English and Journalism

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https://www.bcu.ac.uk/courses/english-and-journalism-ba-hons-2027-28

English and Journalism - BA (Hons) - 2027/28 Entry | Birmingham City University

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English and Journalism - BA (Hons)

Currently viewing course to start in 2027/28 Entry.

Our BA (Hons) English and Journalism course prepares you for a career in the dynamic and fascinating world of journalism. It develops your literary studies skills to analyse texts, conduct research, and construct arguments, while gaining valuable experience working on live stories in media environments, which will teach you how to craft a story in a way that engages the audience....

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Undergraduate

Study mode

Full Time

BA (Hons)

Start date

September 2027

View course fees

Subjects

English and Creative Writing

Media and Journalism

Location

City Centre

This course is:

Available with Professional Placement year

Open to International Students

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Overview

Our BA (Hons) English and Journalism course prepares you for a career in the dynamic and fascinating world of journalism. It develops your literary studies skills to analyse texts, conduct research, and construct arguments, while gaining valuable experience working on live stories in media environments, which will teach you how to craft a story in a way that engages the audience. You will benefit from industry-standard media facilities throughout your studies, including our live newsroom, to develop a journalism specialism in news, broadcasting, features, or design.

What's covered in this course?

Taught by world-leading academics, this course brings together the study of English with knowledge of journalism practice and professional development. Combining the study of literature, language, drama and creative writing with the development of skills to become a thinking media worker, you will benefit from subject knowledge and transferable skills from both disciplines.

Through the 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 in understanding how the discipline connects with the wider world, enabling you to focus on the production, interpretation and negotiation of meaning.

These skills intersect with the journalism component, where you will publish your stories, use blogs (including the student-run Birmingham Eastside website), learn to shoot and edit news videos, 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, where you will build your skills as you begin to make contacts in the industry and make your first moves into media work.

Top 10 in the UK for career prospects in English, with 85% of our graduates in graduate-level jobs or further study after 15 months. Guardian League Tables 2026

Top 30 for English The Times 2025

Professional Placement year

This course offers an optional professional placement year. This allows you to spend a whole year with an employer, following successful completion of your second year, and is a great way to find out more about your chosen career. Some students even return to the same employers after completing their studies.

If you choose to pursue a placement year, you will need to find a suitable placement to complement your chosen area of study. You will be able to draw on the University’s extensive network of local, regional, and national employers, and the support of our Careers teams. If you are able to secure a placement, you can request to be transferred to the placement version of the course.

Please note that fees are payable during your placement year, equivalent to 20% of the total full-time course fee for that year.

Doing a joint honours BA English and Journalism course has doubled the perspective on my learning. The balance can be challenging but I am leaving this degree with a multitude of skills that are truly one of a kind to this course. I have learned to optimise my research and gained really strong theoretical knowledge. My favourite part is that I feel I have helped my single honours course mates as well, by being able to bring a new light to topics in class that I have gained from each subject. It has been a formative experience and I am so excited to find out where it will take me in the future

Florence Jordan

Why Choose Us?

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.

Top 10 in the UK for career prospects in English, with 85% of our graduates in graduate-level jobs or further study after 15 months (Guardian League Tables 2026)

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 while still studying, and seen their work appear on a number of national and regional outlets during this time.

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.

Our teaching staff are also expert researchers in English Language and Literature. 94% of research in English at BCU was judged to be either world-leading (4*) or internationally excellent (3*) in REF2021

Studying English and Journalism at BCU

Student Oliver Phillips reflects on his three years of studying English and Journalism. Oliver discusses how his English and Journalism studies at BCU revealed unique overlaps between storytelling and reporting, built his confidence through live newsroom experiences, and offered a strong sense of community.

Read about Oliver's experience

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Journalism - BA (Hons)

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Next Open Day: 21 November

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Course in Depth

First Year

Second Year

Professional Placement Year (optional)

Final Year

In order to complete this course you must successfully complete all the following CORE modules (totalling 100 credits):

Telling Stories with Journalism 20 credits

This module will introduce you to a key aspect of doing journalism – that is, telling stories about people and places. Through this, the module will help you transition into studying at the University, introducing you to how you will learn, making effective use of the university’s resources, managing your own time, and collaborating with others.

Journalism Techniques 20 credits

In this module you will be introduced to the core production skills of journalism. You will learn about news values and why stories are considered newsworthy before examining how stories are constructed and the different elements of an original news article. You will also explore ways to angle your story and identify the hook that draws in an audience. Learners will also develop an understanding of core newsgathering and productions skills such as finding leads, carrying out interviews and using quotes.

Prose Writing 20 credits

This module considers how we read and write prose. You will be equipped with key literary analytical tools, including key terms and theories, which you will utilize in your analyses of prose works of different kinds, including prose essays, short stories, and a Booker Prize-winning novel. You will also discuss and practice your own prose writing techniques and have the opportunity to write creative prose of different kinds. You will develop an understanding of the forms and conventions of narrative prose, discursive styles, identify different types of prose, and differentiate between a range of disciplinary perspectives.

Key Critical Concepts 20 credits

‘Key Critical Concepts’ focuses on understanding and applying useful theoretical ideas and analytical approaches to develop your close reading, interpretation, and analysis of literature. It will help you to critically reflect on how language and literature function; on what we bring to a text when we read it; and how to pay careful attention to form, style, and genre. The module promotes more sophisticated readings of a variety of literary texts, including poems, plays, short stories, and extracts from novels, ranging from the early modern period to the present day. By the end of the module, you will have developed foundational knowledge of key critical concepts that you will be able to employ in textual analyses throughout your degree.

Digital Reporting 20 credits

In this module you will learn about the role digital platforms play in journalistic reporting. You will develop skills to allow you to work as a reporter in the online landscape by exploring how different media elements such as text, images, video and audio can work together to tell compelling stories. You will be introduced to publishing platforms and explore the ways in which online journalists can produce content using digital tools. The skills learned will form the foundation for you to develop an understanding of how journalism has evolved to embrace online platforms. You will then work to develop stories suitable for publication on outlets such as Birmingham Eastside and develop knowledge of how journalists connect with audiences in such spaces.

In order to complete this course a student must successfully complete at least 20 credits from the following indicative list of OPTIONAL modules:

Literature and Conflict 20 credits

In this module, you will explore the concept of conflict in literature, from war and revolution to social class, gender, and race, as well as at a psychological level. Through a range of genres and periods, ‘Literature and Conflict’ 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. 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 the questioning of conflict, resolution and how a historical understanding of conflict is important in our contemporary world.

Language in Action 20 credits

This module will introduce you to a range of topics in language studies, including phonetics, sociolinguistics, corpus linguistics, and media linguistics. You will expand your knowledge of linguistic concepts and terminology and learn how to apply this knowledge to the analysis of real-life examples of spoken and written language in use. You will be introduced to the phonetic and discourse-level 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.

Craft of Writing 20 credits

In this module, you will explore key elements of effective creative writing and the techniques used to create and control form and style, such as showing and telling, imagery, viewpoint, and narrative. You will examine each element or technique in a given text and then apply what you have learned in your own writing. Textual examples are drawn from a range of forms, such as audio drama, screenplay, poetry, monologue, the novel, short story, stage play and memoir. Each week will inform a different element of your writing technique, feeding into new pieces of writing to be submitted for assessment in a portfolio at the end of the semester. You will also write your own personal Writer’s Manifesto which sets out the intentions behind your writing and your thoughts about the social purpose of writing in your life and the wider world. In preparation for this you will study a range of manifestos written by writers and creative thinkers.

Core modules are guaranteed to run. Optional modules will vary from year to year and the published list is indicative only.

In order to complete this course you must successfully complete all the following CORE modules (totalling 60 credits):

Writing and the Environment 20 credits

This module examines different forms of writing that engage critically and creatively with key issues connected to ‘natural’ and ‘man-made’ environments. Each week, we will study a different literary text, period and genre informed by appropriate theories and scholarship. We will consider how writing constructs, examines and challenges ideas about nature, life in cities, technology, and animals, and in doing so engages in debates about equality, sustainability, identity and otherness. Through a chronological approach to texts from the eighteenth century to the present day, these topics will be explored in a variety of historical, social, political, and aesthetic contexts. This module will enhance your understanding of reading and writing as practices through which we develop knowledge about the world, and the place of people within it. It will prompt you to consider the importance of the environment and sustainability in relation to employability skills and future careers.

Media Law in Practice 20 credits

This module is designed to help you to develop an understanding of the concept of freedom of expression, and how it is balanced by the legal, regulatory and ethical constraints on news reporting and the media in general. The module is key in developing your awareness, knowledge and skills concerning media law, enabling you to protect yourself, your employers, and subjects of your work. The module approaches law and ethics from a practicing journalist’s perspective rather than that of a legal professional.

Practical Reporting 20 credits

Practical reporting will explore the ways in which you will be able to take a story from concept through to publication and output. This module is unique as it offers a simulated newsroom approach, where you will work to regular deadlines. The module will introduce you to the challenges faced by journalists in newsrooms up and down the country each day. You will work to live briefs and on specific reporting tasks designed to allow you to enhance a variety of skills such as sourcing news, identifying interviewees and researching background material to support your content.

In order to complete this course you must successfully complete 20 credits from the following indicative list of CORE School modules.

Work Placement 20 credits

The purpose of this module is to enable you to develop professional attributes and subject skills through experience in the work place, and to critically reflect upon your learning in that context. You will normally be expected to arrange your own placement, with support from academic staff and the Careers team.

Collaborative Practice 20 credits

The module is an opportunity to learn and critically reflect on the skills of collaboration by enabling you to create an interdisciplinary project with students from complementary disciplines, or with academic staff. Collaboration is a vital employability skill within the Creative Industries and this module allows you to develop these skills, making use of University facilities and with the support of academic staff. Within this module framework, several kinds of collaborative opportunities are available. For example, with the approval of your supervisor, you can determine a project based on your own interests; your supervisor may set you a predetermined project to enable you to work with other students in a way that is appropriate to your subject area; or there may be opportunities for you to collaborate with staff on research projects. In all cases, you must apply your subject skills to an interdisciplinary project which will be agreed in advance with your supervisor.

Live Project 20 credits

This module provides an opportunity for you to apply your knowledge and skills to an external, professional brief. The brief will be set by or in discussion with an external client/agency/community and could be a ‘real life’ problem to be solved, or a simulation. It is an opportunity for you to engage in a responsive, imaginative and professional manner with an aspect of your subject area, which contributes to the development of employability skills within the supportive infrastructure of the University.

In order to complete this course you must successfully complete at least 40 credits from the following indicative list of OPTIONAL modules.

The Romantics 20 credits

This module introduces you to some of the principal works of one of the most dynamic and exhilarating periods in English literature, the cultural legacy of which has influenced the creative arts and the history of ideas ever since. The texts studied on this module raise profound and lasting questions, and you should approach them in a spirit of adventure and enquiry. Can literature act as an agent of revolution? What is the creative imagination? What is liberty? How should we conceive of the natural world? What is the significance of feeling and empathy? What is the relationship between language, society and authority? What do we mean by ‘Romanticism’? Of what is humankind capable? As such, the module also requires you to think about the relationship between literature and history, and how literary texts in any era respond both to the present and the past. Authors and their works are examined in their social, political and economic context, as well as the intellectual, religious and spiritual traditions in which they participate.

Grammar and Style 20 credits

This module will deepen your knowledge and understanding of the core foundations of the English language and allow you to research intellectually challenging concepts using a variety of methodological approaches. You will focus on the description of English grammar, morphology, syntax and style as well as analyse linguistics phenomena in context. You will develop your analytical skills and capacity to be reflective and critical when synthesising complex information. The module will build your linguistic skills and thus promote graduate employability.

Writing Short Stories 20 credits

In this module, you will explore key elements of writing short stories and the distinctive ways they are used. You will discover themes, ideas, and approaches that are appropriate for use within a shorter form, and learn techniques used to create and control style and effect in this context. You will develop your skills learnt in year one, such as showing and telling, the use of detail and description, imagery, viewpoint and narrative structure. Your reading will take in both collections of short stories by a single writer and individual stories by a wider range of contemporary and classic writers. You will examine each element of style in a given short story and then expand and experiment with what you have learned in your own writing. You will write flash fiction and micro fiction as well as more traditional length short stories.

Modern and Contemporary Theatre 20 credits

This module offers a survey of key 20th and 21st century texts and movements in western theatre. You will engage with the artistic movements that developed in Europe from the early 20th century and identify key playwrights and practitioners that brought significant changes to the stage, both on the continent and in Britain. Through studying a range of plays from this period, both as written texts and in performance, you will consider the ways in which innovations in the early 20th century continue to influence theatre writing and practice today.

The Victorians 20 credits

This module covers the poetry and prose of the Victorian period, through which you will learn about the formal properties and trends of literature of the period and the innovations which arose, as well as the historical context including social change, gender roles and religion. You will be encouraged to read widely, and to look backwards and forwards through literary history to enable you to situate the literature of the period in context. There will be a strong emphasis on the close reading of texts and on the importance of research and reading relevant works of criticism; you will be encouraged to develop your research and writing skills and to work independently, which will support your work across this and other modules. We'll also think about Victorian culture and how this remains an important determining factor within modern society.

Language in Society 20 credits

This module will introduce you the study of language and society and outline how language can vary based on a range of social factors. Over the course of the module, students will explore key concepts and terminology, as well as a range of topics such as language variation and change, language and social class, language and gender, language and race/ethnicity, language contact and bilingualism, language and education, language and the media, research methods in sociolinguistics, the role of language in wider contemporary society, and how sociolinguistic research can be utilised in non- academic contexts.

Screenwriting 20 credits

This module will teach you the essential skills of, and principles behind, the writing of films. While we will focus on short films, many of the principles we learn apply to screenwriting for film and television more generally. 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 several 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.

Gender, Sexuality and Culture 20 credits

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.

Multicultural Literature 20 credits

‘Multicultural Literature’ focuses on the history of British multiculturalism in literature from the 1950s up to the present day. Exploring a range of British Caribbean, Asian, African, and other multicultural writing, we explore powerful stories of new beginnings, the search for belonging, diverse identities, and complex communities. You will develop a critical awareness of how writers deal with questions of race and nationhood, colonial discourse, cultural hybridity, migration and asylum. The module develops your aesthetic, critical, and historical awareness that will inform your independent thinking about contemporary multiculturalism. It spans a diverse set of literary texts (novels, short prose, poems) produced primarily by ‘minority’ writers in Britain since the post-war era (Caribbean, Asian, African and other less established immigrant groups). You will study these texts alongside relevant histories of migration, theories of representation, and critical debates about multiculturalism.

In order to qualify for the Professional Placement Year, a student must successfully complete the following Level 5 module:

Professional Placement 120 credits

This module is designed to provide you with the opportunity to undertake a credit bearing, 40- week Professional Placement as an integral part of your Undergraduate Degree. The purpose of the Professional Placement is to improve your employability skills which will, through the placement experience, allow you to evidence your professional skills, attitudes and behaviours at the point of entry to the postgraduate job market. Furthermore, by completing the Professional Placement, you will be able to develop and enhance your understanding of the professional work environment, relevant to your chosen field of study, and reflect critically on your own professional skills development within the workplace.

In order to complete this course a student must successfully complete the following CORE module (totalling 20 credits):

Advanced Reporting 20 credits

Knowledge of advanced reporting techniques has become increasingly important for both journalists and publishers as the journalism industry changes in response to widespread access to information and a more competitive publishing environment. This module will equip you with the advanced techniques to find exclusive stories and to ethically and accurately report those for an identified audience within professional contexts.

In order to complete this course you must successfully complete one module from the following list of CORE-OPTION modules (worth 20 credits).

Major Project Preparation (English) 20 credits

The ‘Major Project Preparation’ module focuses on creative thinking and initial research to develop a proposal and plan for the delivery of your Major Project. You will be introduced to the skills, techniques and processes required to identify, articulate, and organise a project that can be successfully realised. It aims to ensure that you judge the appropriateness of a variety of critical and analytical approaches to developing a major project and that you create a plan that is within scope and can be delivered successfully to a high standard.

Major Project Preparation (Media) 20 credits

In order to complete this course a student must successfully complete one module from the following list of CORE-OPTION modules (worth 40 credits)

Major Project: Dissertation 40 credits

The Major Project: Dissertation module is where you will put into practice the creative thinking, initial research, proposal, and plan developed in the Major Project Preparation module and wherein you will undertake a sustained, in-depth and theoretically informed research project exploring an area that is of personal interest to you and which represents the culmination of your studies.

Major Project: Production 40 credits

The Major Project - Production module is where you will put into practice the creative thinking, initial research, proposal, and plan developed in the Major Project Preparation module and wherein you will undertake a sustained, in-depth production media project exploring an area that is related to an area of personal interest to you and wider audiences. Completion of the Major Project represents the culmination of your studies. You can produce a single media product or portfolio of products either individually or as part of a group.

In order to complete this course a student must successfully complete at least 40 credits from the following indicative list of OPTIONAL modules.

Modernism and its Legacies 20 credits

In this module we focus on modernism – the defining artistic movement of the twentieth century – to analyse a range of literary texts that we hope you will find challenging and rewarding. Together, we explore what literary modernism was but we also consider an active claim: that literary modernism continues to influence post-war and contemporary authors and that, in various ways, it persists well into late twentieth century and twenty-first century literature. We cover central modernist writers who are considered key formal innovators, such as Joseph Conrad, Ezra Pound, Virginia Woolf, and D. H. Lawrence. We then explore how later writers, such as Samuel Beckett, Jean Rhys, Muriel Spark, J. M. Coetzee, and Zadie Smith, handle the legacies of the modernist movement. You will be encouraged to engage closely with issues of form and style in significant modernist and postmodern texts. At the same time, we will situate these texts in their historical contexts, considering key themes and categories such as tradition, colonialism, industrialisation, culture, gender, time, and ethics.

Applied Sociolinguistics 20 credits

This module will introduce you to the field of Applied Sociolinguistics and how sociolinguistic research can contribute to improving human well-being. You will learn to critically evaluate the role of sociolinguistics in addressing linguistic and social inequalities and how language shapes all aspects of social life. You will work with an external partner and investigate the application of sociolinguistic research to the solution of practical, educational and social problems of all types. You will learn how evidence-led sociolinguistic research can be applied in a variety of settings, including healthcare, law, tourism, the workplace, and other non-academic contexts. The module will develop your skills in leveraging sociolinguistic research to produce demonstrable changes in practice and teach you to how to engage a variety of external stakeholders and end-users in your research.

Writing Poetry 20 credits

This module will enable you to build upon your current reading and writing of poetry, and to develop your range, technique and sophistication as a contemporary poet and thinker on poetry. As well as cultivating your ability to read poetry sympathetically and critically, you will learn how to nurture the poetic imagination and what Ted Hughes called its ‘psychic disciplines’, with a view to strengthening and emboldening the intuition and sensitivity upon which poetic technique depends. You also will acquire practical knowledge of publishing and performing your own work.

The Gothic 20 credits

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.

Moral Philosophy 20 credits

‘Moral Philosophy’ enables students to explore ethical issues concerning, for example, animal rights, abortion, euthanasia, inequality, and the environment. So doing, it offers the opportunity to practise research, writing, and critical thinking skills in a discipline adjacent to English. Students begin by reviewing a range of key philosophical frameworks from Aristotelian virtue ethics to Kantian duty-based ethics through to contemporary utilitarianism. Core concepts such as personhood and the nature of social contracts provide the basis for a series of applied case studies. The module equips students with practical skills in evaluating the ethics of particular choices, encouraging good citizenship, compassion and an understanding of global issues.

Media Activism 20 credits

Media Activism is a practice-based research module for students who wish to study media activism, and engage in media activist work in practice within social justice, community media and voluntary sectors. This module will examine the role of media in political campaigns and social movements, with a focus on the role of digital communications. It will draw on a range of interdisciplinary literature from media studies, social movement studies and political theory, and examine case studies of political campaigns and social movements in the UK and globally. The first half of the module will introduce students to broader theoretical and political debates around media activism, while the second half will focus on the application of the principles to real-world examples.

Digital Futures 20 credits

This module will enable you to look towards the future innovations occurring within the fields of digital media. Starting with a history of digital emergence, considering concepts such as remediation, convergence culture, and the post-digital, we will then begin to unearth some of the more experimental and emerging practices, and consider their viability for a digital future. We will ask why some mediums prevail and others pass us by and to question what is really “new” about new media, and how we might escape certain structures and practices that constrict our developments. This module will also engage critically with ideas of utopian and dystopian predictions of the future and engage with concepts such as posthumanism and transhumanism to ask what the long-term impact of digital media usage might mean, from AI to cyborgs and beyond.

Creative Camera 20 credits

This module is for students wishing to further their creativity and provides the opportunity to develop a unique visual style as a photographer in line with appropriate professional practice. You will engage with a variety of creative photographic approaches and explore innovative practice, informing your own photographic style and enabling you to work professionally within specific fields of photography.

Audience and User Experience 20 credits

Audience and user experience design is the reference point for meeting audience and user needs for most media products. User experience is the understanding of who your audience is, what motivates them, what frustrates them, and how to add value to their lives. User experience enables the designer of experiences and media products to meet their audience’s needs on an emotional level through a creative process called "design thinking" and encourages repeated use. In an increasingly user-focused world, user experience design is an area that transcends its home of digital media design and can be applied to any field that requires an audience and consumer interaction, with many employment and further education opportunities to consider.

Race, Media and Culture 20 credits

This module examines key issues, concepts and debates relating to race, culture and the media, and how the diversity of lived experience is represented in the media. The module takes an intersectional perspective, considering race in relation to gender, sexuality, citizenship, etc. It engages with literature from Media and Cultural Studies, and also draws on Postcolonial Studies, Critical Race Theory and other aspects of Humanities scholarship. A range of media examples will be considered, ranging from film and television to digital media platforms. Students will have the opportunity to explore their own personal and research interests in relation to the module themes, and explore methodological approaches for doing so. Students are encouraged to consider their own positionality and identity as media workers/scholars in relation to the module themes and their own work.

Communication in Action 20 credits

Communication in Action takes a critical look at how organisations operating across a wide variety of sectors use communications techniques to achieve operational goals. It examines the PR strategies and practices they use to enhance their credibility and reputation with a range of stakeholders through effective messaging.

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How you will learn

Your learning will be through a mixture of lectures, practical workshops and seminars. Your course also provides an opportunity to undertake work-based learning through a placement. We embed flexible opportunities for you to access your curriculum including recorded lectures, blended learning, on-campus delivery and intensive delivery of some modules. We recognise that students progress to higher education from a variety of educational experiences and that university is a completely new educational environment for most of you. For that reason, you will find that in your first year with us there is a focus on supporting your transition which places an emphasis on developing both the confidence and the competencies required for being successful at your university assignments. Where appropriate, we will bring in external speakers or arrange visits relevant to your specialism. These may be from industry or be focused on a particular specialist academic interest. We have excellent links with industry, community and scholarly partners which we draw on to enhance your learning experience.

How you will be assessed

All our assessments are designed to ensure that you meet the learning outcomes of your modules and thus of the course overall. Assessment types may include written research reports, essays, case studies, practical work, portfolios and presentations. There is one exam, taken online, in an optional module in the second year of your course. You will be assessed as an individual but there may be times when you will be asked to work within teams and submit assessments as groups. All modules offer chances for formative assessment, that is, informal assessments that are used to assess your understanding before the final submission of your work. Formative assessments also help inform the teaching strategy within a module, identifying areas where we can offer extra help and guidance. We will offer tutorials and a chance for you to discuss your draft assessments before you submit them. Once marked, we will give formal feedback and ‘feed forward’ on all work submitted, aimed at helping you improve future submissions.

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.

Learn from industry experts

The English department regularly organises talks and visits, giving students the opportunity to learn from industry experts through guest masterclasses. These events offer invaluable insights into how English skills translate into real-world careers.

One such inspiring session featured Shaz Umbreen, Director of Marketing at the National Trust and a BCU English graduate. Shaz gave a fascinating talk on the power of language, storytelling, and imagination in shaping her career adventures. And she opened doors for current students, offering them the chance to visit the National Trust’s Head Office.

Seizing the opportunity, undergraduate Harry Smith spent the day immersing himself in the organisation’s inner workings. Shaz said: "Harry sat through a full leadership day with senior leaders, saw a scone photoshoot in action, took a peek inside the podcast studio, and even got a behind-the-scenes look at buying and merchandising." Harry reflected on the experience: "I cannot thank Shaz enough for the opportunity. I thoroughly enjoyed my day and gained great insight and experience."

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.

English Blog

A blog that offers you an insight into life as an English student at Birmingham City University.

Explore our English blog

Entry Requirements

These entry requirements apply for entry in 2027/28.

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.

Essential requirements

112-72 UCAS Tariff points

The offer we make you takes into account your individual circumstances, predicted grades, achieved qualifications and potential to succeed at university.

GCSE and other level 2 requirements

Applicants who do not hold a level 3 qualification in English will require GCSE English Language or English Literature at grade C/4 or above. Please see A Level, BTEC and other Level 3 requirements below.

A Level, BTEC and other level 3 requirements

Qualification

Entry requirements

A Level / AS Level

A Level: 112-72 UCAS Tariff points / BBC-CDE (or equivalent)

AS Level: Must be in a different subject to A Levels

A maximum of four subjects will be considered

Preferred subjects: English or another Arts, Humanities or Social Science subject. This includes subjects such as History, Geography, Politics, Sociology, Psychology, Religious Studies, Philosophy, Languages, Media Studies, Law and Economics. We will also consider applicants with qualifications in other subjects that develop analytical thinking, critical evaluation and written communication skills.

Applicants who do not hold a level 3 qualification in English will require GCSE English Language or English Literature at grade C/4 or above.

Pearson BTEC (Diploma / Extended Diploma/ Extended Certificate)

Diploma accepted with one A Level or equivalent level 3 qualifications

Extended Certificate accepted with two A Levels or equivalent level 3 qualifications

Typical offers vary according to individual circumstances and may be equivalent to a Merit or Pass overall grade

Access to HE Diploma

Pass with 60 credits, 45 credits at level 3.

Accepted subjects: Language, Literature and Culture subjects preferred but other subjects also considered.

OCR Cambridge Technical qualifications

NCFE CACHE Level 3 qualifications

WJEC Level 3 qualifications

Considered with two A Levels or equivalent level 3 qualification(s)

Irish Leaving Certificate (Highers)

112-72 UCAS Tariff points, achieved in five Higher level subjects

Required subjects: English Language or Literature.

Scottish Higher / Advanced Higher

112-72 UCAS Tariff points, achieved from three Advanced Highers or two Advanced Highers plus two Highers

Required subjects: English Language or Literature or combined Language and Literature subject.

Welsh Baccalaureate

112-72 UCAS Tariff points. Considered with three A Levels or equivalent level 3 qualifications

UAL Level 3 Extended Diploma

Typical offers vary according to individual circumstances and may be equivalent to a Merit or Pass overall

Foundation Studies (Art and Design, and Art, Design and Media)

Typical offers vary according to individual circumstances

If you're applying with an International Baccalaureate Diploma or international qualifications, please see further information below.

Mature students

We welcome applications from mature students and applicants with a wide range of qualifications and experiences. Applicants with non-standard qualifications may be asked to provide additional information or complete a short piece of work to support their application.

International qualifications

International Baccalaureate Diploma

Obtain 28-24 points overall

Required subjects: English Language or Literature at Higher Level. Applicants may be asked to complete an essay set by the department if subject doesn't contain any English.

EU / International students

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 IELTS 6.0 overall, 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 on pre-sessional English courses.

If you have a qualification that is not listed, please contact us.

Fees & How to Apply

Please select your student status to view fees and apply

UK Student

International Student

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 2027

Duration

£10,050 in 2027/28

Apply via UCAS

International students

£19,220 in 2027/28

Apply Online

Included in your course fees

Access to computer equipment

You will require use of a laptop, and most students do prefer to have their own. However, you can borrow a laptop from the university or use one of our shared computer rooms.

Printing

You will receive £5 print credit in each year of your course, available after enrolment.

Field trips

All essential field trips and associated travel costs will be included in your course fees.

Access to Microsoft Office 365

Every student at the University can download a free copy of Microsoft Office 365 to use whilst at university and for 18 months after graduation.

Key software

You will be able to download SPSS and Nvivo to your home computer to support with your studies and research.

Key subscriptions

Subscriptions to key journals and websites are available through our library.

Not included in your course fees

Excess printing (optional)

Once you have spent your £5 credit, additional printing on campus costs from 5p per sheet.

Books (optional)

All module key texts will be in the University library, but in limited numbers. You may choose to purchase a copy.

Placement expenses (optional)

If you choose to undertake a placement, you'll need to budget for accommodation and any travel costs you may incur whilst living or working away from home.

Field trips (optional)

This course includes the option of additional trips that may enhance your experience, at extra cost.

Personal stationery and study materials (optional)

Based on the past experience of our students, you might find it helpful to set aside about £30 for each year of your studies for your personal stationery and study materials.

Accommodation and living costs

The cost of accommodation and other living costs are not included within your course fees. More information on the cost of accommodation can be found in our accommodation pages.

Guidance for UK students

UK students applying for most undergraduate degree courses in the UK will need to apply through UCAS.

The Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) is a UK organisation responsible for managing applications to university and college.

Applying through UCAS

Register with UCAS

Login to UCAS and complete your details

Select your course and write a personal statement

Get a reference

Pay your application fee and submit your application

Guidance for International students

There are three ways to apply:

1) Direct to the University

You will need to complete our International Application Form and Equal Opportunities Form, and submit them together with scan copies of your original academic transcripts and certificates.

2) Through a country representative

Our in-country representatives can help you make your application and apply for a visa. They can also offer advice on travel, living in the UK and studying abroad.

3) Through UCAS

If you are applying for an undergraduate degree or a Higher National Diploma (HND), you can apply through the UK’s Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS).

You can request a printed form from your school or nearest British Council office. You will be charged for applying through UCAS.

Birmingham City University’s UCAS code is B25 BCITY.

Personal statement

The personal statement gives you a crucial opportunity to say why you’re applying and why the institution should accept you.

Here are the three areas you’ll need to address:

Why do you want to study this course or subject?

Here’s where you explain what makes this course exciting to you. Think about your motivations for studying the course and your future plans. If you’re planning to take a year out, don't forget to give your reasons.

How have your qualifications and studies helped you to prepare for this course or subject?

This is your chance to show what you’ve learned at school or college. You should include the skills and knowledge you’ve gained from education or training and how this will help you succeed in your chosen course.

What else have you done to prepare outside of education, and why are these experiences useful?

Not everything you’ve learned comes from the classroom. Life experience counts too! You might want to talk about work experience, employment, or volunteering and how they’ve helped you develop the skills needed for your chosen course or future career.

Worried about Personal Statements?

If you've got no idea where to start or just want to check you're on the right track, we’ve got expert advice and real examples from our students to help you nail your personal statement. You can even download our ultimate personal statement guide for free.

Get personal statement advice

Financial Support

We offer further information on possible undergraduate financial support. This includes the type of loans, grants and scholarships available both from the government and from Birmingham City University.

View fees for continuing students

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.

Our graduates have found employment in roles such as:

Journalist (news, features, broadcast, digital)

Copyeditor / Sub-editor

Social Media Manager / Digital Content Producer

PR Officer or Communications Executive

Political Correspondent / Campaigns Writer

Media Researcher or Assistant Producer (TV/radio)

Brand Storyteller / Content Strategist

Magazine Writer / Editor

Teacher (Primary, Secondary, FE/HE)

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 subjects 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.

Facilities & Staff

English facilities

Take a look around the facilities available to you as an English student at BCU.

See our English facilities

Our staff

Professor Diane Kemp

Professor of Broadcast Journalism

Diane Kemp is Director of the Sir Lenny Henry Centre for Media Diversity, which launched in March 2020, and Professor of Broadcast Journalism in CoEM.

Before joining the university, Diane worked in commercial and BBC radio before moving into BBC television news and current affairs.

She was also Deputy Chair of the Broadcast Journalism Training...

More about Diane

Dr Rachel-Ann Charles

Course Director & Lecturer

Rachel-Ann is a Course Director on the MA in Global Media Management and she lectures across undergraduate Media courses. She is also a Researcher at the Birmingham Centre for Media and Cultural Research (BCMCR), Birmingham City University (BCU) and has made contributions to the study of social action community media within a Trinidad and Tobago...

More about Rachel-Ann

Dave Harte

Deputy Head of Department of English and Media

Dave Harte is Deputy Head of Department of English and Media. Dave’s research is focused on local and community journalism, and he has published widely on these topics.

More about Dave

Dr Gemma Moss

Associate Professor of Modern and Contemporary Literature, Undergraduate English Courses Director

Before joining BCU, Gemma taught at the University of Salford and the University of Manchester, where she completed an MA in Postcolonial Literature and an AHRC-funded PhD.

Gemma is author of Modernism, Music and the Politics of Aesthetics (Edinburgh University Press, 2021). She is currently editing E. M. Forster’s first novel, Where Angels Fear to...

More about Gemma

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T: +44 (0)121 331 6295

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E: International enquiry form

T: +44 (0)121 331 5389

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