Master of Fine Arts in Acting

at Birmingham City University - City Centre Campus United Kingdom

MA Feature Film Development will help you to understand what is required to make sure a major film is ready to be pitched to investors. You’ll learn all about the extensive pre-production activities all big-budget movies currently go through before they are green-lit. You’ll be taken through each stage of pre-production development to navigate, understand and avoid common problems.

MA Feature Film Development is suitable for Directors, Producers, Editors, Film Makers, Screenwriters, Directors of Photography, Concept Artists, Production Designers, Art Directors, Animators, Technical Directors, Story Artists, & Pre-Visualisation Artists looking to start or further a career in feature film.

This course is part of Birmingham City University’s Film Futures suite, designed with industry to reflect the growing need for highly skilled film graduates who can fulfil roles within the international film industry. Focusing on film development, pre-production, story art and pre-visualization, you’ll become part of a vibrant and multidisciplinary film community.

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.

Do you want to turn your passion for video games into a rewarding career? Apply for one of the only video games degree courses of its kind in Europe, designed to produce ‘work ready’ graduates for the industry. With access to PlayStation 4 developer kits and real games briefs, this two-year fast-track degree can prepare you to work for companies such as Sega and Sony.

Interactive entertainment and video games development are key sectors for contemporary culture, economic growth and employment, whether that be locally, nationally or globally.

Our BSc (Hons) Video Game Development course responds to this growing and innovative sector by developing skilled, team-orientated, reflexive graduate professionals ready to succeed in the sector. On the course you will learn the most important programming languages for game development, as well as industry-standard game development tools such as Unity and Unreal.

This accelerated two-year course gives you a guaranteed video game development placement in our in-house studio, taking place over the summer term of the course. The work-place simulation approach of our department (School of Games, Film and Animation) has been championed by the influential 2009 Livingstone, Hope Next Gen Report which cited us as a national best practice example for developing new talent.

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.

Future Media is a postgraduate MA program that does what it says:

• Future is finding your future and exploiting future developments in the digital marketing and advertising industry.
• Media is acquiring your digital media skill-set amongst evolving trends and emerging technologies.

The MA Future Media program combines agency practice with industry insights and academic methods. It's been a proven pathway to success for our graduates since 2012 and is now a winning formula for the 2020s.

What's covered in this course?

Our courses ensure you gain real-world experience and knowledge so you can hit the ground running when you graduate. In your year on the program, you’ll be planning digital marketing and advertising campaigns with digital agencies, developing brand and product promotions with clients, making mobile, social and virtual content with leading industry professionals and building new user journeys with emerging technologies and state-of-the-art resources.

You’ll tackle challenging briefs in diverse teams with industry partners to build your proficiency: MA students tend to choose broad, strategic and creative roles. Either way, we’ll give you the tools you need to realise your ambitions.

Looking for a career in a rapidly growing sector? The BSc (Hons) Accounting and Islamic Finance degree, the first of its kind in the UK, will see you graduate with the skills the finance industry requires.

The Islamic Finance industry is a fast-growing industry that has developed rapidly within a few years from a niche industry to a global force to be reckoned with in the international arena. Based on a number of moral and legal principles of Islam, the Islamic finance sector grows at 15%-25% per year, while Islamic financial institutions oversee over $2 trillion.

Islamic finance has emerged as an effective tool for financing development worldwide, including in non-Muslim countries. As a result of this rapid growth, individuals and financial organisations find themselves with limited knowledge of its unique and profound nature, leading to a significant skills shortage, which potentially offers graduates a range of global opportunities.

Our Accounting and Islamic Finance course will introduce and develop your knowledge in the various specialised areas, as well as giving you a solid foundation in traditional accounting, giving you the skills need to move into a wide variety of careers after graduation.

Through a variety of modules, including Islamic Economics, Principles of Islamic Finance, Islamic Finance for Non-Profit Organisations, and Islamic Banking and Capital Markets, you’ll learn about the ethos, principles and practices of Islamic Finance, which are not only ethical, sustainable and motivated to achieve socio-economic justice, but also link with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.

There will be opportunities to gain work experience in countries where Islamic Financial Services are being set up, or where they are established but in need of qualified staff. This will provide you with opportunities to gain industry experience, giving you the edge when it comes to competing in the graduate jobs market.

The applied nature of our BSc (Hons) Economics degree prepares you to work as an economist, or in a related role which is concerned with the study of the economy and its impact on society and the natural environment.

Economics is a major social science which informs major challenges faced by our societies today, including inequality, environmental sustainability and economic policy. Economics draws on and influences other social sciences and humanities and it is also a core business discipline which is integral to understanding organisational behaviour, strategy and corporate performance.

The unique offering of this course lies in its use of a pluralist approach to teaching, which will empower you to understand the relevance of competing economic theories and their application in your daily life and in your future workplace.

The course will provide you with a firm foundation of economics to interpret, analyse and question diverse economic theories and policies in a real-life context. To do so effectively, this course equips you with a vast analytical toolkit, which includes mathematical and statistical analysis, critical thinking, qualitative techniques and proficiency in a range of industry-specific software packages that are relevant to the Economics profession. You will also learn how to communicate results and ideas concisely to a variety of specialist and non-specialist audiences.

Economics is a global subject. You will be encouraged to look at situations from an international perspective. You will apply the knowledge learnt in the course to examine global events and look at how different economic ideas help us understand and address global challenges such as poverty, inequality, climate change and the impact of new technologies on the economy and society. Moreover, your course will be delivered by a multinational team of experts. Your classmates will also come from a variety of countries and cultural backgrounds. Finally, we offer you a study abroad opportunity: you can study for one term overseas in one of our partner universities.

Looking for Birmingham psychology courses? Our BSc (Hons) Psychology degree is accredited by the British Psychological Society and allows you to take a year-long industry placement.

Make sense of the real world through gaining a deep understanding of how the core and specialised areas in psychology contribute to our understanding of contemporary issues, as well as looking at the role of brain function across multiple psychological perspectives.

You’ll apply scientific reasoning and evaluate patterns of behaviour, gaining key transferable skills in communication, teamwork and problem-solving.

What's covered in this course?

You will explore scientific approaches to understanding the mind, brain and behaviour. Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the historical and scientific underpinnings of the discipline of Psychology and how these underpinnings change across the core curriculum topic areas. Explore how the six core areas in Psychology can explain factors that influence the mind, brain, behaviour and experience, and of the complex interactions between these.

You will develop knowledge and understanding of Quantitative and Qualitative Research Methods. Our Psychology department works in partnership with the nationally recognized Advance HE to continually develop the quality of both our staff and the course, focusing on self-development, contemporary learning practices and integrating practice within the community.

This cutting-edge new BA (Hons) Film and Screenwriting degree course will develop your skills across key film studies and screenwriting debates and conventions. You will be taught by noted film scholars and established practitioners, who will provide their knowledge of international film and screenwriting perspectives.

The course is part of Birmingham City University’s Film Futures suite, designed to develop graduates with the theory, practice and industry trends that will enable them to succeed in a rapidly changing film environment.

What's covered in this course?

The course considers a wide range of script to screen traditions from theory, practice and industry perspectives.

Not only will you gain an understanding of Hollywood cinema conventions (from silent cinema to modern blockbuster spectaculars), but you will apply these storytelling techniques to a variety of production scenarios. As well as looking at American film and screenwriting genres (such as rom-com, thriller, science fiction and horror case-studies), you will also be introduced to other international traditions of cinema that range from European cinema, documentary to smartphone filmmaking and beyond.

A key focus of the course will be on the aesthetic and creative aspects of film and screenwriting, with consideration being given to techniques of storytelling, narratology and screen adaptation. You will have ample opportunity to collaborate with Filmmaking and Film Studies students on the production of short film projects, while modules on film festival programming and film entrepreneurship provide core skills relevant to the film industry.

Looking for Sociology courses in Birmingham? Our BA (Hons) Sociology degree allows you to take a year-long placement in industry, gaining invaluable experience before you graduate.

Sociology helps us make sense of the societies in which we live and our place within them.

As one of our longest established courses, you’ll benefit from a programme of study taking an in-depth look at contemporary sociological issues that has been honed over several decades.

What's covered in this course?

You’ll explore and question social norms and discover the complex issues behind day-to-day routines and social practices.

We explore patterns and processes of inequality, examine the structure and dynamics of social hierarchies and power relations and ask why and how people shape their identities and practice their lives. We encourage you to explore how sociological knowledge can connect individuals and how it can provide you with the skills needed to participate in debates not just about what society is but how it could be.

Through the links we’ve developed with work-place organisations such as local School Academies, Citizens Advice Bureau and Woman’s Aid, we help support you to make professional contacts and to apply your studies to real-world situations when taking part in voluntary work or on placement. We also enjoy close links with the city of Birmingham itself, a diverse community perfect for sociological examination.

The MSc International Sport Management course will provide the academic expertise and contacts to help students develop an exciting professional future in this growing industry.

KPMG states that the entire global sports market – including infrastructure, events, training and sports goods – is estimated to be worth between $600-700 billion a year, and the industry growth outpaces most countries yearly GDP. Over the past decade there has been a huge increase of career opportunities in the global sport sector that require graduates with the skills, attributes and experience to thrive in such a dynamic industry.

According to Deloitte, sport business-related activity will significantly outpace the average rate of growth in the wider economy well into the next decade. In terms of industries, sport now ranks among the top 15 mainstream activities in the UK economy including telecommunications, legal services and utilities.

Combining theory and practical application this course will draw heavily from executive international sport leaders, such as Manchester City Football group, Edgbaston, Birmingham City FC and ESL to name a few, to cover multiple aspects such as crisis and risk management, technology and digital innovation, marketing, events, operations and analytics.

Given the aforementioned, and input from industry, this course is designed with the scientific (MSc) nature to enhance you with the necessary numeracy and analytic skills to see you excel and progress in the global sports industry.