Bachelor of Science in Communication and Media Studies with Placement (Thin - Sandwich)

at Brunel University London United Kingdom

The Entrepreneurship and Innovation BSc has been specifically created to help you put learning into action while you study by creating your own start-up business. 

Through a series of specialist modules in your second and third year (including your final year project), you will develop entrepreneurial skills and a nimble approach to business and innovation. You’ll gain confidence in your acumen and become quick to recognise and evaluate new business opportunities while calculating risk. The hands-on, practice-based learning of the course is key to this. You’ll create, run and grow a real-life enterprise as part of a group consisting of up to five students. By learning through doing, you’ll be able to apply theory very early on in the degree course to solve social and economic problems.

Along the way, you’ll learn from academics and receive support from professional business mentors who will help you to get the most out of your degree while developing your start-up. There are lots of resources available to you that can help you shape your degree into what you want it to be:

• The Brunel Innovation Hub offers expert advice and funding on student start-ups
• Through the Co-Innovate programme, you can opt to collaborate with an SME and help them solve a real business problem as part of your final year project
• You can choose to take a work placement in your third year (find out more on our work placement year page) or focus on developing your start-up
• We make sure that you have access to a variety of activities and events to challenge your self-starter mentality including the Mayor's Entrepreneur Competition

Before you get there though, your first year will be an introduction to general business and management through six compulsory modules that will provide you with a good understanding of theory and practice. The emphasis will be on developing your commercial awareness and preparation for new business creation, as well as for a work placement if you have opted to take one (you can opt to use your placement year to develop your enterprise too).

This course has a placement option. Find out more about work placements available.

All our business degrees include the option of a work placement year between your second and third year.

• In addition to providing the opportunity to put what you’ve learnt in your degree into practice, and to earn some much appreciated money, our students find their work placement experience significantly enhances their career prospects when they come to graduate. In fact many students are offered employment with their work placement company upon graduation. You'll be working in the same capacity as you would when you graduate so it will give you a taste of what's to come, hopefully, including all the challenges and rewards.
• Placements are available at different sized organisations across the public and private sector, so you can choose the type of experience most suited to you. You’ll need to apply for these positions in much the same way as you would a job, so it’ll be useful experience in that respect too.
• The good news is that through our Business Life programme and the University’s Professional Development Centre, you should be well prepared to make the best applications you can.
• Placements tend to last 44 weeks. During your placement, an academic member of staff from Brunel Business School will keep in touch, and your employer will be invited to attend a tutorial day at Brunel with you.

On Brunel’s Computer Science BSc course, we’ll help you gain the ability to develop software solutions to business problems. You’ll learn to specify, design, code, modify and test different types of software, from web-based systems to mobile solutions, in a contemporary programming paradigm. All of this will be done using an appropriate commercial grade development environment and associated database tools.

In addition, you’ll acquire in-depth knowledge of algorithms, design, programming and testing techniques. By the end of the course, you’ll have confidence in your knowledge of common system and network architectures and system development approaches, requirements capture, design methods, models, tools, and techniques.

You’ll become well-versed in implementing and testing systems and software maintenance. Key to this course is cultivating a reflective approach to project management issues arising from team-based software development.

This exciting degree course is also increasingly using technologies such as drones and robots in coursework and projects.

Our course is designed for flexibility, so if you’re not sure which route you want to go, you can select modules and specialise gradually during your time with us. You can transfer between Computer Science and Business Computing up to the start of Level 2, then, should you wish, to choose a specialism up to the start of Level 3.

We know that when you graduate, you’ll be working on large projects. That’s why one third of each year of our programmes is project-based. On Levels 1 and 2, you’ll build a software solution in a team, and in your final year you’ll carry out an individual project. You’ll also have the opportunity to showcase your projects at the annual  Made in Brunel (Software Innovation) event, with awards presented by the likes of Cisco, Sky and Xerox.

As part of your degree course, you’ll have the chance to take a year-long work placement between your second year and third year. We’ll support you in finding that all-important paid professional experience, in the UK or abroad. The feedback we’ve received is that those who have taken a placement are much more likely to find a job for which their degree was a formal requirement as it gives you a competitive advantage. Recent graduates have gone on to work for well-known names such as Accenture, Toshiba, Microsoft, British Airways, O2, and Barclays.

Our programmes are accredited by the British Computer Society, the Chartered Institute for IT, for the purposes of fully meeting the academic requirement for registration as a Chartered IT Professional (CITP), and on behalf of the Engineering Council, for the purposes of fully meeting the academic requirement for Incorporated Engineer (IEng) and partially meeting the academic requirement for a Chartered Engineer (CEng). 

The accreditation also allows you to apply for professional membership of the BCS after you have successfully completed your degree.

The department has been awarded an Athena SWAN Bronze, recognising our dedication to the advancement of gender equality in STEM subjects. We now have an ongoing three-year action plan to further implement strategies and improve our practices. As part of this endeavour, Brunel’s  Women in Engineering and Computing mentoring scheme provides our female students with invaluable help and support from the industry.

What makes some nations rich and others poor? Are there some places on earth you just wouldn’t want to live? Is it just economics and leadership or are deeper factors at work? If you’d like to explore the answers to these questions, this course is for you.

Within the core spine of your Global Challenges degree, you will take an in-depth look at issues such as climate change, sustainable development, migration, terrorism, inequality and poverty and how they affect the world we live in. Alongside this, with the Social Cohesion pathway you will delve into the pressing need to address social wellbeing.

Looking at the multiple challenges of economic hardship, unemployment, terrorism, and mass human migration, you will address the causes and consequences of social inequalities, and the ways in which they can be tackled.

In your first year you will explore global issues like capitalism, poverty, social injustice and social infrastructures as you start you to think critically about the influence of power in social inequality.

In your second year you will focus on social cohesion and social wellness and how it relates to the challenges associated with the migration of displaced peoples and the role cyberculture and cybersecurity. In your final year, you will study social conflict as you explore war, violence and human rights violations.

Throughout your course you will build your ability to work in teams as you build skills in project management, debates, presenting and team pitches. A third year Enterprise Project will help to bring all these skills together as you work on a group project with a real organisation.

You have the option to apply for an internship at the end of your first year and can take a one-year placement between years two and three, giving you valuable work experience and a step ahead for your career when you graduate.

At the end of the course, your knowledge of social issues and your problem solving capabilities will allow you to follow a career with a focus on making change for good.

International business is an exciting and rapidly evolving space as politics and economics shift, and societies and cultures evolve. On the course you will gain a comprehensive understanding of the processes of globalisation in the 21st century and the implications that these ongoing processes have for today’s business women and men – and indeed, for tomorrow’s leaders.

The International Business MSc is designed for those seeking to operate within an international business setting or within companies and jobs where an understanding of international business is an asset. The course will help you to develop a sound understanding of international business contexts and to make integrative links across various disciplines.

We will explore the impact of internationalisation on factors such as the management of resources and operations, the financing of business enterprise, and the management and development of people. Aspects of the course will focus on emerging markets. It will also focus on the development of appropriate business policies and strategies to help you put your learning into practice.

You will receive training in research methods with particular application to the empirical study of international management situations, issues and process.

What you learn on the International Business MSc will enable you to further develop transferable skills that can be used to address the challenges of working within an organisation or for yourself as part of the global economy.

Our Chemical Engineering BEng degree is an innovative course that has been developed to equip you with a broad range of knowledge and skills to meet the needs of the chemical and biochemical industry.

The course has been developed according to the Institution of Chemical Engineers (IChemE) accreditation guidelines. This innovative approach means modern subjects are taught and delivered through flipped classrooms, problem-based learning and virtual reality.

Throughout your studies, you’ll have access to a new, modern laboratory with equipment and rigs for your experimental work. The latest industry standard engineering software packages are available for you to use in the purpose-built computer laboratories.

Our BEng chemical engineering course can be studied full-time over three years, or four years with a placement year.

We encourage the placement year option. This time in industry helps you to further prepare for the world of work and you’ll have a year’s worth of invaluable professional experience when you graduate. If you opt for the placement year, you could find yourself making a difference in the real world working in energy, pharmaceutical or consumer goods.

Brunel Engineers is an annual exhibition that showcases our engineering talent at its finest. It’s a great way for you to network with key engineering professionals and show them the innovative, creative and enterprising work you have produced during your time at Brunel.

National salary surveys consistently place chemical engineers at the top of the engineering pay scales, meaning you will be studying for a lucrative and successful career with our degree.

As the amount of digital information increases, major institutions in sectors such as finance and medicine rely on robust structures that can grow and adapt. By specialising in software engineering, you’ll focus on how to build high quality systems which will be easier to maintain and develop as the requirements of the system change and available technologies evolve. The techniques involved include testing, service-oriented architectures, and refactoring.

On the Computer Science (Software Engineering) BSc degree course, you’ll also learn how to build different types of software, from web-based systems to mobile solutions. In the final year you’ll take compulsory modules in advanced computer science and choose optional modules that interest you in a variety of compelling areas.

In addition, you’ll acquire in-depth knowledge of algorithms, design, programming and testing techniques. By the end of the course, you’ll have confidence in your knowledge of common system and network architectures and system development approaches, requirements capture, design methods, models, tools, and techniques.

You’ll become well-versed in implementing and testing systems and software maintenance. Key to this course is cultivating a reflective approach to project management issues arising from team-based software development.

This specialist degree course allows you to display an in-depth knowledge of the management, organisation and execution of large-scale software design and development activities including reuse and integration. All our degrees emphasise acquiring knowledge and skills to develop your new understanding creatively and professionally. Although this is an academic degree, the course balances theory with real-world practice in information and computer management.

Our course is designed for flexibility, so if you’re not sure which route you want to go, you can select modules and specialise gradually during your time with us. You can transfer between Computer Science and Business Computing up to the start of Level 2, then, should you wish, to choose a specialism up to the start of Level 3.

We know that when you graduate, you’ll be working on large projects. That’s why one third of each year of our programmes is project-based. On Levels 1 and 2, you’ll build a software solution in a team, and in your final year you’ll carry out an individual project. You’ll also have the opportunity to showcase your projects at the annual  Made in Brunel (Software Innovation) event, with awards presented by the likes of Cisco, Sky and Xerox.

As part of your degree course, you’ll have the chance to take a year-long work placement between your second year and third year. We’ll support you in finding that all-important paid professional experience, in the UK or abroad. The feedback we’ve received is that those who have taken a placement are much more likely to find a job for which their degree was a formal requirement as it gives you a competitive advantage. Recent graduates have gone on to work for well-known names such as Accenture, Toshiba, Microsoft, British Airways, O2, and Barclays.

Our programmes are accredited by the British Computer Society, the Chartered Institute for IT, for the purposes of fully meeting the academic requirement for registration as a Chartered IT Professional (CITP), and on behalf of the Engineering Council, for the purposes of fully meeting the academic requirement for Incorporated Engineer (IEng) and partially meeting the academic requirement for a Chartered Engineer (CEng). 

The accreditation also allows you to apply for professional membership of the BCS after you have successfully completed your degree.

The department has been awarded an Athena SWAN Bronze, recognising our dedication to the advancement of gender equality in STEM subjects. We now have an ongoing three-year action plan to further implement strategies and improve our practices. As part of this endeavour, Brunel’s  Women in Engineering and Computing mentoring scheme provides our female students with invaluable help and support from the industry.

The Brunel Engineering Management MSc gives graduates and professional engineers seeking to move into management the technical skills and understanding of business, operations and strategy to pursue successful careers in engineering management.

You'll get a solid grounding in managerial essentials within engineering including logistics and supply chain management, manufacturing and production systems design, product development, quality assurance and project management.

You’ll also study how finance and assets are managed within a business, managing people and organisations, customer care, and effective teamworking and motivation techniques. Additionally, with an eye on the future, you’ll examine the challenges new technologies pose to management in the engineering sector.

This on-campus course is studied full-time over one year and is accredited by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) and the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET). This means your degree will put you on course to gain Chartered Engineer (CEng) status in the UK.

Throughout your studies you’ll have 24-hour access to industry standard specialist software for engineering design at dedicated computer clusters on campus, so you’ll have the opportunity and equipment to explore ideas and tackle problems.

With the increasing complexity of the engineering sector, job candidates with expertise in business and management as well as engineering are increasingly in demand. Your Brunel postgraduate engineering degree will equip you with the knowledge and skills that will make you a sought-after prospect across the industry.

This course is also available online, giving you a unique learning experience, allowing you to build connections with like-minded professionals worldwide. Find out more about the Engineering Management MSc Online.

Psychology is an exciting subject to study as we are still looking for answers to questions about the human mind and consciousness. At Brunel, you will have the chance to immerse yourself in the accepted theories of psychology as well as the latest research that is expanding our knowledge.

Our Psychology degree is accredited by The British Psychological Society and can be studied full-time over three years. We also offer it as a four year course which is unique in offering two six-month work placements or you can carry out a one year placement within a single environment.

Work experience while studying is a great asset, whether you choose to continue your studies in psychology or seek employment. You will know what it’s like to apply your skills in the workplace, which builds confidence and is attractive to employers. Recent placements have included the Institute of Psychiatry, Royal Free Hospital and Holloway Prison.

The course will help you to develop specific skills and practical methods before allowing you to tailor your studies to your own interests in the final year by selecting modules and writing a dissertation. This prepares you for the more self-directed study of a masters and specialisation in a particular field should you choose to pursue it.

Brunel offers access to extensive laboratory and technical facilities including brain imaging facilities (fMRI, EEG), psychophysics, and eye tracking. A good understanding of the equipment you may use in your work placement or in research is a useful skill to have for the future.

As an accredited psychology course, should you graduate with a 2:2 grade or higher, you will be eligible to apply for graduate membership of the British Psychological Society. Membership will be key if you choose to pursue postgraduate training and become a psychologist.

This course has a placement option. Find out more about work placements available.

The games design industry, in the UK and worldwide, is growing and there is a demand for skilled and well-educated professionals to take gaming to its next level. Brunel’s Digital Games Theory and Design MA course will give you a comprehensive understanding of digital games and the techniques and principles used in their design.   

You will engage in, and experiment with, practical games design and develop a comprehensive and critical understanding of the advanced academic study of games and their theoretical, artistic and technological perspectives. You will also engage in the practice of making games and explore the factors that shape the games industry.  

No previous experience with programming or an art background is required for this course, just a passion for games. You will learn how to create your own practical designs, how to communicate your ideas to an audience, how to create games design documents, and you’ll also explore games studies. 

You will have opportunities to make connections with other games design cohorts and industry experts. And we will encourage you to participate in extracurricular activities such as game jams and game-related networking events. These are all activities that introduce you to the broader social culture of the digital and creative world and are vital to being successful in the games industry. 

The course is run by staff who are seasoned games designers, internationally published scholars and pedagogical experts. They will share their enthusiasm and understanding of the nature of the video game industry, the importance of networks and the skills needed to create innovative games for the future.   

You only have to turn on the news or open a newspaper to see how differently the nations of the world are governed. What is democracy and democratisation? How has US foreign policy changed in the last 20 years? What is globalisation?

Politics is an exciting and dynamic subject, simulating debate and offering insight in how the ever-changing world around us works. It’s also a degree that can demonstrate your intellectual acumen and understanding of world affairs, which will be an asset in so many fields of work.

As well as providing a foundation in the approaches and theories of politics and international relations, through this degree you will develop your understanding of the importance of politics in a globalising and integrating world.

Whether you’re studying modern Africa, imperialism or Trump’s foreign policy, you’ll not just learn about politics, you’ll be analysing politics using the tools of political science and philosophy to help deepen your understanding and critical thinking.

Opt for a placement year and you'll gain work experience that is highly valued by employers. Brunel students have secured placements in the Environmental Audit Committee, the House of Commons, Directorate of Gender Affairs, HM Treasury and the Competition Commission, to name only a few.

You can also opt to take part of your degree abroad in one of our partner universities in Europe, or participate in an exchange programme to China or the USA to study politics in a different part of the world whilst experiencing a new culture.

Brunel is a dynamic university choice for your politics course. You’ll be taught by politics experts who are often called on to comment on radio and television. The Brunel campus has hosted the filming of BBC’s Question Time and is a political hub during local and national elections.

Brunel politics graduates enter diverse careers. Many of our former students go into politics and the civil service and some are currently at GCHQ and military intelligence. Others work in the public and private sector like the NHS, international banks, business consultancy, law, NGOs and the media. Whichever route you chose, an international politics degree with Brunel will set you up for a successful future.