Bachelor of Science (Hons) in Media and Communication (with Placement Year) University of Surrey, UK

Why choose this course

• We help you understand the impact contemporary communication has on society, government and business. We also teach you techniques to research different types of media, its audiences and its users.  
• You will be taught by research-active media and communications scholars, using the latest research on media power, regulation, social media, public relations, audiences, ‘big data’, digital platforms, international communication and much more.  
• Our research-led teaching, the transferable skills you will gain from your assessments and our focus on employability will prepare you for a career in media and communications.  
• Our broad range of optional modules in your second and third years gives you the flexibility to shape your degree to your interests and develop specialist knowledge on a range of topics
• You’ll have the option to take one of our award-winning Professional Training placements that will prepare you for work, study at one of our partner universities or a mix of both.

What you will study
Our Media and Communicaton degree is taught within our interdisciplinary School of Social Sciences, which enables students to learn about related topics in sociology and criminology during their degree and to shape their course to suit their interests through optional modules.

Our research-led programme aims to develop digitally-confident critical and creative thinkers in a globalised digital media world. It  will help you develop a critical understanding of key media theories, institutions, and methodologies relevant to contemporary mediated societies. Our course explores a range of pressing societal issues, charting developments and exploring solutions - from the challenges and opportunities for audiences in digital societies to consumption and creation of global media and communication.   

Our BSc (Hons) Media and Communication course will give you a comprehensive education in contemporary media and communications in global, digital societies.

Our modules on offer include:

• The Internet and Digital Societies
• Media Power and Regulations
• Media Audiences and Users
• Public Relations in the Digital Age
• ‘Big Data’, Platforms, Emerging technologies
• Global Media and Communications
• Music, Media and Society.

We are one of the few media and communication degree courses in the UK that offers modules on ‘big data’. We aim to give you a dynamic grounding in social sciences which you can apply to careers in media and beyond.

Media and communication placements

Students in Sociology have gained placements at organisations including:

• Gloucestershire County Council
• Magimix
• Moving Picture Company
• Showcentral Ltd
• TVB1 (Hong Kong)
• Wigwam PR .

The process of preparing and applying for placement jobs significantly enhances your job-seeking skills, which come into play in your final year and beyond when you apply for graduate employment. We have media students who have secured placements at companies including:

• A+E Television Networks
• The Department of Culture, Media and Sport
• The Walt Disney Company.

After graduation, many of our students take up permanent posts with their Professional Training placement employer. Our students tend to return to their final year significantly more confident and with enhanced career aspirations and prospects, so you are likely to be more focused, perform better and achieve better results.

Placement opportunities are selected according to your interests, career plans and location preferences. Many placements are paid, usually in the region of £12,000-£15,000 a year.

If you choose to take an unpaid placement, you can claim additional financial support and may also work a reduced amount of time.