Journalism
De Montfort University
UCAS Code: P500 | Bachelor of Arts (with Honours) - BA (Hons)
Entry requirements
Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)
UCAS Tariff
from at least 2 A-Levels Five GCSEs A*-C (9-4) including English Language or Literature or equivalent.
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About this course
Accredited by the National Council for the Training of Journalists (NCTJ), Journalism BA (Hons) at De Montfort University prepares you for employment in professional journalism. The course has been designed to provide you with the knowledge and skills to become a professionally qualified, multi-platform journalist. It is taught by a range of respected and award-winning professionals and academic teaching staff from within the Journalism industry. As part of this course you will have the opportunity to contribute work to our award-winning student-led Demon Media, giving you the a platform to develop your work experience through working with The Demon newspaper, Demon FM community radio station, Demon TV and the Demon. Journalism was awarded 91% overall satisfaction in the National Student Survey 2018, and 85.7% of our Journalism graduates from summer 2017 are in work or further study after graduating according to the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education (DLHE) 2016-17 report.
Modules
First year
Core modules:
• Reporting 1 – this core introductory module introduces you to news in a multi-media environment; looking at what it is, where it comes from, how to get it and how to write it successfully
• Journalism Skills – introduces you to the key skill of writing shorthand at speed. It leads to the 100 words-per-minute Teeline shorthand exam
• Media Law – helps you learn everything you need to know to stay within the law when practising journalism. It leads to the two NCTJ media law qualificationsInside
• Journalism 1 – this module helps you to understand the history and context of journalism.
Second year
Core modules:
• Reporting 2 – this module looks at specialist forms of journalism, particularly feature writing
• News-Writing – this is a specialist, practical module, honing your skills and leading to the NCTJ Reporting qualification and the NCTJ portfolio of professional practice
• Political Reporting – mixes the theory and practice of how journalists cover national and local government, and leads to the NCTJEssential Public Affairs qualification
• Inside Journalism 2 – this module continues your study of the context of journalism and then prepares you for your dissertation.
Third year
Core modules:
• Journalism Dissertation – in this module, you will write a 10,000 word project on a subject of your choice, by studying existing work and then carrying out original research on your chosen topic
• Reporting 3 – you will prepare a portfolio of your own work, including that published while on work experience or on Demon Media platforms. The major part of the portfolio is a publication, produced with a group of fellow students, which is conceptualised, written and designed by the students from start to finish
• Sub-editing and Design – this module allows you to learn the key skills involved in publication design and leads to the NCTJ qualification in Production Journalism
Optional modules:
• Sports Journalism – this module is practically focused and helps you to develop key sports reporting skills, particularly covering football, rugby and cricket and involving links with Leicester’s most prominent professional clubsin those sports
• Magazine Publishing – this module looks at how magazines are developed, marketed and run, allowing you to really get inside the fascinating world of magazines
• Broadcast Journalism – this module allows you to explore and develop your broadcast skills and involves real-world broadcasting on the university’s Demon Media broadcasting facilities
• Arts and Entertainment Journalism – you will explore the theory and practice of reviewing different aspects of the arts and entertainment
• Political Communication – this module looks at how politicians communicate with the public using the media, and the roles of the various media professionals, especially journalists, within that process.
Assessment methods
Most journalism is taught in two or three-hour practical workshops involving practical work every week. Other modules are taught in lecture and seminar formats, with the dissertation studied independently with support from tutorials with your tutor. Journalism students will spend time in taught sessions and be expected to do a lot of self study.
A wide variety of assessment methods are used, including practical sessions, essays, presentations, group work, portfolios and presentations. Most NCTJ qualifications are exam based.
Tuition fees
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The Uni
Leicester Campus
Computing, Engineering and Media
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.
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.
Journalism
Teaching and learning
Assessment and feedback
Resources and organisation
Student voice
Who studies this subject and how do they get on?
Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)
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.
Journalism
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.
Top job areas of graduates
What about your long term prospects?
Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.
Media, journalism and communications
The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.
£16k
£21k
£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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Post-six month graduation stats:
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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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