Master of Science in Gemmology with Professional Placement

at Birmingham City University - City Centre Campus United Kingdom

Looking for a highly-prized English Literature degree course that you can tailor to your individual interests and career aspirations?

The BA (Hons) English Literature course will support you in developing your critical faculties, instilling in you the power and responsibility of informed reading and analysis, whilst deepening your appreciation for literature.

You will develop your writing, close-reading and research skills and learn to express your arguments coherently and persuasively. In the School of English, you will be taught by respected academics and practitioners offering a diverse range of modules.

You will study literature from all of the major periods, movements and genres. You will also have the opportunity to study cinema, art and philosophy. Your degree will allow you to tailor your studies to your individual interests and career aspirations with both a local and global outlook.

What's covered in this course?

English as a discipline continues to be relevant to the lives we lead and is central to a wide range of contemporary and social contexts. It is this fact on which the School has built its philosophy and approach to English as a subject, which has interdisciplinary reach beyond its own boundaries.

Understanding how language works in practice, engaging with multiple forms of communication, examining how language and literature engage with societies and cultures past and present, and the place of English in a global context, are all vital aspects in understanding how the discipline connects with the wider world, enabling you to focus on the production, interpretation and negotiation of meaning and to understand the world from a variety of perspectives.

You will benefit from student-focused and research-informed teaching in a friendly and supportive learning environment where you will be taught by respected academics and expert practitioners who encourage a community of experimentation, innovation and inclusivity.

Our graduates are characterised by their extensive subject knowledge, critical thinking and intellectual curiosity, reflected in the skills and abilities that enables them to adapt to a wide range of career paths and employment opportunities.

Do you want to develop your digital skills and become an Industry 4.0 specialist? This MSc Smart Manufacturing course will prepare you to apply digital skills into a dynamic and highly in demand sector, putting you ahead in the graduate job market.

Smart Manufacturing is the convergence of Operational Technologies and Information Technologies, to support the operations of the factory of the future. Also known as Industry 4.0 the convergence of manufacturing’s physical aspects and processes with data, sensors, artificial intelligence, cyber security and computer networks enables an increase in efficiency across the value chain of the manufacturing sector.

On this course, you will focus solely on the computing aspects of Industry 4.0, to enable your professional development by filling the skill gap required to understand how data and digital technology transforms and augments the physical aspects of manufacturing and its related areas.

Our MSc Counselling (Children and Young People) course includes a minimum of 100 hours of supervised client practice hours.

The placements will be managed through an agreement with St Martin’s Counselling and Psychotherapy service, who will support you in placements across the city. Placements in areas other than Birmingham may be possible by negotiation.

The course aims to meet the professional accreditation requirements in counselling children and young people that will enable successful graduates (who have also met all required professional practice components) to achieve accreditation through UK Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP) or British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP). St Martin’s will be actively involved in supporting your accreditation and will support you with this after graduation from the course.

Following the successful completion of this course you will have demonstrated sound practical counselling competence and will be able to continue to work alongside other professionals offering counselling support to children and young people within supported contexts such as schools and voluntary agencies.

Fascinated by cyber security in today’s society? It’s a key concern for modern organizations in our digital world. Secure communication technologies form the bedrock of our modern connected mobile society and our BSc (Hons) / MSci Computer Networks and Security degree course focuses on the practical needs of businesses that require high quality computer and network security, ensuring you’re equipped for a career in this increasingly important industry.

What's covered in this course?

The course takes a practice-led approach, making use of equipment and tools found in the industry to give you the best preparation for a successful career.  Our approach prioritises the practical skills sought by industry, backing this up with a thorough understanding of theory. The course delivers the latest in computing, network and security technologies, with the opportunity to gain additional accreditation from Cisco, Juniper, Huawei, Palo Alto and the Linux Professional Institute. Birmingham City University is also home to Cisco Systems, Juniper, Palo Alto and the Microsoft Academy Centres. You’ll learn from a well-rounded curriculum in computer network engineering, programming, server systems, security theory and practice, as well as management-level skills such as project and change management, maximizing your career potential.

Studying computing with us puts you at the heart of an exciting, innovative community. Part of your first-year assessment will involve taking part in our annual Innovation Fest, where students get together to solve society’s problems with creative technology. Previous projects have included medical assistance drones, accessible gaming controllers, and smart housing solutions. The event brings together students, academics and industry guests, so it’s a great way to have fun, build experience and network, and win prizes!

Our MA Fine Art Master’s course embraces art practice, in whatever form it takes (drawing, painting, sculpture, print, photography, installation, lens-based media, performance, participatory, interdisciplinary and expanded practice) and in whichever circumstance it occurs.

It is conceptual at heart, pursuing strong ideas and challenges of art in real life. The artist Joseph Beuys, working in Social Sculpture, famously said: "Each and every man has the most precious building in the world in his head, feelings and free will. And the French poet Baudelaire said: the best form of art criticism is another work of art."

We agree and so art is considered in relationship to philosophy, art history and theory, contemporary discourse and global contexts, establishing critical frameworks in which artists make work. We also have strong links with art galleries and artists communities, including Eastside Projects led by Gavin Wade and Céline Cordorelli.

The global luxury sector continues to grow, with increasing profits for both well-established and new brands.

The MA Luxury Jewellery Management course addresses the specific challenges and opportunities of the luxury jewellery industry and is the perfect choice for you if you see your future career with premium, high-end and luxury jewellery brands.

What's covered in this course?

You will learn global business strategy and leadership supported by ethical, responsible and sustainable practices. In developing skills to adopt appropriate codes of conduct to improve global operations, you will learn how to promote intercultural communication to enhance business culture and preserve cultural heritage in the luxury jewellery industry. These emerging and significantly important skills are key for managers of luxury jewellery business all over the world.

You will investigate the DNA of brands; designing and creating marketing plans and effective campaigns, with regard to the multicultural aspects of the audience. You will integrate innovations of new technologies, such as additive manufacturing, to embrace the change, meanwhile preserving and enhancing the artisanship’s heritage of the luxury jewellery industry.

The course is global in its outlook and reflects business systems, standards and practices from around the world, drawing upon international case studies and fostering intercultural fluency amongst students. These aims will develop your confidence and ambitions to explore a breadth of careers within a global luxury jewellery industry. Where possible, your learning will be supported by an international field trip, factory visits, exhibitions visits, guest speakers, live projects and simulated practice requiring actual problem-solving.

MA Luxury Jewellery Management is based on the philosophy that management education should provide a thorough grounding in the disciplines related to the functional aspects of management, and the interaction with contextual forces that impact on organisations. This knowledge and understanding is then further contextualised to provide integrative strategic themes. The impact of globalization on business in all disciplines is a coherent theme throughout the course.

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.

Our BSc (Hons) Gemmology and Jewellery Studies degree is one of the only courses of its kind in the world. This gemmology course will enable you to gain the highest level of professionally recognised gemological skills.

Based in the heart of Birmingham’s thriving Jewellery Quarter, you’ll benefit from unrivalled expertise and facilities as you explore precious gems and all relevant aspects of the jewellery trade.

The BA (Hons) English and Drama degree course will support you in developing your critical and analytical abilities, and deepen your appreciation for literature and theatre.

You will develop your writing, close-reading and research skills, and learn to present arguments coherently and creatively. In the School of English, you will be taught by respected academics and practitioners offering a diverse range of modules. You will study literature and drama from various major periods, movements and genres.

You will also have the opportunity to stage a play, and study film, art, and philosophies of relevance to drama and literature. Your degree will allow you to tailor your studies to your individual interests and career aspirations with both a local and global outlook.

What's covered in this course?

English as a discipline continues to be relevant to the lives we lead and is central to a wide range of contemporary and social contexts. It is this fact on which the School has built its philosophy and approach to English and Drama: subjects with interdisciplinary reach beyond their own boundaries.

Understanding how literature can be interpreted, engaging with multiple forms of communication, examining how literature and theatre engage with societies and cultures past and present, and the place of English in a global context, are all vital aspects in understanding how the discipline connects with the wider world, enabling you to focus on the production, interpretation and negotiation of meaning and to understand the world from a variety of perspectives.

You will benefit from student-focused and research-informed teaching in a friendly and supportive learning environment where you will be taught by respected academics and expert practitioners who foster a community of experimentation, innovation and inclusivity.

Our graduates are characterised by their extensive subject knowledge, critical thinking and intellectual curiosity, reflected in the skills and abilities that enables them to adapt to a wide range of career paths and employment opportunities.

The School is committed to contributing to the cultural life of Birmingham and the wider West Midlands. We do this through working closely with partner colleges and schools, by maintaining close links with cultural institutions such as the Birmingham and Midland Institute (BMI) and Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery (BMAG), and by working with agencies such as Writing West Midlands. In all of this we seek to widen participation and provide opportunities for the community to engage with the discipline and the University.

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.

Our MA Media and Cultural Studies course is designed to help you to develop careers as an academic or as a professional cultural or media worker. The course has emerged out of the Birmingham Centre for Media and Cultural Research and focuses on the expertise of scholars actively involved in a range of live research projects. You’ll be encouraged to develop as internationally-minded research professional.

What's covered in this course?

You will have the opportunity of becoming involved in live research projects and scholarly activities within Birmingham Centre for Media and Cultural Research. Areas of expertise include Jazz and Aesthetics working with the London Jazz Festival; Evaluating Cultural Leadership and Diversity; audience engagement projects funded by Nesta.