Program Overview

Popular Music BA(Hons)

Course Overview

Develop your creative skills in songwriting, production, performance, and promotion while learning how to navigate the legal, ethical, and financial aspects of the industry.

Key Details

• Location: Penryn Campus
• Course duration: 3 years / 4 years
• Attendance: Full-time / Professional Placement
• UCAS code: W340 / PY07

Course Structure

Year One

• Playing Live: Songwriting & Performance
• Pop Synthesis: Technology, Songwriting & Performance
• Expanding Musical Vocabularies
• Specialist Music Practice 1
• Music and Sound: Context and Cultures
• Studiocraft

Year Two

• Professional Creative Artist & Songwriter
• The Business of Music & Sound
• Specialist Music Practice 2
• Music & Sound: Resonant Futures
• Optional modules:
  • Enterprise: Innovative Music Business Practice
  • A/V Radical Artistry & New Media Aesthetics
  • Composing Music for Media
  • Session Musicianship
  • Immersive & Interactive Audio
  • Advanced & Experimental Performance
  • Resounding: Situated Songwriting & Composition
  • Voice and Listening: Life, People and Planet

Year Three

• Music & Sound: Dissertation
• Professional Development
• Your Future
• Showcase Portfolio

Facilities

• 11 performance and rehearsal spaces
• A flexible theatre space for live performances
• Recording suites / live production rooms
• Music practice rooms for bands and solo work
• A technical store housing professional digital and analogue recording and performance equipment

Staff

• Dr D Ferrett, Associate Professor in Music, Sound and Culture
• Dr Johny Lamb, Senior Lecturer, Music
• Will Parker, Lecturer in Music and Sound
• Frankie Stevens, Lecturer in Music
• Andrea Rushton, Lecturer in Music
• Sam Murray, Senior Lecturer in Music
• Dr Simon Waite, Course Co-ordinator & Senior Lecturer
• Dr Antti Saario, Head of Music

Careers

• Songwriter-performer-producer
• Working musician (band/stage/studio)
• Songwriter for synch, production/library music, publishing companies
• Performer/demo/presenter for instrument company
• Session musician
• Creative content creator
• Music industry professional (e.g., label management, events management, music supervisor)
• Music and sound equipment manufacture and sales
• Music educator
• Postgraduate study & research

Fees, Costs & Funding

• Tuition fees for students starting the course in September 2025:
  • Full-time UK: £9,535 per year
  • Full-time EU/international: £17,950 per year
  • Full-time UK and EU/international professional placement year: £1,905
• Typical course costs:
  • A laptop and reliable broadband connection
  • Personal instrument and associated equipment
  • Physical file storage (£60+)
  • Monitoring headphones (£80+)
  • Maintenance costs for personal study items and instruments (£50-£100)
  • Public Programme season tickets (student rate)

Application Advice & Interview Information

• We consider all applications on their own individual merit and potential.
• We invite all applicants to an interview day or audition to give them the opportunity to demonstrate this along with what inspires and motivates them in their field.
• Applicants will also be able to show their portfolio or give a performance depending on the course.
• We welcome applications from all subject backgrounds, whether you’ve specialised in STEM, the arts or humanities.

Entry Requirements

• 104 – 120 UCAS Tariff points
• For applicants whose first language is English, we require you to have or be working towards GCSE English Language Grade 4 (C), or equivalent.
• If English is not your first language, you will need to meet the same standard, which is equivalent to the IELTS Academic 6.0 overall score, with at least 5.5 in Reading, Writing, Speaking, and Listening.

What We're Looking For

• Ability in the skills and craft of music
• Creativity and imagination
• Technical skill and musical awareness
• Expressiveness, with performance presence
• Ability to articulate verbally and in writing
• Engagement with interview questions and discussion
• Critical discussion of portfolio examples or other musical examples
• Music experience and contextual knowledge
• Sustained engagement, motivation, and creative potential.