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Media Communications and Culture BA (Hons)

Start date

  • Level(s) of Study: Undergraduate
  • Typical Offer: 104 - 112 UCAS tariff points
  • UCAS Code(s): P315
  • Start Date(s): September 2024
  • Duration: Three years full-time, part-time options available
  • Study Mode(s): Full-time / Part-time
  • Campus: City Campus
Information for 2024

Introduction:

  • 94% of BA (Hons) Media Communication and Culture students would recommend studying at NTU to others (NTU Student survey 2023)
  • Gain course relevant experience by getting involved in award winning student TV and radio.
  • Learn in our brand new media labs, in an industry standard setting.
  • Study modules designed to get you ready for the workplace and work on real briefs alongside honing your academic skills.

Designed for those with a passion for communications, this course will develop your digital and media literacies for a range of audiences across different genres and media.

On this course, you’ll develop a wide range of skills in communications, media and cultural analysis in the context of the creative industries. It enables you to graduate with skills that are highly relevant to a range of media-based careers.

You’ll explore the role the media plays in shaping culture, identity and interpersonal communications. You’ll gain a professionally-focused understanding of media and society, developing a portfolio of practical skills in both visual and written work including advertising, public relations and journalism. You’ll learn how to use media technologies to communicate in a variety of styles and formats, including pitches, briefings, video projects and podcasts.

The course equips you with a combination of practical expertise and theoretical insights, related to the broad fields of media analysis and public and professional communications, such as marketing and PR. You’ll develop your digital and media literacy, writing, business and presentation skills and examine advertising, journalism, popular culture and questions of identity and diversity.

Our newly refurbished media labs

We have recently moved our media labs from our Clifton campus to the City. Our newly refurbished labs are close to the Centre for Broadcasting and Journalism and offer all the same industry-standard equipment which is available for our students to hire out.

We are proud to be part of the BAFTA Albert education partnership

What you’ll study

You will learn techniques to create and analyse imagery and to write professionally across a range of platforms. Theoretical approaches will support your application of ideas and practical assignments will enable you to understand the global context of media communications. You’ll become a critical thinker and creative professional with a clear understanding of how media is embedded in the world of work. In Year Two, you’ll have the opportunity to study abroad.

Modules include

  • Advertising, Public Relations and Journalism I: The New Creativity
  • Cultural Policy
  • Lifestyle and Consumer Culture
  • Client-led Media Practice and Production
  • Media in the Workplace: Experiencing Work

Core modules

Media Techniques

This module explores the principal elements of creating media content -  narrative, still and moving image and sound, and the practical and theoretical relationship between those elements. It will equip you with a knowledge of practical production, and provide you with a solid platform from which to develop more complex and challenging project work in years two and three of your degree

Analysing Media Texts

An introduction to classic and contemporary techniques and methods of critical textual analysis of media forms including class, sexuality, gender, age, identity/ies and their intersections. The module will draw on examples of texts from across the popular cultural field (film, television, video games, music, social media etc.), and you will also explore how audiences, users and prosumers consume those texts.

Understanding Media Industries

Learn the essential theoretical and conceptual vocabulary needed to make sense of current trends in the media industries landscape, both nationally and internationally. You will explore questions relating to media ownership, organisation, power and control. Guest speakers will bring a new dimension to your learning by introducing real industry contexts, and by identifying the skills and competencies employers are looking for.

Networking for the Media Industry

Networking and working within media 'departments' is a key area within media production. Through this module you will be introduced to networking skills that will enable your first steps in collaborative productions. You will engage with student productions taking place in higher levels of the course and explore external opportunities to enhance your confidence and begin to gain production credits.

Psychology of Communication

This module is designed to demonstrate the centrality of communications, not just to the functioning of society, but also for the very constitution of who we are as individuals. Based within, but by no means contained by, the field of Social Psychology, it looks at how people communicate with one another both verbally and non-verbally. It also considers the role of both conscious and sub-conscious processes. Other key topic areas include the arts of conversation and persuasion, the psychology of leadership, group dynamics and intergroup relations.

Professional Communications

Through an analysis of both historical and contemporary marketing, advertising and content creation practices, you will develop and sharpen your media literacy skills in order to critically assess and understand how power circulates within the industry, and how meaning is created through media consumption. Through a combination of theoretical and practical tasks, you will have the opportunity to sharpen your critical skills as well as gain practical experience in marketing and communications.

Some optional modules may be studied on the Clifton campus.

Core modules

Media, Theory and Society

This module explores how media and cultural theories are used to understand and make sense of our mediated society. The aim is to give you a thorough understanding of how creative thinking underpins and informs the practice work you’ll undertake.

Media Communication in the Workplace: Experiencing Work

This module will prepare you for working in the creative industries, freelancing and your potential future career. Seminar and workshop exercises will allow you to build a career development portfolio. In the second half of the module you’ll undertake a work experience placement.

Choose one of these two core modules:

Advertising, PR and Journalism: The New Creativity

This module explores at a practical and theoretical level the new modes of creativity, which are transforming working methods in the contemporary economy. You'll study the histories of advertising, public relations and journalism. You'll look at the intersections between economic developments, forms of communicative and media technology and the evolution of modern psychology and sociology that have resulted in a proliferation of new types of creativity.

Intermediate Media Practice and Production

This module offers you intermediate technical and production skills in media production. You will be introduced to more advanced skills, software and technology. The technology and software used in this module will be closer to those used in the media production sector.

You will work individually and in groups to produce a portfolio of work including photography, web, sound, filming and editing. There is also a written element of critical reflection and contextual analysis.

Optional modules typically available include:

Researching Media, Communication and Culture

This module introduces the key empirical methods and analytical approaches of Media and Cultural Studies. It enables you to produce original research, and to gain greater understanding of the methods you might use in your Media dissertation. It outlines a range of methods, and shows how these can be applied to particular media and cultural case studies.

Media, Communication and Culture in Asia

This module provides an insight into contemporary media development and cultural change in East Asia, placing this in the context of broader historical, economic and cultural debates. It will examine a wide range of media forms including print media, broadcasting, film and new media technologies, assessing their cultural impact in East Asian societies. It will explore contemporary issues of media development and policy and it will relate these to longer historical contexts.

Analysing Popular Music

Analysing Popular Music has two major concerns: firstly, to develop a social understanding of transatlantic popular music, and secondly, to develop a cultural-historical perspective on its development over the past hundred years and more. This module introduces you to theoretical approaches to the study of popular music, allowing you to engage in independent critical analysis of popular music and popular musical cultures.

Communication and Creativity Toolkit

You will combine insights from a range of disciplines and creative practices to generate a 'toolkit' for both the intellectual understanding of communications and creativity, and the practical development of creative practices in various forms. You will combine theoretical approaches to the creative and communications sectors with practically orientated perspectives on the world of business, and you will be introduced to entrepreneurial practices and processes. In particular, you will focus on the development of creative business ideas and the writing skills that are central to creative production.

Analysing British Television

This module introduces you to key ways of understanding the development of British television. It examines the evolution of British television industries and institutions from their beginnings up to the present, looking at important factors and influences that have shaped the industry over time. It explores different accounts of ‘Britishness’ both in television shows or formats and in the relationship between television producers and audiences.

Digital Identities: the Politics of Communication in the Globalised World.

This module explores the intersection of our capitalist economy on the one hand and digital media and technologies on the other hand. It uses contemporary and classical theories such as Marxism and the Frankfurt School to make sense of capitalism in the information age and inspects how social media are reshaping our identities, how they change our everyday interactions and communications, and how they transform collective action and social movements. The module explores topics such as hacking and surveillance; open source software and open-access publishing; internet regulation and internet policies. It also explores various forms of digital rebellion and introduces the notion of the digital commons, a non-commodified internet, which is emerging with great force.

Short Film Production and Exhibition

Enhance your production skills through the creation of a short film. You will use a range of equipment and practical craft techniques to your idea from creation, through professional planning, filming, and editing to promotion and festival entry. You will be supported in a variety of roles in your team with professional advice from practice-based academic tutors and our technical team.

Some optional modules may be studied on the Clifton campus.

Core module

Dissertation

This is a substantial piece of work developed and made by you in whatever media platform you choose. You’ll be supported by one-to-one tutorials with a specialist supervisor and be introduced to industry mentors who’ll give advice on practical projects.

What’s New? The Future of Media Communications

This module looks at innovations and challenges that face media communications professionals as they look to the future. Using practical assessments such as blog writing, producing a radio advertisement and making an audio slideshow, students will advance their media skills in preparation for future employment as digital, multi-media producers. You will examine the issues, ideas and debates which contemporary journalism and marketing have to engage with, such as the funding and accessibility of news on the internet, the nature and trends of popular content, new styles and forms of presentation and the blurring of fantasy and reality in digital communications.

Optional Modules

Advertising, PR and Journalism II: Convergence and Creativity in the Digital Age

This module continues to develop your appreciation of the history, practice and theory of advertising, public relations and journalism. You’ll explore the concept of ‘convergence’, which means the way individuals working in these sectors increasingly have to take on a variety of roles, learning to use a variety of working practices and technologies. You'll take part in workshops to help you further develop the writing, digital literacy and image analysis/creation skills that are central to success in these areas.

Political Communication and Society

This module seeks to help students understand more about the socio-political world in which we live. The module considers the international and global dimension of contemporary transformations in communications and analyses some of the key terms in contemporary political communications and society such as public diplomacy, propaganda, soft power, and ‘narrow-casting’. By the end of the module you will be familiar with specific case studies involving politics, communications, the media and society in places as diverse as the UK, Nicaragua and Taiwan.

Humanity in the Natural World

This module helps you to look at the relation between humanity and nature from psychological, cultural, and historical perspectives. You’ll examine questions such as: Is industrial civilisation simply an extension of nature? Is the 'environmental crisis' a symptom of a deeper alienation from the natural world? You'll also consider whether capitalism and technology are inherently destructive to nature, and will assess the possibility of 'greening' industrial civilisation.

Media in the Workplace: Becoming Career Ready

This module focuses on becoming career ready. It will focus on a broad range of careers (not just those in the media and creative sector). The module will give you the opportunity to start your careers search and it aims to give you some of the practical skills, knowledge and tools to equip you for beginning that search and becoming career ready.

Client-Led Media Practice and Production

During this module, you'll be able to focus on the development of skills in media production by completing a media project that will be set to a 'real brief'. This is an opportunity for you to enhance your employability options by participating in live projects with a real purpose. This module will encourage you to make connections between theory and practice.

Lifestyle and Consumer Culture

Explore key approaches to understanding lifestyle and the culture of consumption. You'll be introduced to many important theoretical approaches to understand lifestyle and consumer culture and you'll use many case studies such as travel and tourism to evaluate these.

The Body and Popular Culture

How is the body represented in popular culture? Examine key ideas such as how we might understand the various meanings surrounding the body across a range of media and cultural forms. By studying a selection of case studies, you'll explore the way that the body is addressed and located within popular culture, for example, from music to sport.

Cultural Policy

Explore a range of debates within the developing field of policy study which relate to the development of media. You'll examine some of the key institutions within which policies relating to film, television, the visual arts, heritage and other creative industries are determined. You'll explore questions such as: what is cultural value and how important are the cultural and creative industries?

American Television since 1950

This module examines American television from the 1950s to the current moment. It moves from the emergence of the Classic Network Era through to the Post-Network era of digital television. It places American television in its historical, industrial and cultural context. It considers the formal and aesthetic properties of American television programmes and engages with the organisation and history of network television (for example NBC) and cable television (for example HBO).

DJ Cultures

From obscure roots, the art of DJing has in recent decades exploded into the limelight as a major form of popular culture. No prior experience of DJing is required to take this module, which combines a basic ‘taster’ introduction to DJ technology and the practical techniques of DJ performance with a theoretical consideration of various styles of DJing, their histories, their related musical experiences and their wider cultural significance and influence.

How you’re taught

Enabling creative thinking is central to how you’ll be taught. Classes consist of lectures, seminars, workshops, screenings and tutorials designed to develop your skills in creative thinking, problem-solving, critical analysis, research methods, time management, presentation and group work.

Work experience

You’ll undertake a period of work experience and complete a placement report. Employability exercises during seminars will help you produce career-based material such as your CV, LinkedIn profile and to start to develop potential career areas.

More student opportunities

International exchange

You’ll also have the option to take part in an international exchange at a partner university. Or you could source work placements abroad. These options will enable you to gain impressive international experience, and broaden your perspective and career ambitions.

You’ll experience other cultures, travel the globe and open your eyes to a world of opportunities. Our exchange partnership with a number of international universities enables you to live and study in another country in your second year.

Learn a new language

Alongside your study you also have the opportunity to learn a new language. The University Language Programme (ULP) is available to all students and gives you the option of learning a totally new language or improving the skills you already have.

Learning a new language can enhance your communication skills, enrich your experience when travelling abroad and boost your career prospects. Find out more about the University Language Programme.

Creative industries in Nottingham

Nottingham has a thriving creative arts scene which feeds the local creative industries. Many successful TV production, digital design and marketing agencies have chosen to base themselves in Nottingham.

The creative industries in Nottingham include organisations like Nottingham Contemporary, Broadway Cinema and Media Centre, Antenna Media Centre and LeftLion.

Contact hours

  • Year 1 lectures/seminars/workshops (25%) and independent study (75%).
  • Year 2 lectures/seminars/workshops (20%), independent study (80%).
  • Year 3 lectures/seminars/workshops (21%) and independent study (79%).
  • All Arts and Humanities students will complete a minimum of 240 hours of work like experience over the three years of the course

Staff Profiles

Catherine Adams - Senior Lecturer

School of Arts & Humanities

Catherine Adams

Nigel Edley - Senior Lecturer

School of Arts & Humanities

Nigel Edley

Colin Alexander (Dr) - Senior Lecturer

School of Arts & Humanities

Dr. Colin Alexander is Senior Lecturer in Political Communications within the Communication and Society subject team at the School of Arts and Humanities

Ben Taylor - Principal Lecturer

School of Arts & Humanities

Ben Taylor

Simon Cross - Senior Lecturer

School of Arts & Humanities

Simon Cross

How you’re assessed

  • Year 1 coursework (100%)
  • Year 2 coursework (100%)
  • Year 3 coursework (100%)

Careers and employability

Your career development

You’ll possess many of the attributes needed to develop a career in the field of communications and media. These include research; organisation; content production; team-working and time-management skills. Graduates have gone on to work in journalism, events management, marketing, advertising and public relations. This includes roles as a social media consultant; marketing account manager; PR and marketing executive; marketing manager and digital content assistant.

Campus and facilities

Media Production: Video Projects

The videos featured on this page are all examples of student project work. Produced by Year Two Media students they are based on a student communications brief from the NTU Environment Team. You can find more 'Eco videos' produced by Media students on the NTU YouTube channel.

Media laboratories and equipment

We have specialist media laboratories where you will develop multimedia production skills. Equipment includes:

  • HDV camcorders
  • tripods
  • lighting kit
  • cameras
  • voice recorders
  • iMacs
  • finalCut software
  • turntables
  • sound equipment.

This equipment is supported by technical staff and is available as free hire for student project work.

Here are some of the free services, student discount and benefits you'll get studying at NTU

We've carefully considered what benefits and services you need for your studies, so when you join NTU you'll get free printing and materials credits, access to our free WiFi, a copy of Microsoft Office, and even borrow a laptop if yours is out of commission.

For life outside your lectures, you'll enjoy access to over 60 sports clubs and 130 student societies, discounted travel and bike hire, free language learning, award-winning student support and an entertainment programme which is second to none.

See all the benefits and free services you will enjoy as an NTU student.

Books and library resources

In our library you’ll have access to an extensive and diverse range of books including those on your reading list.

The library's online resources and NTU Online Workspace (NOW) also provides digital access to the core resources for your modules and a wide range of specialist collections, texts, and databases

Nottingham Trent University has its own Blackwell’s Bookshop which stocks relevant academic texts plus a wide range of bestselling novels.

IT resources

Our IT resource rooms and PC clusters are distributed across our campuses, with PCs providing access to:

  • Microsoft Office
  • email
  • web browsing
  • networked file storage
  • high-speed online printing services (with a free printing allowance for each student). Resource rooms are available 24 hours a day.

Societies

Current students run societies in a range of Humanities and Arts subjects including History, Medieval, Film, Filmmaking, Philosophy, Politics and International Relations, and the Book society.

There are also a number of media channels which our students get involved in such as the NTU radio station FlyLive, our student magazine Platform, and TV station TrentTV.

Find out more about student societies at the Student Union website.

Entry requirements

  • Standard offer: 112 UCAS Tariff points from up to four qualifications
  • Contextual offer: 104 UCAS Tariff points from up to four qualifications.

Contextual offers

A lower offer may be made based on a range of factors, including your background (such as where you live and the school or college you attended), your experiences and individual circumstances (you may have been in care, for example). This is called a contextual offer and we get data from UCAS to make these decisions. NTU offers a student experience like no other and this approach helps us to find students who have the potential to succeed here but who may have faced barriers that make it more difficult to access university. Find out how we assess your application.

Other qualifications and experience

We may also consider credits achieved at other universities and your work/life experience through an assessment of prior learning. This may be for year one entry, or beyond the beginning of a course where applicable, for example, into year 2. Our Recognition of Prior Learning and Credit Transfer Policy outlines the process and options available for this route.

Meeting our entry requirements

Hundreds of qualifications in the UK have UCAS tariff points attached to specific grades, including A levels, BTECs, T Levels and many more. You can use your grades and points from up to four different qualifications to meet our criteria. Enter your predicted or achieved grades into our tariff calculator to find out how many points your qualifications are worth.

Getting in touch

If you need more help or information, get in touch through our enquiry form

You will need the equivalent to:

  • 112 UCAS tariff points from four A-levels or equivalent qualifications

International qualifications

We accept qualifications from all over the world – check yours here:

English language entry requirements

You can meet our language requirements by successfully completing our pre-sessional English course for an agreed length of time, or by submitting the required grade in one of our accepted English language tests, such as IELTS:

Undergraduate preparation courses (Foundation)

If you don’t yet meet our entry requirements, we offer Foundation courses through our partner Nottingham Trent International College (NTIC), based on our City Campus:

Advanced standing (starting your undergraduate degree in year 2 or 3)

You may be able to start your undergraduate course in year 2 or 3 based on what you have studied before. This decision would be made in accordance with our Recognition of Prior Learning and Credit Transfer Policy.

Would you like some advice on your study plans?

Our international teams are highly experienced in answering queries from students all over the world. We also have members of staff based in Vietnam, China, India and Nigeria and work with a worldwide network of education counsellors.

Fees and funding

Preparing for the financial side of student life is important, but there’s no need to feel anxious and confused about it. We hope that our fees and funding pages will answer all your questions.

Getting in touch

For more advice and guidance, you can contact our Student Financial Support Service on +44 (0)115 848 2494.

Additional Costs

Your course fees cover the cost of studies, and include loads of great benefits, such as the use of our library, support from our expert Employability team, and free use of the IT equipment across our campuses.

Library books

Most study modules will recommend one or more core text books, which most students choose to purchase. Book costs vary and further information is available in the University’s bookshop. Our libraries provide a good supply of essential text books, journals and materials (many of which you can access online) – meaning you may not need to purchase as many books as you might think! There may also be a supply of second-hand books available for purchase from previous year students.

Field trips

All essential field trip costs will be included in your course fees. There may be the opportunity to take part in optional field trips, which do incur additional costs.

Placements

If you're undertaking a placement year, you'll need to budget for accommodation and any travel costs you may incur whilst on placement. Many of our placement students do earn a salary whilst on placement which can help to cover these living costs.

Print and copy costs

The University allocates an annual printing and copying allowance of £20 depending on the course you are studying. For more details about costs for additional print and copying required over and above the annual allowance please see the Printing, photocopying and scanning information on the Library website.

Please see our fees page for more information.

Tuition fees are payable for each year that you are at the University. The level of tuition fees for the second and subsequent years of your undergraduate course may increase in line with inflation and as specified by the UK government.

Scholarships

We offer scholarships of up to 50% of your tuition fee. You can apply for your scholarship when you have an offer to study at NTU.

Living costs

Get advice on the cost of living as an international student in Nottingham and how to budget:

Paying fees

Find out about advanced payments, instalment plan options and how to make payments securely to the University:

Would you like some advice on your study plans?

Our international teams are highly experienced in answering queries from students all over the world. We also have members of staff based in Vietnam, China, India and Nigeria and work with a worldwide network of education counsellors.

How to apply

Ready to join us? Then apply as soon as you can.

For the full-time route just click the Apply button at the top of the page and follow our step-by-step guide.

If you're applying for the part-time route please apply online using the NTU Applicant Portal.

Make sure you check the entry requirements above carefully before you do.

Writing your application and personal statement

Be honest, thorough and persuasive in your application. Remember, we can only make a decision based on what you tell us. So include all of your qualifications and grades, including resits or predicted grades.

Your personal statement is a really important part of your application. It’s your chance to convince us why we should offer you a place! You've got 4,000 characters to impress us. Make sure you use them to show how your skills and qualities are relevant to the course(s) you’re applying for. For more hints and tips, take a look at our page on how to write a good personal statement.

Keeping up-to-date

After you've applied, we’ll be sending you important emails throughout the application process so check your emails regularly, including your junk mail folder.

You can get more information and advice about applying to NTU on our Your Application page. Good luck with your application!

Need help with your application?

For admissions related enquiries please contact us:

Tel: +44 (0)115 848 4200

Ask us a question

You can apply directly to the University for an undergraduate course if you’re not applying to any other UK university in the same year. If you are applying to more than one UK university you must apply through UCAS.

Apply as early as you can so that you have time to prepare for your studies. If you need a visa to study here you need to plan this into your application.

Keeping up-to-date

After you've applied, we’ll be sending you important emails throughout the application process so check your emails regularly, including your junk mail folder.

Good luck with your application!

Help and support

There is lots of advice and guidance about how to apply, fees and scholarships, qualifications, and student life on our dedicated International students website.

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