Media Communications (Professional Placement Year)
Entry requirements
A level
Grades BBB-BCC preferred.
Access to HE Diploma
Typical offers for applicants with Access to HE will be the Access to HE Diploma or Access to HE Certificate (60 credits, 45 of which must be Level 3, at Merit or higher).
International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme
A minimum of 32 points are required.
Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)
Extended Diploma grades from Distinction Distinction Merit (DDM) to Distinction Merit Merit (DMM) accepted in any subject.
T Level
Grade Merit preferred.
UCAS Tariff
We've calculated how many Ucas points you'll need for this course.
About this course
**Revolutionise how media creators communicate to audiences with our Media Communications degree.**
- Learn the skills to succeed across the ever-growing communications industries.
- Reimagine how you use media to communicate to audiences ethically and progressively.
- Work alongside The Studio, the University’s new city-centre innovation hub for creative media technology.
Throughout this Media Communications degree, you’ll develop your creative skills in marketing, social media management, journalism and creative strategy, and prepare for success across the thriving communications sector. You’ll gain experience working on cross-platform campaigns and communication strategies, activist political media making and investigative journalism, and learn to produce professional social media content and PR packs.
Taught by a team of researchers and creative media strategists and creators, you’ll learn how to rethink media communications for social change. You’ll study online influencers and diverse forms of screen representation, explore the ethics of social media platforms like TikTok and alternative approaches to journalism, emerging marketing practices for immersive experiences and beyond.
In your final year, you’ll join The Studio in Bath, the University’s new city-centre innovation hub for creative media technology. By collaborating with the region’s media and communications sector on cross-platform campaigns, feature articles and activist media, you’ll grow into a communications professional, realising your vision for a more inclusive media landscape. As fresh voices in these organisations, you’ll gain on the ground experience in the industry which will enable you to leap into a career in communications, marketing and social media.
**More about the Professional Placement Year**
A Professional Placement Year (PPY), traditionally known as a sandwich year, is where you undertake a period of work with an external organisation for between 9-13 months. The placement occurs between your second and final years of undergraduate study. You can engage in up to 3 placements to make up the total time and are required to source the placement(s) yourself, with support from the Careers team.
Modules
Year one: audiences, activism and access
Open your eyes to being a media activist. You’ll be introduced to analytical tools to critique contemporary media, such as gender and inequality. You’ll learn new graphic design and project development skills, as well as how to research media audiences.
Year two: industries, inclusivity and influencers
Understand the communications industry. You’ll learn marketing, influencer and branding practices, identifying opportunities to revolutionise how media creators communicate to audiences. You’ll learn web design skills, explore grassroots community media, practice cross-platform communication strategies, and increase your awareness of media ethics.
Your third year is a Professional Placement Year.
Final year: emerging voices, technologies and opportunities
Become a communications professional and realise your vision for a more inclusive media landscape. You’ll work beyond the borders of the university, joining The Studio, our innovation hub for creative media technology, while collaborating with arts and cultural organisations. You’ll learn how immersive media, feminist activism, AI communications and public exhibitions can all shape the future of media.
Assessment methods
You’ll produce the kind of media content that defines our ‘communications for change’ ethos, working on creative media campaigns, marketing strategies, investigative journalism features, political media making, social media content and PR packs.
Tuition fees
Select where you currently live to see what you'll pay:
The Uni
Bath Spa University
Bath School of Art, Film and Media
What students say
We've crunched the numbers to see if overall student satisfaction here is high, medium or low compared to students studying this subject(s) at other universities.
How do students rate their degree experience?
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Media studies
Teaching and learning
Assessment and feedback
Resources and organisation
Student voice
Who studies this subject and how do they get on?
Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)
After graduation
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Media studies
What are graduates doing after six months?
This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.
Top job areas of graduates
Only a small number of students study courses within this catch-all subject area, so there isn't a lot of information available on what graduates do when they finish - bear that in mind when you look at any stats. Marketing and PR were the most likely jobs for graduates from these courses, but it's sensible to go on open days and talk to tutors about what you might expect from the course, and what previous graduates did.
What about your long term prospects?
Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.
Media studies
The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.
£16k
£21k
£24k
Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.
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Post-six month graduation stats:
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Graduate field commentary:
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The Longitudinal Educational Outcomes dataset combines HRMC earnings data with student records from the Higher Education Statistics Agency.
While there are lots of factors at play when it comes to your future earnings, use this as a rough timeline of what graduates in this subject area were earning on average one, three and five years later. Can you see a steady increase in salary, or did grads need some experience under their belt before seeing a nice bump up in their pay packet?
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