BA Writing for the Media

Institution The University College Plymouth St Mark & St John
Method At the institution
Location Plymouth
Type Undergraduate
Course fee By request

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BA Writing for the Media

Objectives Without writers there would be no fi ms, plays, novels, advertisements, newspapers, television programmes or websites. You develop your writing skills for a range of different media and also study media-related subjects such as photography, video production and popular music.Clear, concise writing is at the heart of all communication. And the audience is at the heart of all writing, whether you are writing to entertain, to persuade or to inform. This course looks at the approaches and styles needed for different audiences, from screenplays to brochures, from radio scripts to magazine articles. Our aim is to provide you with the practical and theoretical skills you need to write for the media.
Entry requirements Entry Requirements: Our typical minimum entry requirements for applicants with A levels/AS levels/BTEC is 200 points. Applications from students with non-traditional qualifi cations are welcome.
Academic title BA Writing for the Media
Course description BA Writing for the Media

Programme

1st year overview

First year modules concentrate on developing your writing skills and your understanding of different audiences. The Craft of Writing explores fi ction and non-fi ction prose and the ways in which they are used. Public Relations Writing builds on these skills and focuses on the kinds of writing needed for public relations, promotion and marketing. The Creative Project allows you to originate and undertake a supervised writing project and Media in the Modern World outlines the major issues that infl uence and inform the media. All Media students take Introduction to Creative Media Practice, which provides a general foundation in production skills, and Reading the Media, which deals with the way we interact with the media in our everyday lives.

2nd year overview

By the end of the fi rst year you will have improved your writing skills and developed an understanding of potential media opportunities for your writing. You will also have acquired some basic media production skills and you should have some idea of your areas of interest so you can plan your next two years’ study.
You will take the following core modules: Media and Cultural Theory; Written Journalism and Magazine Cultures 1. You then choose three additional modules from the following options. Writing for Stage; Narration and the Short Story; Video Documentary; Photography; Web Practice; The Moving Image; Learn to Earn (a work-based learning module) and Popular Television.

3rd year overview

The Writing for the Media programme places great importance on the development of a varied portfolio of work in order to increase your opportunities when you graduate. Third year modules will help you develop specialist skills by building on what you have learned in the previous two years. Magazine Cultures 2 is the only core module in the third year. The dissertation spans two modules so you will choose another three modules from the following options: Writing for Screen; Video Production: Drama; Popular Music; Broadcast Public Relations; Interactive Media; Computer Mediated Communication; Developments in Photography and Contemporary Visual Culture.