Journalism and Media with Foundation Year

UCAS code: PP5H

Here's what Birkbeck, University of London says about its Journalism and Media with Foundation Year course.

Are you a budding journalist keen to acquire practical journalistic skills? Do you want to gain a sophisticated understanding of the rapidly changing fields of journalism and media? If so, our BA Journalism and Media is ideal with its combination of academic analysis and practical teaching from experienced industry professionals.

Why choose this course?

• This BA Journalism and Media gives you the opportunity to gain an independent, university-level qualification focused on strategic and advanced skills. Not only will you gain practical knowledge of the journalism field, you will also gain cutting-edge skills needed to build, manage and navigate a career within today's media landscape.

• The course offers you the insights afforded by an academic undergraduate degree that investigates the political, social and cultural dimensions of news and media as well as allowing you to master the full range of vocational skills required to work across different genres, mediums and platforms of journalism and media production.

• Depending on your interests and career aspirations, you can also specialise in digital media by taking specific modules to gain a BA Journalism and Digital Media.

What you will learn

This course offers you a unique multidisciplinary approach, challenging you to develop an understanding of the political, historical, cultural and social contexts in which journalists operate, take advantage of new opportunities and develop your own specialism and voice. This academic emphasis is complemented by practical modules in which you will learn how to write, create, design, research and curate across a range of journalistic specialisations, genres and platforms.

How you will learn

We offer you a combination of lectures, seminars and workshops with an emphasis on interaction and engagement. Academic modules draw on theoretical traditions that harness the history of ideas to understanding the myriad issues we face today. You will engage with authors from a wide range of disciplines including politics, cultural studies and sociology.

Our practical modules are taught by established media professionals who will equip you with the skills you need to write, research and communicate as a journalist, as well as how to design and produce print publications, audio and video.

The course is offered for full-time study. It has an evening timetable with lectures, seminars and classes taking place in the evening.

Foundation Year

If you opt for the Foundation Year route, this will fully prepare you for undergraduate study. It is ideal if you are returning to study after a gap, or if you have not previously studied the relevant subjects, or if you didn't achieve the grades you need for a place on your chosen undergraduate degree.

Highlights

• Acquire up-to-date skills and knowledge from experienced practitioners at the heart of London's global media industry and leading academic researchers in the field.

• Attend our dynamic programme of seminars, events and guest lecturers organised by affiliated research centres and networks.

• In film, media and cultural studies, Birkbeck offers an extensive portfolio of internationally respected courses that span journalism, media and cultural theory, arts policy and management, film and television studies, creative marketing, digital culture and East Asian cultural studies.

• Birkbeck was ranked as one of the top four universities in the UK for its Art and Design research in the 2021 Research Excellence Framework.

Careers and employability

On successfully graduating from this BA, you will have gained an array of transferable skills, including:

• a critical ability in the use of theoretical perspectives

• research, analysis and project management skills

• fluency with academic concepts and theories.

Graduates can pursue career paths in:

• journalism

• media

• public relations

• creative industries.

For information about course structure and the modules you will be studying, please visit Birkbeck’s online prospectus.

Academic essays, journalistic writing, audio/visual productions, blogging, mind maps, conceptual representations and digital media projects.