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Songwriting and Music Production

Entry requirements


UCAS Tariff

88-112

About this course


Course option

3years

Full-time | 2024

Subject

Music production

Do you have a passion for song writing? Do you want to make a career out of it? Our course gives you the opportunity to access expert guidance and the space to focus on, and hone, your craft. Develop your song writing skills to a professional standard, whilst learning about the process behind the art form, from recording and music promotion to making money from your songs.

**Why study at Buckinghamshire New University?**
As BNU has been delivering courses in the music industry for over 25 years, we have a wealth of expertise from within our network of lecturing staff, guest speakers, and alumni, all with a track record of success in a wide variety of roles in the music business internationally.

Like the industry, we put collaboration at the centre of what we do. You will get the chance to work with other BNU courses, such as the Film and TV students. You’ll record sound and work on post-production which will give you experience of working with a wide variety of genres to help you perfect your production skills. During your time with us you’ll learn hands-on practical skills to help you stand out to potential employers. You’ll get to grips with industry-standard equipment including in our Dolby Atmos certified sound lab, ensuring upon graduation you are prepared for your first role. You’ll also benefit from our work-opportunities. Previous students have worked with companies such as Sony, Sennheiser and Universal Music.

All our music degrees at Buckinghamshire New University come with membership of UK Music’s Music Academic Partnership (MAP), a ground-breaking collaboration between educational institutions and UK Music.

By the time you graduate, you’ll have the ability to project manage yourself and a portfolio crammed with real life experience.

Opportunity modules are a key part of the BNU curriculum. You’ll choose modules in both your first and second year from a broad selection in areas such as sustainability, entrepreneurship, creativity, digital skills, personal growth, civic engagement, health & wellbeing and employment. Opportunity modules are designed to enable you to develop outside the traditional boundaries of your discipline and help you to further stand out from the crowd to future employers.

**What facilities can I use?**
Our state-of-the-art recording studios and Dolby Atmos certified sound lab, give you access to the space and technology you need. From individual edit rooms up to large Pro Tools Ultimate studios with attached live rooms and vocal booths, we have it all to help you gain hands-on experience. Visit the course website for full details of our top-quality suppliers and studio equipment: https://www.bucks.ac.uk/courses/undergraduate/ba-hons-songwriting-and-music-production

**What will I study?**
You’ll learn how to develop your song writing skills to a professional standard by working on your material with our experienced tutors. You’ll explore a variety of techniques for writing songs, to help you maximise your creative potential and find a method that works for you. You’ll study audio production and recording, so that you can become confident at producing recordings of your own work as well as other people’s.

You’ll also learn how to monetise and promote your creativity. As part of this, you’ll have the opportunity to study artist management, music publishing (with a placement option), music law, A&R (artist & repertoire), sociological issues related to music and the music industry, and how to build your brand as a professional song writer. You’ll learn about a number of DIY approaches to the music business, and explore other areas of music entrepreneurship too, such as sources of funding and how to set yourself up as a business.

You will take part in shared master classes and attend guest lectures with our industry partners and associates, including professional song writers and music publishers, who’ll share the latest insights and expert knowledge with you.

Modules

**Year One**
**Core Modules**
Audio Production Technologies
Entertainment Industry Framework
Live Audio
Performance Practice & Reflection
Recording & Mixing Techniques
**Opportunity Modules**
You must choose 2 x 10 credit Level 4 Opportunity modules from the Opportunity module catalogue.

**Year Two**
**Core Modules**
Creative Audio Production
Research Methods
Songwriting Techniques 1
**Optional Modules**
Advanced Performance Practice & Reflection
Artist Management
Electronic Production Techniques
Music Publishing
Music Publishing (Placement)
The Music Entrepreneur
**Opportunity Modules**
In addition, you must choose 2 x 10 credit Level 5 Opportunity modules from the Opportunity module catalogue.

**Year Three**
**Core Modules**
Dissertation/Independent Work
Songwriting Techniques 2
**Optional Modules**
A&R: Artist & Repertoire Content for the Music Industry
Creative Audio Project
Creative Performance Technology
Digital Marketing
Entertainment Law
Immersive Audio Techniques
Industry Issues
Mosh Pit Politics
Performance Application & Strategy
Professional Production Project

Assessment methods

Our teaching staff have a wealth of professional and academic experience, with many still actively working in the music industry. You’ll also engage with our dynamic programme of visiting lectures and can benefit from live project briefs, master classes, and plenty of networking opportunities. You’ll also benefit from our expert-lecturers who have a wealth of knowledge and experience within the industry in fields such as music publishing and A&R ('artist & repertoire').

You’ll study in a close-knit tutor group where everyone’s input is recognised and valued. Not only will you make friends for life, you’ll also make important connections that will last through your career, and you’ll form a network, just like you’d find in the working-world.

A variety of assessment vehicles will be used as appropriate to the modules you take, including assignments carried out in your own time, in-class assignments, workshops and presentations. Assessments will be appropriate to the task, achievable, motivating and vocationally focussed, forming a constructive part of your learning process.

Tuition fees

Select where you currently live to see what you'll pay:

Channel Islands
£9,250
per year
England
£9,250
per year
EU
£15,000
per year
International
£15,000
per year
Northern Ireland
£9,250
per year
Republic of Ireland
£9,250
per year
Scotland
£9,250
per year
Wales
£9,250
per year

Extra funding

Buckinghamshire New University offers a range of bursaries and scholarships. For more information, please visit https://www.bucks.ac.uk/study/fees-and-funding/financial-support-bursaries-and-scholarships

The Uni


Course location:

Buckinghamshire New University

Department:

School of Creative And Digital Industries

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What students say


We've crunched the numbers to see if overall student satisfaction here is high, medium or low compared to students studying this subject(s) at other universities.

71%
Music production

How do students rate their degree experience?

The stats below relate to the general subject area/s at this university, not this specific course. We show this where there isn’t enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

Music

Teaching and learning

71%
Staff make the subject interesting
86%
Staff are good at explaining things
77%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
78%
Opportunities to apply what I've learned

Assessment and feedback

Feedback on work has been timely
Feedback on work has been helpful
Staff are contactable when needed
Good advice available when making study choices

Resources and organisation

78%
Library resources
70%
IT resources
64%
Course specific equipment and facilities
43%
Course is well organised and has run smoothly

Student voice

Staff value students' opinions
Feel part of a community on my course

Who studies this subject and how do they get on?

72%
UK students
28%
International students
73%
Male students
27%
Female students
71%
2:1 or above
20%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

B
C
D

After graduation


The stats in this section relate to the general subject area/s at this university – not this specific course. We show this where there isn't enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

Music

What are graduates doing after six months?

This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.

£18,000
med
Average annual salary
98%
med
Employed or in further education

Top job areas of graduates

24%
Sales, marketing and related associate professionals
16%
Artistic, literary and media occupations
8%
Other elementary services occupations

What about your long term prospects?

Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.

Music

The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.

£15k

£15k

£18k

£18k

£20k

£20k

Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.

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This information comes from the National Student Survey, an annual student survey of final-year students. You can use this to see how satisfied students studying this subject area at this university, are (not the individual course).

This is the percentage of final-year students at this university who were "definitely" or "mostly" satisfied with their course. We've analysed this figure against other universities so you can see whether this is high, medium or low.

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This information is from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), for undergraduate students only.

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Post-six month graduation stats:

This is from the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education Survey, based on responses from graduates who studied the same subject area here.

It offers a snapshot of what grads went on to do six months later, what they were earning on average, and whether they felt their degree helped them obtain a 'graduate role'. We calculate a mean rating to indicate if this is high, medium or low compared to other universities.

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Graduate field commentary:

The Higher Education Careers Services Unit have provided some further context for all graduates in this subject area, including details that numbers alone might not show

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The Longitudinal Educational Outcomes dataset combines HRMC earnings data with student records from the Higher Education Statistics Agency.

While there are lots of factors at play when it comes to your future earnings, use this as a rough timeline of what graduates in this subject area were earning on average one, three and five years later. Can you see a steady increase in salary, or did grads need some experience under their belt before seeing a nice bump up in their pay packet?

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