Course overview

|This course provides a blend of vocational training and academic enquiry. It is designed to create thinking journalists  who have developed their skills in a 'live' environment.  

As part of the course students will use up-to-date professional equipment for both the print and broadcast aspects of the curriculum. They also will work in a newsroom environment, writing news stories, press releases and features, while adhering to strict deadlines. Each year students build on their existing skills and develop new methods of working to enable them to plot a career pathway by specialising in their chosen media at level three. 

Here at Southampton Solent we also run a highly successful guest speaker programme featuring many big names from the media industry. In recent years we have had the editor of NME Conor McNicholas and Amanda Statham, travel editor of Cosmopolitan , among our guests. These provide useful networking sessions as they offer students direct access to influential people. Through the guest speakers, along with the assistance of our experienced and passionate teaching staff, you can gain opportunities for work placements that could lead to a job after graduation. 

Study in Europe

You can also take the degree as a four year option that includes one year studying in a European University. The opportunity to live and study in a foreign environment will broaden your horizons and make you more attractive to employers in am increasingly international journalism industry.You can make the decision to switch onto this course from the 3 year Journalism course during your first two years of study. The UCAS code for the four year BA (Hons) Journalism degree is P501 BA/Jour4.

What our graduates say about the course

I found the practical side of the Journalism BA (Hons) has really prepared me for the journalistic world and I am grateful to all of my lecturers for setting me up for life after university.

Elizabeth Barnet, feature writer for a freelance agency

The course allowed me to experience the different types of journalism and decide which sector was best for me, then encourage me to excel in it.

Alexia Weeks, features editor, Lifescape Magazine

What our current student say about the course

I enjoy all the practical aspects of making news bulletins and programmes in radio and TV. It's like a working environment – I feel more prepared for industry every day.

Nikki Griffiths, Level 3 Broadcast Pathway

My tutors are very friendly and approachable. I really enjoy the hands-on aspects of the course and am very excited about working on the Solent Star newspaper. I think it's preparing us well for what I want to do in the future.

Oliver Knight, Level 3 Print Pathway

Professional accreditation

       

The Journalism BA (Hons) is a fantastic springboard for a career in media, with professional standards endorsed throughout including accreditation from major professional bodies – PTC for magazines (Periodical Training Council) and the BJTC (Broadcast Journalism Training Council) for television and radio.

We also host NCTJ (National Council for the Training of Journalists) exams here at the University and prepare students if they wish to take them.

Accredited by Skillset (the Sector Skills Council for the Creative Media) as part of the University's  Skillset Media Academy| – a national centre of excellence in media education.

Course content

Year 1

• Journalistic and Academic Development
• The History and Politics of UK Journalism
• Inside Multimedia News
• Newspaper, Magazine and Online Journalism
• Broadcast Journalism

Year 2 

Core Units:

• Media Law and Ethics
• Reporting Government
• Global and New Media Contexts
• Choice of one option from a range of Units

Pathway:

• Broadcast Journalism: News and Studio Skills
• Print Journalism: Editing and Production

Year 3 - if doing the four year option this will be your fourth year

Core Units:

• Dissertation/Major Project
• Journalism, Media Communications and Culture
• Choice of one option from a range of Units

Pathway:

• Broadcast Journalism: Employment and Professional Practice
• Print Journalism: Employment and Professional Practice

Options available in Years 2 and 3:

• Photojournalism
• Sport and Popular Culture
• Travel Journalism
• Online Journalism
• PR & Media Industries
• Local Government
• Identity, Celebrity and Fame
• The Documentary
• Sport Writing and Reporting
• Shorthand (Teeline)
• Curriculum Plus
• Language Option

4 year degree - between Years 2 and 3 you can spend a year studying abroad.

Spend one full academic year studying at one of our European partner Universities. With our help, you will choose which country you want to go to and which of their courses interest you so you can create a tailor-made programme of study.

Assessment

Assessment is carried out through coursework, which comprises of both journalistic writing and essays, group projects and presentations, workshops assignments, and written examinations.

Entry level

240 points from 6-unit or 12-unit awards, excluding General Studies.

IELTS 7.5 or equivalent for overseas students. 

Career opportunities

The course is a fantastic springboard into a career in all areas of journalism as well as the wider media such as PR or marketing, with professional standards endorsed throughout.

Industrial placements

Students are required to complete 120 hours of work placement in industry but we encourage students to undertake as much as possible. Students go to national magazines and newspapers, major broadcasters including the BBC and Sky, the trade press, public relations companies, independent radio stations and news websites. There are thousands of opportunities.

Special facilities

At Southampton Solent University we have first-class multi-media equipment and state of the art radio and television studios.  Students will be able to work with the very latest technical facilities including two multi-camera TV studios, radio news studios, Reuters and SKY news feeds, the latest print software and a dedicated Journalism newsroom.

Field trips

This year we have taken students to Paris and to New York to get a European and global perspective. In addition every year some students are taken to the Magazine Academy awards and the PTC masterclass and industry awards in London.

Student work  

Level three journalism students write and edit their own newspaper, which is printed by The Southern Daily Echo. Examples of the student newspaper are often available at Open Days. In 2009 students produced the Solent Sound.  

 

Programme Specification

The current academic year (2009-2010) programme specification for this course can be found via the Faculty of Media, Arts and Society course list |held in our Programme Specification centre.

Contacts

For further information on the course please contact the:

Faculty of Media, Arts and Society

Tel: 023 8031 9653

E-mail: fmas@solent.ac.uk|

International Students please contact the International Recruitment Office:

Tel: +44 (0) 23 8031 9129

Fax: +44 (0) 23 8031 9412

E-mail: international@solent.ac.uk|

 

 

Page was last updated on 05 Aug 2010 16:23:49.313