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Film Studies

Entry requirements


A level

B,B,B-B,B,C

112-120 points to include a minimum of 2 A levels.

112-122 Tariff points from the Access to HE Diploma.

Cambridge Pre-U score of 46-50.

GCSE/National 4/National 5

3 GCSEs at grade C or above to include English/3 GCSEs at grade 4 or above to include English.

International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme

25

25 points from the IB Diploma, to include 3 Higher Level subjects.

Leaving Certificate - Higher Level (Ireland) (first awarded in 2017)

H3,H3,H3,H3,H4-H3,H3,H3,H3,H3

Acceptable when combined with other qualifications.

Acceptable when combined with other qualifications.

Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)

DDM-DMM

112-120 Tariff points to include a minimum of 2 Advanced Highers.

Acceptable when combined with other qualifications.

T Level

M

UCAS Tariff

112-120

112-120 points to include a minimum of 2 A levels, or equivalent.

112-120 points from the Advanced Welsh Baccalaureate including 1 A level, plus the Advanced Skills Challenge Certificate.

About this course


This course has alternative study modes. Contact the university to find out how the information below might vary.

Course option

3years

Full-time | 2024

Other options

4 years | Sandwich | 2024

Subject

Film studies

**This is a Connected Degree**

Portsmouth is the only University in the UK with the flexibility to choose when to do an optional paid placement or self-employed year. Either take a placement in your third year, or finish your studies first and complete a placement in your fourth year. You can decide if and when to take a placement after you've started your course.

**Overview**

Take your interest in film and turn it into a promising career or pathway to further study with our Film Studies degree course.

You'll examine film and its related institutions from a contemporary perspective, focusing on the theories and concepts that define them. Guided by an internationally recognised team of researchers and academics, you’ll explore film's interrelationships with society, culture, identity, history, and the future, in areas ranging from fandom and popular culture to gender and global cinema. Our range of optional modules, industry talks and experiences, and local community and outreach connections in the curriculum will offer you a tailored degree experience to enhance your learning and enjoyment.

You’ll graduate from our course with a critical and global understanding of film. You'll also develop adaptable media skills in research, industry knowledge and communication, which will help you fashion your career in film or whatever field you choose.

**Course highlights**

- Take part in the annual Portsmouth Comic Con for the latest developments in film, popular culture, fan communities, and technology – course lecturers and students are panelists and run film screenings

- Screen your final-year film project at Portsmouth's established independent No. 6 Cinema and gain industry contacts

- Learn from widely published media experts and active researchers to add depth to your studies

- Be part of our extensive media culture at Portsmouth: you can write for student publications, collaborate with students on our Film Production and Television and Broadcasting courses, and participate in our student-led TV channel CCI TV

- Become an Adobe Certified Associate to enhance your technical and production skills

**Careers and opportunities**

Along with theoretical and practical knowledge of film, you'll also graduate with a more nuanced understanding of the world. You'll develop methods for deconstructing its sociocultural ethics, means of representation, and constructs, and scrutinise environments more deeply. These analytical skills are crucial in many sectors within and outside media and film.

Many of our graduates begin their careers in communication, such as public relations and advertising. Some continue to postgraduate studies and research in multimedia, while others take teacher training to begin careers in higher and further education.

With such a flexible degree as our Film Studies course, you'll be able to explore many other possibilities.

Graduate roles

Roles our graduates have gone onto include:

- Content Creator

- Marketing Manager

- Theatrical Marketing Department Executive

- Lecturer

- Writer and researcher

- Videographer

Graduate destinations

Our graduates have worked at places such as:

- Pathé

- CIC Film Crew 4u

- Arrow Films

- Studio Canal

- Chichester College

After you leave the University, you can get help, advice and support for up to 5 years from our Careers and Employability service as you advance in your career.

Modules

** Year 1**
Core modules
- Global Cinema
- Screen Debates
- Screen Research
- Spectacular Hollywood
- Understanding Film Production
- Writing for the Film and TV Industries

** Year 2**
Core modules
- Film Curation
- World and Transnational Cinema

Optional modules
- British Cinema
- Broadcast Radio and Podcasting
- Comic Book Industries
- Engaged Citizenship Through Interdisciplinary Practice
- Film and Ethics
- Film, Media and Communication Study Exchange
- Modern Foreign Language
- Production: Camera and Editing
- Production: Short Film-Making
- Professional Experience
- Researching Genre
- Student Enterprise
- Transmedia Narratives and Strategies

** Year 3**
Optional modules
- Film and Media Dissertation
- Gender, Sexuality and Cinema
- Marketing Movies
- Media Fan Cultures
- Practical Video Project
- Representing Science in the Media
- Researching Animation
- Studying Comedy

Changes to course content

We use the best and most current research and professional practice alongside feedback from our students to make sure course content is relevant to your future career or further studies.

Therefore, some course content may change over time to reflect changes in the discipline or industry. If a module doesn't run, we'll let you know as soon as possible and help you choose an alternative module.

Assessment methods

You’ll be assessed through:

- essays
- presentations
- video productions
- film scripts
- reports
- a research portfolio
- examinations
- dissertation or video project

You’ll be able to test your skills and knowledge informally before you do assessments that count towards your final mark.

You can get feedback on all practice and formal assessments so you can improve in the future.

The way you’re assessed may depend on the modules you select. As a guide, students on this course last year were typically assessed as follows:

- Year 1 students: 3% by practical exams and 97% by coursework
- Year 2 students: 3% by written exams, 12% by practical exams and 85% by coursework
- Year 3 students: 10% by practical exams and 90% by coursework

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
£9,250
per year
International
£17,200
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

The Uni


Course location:

University of Portsmouth

Department:

Faculty of Creative and Cultural Industries

Read full university profile

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.

73%
Film studies

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.

Media studies

Teaching and learning

80%
Staff make the subject interesting
83%
Staff are good at explaining things
75%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
67%
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

79%
Library resources
89%
IT resources
73%
Course specific equipment and facilities
71%
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?

93%
UK students
7%
International students
47%
Male students
53%
Female students
83%
2:1 or above
13%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

B
C
C

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.

Media studies

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.

£20,000
high
Average annual salary
99%
high
Employed or in further education
43%
med
Employed in a role where degree was essential or beneficial

Top job areas of graduates

24%
Sales, marketing and related associate professionals
17%
Artistic, literary and media occupations
12%
Sales assistants and retail cashiers

What about your long term prospects?

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

Media studies

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

£16k

£23k

£23k

£26k

£26k

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.

You can use this to get an idea of who you might share a lecture with and how they progressed in this subject, here. It's also worth comparing typical A-level subjects and grades students achieved with the current course entry requirements; similarities or differences here could indicate how flexible (or not) a university might be.

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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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