Journalism and Philosophy (Including Year Abroad)
UCAS Code: P517
Bachelor of Arts (with Honours) - BA (Hons)
Entry requirements
A level
Including an essay-based subject.
Access to HE Diploma
International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme
Including a Higher Level essay-based subject grade 5. We are happy to consider a combination of separate IB Diploma Programmes at both Higher and Standard Level. Exact offer levels will vary depending on the range of subjects being taken at higher and standard level, and the course applied for. Please contact the Undergraduate Admissions Office for more information.
Entry requirements for students studying BTEC qualifications are dependent on subjects studied. Advice can be provided on an individual basis. The standard required is generally at Distinction level.
UCAS Tariff
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About this course
Whose truth do we witness through the media? Have we entered the age of post-truth? What is the responsibility of a journalist? Our BA Journalism and Philosophy encourages you to dig deeper, think critically, enhance your understanding and debate controversial topics. You learn how to engage with a wider audience, gain new perspectives and develop your own journalistic style. Alongside this you will begin to understand the ethical and philosophical issues surrounding journalism, from how social media allows individuals to shape their media consumption to the moral questions surrounding the duty of the journalist.
You spend your third year studying abroad allowing you to experience other cultures and languages, to broaden your degree socially and academically, and to demonstrate to employers that you are mature, adaptable, and organised.
Modules
Many of our courses offer a choice of optional modules to tailor your learning experience. More information about these can be found on the University of Essex website.
Tuition fees
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The Uni
Colchester Campus
Philosophy and Art History

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See your living costsWhat 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?
The stats below relate to the general subject area/s at this university, not this specific course. We show this where there isn’t enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.
Philosophy
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)
Journalism
Sorry, no information to show
This is usually because there were too few respondents in the data we receive to be able to provide results about the subject at this university.
Who studies this subject and how do they get on?
Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)
After graduation
The stats in this section relate to the general subject area/s at this university – not this specific course. We show this where there isn't enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.
Philosophy
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
What do graduate employment figures really tell you?Although there aren't a lot of jobs around for professional philosophers, philosophy degrees are a relatively popular option, with more than 2,000 students graduating in a philosophy-related subject in 2015 - a little down on previous years, but still healthy. Nearly a quarter of philosophy graduates take a postgraduate qualification, and it's a relatively common subject at both Masters and doctorate level — so if you think academic life might be for you, think ahead about how you might fund further study. For those who go into work, philosophy grads tend to go into teaching, accountancy, consulting, journalism, PR, housing, marketing, human resources and the arts while a few go into the computer industry every year, where their logical training is highly rated.
Journalism
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
What do graduate employment figures really tell you?Journalism roles are very sought after, and competition fierce, and with the Internet disrupting business models, this is likely to continue. It's not impossible to get into roles with a first degree — quite a few do - but they can often be insecure or on a freelance basis, and a lot of jobs in journalism go to postgraduates. Unpaid work is not the norm for new journalists, but it’s rather more common than for other roles, as personal contacts and work experience are important ways for would-be journalists to get their target jobs. The skills you can gain from a journalism degree can be useful in a range of industries, and so grads from these courses can be found in a wide range of jobs - first degree graduates often get jobs in marketing and PR where their skills at drafting copy to deadlines are appreciated. London tends to dominate the jobs market for journalism graduates - a quarter of journalism graduates went to work there - but 2015 graduates found opportunities elsewhere, particularly in larger cities with good local media.
What about your long term prospects?
Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.
Philosophy
The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.
£17k
£22k
£23k
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.
Journalism
The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.
£14k
£19k
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:
This is from the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education Survey, based on responses from graduates who studied the same subject area here.
It offers a snapshot of what grads went on to do six months later, what they were earning on average, and whether they felt their degree helped them obtain a 'graduate role'. We calculate a mean rating to indicate if this is high, medium or low compared to other universities.
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Graduate field commentary:
The Higher Education Careers Services Unit have provided some further context for all graduates in this subject area, including details that numbers alone might not show
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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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