Bachelor of Arts (Hons) in English Literature

at Birmingham City University - City Centre Campus United Kingdom

If you are interested in working in the global cosmetics industry and have an interest in the branding and promotion of beauty and cosmetics products and services then this course is for you. You will develop a range of practical business, creative and entrepreneurial skills and have the opportunity to research key and current trends in the beauty and cosmetics industry.

Your personal program of study is supported by visits to appropriate cosmetics and beauty industry events or organizations and/or interviews of professionals involved in cosmetics or beauty services promotion.

What's covered in this course?

On the course you will get involved in blogging, social media, website development, entrepreneurship and brand development.

You’ll be actively encouraged to take part in debates about the professional, educational, political and cultural implications of beauty and cosmetics in modern societies around the world.

You will also explore and use different research methods to investigate the branding and promotion of beauty services and cosmetics through marketing, advertising, events management, publicity or public relations.

By the end of the course you will have gained the ability to apply the knowledge, skills and methodologies of cosmetics branding and promotion to the analysis of complex cosmetics branding and promotion issues, and to the expression of sophisticated marketing, advertising concepts.

You will also have developed the ability to identify personal, career and practical goals related to cosmetics branding and promotion including work experience and entrepreneurship.

Professional Placement option

The Professional Placement version of the course is optional and is offered as an alternative to the standard version of the course.

This will allow you to complete a credit-bearing, 20-week Professional Placement as an integral part of your Master’s Degree. The purpose of the Professional Placement is to improve your employability skills which will, through the placement experience, allow you to evidence your professional skills, attitudes and behaviours at the point of entry to the postgraduate job market. Furthermore, by completing the Professional Placement, you will be able to develop and enhance your understanding of the professional work environment, relevant to your chosen field of study, and reflect critically on your own professional skills development within the workplace.

Developed in partnership with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (CBSO), our MMus in Orchestral Performance are for advanced level string players considering professional orchestral auditions and on the brink of a professional career.

In addition to one-to-one specialist tuition, you will spend a significant amount of rehearsal time in the CBSO alongside one or more dedicated host players who will act as mentors. You may also be offered opportunities to play at the back of the section to gain further experience. In addition to developing your technical facility, musicianship, interpretative skills and stylistic awareness, you will expand your knowledge of orchestral repertoire, learn how to prepare for rehearsal in the most efficient way, develop strategies that will help you to integrate within your section, and build confidence in preparing for orchestral auditions.

You will also participate in additional performance activities within the Conservatoire’s String Department and the wider Conservatoire, including performance classes, masterclasses, orchestra and chamber music.You'll have full access to our superb £57 million facilities, including our Concert Hall, 150-seat Recital Hall, our black box performance space known as The Lab, and more than 70 practice rooms, ensemble rooms and workshops; all acoustically designed to provide a music-making environment that is world-class.

Professional Placement option

The Professional Placement version of the course is optional and is offered as an alternative to the standard version of the course.

This will allow you to complete a credit-bearing, 20-week Professional Placement as an integral part of your Master’s Degree. The purpose of the Professional Placement is to improve your employability skills which will, through the placement experience, allow you to evidence your professional skills, attitudes and behaviours at the point of entry to the postgraduate job market. Furthermore, by completing the Professional Placement, you will be able to develop and enhance your understanding of the professional work environment, relevant to your chosen field of study, and reflect critically on your own professional skills development within the workplace.

Want to study both psychology and sociology at University? Our BSc (Hons) Psychology with Sociology degree combines both subjects and allows you to take a year-long industry placement.

Our innovative course will give you a deep understanding of how the core and specialized areas in psychology and sociology contribute to our understanding of contemporary issues. You will apply scientific reasoning and evaluate patterns of behaviour, gaining key transferable skills in communication, teamwork and problem-solving.

Sociology helps us make sense of the societies in which we live and our place within them. Our Psychology with Sociology course brings together two closely interrelated areas, allowing you to gain significant knowledge and insight.

What's covered in this course?

Over your three years of study, your Psychology modules will help you gain an understanding of a person’s mind, behavior and actions, while the Sociology side will equip you with the knowledge of group interactions and society as a whole. Practical in nature, our course will enable you to apply both Psychology and Sociology to human behaviour and society.

Our focus on contemporary and innovative learning practices will help you gain key employability skills, such as communication, teamwork and problem-solving, as well as key skills in two innovative, intriguing disciplines.

Want to study both criminology and sociology at University? Our BA (Hons) Sociology and Criminology degree combines both subjects and allows you to take a year-long industry placement.

This course will enable you to develop an understanding of society and social factors and how this affects crime and criminals, giving you a solid human understanding that will put you in a good position for range of careers or further study.

What's covered in this course?

Combining sociology with the study of criminology gives you a chance to benefit from the cutting-edge thinking of the University’s Centre for Applied Criminology, a research Centre of Excellence. The recently launched Centre for Critical Social Research also brings sociological concerns to the fore.

This course is taught with an equal number of Sociology and Criminology modules.

You’ll share a common first year with the Sociology BA, giving you a wide range of understanding and letting you see what your options are before advancing. The course introduces you to sociological theories and contexts allowing you to situate and to inform your studies in criminology with a focus on crime, criminals and the operation of criminal justice agencies.

You’ll develop communication and research skills through our wide range of assessments, as well as a clear understanding of social policy and criminology.

The Business Management course will offer you a practical-based degree applicable to a wide range of sectors. You will be able to contribute to critical debates on industry-related contemporary issues and understand the dynamic needs of business managers in the 21st century to reflect current knowledge and best practices.

You will gain specialist knowledge on a number of core functions of management, building your self-confidence to prepare you for a progressive and successful career in management. Exciting opportunities including integrated work projects and business placements in the UK or abroad are all featured in your course, therefore your career can start whilst achieving your qualification. You will have the benefit of renowned industry speakers and live projects to inspire and help you to develop.

This course gives you an opportunity to undertake specific modules designed for those who seek a deeper insight into the operation and complexity of the supply chain. You will explore contemporary supply chain initiatives and review corporate strategy, globalisation, international alliances and the key features of procurement and outsourcing.

This program provides you with the opportunity to examine the tools and techniques used to sustain and develop global supply networks. If you are successful you will be able to apply for modular exemptions, should you wish to pursue the professional qualifications of the Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply (CIPS).

The international focus of the course is derived through a variety of means including the student body, the teaching team and the use of international teaching materials. Moreover, students can choose to spend a year or a full semester studying their modules overseas at a partner institution. Similarly, the Business Management course embeds the UN Sustainable Development Goals as an integral part of the course.

The MA in Data Journalism is a cutting-edge course designed to give you the interactive storytelling skills needed to work within a growing number of jobs in the media and beyond.

The course has relationships with Huffpost and the BBC, as well as a number of other organisations covering broadcast, online and print data journalism, all of which are keen to bring in the skills that you will be developing on the course. You should indicate on your application in you wish to be considered for opportunities with those organisations during the course.

Studying under internationally renowned course leaders in a city with a vibrant cultural sector, and with access to a range of media organizations, you’ll learn exciting new skills in data journalism and interactive storytelling across a range of contexts, from mobile-first data journalism on social platforms to practising data-driven journalism within online and broadcast newsroom contexts. Partnerships with newspaper, magazine, online and broadcast organisations provide unique opportunities for students to build contacts and experience, and work on live projects.

Business Operations Management is a very popular management subject and leads to highly valued roles within the global job market due to the increasingly high value placed on it by industry.

It exists in every business no matter the size and industry, and it plays a key role directly affecting business performance and global economics. For example, as retail businesses transform their practices in the digital era with online shopping, the logistics industry is currently experiencing huge growth which is forecast to continue well into the future.

Public Relations shapes our world. Organisations use PR to get noticed, to change opinions, and pass on vital information that helps us to make decisions about health, education and welfare. PR is a fast-growing discipline, employing 83,000 people in a £13bn industry offering a wide range of job opportunities.

Our MA teaches you how to construct an effective PR campaign, combining theory with the practical skills needed to communicate persuasively on behalf of businesses, charities, public bodies, community groups and activists.

What's covered in this course?

The MA in Public Relations combines theory and practice, providing real intellectual challenge with a sharp focus on real-world events and firmly grounded in extensive industry links. We recognise that most applicants are looking to build a career in PR and our emphasis is on employability.

We look at techniques for raising awareness, listening to stakeholders and influencing ethical policies. We will develop your strategic planning and help you to engage with a wide range of tactical devices, including building expertise in using a range of social media platforms and tools. You will also learn techniques that will build your confidence as a presenter and a communicator.

The MA explores the ever-changing media landscape while critically examining PR’s impact on society.

Black Studies is ground-breaking because it puts the experiences, perspectives and contributions of African and the African diaspora at the very heart of university education.

More importantly the aim of the subject is to break down traditional barriers and apply the work we do on campus to improving the conditions facing those who live off campus. In creating the BA (Hons) Black Studies (Criminal Justice) routeway we have taken the strengths of the Black Studies program and directly applied them to one of the most significant problems facing Black communities.

In Britain, Black people are more likely to be subject to stop and search, arrested, charged, given a prison sentence and even to die in suspicious circumstances after police contact. The situation is particularly bad for young people, where ethnic minorities represent half of all those held in young offenders institutions. None of this is new and there have been decades of campaigns and protests around the injustices in the system. The aim of this degree is to provide the context to understand the issues as well as the tools and experience to work to remedy these major social problems.

You will take Black Studies modules, which explore the history, politics and experience of Black communities as well as examining the issues in society that produce such stark inequalities. Alongside these modules, you will study Criminology-specific modules that explore the basis of, and issues with, the criminal justice system.

You will gain experience of the criminal justice system in the second-year placement. You will be encouraged and supported to find your own placement, however the course team is committed to ensuring all students have an appropriate placement. You will also be encouraged to draw on your learning and experiences to create a final year project that is applied to the real-world context.

Our MSc Automotive Engineering course will teach you the skills you need to become a highly-skilled engineer, capable of undertaking related tasks within and across different organisations.

Overall the course aims to produce skilled engineers capable of undertaking automotive engineering tasks within and across organisations utilising the latest tools and technologies. The course will encourage the application and development of modern engineering solutions to the problems of fuel efficiency and emissions abatement, as well as the improvement of vehicle performance and stability.

The course explores the wider context of sustainability and climate change, as well as the specific application of advanced control techniques to solve problems through research led powertrain and vehicle system-specific modules.

Professional Placement option

The Professional Placement option will allow you to complete a credit bearing, 20 week Professional Placement as an integral part of your Master’s Degree. The purpose of the Professional Placement is to improve your employability skills which will, through the placement experience, allow you to evidence your professional skills, attitudes and behaviours at the point of entry to the postgraduate job market.  Furthermore, by completing the Professional Placement, you will be able to develop and enhance your understanding of the professional work environment, relevant to your chosen field of study, and reflect critically on your own professional skills development within the workplace.