Program Overview

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Digital Media and Journalism BA Honours

Overview

Our Digital Media and Journalism BA is ideal for those who want to pursue a career in journalism, focusing on stories, multi-platform news, media law, and launching a publication. The course has been designed to prepare you for the fast-changing media and communication industries and digital media roles of the future. You’ll become a highly skilled media professional who can create and share messages professionally across any digital platform, to truly connect with an audience.

Course Structure

During your first year, you’ll study alongside students on the other Digital Media BA pathways.

At the end of your first year, you’ll have the choice to continue with Digital Media and Journalism or change your specialism to one of our other Digital Media pathways in Communication, PR and Advertising or Media Production. Each pathway will give you a distinctive preparation in one of the most important fields of digital media.

These pathways, along with a variety of optional modules, provide you with the opportunity to customise your degree and expertise according to your interests and career objectives.

Your final degree award will reflect this specialism, e.g. Digital Media and Journalism BA (Hons).

Year 1

• Creating Digital Content
• Creative Industries and Professional Life
• Digital Media and Society
• Media and Communication Research 1
• Storytelling across Platforms

Credit Level 4

Year 2

In Year 2, you’ll take two shared core modules, two pathway modules and two option modules.

Core modules:

• Theories of Media and Communication
• Working in Digital Media

Pathway modules:

• Content and Communities: Launching a Digital Publication
• Stories, Updates and Feeds – Multiplatform News

Option modules:

• 3D Interactive Media Development
• Celebrity Culture and the Media
• Commercial Music Radio Production
• Consumer Culture and Society
• Design Thinking applied to Media and Communication practice
• Human Computer Interaction and User Experience
• Internet Cultures
• Media and Communication Research 2
• Mobile First: Video and Social Media Content
• Podcast and Audio Production
• Politics, Journalism and the Media
• Specialist News and Features
• Web Design

Credit Level 5

Placement Year

Digital Media Placement Year: if you choose to take the opportunity of one-year work placement after Year 2, you’ll complete the Digital Media Extended Work Placement module.

International Experience Year: if you choose to take the opportunity to spend one academic year after Year 2 studying overseas at one of our Exchange Partner Institutions, you’ll complete the Digital Media Study Abroad module.

Year 3

In Year 3, you’ll take two shared core modules, one pathway module and two option modules.

Core modules:

• Digital Media Project
• Dissertation or Individual Practice Project

Pathway modules:

• Media Law, Regulation and Ethics

Option modules:

• Creative Advertising
• Creative/Specialist Long Form Journalism
• Digital Media Extended Work Placement
• Diversity and the Media
• Final Project (Documentary and Factual Production)
• Specialist Public Relations
• Technology, Culture and Society
• Transforming Audiences
• User Experience (UX) and App Design
• Working in Digital Media 2

Credit Level 6

Programme Recognition

This course is delivered through a partnership with BAFTA albert Education, which provides staff and graduates with the tools and techniques needed to learn about environmentally responsible working practices and their professional relevance. The partnership will help students develop knowledge about sustainability, carbon footprinting and planet placement in programmes.

Professional Accreditation

The course is accredited by the Professional Publishers Association, which recognises that University of Westminster is committed to maintaining the highest standards of training and development for graduate journalists seeking to join the industry. PPA membership provides access to the key players in the UK’s magazine and trade press sectors and enhances employment prospects for students studying on the course.

Programme Training Opportunities

This course is committed to health and safety training, and has partnered with the Mark Milsome Foundation to offer an optional online course for students wishing to develop their skills in this area. The Mark Milsome Foundation Skillset Production Safety Passport course ensures that students are equipped with essential safety knowledge, as they venture into careers in the film and TV industry. Created in memory of Mark Milsome, the course provides a Level II Production Safety Passport valid for 5 years from ScreenSkills. This additional course is available free of charge to University of Westminster students studying this Undergraduate course.

Entry Requirements

• UK:
  • A levels – CCC (96 UCAS Tariff points)
  • T levels – 96 UCAS Tariff points
  • International Baccalaureate – 96 UCAS Tariff points from all components of the Diploma Programme. International Baccalaureate Career-related Programme will be considered on a case-by-case basis
  • BTEC Extended Diploma – MMM
  • BTEC Diploma – DD
  • Access – 96 UCAS Tariff points from the Access course
• International:
  • International Baccalaureate – 96 UCAS Tariff points from all components of the Diploma Programme. International Baccalaureate Career-related Programme will be considered on a case-by-case basis
  • Other international qualifications – We accept a wide range of international high school level qualifications.
  • International Foundation courses – We work in partnership with Kaplan International College London who provide the International Foundation Certificate at their College based in Liverpool Street.

English Language Requirements

If your first language is not English, you will need an IELTS of 6.5 overall, with 5.5 in each component.

Fees and Funding

• UK tuition fee: £9,535 (Price per academic year)
• International tuition fee: £17,600 (Price per academic year)

Teaching and Assessment

• Teaching methods: lectures, seminars, workshops, problem-based and blended learning, and where appropriate practical application.
• Assessment: practical, written exams, coursework.

Facilities

• Melvyn Williams Broadcast Suite: a multifunctional space designed to meet the needs of modern multi-platform journalism.

Career Opportunities

• Digital skills are among the most sought after in graduates.
• Our students are ideally placed to build successful careers across both the private and public sector.
• Job roles: Broadcast journalist, Digital content manager, Digital copywriter, Editorial assistant, Feature writer, Magazine features editor, News Reporter, Photojournalist, Social media manager, Social media journalist.

International Opportunities

• Many of our courses offer international study and work experiences.
• Opportunities could include: taking part in semester or year-long exchanges at institutions around the world, attending an international summer school or field trip, developing your CV through volunteering or work placements abroad.