over / talent production, pitching concepts, and scheduling principles.
This module will encourage you to develop original ideas for innovative radio documentaries, within a recognised professional industry context. You will identify a clear target audience for your work. You will produce an individual, self-contained radio documentary with an accompanying reflective written report. A live presentation will showcase your documentary concept and its audience / station in a mock ‘commissioning’ style pitch.
This module is for students wishing to further their photographic abilities. You will explore the professional working practices and creative stylistic approaches specific to fashion photography with due consideration to the fashion media, client needs, key practitioners, as well as current and future developments that inform production.
This module is for students wishing to further their photographic abilities, exploring the professional working practices and the visual language specific to photojournalism with due consideration to the context in which photojournalists and documentary photographers, music photographers and sports photographers operate within the media industries. You will continue to develop camera, lighting and post-processing techniques to a more advanced and appropriate professional level as a complementary skillset to your media interests.
PR Planning and Delivery develops the planning and delivery skills needed to undertake a Public Relations Major Project at Level 6.
Primarily based in workshop sessions, this module helps you to explore a wider range of tools and techniques used by the PR industry to develop campaign proposals and persuade clients to adopt them. You will learn how to employ a variety of techniques to audit and evaluate the persuasive communication needs of a range of organisations and use this information to build strategies for change and improvement.
Core modules are guaranteed to run. Optional modules will vary from year to year and the published list is indicative only.
Year three
In order to complete this course you must successfully complete all the following CORE modules (totalling 80 credits):
This module will build on the learning you have undertaken during the earlier Live Newsroom modules. You will work as part of a senior reporting team in your area of specialism to plan coverage of key events and issues. You will work on live industry briefs, identifying different methods of storytelling to cover a newsworthy issue or issues in depth. This will involve working collaboratively with other students and organisations to ensure coverage is comprehensive in all areas. You will be able to identify areas of interest across news, sport, music and fashion to create your own compelling narrative around these issues through the use of a range of journalism techniques developed during your previous modules. Students will be encouraged to experiment and innovate in order to find ways to connect with contemporary sources and audiences. You will be expected to pitch your chosen idea and coverage plan to your peers in order to seek support and advice alongside the traditional formative feedback methods. Students will also have the opportunity to work collaboratively with students across different levels of study where necessary in order to enhance and support the ideas being developed and pursued.
Over three years of study, Global & Community Impact aims to develop skills that enable students to identify issues which impact global and or local communities and the organisations that attempt to work in these contexts. Through a mixture of critical research, journalistic practice and critical reflection, students will apply the skills and knowledge they learn to a range of relevant journalistic debates, environments and media. This will assist them in becoming flexible, resilient and reflective journalists who can produce a range of work across multiple platforms, which has both a global and/ or local community impact.
Major Project: English – Advanced Poetry
Major Project: English Dissertation
Major Project: Drama Workshop
Major Project: English – Conference
Major Project: English and Journalism – Media Portfolio
In order to complete this course you must successfully complete at least 40 credits from the following list of OPTIONAL modules.
This module will provide you with the knowledge and skills to critically analyse linguistic data and apply the results of the analysis to legal settings, focusing mainly on legal discourse, courtroom discourse, police interviewing, authorship analysis, and plagiarism detection. You will study a wide range of topics which will provide you with a broad understanding of different sub-disciplines of forensic linguistics and language and the law, each with its own methodological approach. You will develop skills necessary for interdisciplinary research at the intersection of linguistics, forensic sciences, legal studies and psychology. You will focus on how to ensure your data is representative, to develop robust methodological approach, and to present your results in a logical way meeting the requirements set by relevant bodies in a range of legal contexts.
With the study of ethics at its heart, this module draws on the wide range of intellectual disciplines which are used to understand and critique both longstanding and current issues with moral and political dimensions. It seeks to foster the capacity for independent thought, critical awareness of other perspectives, and an ability to think through the wider picture. In doing so the module assists in articulating the value of the humanities in a democracy as well as developing an appreciation of the values of citizenship, especially in terms of the challenges and opportunities which globalisation gives rise to. The module will enable you to write about contemporary moral and political issues for an educated general readership in a way that is both serious and engaging. As such, it forms a crucial link between the experience of academic study and its application to a range of graduate careers.
The module explores the relationship between literature and the development of psychological thought in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries before the advent of laboratory-based experimental work. Ideas about character formation which inform the literary examination of character in nineteenthcentury poetry and prose will be placed in the context of philosophical and scientific descriptions of mental development during the period. The connections between nineteenth-century psychology and "pseudo-scientific" discourses such as phrenology and mesmerism will also come under scrutiny, as will the close relationship between psychology and Victorian medical discourse.
What if a book was discovered that revealed an advanced alien civilisation? What if humans could merge with machines? What if the world were slowly crystallising around us? What if humanity had all but destroyed itself? The ‘what if’ in these questions signals a moment of hesitation, a gap that opens up between what is and what could be. This is speculation. Speculation is something we all do. It allows us to reimagine the past, recontextualise the present and consider new futures. It can be a liberating but also a destabilising activity because it asks us to question the ways in which we make sense of who we are and the world around us. In this module you will consider how literature can be a vehicle for speculation. You will be able to identify the formal literary techniques and devices used to enable speculation and then apply them to a series of texts from the late twentieth century and twenty-first century to consider how these can help us think about new pasts, new societies, new identities and new futures.
The module is based on experimental and experiential techniques allowing you to encounter TEFL teaching methods, as well as improve your knowledge of phonetics and phonology, grammar and vocabulary, syntax and punctuation. The module will equip you with a solid understanding of TEFL approaches alongside a practical skill set for planning lessons and courses, assessing language proficiency, facilitating the learning process, and managing classroom dynamics. The module will help you utilise skills and linguistic knowledge gained during your first two years of study in the applied settings of teaching English as a second/foreign language. You will also draw on literature, drama and creative writing strands of the programme due to the emphasis on the inherent value of cultural and literary experiences in the foreign language acquisition process. You will focus on developing engaging teaching materials for potential learners and practise completing tasks similar to those required as part of the interview selection process for TEFL jobs. Throughout the module, special emphasis will be placed on continuous professional development as well as identifying career options in the UK and abroad. You will be provided with several voluntary opportunities, including providing language support for international students, teaching English classes for international students within the Faculty, or observing commercial classes in Birmingham.
This module focuses on literature in the gothic tradition from its inception through to the present day. During the module, the development of the gothic form will be traced from its origins through to recent manifestations of the genre. Gothic literature often reflects social and cultural trends as well as providing a space to manifest cultural anxieties, expressing a society’s suppressed desires and fears in an acceptable literary form. Such texts can therefore be read not only as escapist, but as serious texts which seek to express often radical, socially unacceptable or psychologically-submerged ideas. The module will enable you to identify these undercurrents as well as to explore the major themes and aesthetics of the genre. You will be encouraged to interrogate texts with an eye to these issues, including those of gender, race and class, and to contextualise the texts in order to analyse and understand the changing concept of Gothic.
This module introduces you to writing creative nonfiction. You will investigate the nature of creative nonfiction, exploring the distinctive issues it raises for writers in recent published works and in the original writing you produce during the module; these issues include the ethical considerations involved in drawing from real-life subjects as source material, the nature of truth, the role of research, and the interplay between ‘fact’ and ‘fiction’.
Core modules are guaranteed to run. Optional modules will vary from year to year and the published list is indicative only.
Download course specification
Download nowThe programme combines traditional teaching and learning approaches with innovative, multi-platform learning support, grounded in a student-partnership model which will encourage engagement beyond the scope of the course and ensure that students develop key transferable skills to enhance their employment.
The modules you study will involve critical analysis, investigative skills and imaginative thinking.
In your first year, you will focus on developing core knowledge, including theory and practice-based elements, across English Studies. In the second half of year one, you will be able to specialise further in your chosen area of study, and expand on that in your second and third-year modules.
You’ll study a blend of practical production modules, sourcing, developing, designing and publishing real stories, and learning the art of crafting a compelling story.
We maintain close contacts with a variety of media, including Sky, BBC, Maverick Television and Future Publishing, which means you’ll benefit from masterclass sessions from visiting tutors and guest speakers, to enhance and enrich your learning.
Your professional studies will prepare you for at least two placements – previous students have worked with organisations such as the BBC, Maverick Television, Warwickshire County Cricket Club, newspapers, magazines, PR companies and local radio stations.
Teaching and learning activities
Teaching and learning activities may include lectures, seminars, workshops, field trips and guided independent study. You will also have access to a wide range of extracurricular opportunities, including seminars by prestigious guest speakers and published authors, and a programme of scholarly and creative events. Online facilities, such as the University’s Virtual Learning Environment Moodle, are used to guide, support and enhance your learning experience. You will benefit from tutorial support and spoken or written feedback on your learning and preliminary work to help you in preparing for and reflecting on your assignments. A wide range of assessment methods are used in the programme, including essays, presentations, exhibitions, conferences and creative portfolios, giving you the opportunity to develop a wide range of skills.
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.
77 per cent of research undertaken by lecturers from the School of English, classed as world-leading or internationally excellent.
The Research Excellence Framework (REF2014)
Student work
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.
Employability
Enhancing Employability skills
Employability is embedded across our programme, from sector and industry-specific skills in creative writing, drama, linguistics and literature, through to transferable skills that hold real value regardless of your employment direction.
These skills include literacy and numeracy, time management and organisation, oral and written communication, team work, initiative and enterprise, creative and analytical thinking, self-direction and discipline, independence, information gathering and interpersonal skills.
You will have multiple opportunities to engage in problem solving and problem-based learning, particularly through individual assessments and collaborative practice modules, and to reflect on your own career development needs through participating in the Graduate+ scheme and other employability schemes over the course of your degree.
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.
As one of our graduates, your skills will be very highly sought after because we teach valued transferable skills, in addition to providing solid academic grounding and practical skills in real-world application.
Our modules regularly adapt to cover live news events as they happen. For example, our students have covered general election counts across the region through the night alongside staff and professional journalists.
Because we use industry-standard software and equipment, and focus on creating content for a modern world, you’ll be capable of covering a story for any outlet and have the adaptable skills necessary to thrive in this fast-paced industry.
Placements
The university is committed to developing strong links with employers in Birmingham and the West Midlands. Several language and creative writing modules have explicit employer and industry engagement, where you work in collaboration with employer and external partners over the course of the semester, and are encouraged to adopt industry-standard practices to facilitate connections and links independently with external partners.
In the case of the work placement module, you will have the opportunity to develop skills and abilities in a sector-specific context, while ensuring that academic aims and objectives are met as part of your wider learning journey.
You’ll be expected to undertake at least two placements during your course, a two-week placement in your first year and a three-week placement in your second year. You’ll identify which placement will suit your needs – some of our previous students have chosen to work at newspapers, while others have opted for magazines and independent online publishers.
Placements should reflect the broadening horizons of journalism through such organisations as hyper local publications, or websites and specialist publications.
Links to industry
We regularly seek out opportunities to build further links with partner organisations in the region, including Creative Black Country, Birmingham Literary Festival, Birmingham Museums Trust (including Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery), Black Country Museum Trust, Arvon Creative Writing Foundation, Flatpack Film Festival, West Midlands Screenwriters' Forum, and other Schools within the University, in addition to publishers, charities, third sector organisations, and more, in Birmingham and beyond.
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.
International
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.
Facilities & Staff
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.
You will study at both the home of the School of English in Millennium Point, and at our £63 million development the Curzon Building, located on our City Centre campus in the vibrant second city that is Birmingham.
Discover your bright and open learning spaces, your 24 hour (during term time) library, drama, media and radio studios, along with state of the art lecture theatres, and a variety of sociable break-out areas, all adding to your unique learning experience.
Our staff
Dr Sarah Wood
Head of English and Media
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.
More about SarahProfessor Andrew Kehoe
Professor of Corpus Linguistics / Director of Research
Andrew Kehoe is Professor of Corpus Linguistics and Director of Research in English. He studied at the University of Liverpool, gaining qualifications in both English and Computer Science. He researches in the field of Corpus Linguistics: the creation and study of a collection of texts (or corpus) in order to extract new knowledge about language in...
More about AndrewDr Joseph Anderton
Reader in Modern and Contemporary Literature
Joseph Anderton is the author of Beckett’s Creatures: Art of Failure after the Holocaust (Bloomsbury, 2016), which considers conceptions of the ‘creature’ and ‘creaturely life’ as they appear in Samuel Beckett’s literature and drama. Joe is currently working on his second book, Writing Homelessness: Rough Sleeping in Contemporary...
More about JosephDr Soudabeh Ananisarab
Lecturer in Drama
Dr Soudabeh Ananisarab studied at the University of Nottingham where she completed an MA in English Literature (Distinction) and a PhD in English. Her Doctoral thesis explored the development of the Malvern Theatre Festival during the interwar years and its connections with the playwright, George Bernard Shaw. Soudabeh has previously taught at the...
More about SoudabehDave Harte
Deputy Head of English and Media 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...
More about DaveRoss 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...
More about Ross