2020/21 Undergraduate Programme Catalogue
BA Communication and Media
| Programme code: | BA-COMM/M | UCAS code: | P900 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Duration: | 3 Years | Method of Attendance: | Full Time |
Total credits: 360
Entry requirements:
AAB at A-Level or equivalent.
An IELTS Band Score of 6.5, with not less than 6.0 in any skill area
School/Unit responsible for the parenting of students and programme:
School of Media and Communication
Examination board through which the programme will be considered:
School of Media and Communication
Relevant QAA Subject Benchmark Groups:
Communications, media, film and cultural studies
Programme specification:
The media play an increasingly central role in modern life, and yet expertise in understanding the media, its role and operation has become confined to stake-holders in the industry. The BA Communications and Media offers students a critical, research-led and up to date approach to media and communications education. The programme unites theory with empirical research, practice with critical reflection and a solid skills grounding with opportunities to develop individual interests.
At level 1 of the revised programme students will be provided with a structured induction to the field of Communications Studies and to study at HE level. Level 1 modules will offer concise introductions to academic research skills, communications history, communications theory, film history, political communication and work in the media industry.
Level 2 expands upon this, offering specialist units in research methods, visual communication and communications policy. Students will also be offered a range of options, enabling them to embark upon specialist pathways.
Level 3 is focused on the development of specialist knowledge. Students are given the opportunity to specialise in one or two linked streams of expertise, including film studies, political communication, cultural industries and communications theory. Thus students bring together strands first encountered at level 1, and perhaps developed at level 2, in this final year of their undergraduate studies. An important centrepiece of the Communications degree is a 40-credit dissertation: a substantial piece of individually developed research or extended commentary produced under individual supervision from a relevant specialist within the Institute.
Year1 - View timetable
[Learning Outcomes, Transferable (Key) Skills, Assessment]
Students must study 120 credits in total (a mixture of compulsory and optional or discovery modules). To pass the year they must pass 100 credits including all modules flagged as “’PFP’
Compulsory modules:
Candidates will be required to study the following compulsory modules:
| COMM1210 | The History of Communication | 20 credits | Semester 2 (Jan to Jun) | |
| COMM1230 | Introduction to Media and Communication Research | 20 credits | Semester 1 (Sep to Jan) | |
| COMM1950 | Power, Politics and the Media | 20 credits | Semester 1 (Sep to Jan) | |
| COMM1960 | Studying Media | 20 credits | Semester 1 (Sep to Jan) | |
| COMM1970 | Introduction to Media and Communication Theory | 20 credits | Semester 2 (Jan to Jun) |
Optional modules:
Candidates may study 0 - 20 credits from the following optional modules:
| COMM1625 | Camera and Editing | 20 credits | Semester 2 (Jan to Jun) | |
| COMM1770 | Animation and Interactivity | 20 credits | Not running in 202021 | |
| COMM1830 | Introduction to Cinema | 20 credits | Semester 2 (Jan to Jun) |
The optional modules listed are indicative of those available. The School reserves the right to remove and introduce optional modules in line with its annual review and development of teaching.
Discovery modules:
Candidates may study 0-20 credits of Discovery modules
Year2 - View timetable
[Learning Outcomes, Transferable (Key) Skills, Assessment]
Students must study 120 credits in total (a mixture of compulsory and optional or discovery modules). To pass the year they must pass 100 credits including all modules flagged as “’PFP’
Compulsory modules:
Candidates will be required to study the following compulsory modules:
| COMM2125 | Visual Communication | 20 credits | Semester 1 (Sep to Jan) | |
| COMM2780 | Media Policy | 20 credits | Semester 1 (Sep to Jan) | |
| COMM2910 | Communication Research Methods Pre-requisite for: COMM3910 | 20 credits | Semester 2 (Jan to Jun) |
Optional modules:
Candidates will be required to study 0 - 20 credits from the following optional modules:
| COMM2145 | Technology in Communication and Media | 20 credits | Semester 1 (Sep to Jan) | |
| COMM2375 | Issues in Journalism | 20 credits | Semester 1 (Sep to Jan) | |
| COMM2560 | Communication Skills | 20 credits | Semester 1 (Sep to Jan) | |
| COMM2715 | Digital Storytelling | 20 credits | Not running in 202021 | |
| MODL2230 | From Film Noir to Asia Extreme: Questioning Genre in World Cinemas | 20 credits | Semester 1 (Sep to Jan) | |
| MODL2250 | Digital Communications Across Cultures | 20 credits | Semesters 1 & 2 (Sep to Jun) |
The optional modules listed are indicative of those available. The School reserves the right to remove and introduce optional modules in line with its annual review and development of teaching.
Candidates will be required to study 20 - 40 credits from the following optional modules:
| COMM2300 | Journalism Ethics | 20 credits | Semester 2 (Jan to Jun) | |
| COMM2655 | Screen Fiction | 20 credits | Semester 1 (Sep to Jan) | |
| COMM2725 | Digital Cultures | 20 credits | Semester 1 (Sep to Jan) | |
| COMM2777 | Working in Digital Media Teams | 20 credits | Semester 2 (Jan to Jun) | |
| COMM2850 | Cinematic Themes | 20 credits | Semester 2 (Jan to Jun) | |
| COMM2950 | Media, Power and Social Justice | 20 credits | Not running in 202021 | |
| COMM2960 | Videogames: Identities in Play | 20 credits | Semester 2 (Jan to Jun) |
The optional modules listed are indicative of those available. The School reserves the right to remove and introduce optional modules in line with its annual review and development of teaching.
Discovery modules:
Students may study 0 - 20 credits of Discovery Modules.
Students may replace 20 credits of options with 20 credits of discovery modules. This choice can be made in either semester (but not both)
Year3 - View timetable
[Learning Outcomes, Transferable (Key) Skills, Assessment]
Students must study 120 credits in total (a mixture of compulsory and optional or discovery modules). To pass the year they must pass 100 credits including all modules flagged as “’PFP’
Compulsory modules:
Candidates will be required to study the following compulsory module:
| COMM3910 | Communication Dissertation | 40 credits | Semesters 1 & 2 (Sep to Jun) |
Optional modules:
Candidates will be required to study 20 - 40 credits from the following optional modules:
| COMM3180 | International Communication | 20 credits | Semester 2 (Jan to Jun) | |
| COMM3214 | Placement | 20 credits | Semesters 1 & 2 (Sep to Jun) | |
| COMM3250 | Feminism, Identity and Media | 20 credits | Semester 1 (Sep to Jan) | |
| COMM3260 | Understanding the Audience | 20 credits | Semester 1 (Sep to Jan) | |
| COMM3395 | TV Documentary Journalism | 20 credits | Semester 2 (Jan to Jun) | |
| COMM3715 | Internet Policy | 20 credits | Semester 1 (Sep to Jan) | |
| COMM3780 | Mobile Media | 20 credits | Semester 1 (Sep to Jan) | |
| COMM3899 | Social Issues on Screen | 20 credits | Not running in 202021 | |
| MODL3230 | Cinema in the Digital Era | 20 credits | Semester 1 (Sep to Jan) | |
| THEO3000 | Religion and Media | 20 credits | Semester 1 (Sep to Jan) |
The optional modules listed are indicative of those available. The School reserves the right to remove and introduce optional modules in line with its annual review and development of teaching.
Candidates will be required to study 20 - 40 credits from the following optional modules:
| COMM3130 | The Documentary and Reality | 20 credits | Semester 2 (Jan to Jun) | |
| COMM3214 | Placement | 20 credits | Semesters 1 & 2 (Sep to Jun) | |
| COMM3340 | The Reporting of Politics | 20 credits | Not running in 202021 | |
| COMM3420 | The Ethnography of Speaking | 20 credits | Semester 2 (Jan to Jun) | |
| COMM3550 | Popular Music and Society | 20 credits | Not running in 202021 | |
| COMM3790 | Citizen Media | 20 credits | Semester 2 (Jan to Jun) | |
| COMM3925 | War and Media | 20 credits | Semester 2 (Jan to Jun) | |
| COMM3950 | Promotional Culture | 20 credits | Semester 2 (Jan to Jun) | |
| COMM3960 | Creative Work in the Cultural Industries | 20 credits | Semester 2 (Jan to Jun) |
The optional modules listed are indicative of those available. The School reserves the right to remove and introduce optional modules in line with its annual review and development of teaching.
Discovery modules:
Students may study 0 - 20 credits of Discovery Modules
Students may study 20 credits of Discovery modules in either Semester 1, or Semester 2, but not both
Last updated: 02/10/2019
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