Prepare for a career in the fast-moving fields of journalism, PR and media — gaining the skills and knowledge you need for a range of exciting roles.
Get ready for a full degree by taking an extra foundation year at the start.
Learn the practical, technical, writing and research skills that you'll need for undergraduate studies.
Choose from a wide range of digital media, media arts and communications topics.
Develop your portfolio and professional and academic skills.

The foundation year is designed especially for students who need additional skills or experience to begin a full BA Journalism, Public Relations and Media degree. The course is suitable if you don’t meet the entry requirements for our full degree course, or you want extra preparation before starting degree-level study. You'll learn with experienced practitioners and develop your interests. After completing your foundation year, you’ll have the skills and knowledge you need, and progress directly onto the full degree.

Work placements

You’ll have the opportunity to arrange a year-long work placement in between your second and third years. This gives you real-world experience to prepare you for your future career.

Recent students have worked with the BBC, regional newspapers, local and national PR agencies, Disney, Purple PR music agency, Mattel, Douwe Egberts, Dentsu Aegis, Top Cashback, South Yorkshire Police, Sheffield Children's Hospital, Sheffield Showroom and Sheff Doc/Fest, the international documentary festival. Students also work in the voluntary sector.

Networking opportunities

Our staff are active in the journalism, PR and media industries. As a result, experts from across the sectors are a core feature throughout your course. They cover topics from regional and national journalism, digital and social skills to search engine optimisation, crisis management, charity, sports and music PR.

Every year we hold industry events that link you with regional and national PR experts. Graduates return to share their experiences and top tips for finding jobs. Selected students are offered a chance to be mentored by PR professionals for one year.

You will gain automatic free student membership of the Public Relations Communications Association (PRCA). Benefits include exclusive access to work placements, internships, graduate schemes and entry-level jobs, free and unlimited online training, and free access to the industry-recognised PRCA Online Certificate.

We also work closely with the Chartered Institute of Public Relations and the Professional Publishers Association.

Field trips

We take student trips to regional, national and international events, including the Berlin Film Festival, where you get the chance to meet industry experts. 

You can also apply for our Go Global student initiative, which has taken our students to destinations such as Malaysia and Paris, gaining new skills and a broader cultural insight into how journalism and PR are applied internationally.

There is opportunity to study abroad with the possibility of funding through the Erasmus+ programme (until 2023) or the Turing Scheme. 

All our courses are designed around a set of key principles based on engaging you with the world, collaborating with others, challenging you to think in new ways, and providing you with a supportive environment in which you can thrive.

Your studies are led by a team that includes award-winning journalism, PR and media practitioners, along with internationally-recognised theorists. They have experience across a range of industries — including TV, health and charity — across the public and private sectors.

Throughout the course, you attend a combination of lectures, workshops and seminars where key topics and concepts are introduced and explored. This includes a mix of tutor-directed learning and discussions, and student-led exercises and tasks. You’ll engage in collaborative activities in person, and online.

You learn through

• essays
• practical work
• case studies
• reports
• group work
• concept maps
• research projects
• oral presentations
• portfolios

This course prepares you for a career in

• journalism
• music and entertainment management
• in-house and agency public relations
• media relations
• digital PR
• event management
• corporate communications
• lobbying and political communications
• radio
• film and TV production
• blogging
• social media
• content creation

Previous journalism and PR graduates have gone on to work in

• BBC World Service
• BBC local radio
• Sky
• TalkSport
• environmental lobbying positions
• social media campaigning
• Oxford University
• Diva Creative
• Edelman
• Nelson Bostock
• Liverpool FC TV
• TUI travel - head office PR team

UCAS points

• 112

This must include at least 64 points from two A levels or equivalent BTEC National qualifications, including at least 32 points in a relevant* subject. For example:

• BBC at A Level
• DMM in BTEC Extended Diploma.
• A combination of qualifications, which must include 64 points from two A levels and may include AS Levels, EPQ and general studies. Where an applicant has not taken AS Level qualifications we may make a lower offer.

* Relevant subjects are • media studies • communication studies • film studies •
English • creative writing • a foreign language • sociology • politics • history •
psychology • accountancy/finance • business/economics • hospitality/events
management • dance/performing arts • drama/theatre studies • geography • art
and design • graphic design • IT/computing • music/music technology • sciences •
sport • world development.

You can find information on making sense of UCAS tariff points here and use the UCAS tariff calculator to work out your points.

GCSE

• English Language at grade C or 4
• Maths at grade C or 4

Access - an Access to HE Diploma with at least 45 credits at level 3 and 15 credits at level 2. At least 15 level 3 credits must be at merit grade or above, from a QAA-recognised Access to HE course, or an equivalent Access to HE certificate.

If English is not your first language you must have an IELTS score of 6.0 with a minimum of 5.5 in all skills or equivalent.

Please note the University will only admit students who are aged 18 or over at the point of enrolment.

Important notice:

The structure of this course is periodically reviewed and enhanced to provide the best possible learning experience for our students and ensure ongoing compliance with any professional, statutory and regulatory body standards. Module structure, content, delivery and assessment may change, but we expect the focus of the course and the learning outcomes to remain as described above. Following any changes, updated module information will be published on this page.

You will be able to complete a placement year as part of this course. See the modules table below for further information.

 

Year 1 Compulsory modules
Module	Credits	Assessment
Digital Skills And Client Management	20	Coursework
Media Law And Democracy	20	Coursework
Introduction To Pr	20	Coursework
Making Media	20	Coursework
Media Law And Democracy	20	Coursework
Pr And Persuasion	20	Coursework

 

 

Year 2 Compulsory modules
Module	Credits	Assessment
Brand Management And Entrepreneurship	20	Coursework
Reputations, Issues And Crisis Management	20	Coursework
Research Skills	20	Coursework
Researching And Reporting	20	Coursework

 

Elective modules
Module	Credits	Assessment
Digital Communications In Practice	20	Coursework
Feature Writing	20	Coursework
Foreign Language (French, Spanish, Italian)	20	Coursework Practical
Global Communications Strategy And Critique	20	Coursework
Life And Style Journalism	20	Coursework
Radio And Sound Production	20	Coursework
Tv And Video News Skills	20	Coursework

 

Year 3 Optional modules
Module	Credits	Assessment
Placement Year

 

Final Year Compulsory modules
Module	Credits	Assessment
Contemporary And Professional Issues In Public Relations	20	Coursework
Dissertation/Applied Project	40	Coursework
Pr Specialisms	20	Coursework

 

Elective modules
Module	Credits	Assessment
Corporate Communications: Strategy And Critique	20	Coursework
Foreign Language (French, Spanish, Italian)	20	Coursework Practical
Magazine Creation	20	Coursework
Magazine Publishing	20	Coursework
Moral Panics	20	Coursework
Pr And Power	20	Coursework
Tv2: Tv Journalism And Production	20	Coursework