The media industry is constantly changing, and you want to enter it bang up to date – with cross-industry editorial and production skills gained from experience of working in radio studios, edit suites and our newsroom, equipped with the latest Apple technology and Press Association news feeds.
Taught by professionals with print, broadcast and academic expertise, you will become skilled in news gathering, reporting, feature writing, shorthand and magazine page design. You will also develop an understanding of journalism in a globalised age.
You will do a placement in your second year, allowing you to graduate with vital work experience to give you the edge over other journalism graduates when trying to land your first job in the industry.
This course has the option to be taken over four years which includes a year placement in industry. Undertaking a year in industry has many benefits. You gain practical experience and build your CV, as well as being a great opportunity to sample a profession and network with potential future employers.
There is no tuition fee for the placement year enabling you to gain an extra year of experience for free.
*Only available to UK/EU students.
Listen to our students broadcasting on our Ofcom-licensed community radio station RadioLab 97.1FM.
You too could have your own show on RadioLab and even run the station in your third year.
See what our students are writing on their own news website citiblog.co.uk. You too would be reporting for Citiblog and building up your online portfolio of stories.
You will learn to work as a multiplatform journalist and develop strong communication and analytical skills, as you gain insight into a rapidly changing media industry in the globalised age.
You will be given the opportunity to learn and apply journalistic practice in your placement unit.
Coordinator for the course, and main tutor is Jon Boyle
Jon has a wealth of industry experience in all areas of journalism that enables him to teach a wide range of topics including news and feature writing, page design and sub-editing, shorthand, online reporting and his specialist subject of sports reporting. He has spent more than a decade as a national freelance football reporter, covering teams such as Leicester City, MK Dons and Luton Town.
Having grown up in Milton Keynes and worked for some of the biggest newspapers in the area, he has built up strong relationships with the local media including the Milton Keynes Citizen, One MK, BBC Three Counties Radio, Secklow Sounds, MKFM and MK Pulse, which enables his students to take advantage of fantastic work placement opportunities. Read Jon's profile
You will develop an initial understanding of how to write and research in the first year, assessed through a series of practical assignments, explored further and in greater depth in the second year, culminating in a possible portfolio of journalism work in which you seek to be of a publishable standard, in your final year.
You will explore the structures, ownership, regulations and theories of how journalism is produced, assessed in presentations and essays in the first year. This analysis grows in its sophistication, in the second year, looking at media law and your engagement with public institutions and assessed through examinations. This strand culminates in an analysis of ethics, insofar as they affect working journalists, assessed in essays and a possible academic dissertation, in your final year.
Assessment methods vary across the course, enabling you to develop strategies for a range of tasks, methods of evaluation and presentation giving you valuable employability experience. At all stages you will receive detailed feedback on your work. The importance of relevant, constructive feedback in a written, clearly understood, format which is delivered rapidly, enables you to incorporate the elements of feedback in your rolling programme of progressive work throughout your course. This is crucial to your academic and professional progression. Individual tutors all offer the opportunity to discuss any feedback in more detail at each level of study. As your skills and subject knowledge develop over the duration of your course, it is expected that you will develop increasingly sophisticated responses to assessment and employ increasingly effective methods of peer and self-review.
We will consider you as an individual and take into account all elements of your application, not just your qualifications. We are looking for breadth and depth in your current studies and enthusiasm for the subject you wish to study.
UCAS introduced a new tariff for courses from September 2017. This means the points you will be asked for are different to previous years but the grades you receive have not changed.
For more clarification about your qualifications in the new tariff see the UCAS tariff calculator
Contact the Admissions Team for additional guidance on whether the qualifications you currently hold or are taking would be suitable for entry.
T: +44 (0)1582 743500
E: admission@beds.ac.uk
As a general guide, to apply for a place on an undergraduate course (BA/BSc) at the University you need to have completed your high school education and have the required English qualification.
We have students from all the European Union member countries so we are quick to make decisions on most qualifications. See your country page for more details
Check Your Country page to confirm that your local qualifications are suitable or contact your International Admissions Team
The placement component of this course is the USP of this course. It will give you the edge over other journalism courses through the professional practice you will gain during the placement.
Besides this second year unit, we will help you find your feet in the media industry. Alumni will share good and bad practice and help you network. Lecturers will draw on their anecdotal experience, encouraging good working practices and localising bad ones. Professionals from the industry will watch you work, advise you on improvements, give you tips on getting into the industry and guest lecture. Trips are made to courts, councils and Parliament, reinforcing your understanding of media law and public administration.
You will also receive advice on how to succeed from current journalism students, who will meet you regularly.
You will have opportunities to work on the university community radio station, RadioLab, write and edit and for the student newspaper and follow alumni in attaining work experience with local media, such as the Bedfordshire on Sunday newspaper group and BBC Three Counties Radio, as well as opportunities in Milton Keyes and nearby London. You will write for the online blog which issues stories for local newspapers to select from and publish. You should be able to get your own bylines and stories published and build up a portfolio of journalism work.
The transferable and relevant skills which you will acquire remain in demand in the fields of publishing; copywriting, public relations work; in-house press office positions; teaching; sports journalism; media research; digital media production and academia.
Never has it been more important for journalism students to obtain a work placement, due to the fierce nature of the competition for jobs in the industry. Our students graduate with not only that crucial industry experience, but also with vital skills in news writing, shorthand, page design and sub-editing, and multimedia journalism. Our recent graduates have landed jobs at the BBC, Reuters and leading public relations companies.
We value real-world experience to prepare you for life beyond university, which is why we’ve forged connections with thousands of companies locally, nationally and internationally. Through our placements, you can gain that all-important practical experience whilst you complete your course.
From volunteering, internships and placements, through to a fee free year in industry, we offer a whole host of opportunities to enhance your employability. Discover more
Whether you want to learn a new language, build networks, simply have the travel bug, or want to develop new skills and life experiences, our Go Global programme offers the opportunity to broaden your horizons, enhance your CV, and gain a truly international experience, all at the same time as studying towards your undergraduate degree. The Go Global programme is open to students from the UK and EU.
Travel to exciting destinations, including:
At the University of Bedfordshire we ensure that your experience here is cultural, as well as academic. That’s why a whole host of opportunities are opened up to you, providing you with that all important experience to make you stand out from the crowd when it comes to getting graduates jobs.
Our International students meanwhile, can make the most of trips to a series of exciting European destinations. From France and Belgium, to Holland and Germany, there are plenty of places to visit, network and broaden your knowledge of the global market place, by seeing and experiencing it for yourself, first-hand.
At the University of Bedfordshire we ensure that your experience here is cultural, as well as academic. That’s why a whole host of opportunities are opened up to you, providing you with that all important experience to make you stand out from the crowd when it comes to getting graduates jobs.
The full-time standard undergraduate tuition fee for the Academic Year 2018/19 is £9,250 per year. You can apply for a loan from the Government to help pay for your tuition fees. You can also apply for a maintenance loan from the Government to help cover your living costs.
See www.gov.uk/student-finance
The University of Bedfordshire offers a number of scholarships and bursaries to help you finance your studies.
See www.beds.ac.uk/scholarships
The University reserves the right to increase tuition fees by no more than inflation.
Alternatively if you have any questions around fees and funding, please email admission@beds.ac.uk
The full-time standard undergraduate tuition fee for the Academic Year 2018/19 is £9,250 per year. You can apply for a loan from the Government to help pay for your tuition fees.
See www.gov.uk/student-finance
The University of Bedfordshire offers a number of scholarships and bursaries to help you finance your studies.
See www.beds.ac.uk/scholarships
The University reserves the right to increase tuition fees by no more than inflation.
Alternatively if you have any questions around fees and funding, please email admission@beds.ac.uk
The full-time standard undergraduate tuition fee for the academic year 2018/19 is £11,500 per year. A prompt payment discount is available if you pay the full Year 1 fee before or at registration. There are also special scholarships available.
The University reserves the right to increase tuition fees by no more than inflation.
Alternatively if you have any questions around fees and funding, please email admission@beds.ac.uk
Travel costs
On this course you will do placements/work experience (circa 30 days overall) away from the campus.
We estimate that the total spend on travel could be up to £600 depending on where the placement/work experience is located.
*The information above is for guidance only. Exact costs may vary.
Milton Keynes campus is the new University campus for Milton Keynes backed by the University of Bedfordshire and Milton Keynes Council.
Milton Keynes campus is the newest addition to the vibrant, wider University of Bedfordshire population of 24,000 students from around the world.
The Milton Keynes campus is located in the centre of Milton Keynes close to shops, businesses and local amenities.
It's easy to get to if you live locally and Milton Keynes is very well connected, being within 35 minutes of London by fast train.
The campus is well equipped with the latest facilities including:
Committed to excellence in our teaching, learning and support:
Milton Keynes campus is ideally placed with excellent transport links to London and the Midlands, and internationally, as well as local connections. It is just a five-minute drive or 15-minute walk from the rail and bus stations, with hundreds of businesses close at hand and near to all amenities Milton Keynes has to offer.
..it brings a university to my doorstep.
The new campus houses an array of modern teaching facilities, a Student Information Desk and the Students' Union, so our students can prosper both academically and personally.
Study locally and save money if you're MK-based. For example, our foundation degrees offer you part-time and flexible learning study modes, so you can continue to work full-time and live at home whilst studying for your degree.
I chose MK as I live three minutes away from the University campus.
Application for most full-time undergraduate and foundation courses is via the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS).
We expect to receive UCAS applications between 1 September and 15 January for courses starting in the following academic year, but may consider applications received after this date should places be available.
Please contact admission@beds.ac.uk for further details.
All UK schools and colleges are registered with UCAS to manage their students' applications. Advice on how to submit your UCAS application is available from your school or college.
If you are not at school or college (including mature students) you should apply independently via UCAS
EU students applying for a full-time undergraduate degree at the University of Bedfordshire should apply via UCAS or direct using our admissions form
International students applying for a full-time undergraduate degree at the University of Bedfordshire should apply direct using our admissions form or via our representatives in your home country
You can also apply online
Find out more about how to apply as an International student