Master of Arts in English Literature

at Brunel University London United Kingdom

What is the social and cultural impact of media communications in today’s world? How do communication and information media actually work and what are their importance to our society?

This course enjoys a very close relationship with sociology at Brunel and combines the theoretical elements of sociology with the practical elements of media studies. You’ll focus on all aspects of society: its personal, social and cultural dimensions.

Studying communications and media at Brunel is not just limited to the classroom. You’ll have the opportunity to broaden your mind by going on field trips and joining film sessions, where you’ll learn about cameras lighting and editing. You’ll be able to attend optional company visits, for example IMG studios, where you’ll receive a tour of the studios.

On this course you’ll have the chance to make your own films in groups. You’ll develop your skills in our media services suite which has industry-standard facilities. You’ll be taught about the software Final Cut Pro and how to use different types of Canon cameras. You’ll experiment with different lighting styles and practise sound editing techniques. This practical work will equip you with the skills you’ll need for a media related career or for working in the field of production.

You’ll also be able to take your learning outside the classroom – on field trips and company visits. Previous students have toured the IMG studious right here in Uxbridge.

If you choose to go on a placement, you’ll benefit form Brunel’s contacts and location. Examples of recent student placements have been in advertising, digital marketing and public relations in organisations such as Cartoon Network, IMG Media, Sweet Images and the Walt Disney Company.

This course will help you to develop your creative writing skills and focus on how they relate to games design and game play. You’ll learn about the application of traditional story and narrative design and how it applies to games design and gameplay.

Your learning will come through lectures, workshops, seminars, play sessions and tutorials. You’ll also use the online forum to discuss, share and develop your knowledge. You’ll gain confidence in sharing your ideas, giving and receiving feedback and working individually as well as in a multi-disciplinary team.

The teaching team are experts in nurturing games talent and you will benefit from their insight into the industry. You will be introduced to ideas at the forefront of the discipline as well as sharing their knowledge and understanding of professional practice. This will help to keep you up-to-date with industry developments and show you how the skills you learn on this course are applicable to the world of work.

Of course the best teachers of writing are writers and Creative Writing at Brunel is taught by successful, published writers, many of whom have international reputations. You will draw on their experience across a range of genres and you will have the opportunity to study Creative Writing to a high level.  You will develop your knowledge, understanding, and analytical and creative skills through the analysis, interpretation and creation of literary texts.

All games students will have 24-hour access to the games lab, where high spec PCs are available for you to work on and play games. You will also use the Design room, where an impressive collection of board games is available for you to learn and understand the principles of games design. This room also serves as a wonderful, collaborative space where you can play and generate ideas, work, relax and have fun.

You’ll finish this course with a skillset that will allow you to develop a game from scratch and be ready to work and thrive in the games industry.

Learn what role the media plays in shaping our society and influencing peoples’ thoughts and behaviours by studying our exciting Sociology (Media) BSc.  

By adding media studies to your study of sociology, you’ll be able to explore and specialise in areas such as the social impact of new media, the internet and other information and communications technologies, media discourse, media policy and regulation.

The first year is designed to offer you a solid base in theoretical and methodological innovations in sociology and media. You will explore the similarities and differences in the methodologies used in sociology, media, and communications. The focus of study is upon all aspects of societal relations: it’s personal, social and cultural dimensions.

As you progress through the course, you will be able to choose modules you are interested in to actively shape and apply your learning to the issues you wish to interrogate. In your third year, you’ll work on a dissertation focusing on an area of interest of your choice. Your dissertation can be a theoretical or practical dissertation, so you can work to your own strengths.

Depending on the modules you choose, you may have the option go on fieldtrips where you will be able to apply your learning to current issues and broaden your theoretical imagination. Previous fieldtrips have included: Barbican; British Board of Film Classification; London Migration Museum; Museum of Comedy; Museum of London; regeneration areas (e.g. Spitalfields, Smithfield); and the Victoria and Albert Museum.

As you’ll be taught and supported by academics who are not only experts in their field but are actively engaged in research, you’ll develop skills that can be applied from the classroom to the workplace. They know the industry inside out, so you know you are learning from experienced professionals who will bring their unique insights into the classroom and will ensure your learning is up-to-date.

Gain an insight into life after your studies by putting your learning into practice by opting for a one-year work placement or two short placements for six months at a time. You will graduate with valuable work experience to enhance your employment prospects and will be able to develop an understanding the working world. We have excellent links with a wide range of notable external organisations, so you will have the opportunity to apply for high quality placements across London.

Some of our sociology and media students have undertaken placements in a variety of companies including the political research unit at the Conservative Party Campaign HQ, the Ministry of Justice, the Home Office, the Prince’s Trust, the Crime Statistics Unit at the Home Office, Citizens Advice Bureau and the Department of Work and Pensions.

This is a broad-based degree which will enable and encourage you to specialise in areas which particularly fascinate you. As a graduate of this dynamic degree, you will leave us with various transferable skills that are key to the contemporary employment market. 

What is public relations? Who does it and why? How does it relate to the media practices? How do you plan a public relations campaign? And why is it important to have a sophisticated understanding of cultural dynamics in order to understand public relations?

On this MA you will engage with theoretical concepts that can help you understand how Public Relations and the Media work and why they are significant; it looks at PR and media history, engages in lively debates about these industries and teaches you practical PR skills which you can creatively deploy in campaign plans.

While Public Relations has often been taught through business studies or marketing approaches, this MA approaches PR through the lens of media studies and cultural studies. This makes for a fresh stimulating take on PR at a time when media practices are changing radically and when cultural industries, cultural exchange and cultural politics are more important than ever.

This MA will offer you the opportunity to examine the context in which PR practice takes place and to develop the knowledge and skills needed to work in a sophisticated and ethical way in PR.

We are a partner-member of the Public Relations Communications Association. This means that as students you get:

• Unlimited and free access to PRCA online training courses to add to your academic programme.
• The opportunity to get a PRCA Online Certificate
• Free access to networking events.
• Opportunities to enhance your professional development by attending panels, masterclasses and training sessions.

Our Aerospace Engineering BEng degree is an exciting, hands-on specialist course that has been developed to equip you with the knowledge and understanding to meet the real world needs of the global aerospace industry.

You will be introduced to fundamental engineering subjects such as structures, materials, fluids, and maths, and gain skills in technical drawing. You’ll then learn about the principles of aircraft design and progress to specialist subjects such as propulsion systems, and flight testing and analysis.

You’ll have access to a range of technical facilities including our aerospace/aviation laboratory, full-motion engineering flight simulator, supersonic and subsonic wind tunnels, materials and structure testing laboratory, and 3D printing in the digital fabrication workshop. Industry standard specialist software for aircraft design is available for you to use 24 hours a day in high-performance computing clusters.

During your time at Brunel, you will benefit from guest lectures delivered by industry professionals who present a valuable insight into current, challenging topics in the field of aerospace. There are also planned visits to engineering and manufacturing companies where you’ll see first-hand the latest breakthroughs in development and technology for future aerospace systems. In addition, you have the advantage of Brunel’s close location to London’s Heathrow Airport for site visits as well as project opportunities, and placement and employment options.

Our BEng aerospace engineering course is accredited by both the Royal Aeronautical Society (RAeS) and the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE). These professional bodies ensure that your engineering degree meets the academic requirement to qualify as a professional engineer. This accredited BEng degree in aerospace engineering can be studied full-time over three years, or four years with a placement year. The BEng degree meets the educational requirement to become an Incorporated Engineer (IEng). You may wish to transfer to the MEng route of study at the end of your second year, subject to meeting the progression requirement. The MEng degree fully meets the educational requirement to become a Chartered Engineer (CEng) and involves a further year of academic study.

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 decide to go on an engineering placement year, you will have the opportunity to work in the aerospace engineering sector.

As an extracurricular activity, there is the opportunity to be part of a student-led initiative involving the design and build of an unmanned aircraft vehicle and participating in the IMechE industry-sponsored UAS Challenge (Unmanned Aircraft Systems Challenge).

Our Electronic and Electrical Engineering (Computer Systems) BEng degree is a modern course that has been developed to equip you with the knowledge and skills needed to work and research in electronic and electrical engineering with specialisation in embedded systems.  This programme will help to develop an understanding of the various engineering, scientific and economic trade-offs necessary in the design and implementation of embedded systems, provide familiarity and experience with a range of architectural techniques, design methodologies and their applications and suitability for some embedded systems such as FPGAs and help to understand the utilisation and principles of reconfigurable computing.

You’ll gain a good understanding of the different engineering areas, giving you the opportunity to learn more about the fundamental engineering subjects such as design, structures, materials, fluid mechanics, electronics and maths and gain skills in technical drawing.

By specialising in computer systems you’ll learn to design and implement computer systems based on scientific and economic trade-offs. 

Access is available to modern technical facilities including computer, electronics, and power and control laboratories where you’ll work on your experiments. The latest industry standard engineering software packages are available for you to use in dedicated computer clusters.

Brunel's BEng electronic and electrical engineering (computer systems) course is accredited by the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET). This professional engineering institution ensures that your engineering degree meets the academic requirement to qualify as a professional engineer. This accredited BEng degree in electronic and electrical engineering can be studied full-time over three years, or four years with a placement year. The BEng degree meets the educational requirement to become an Incorporated Engineer (IEng).

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 decide to go on an engineering placement year, you will have the opportunity to work in an engineering or technology company.

Are you looking for a rewarding career that impacts the lives of individuals, families and communities? On successful completion of the Social Work MA course at Brunel, you’ll be eligible to apply for Social Work England registration which is mandatory to practise social work.

Through a combination of academic expertise and high-quality practice placements you’ll be prepared for your career in social work, where 95% of our graduates are in employment after completing their studies. Brunel is located in London, home to a diverse landscape of social work settings. Our academics have strong connections within the sector and you’ll benefit from excellent work placement experience, over 170 days in total.

This Social Work England accredited course will equip you with the skills to tackle the challenges faced in social work today including problems such as county lines, cyber bullying, discrimination and extremism. You’ll learn about law, psychology, social policy and sociology, giving you a comprehensive understanding of various approaches. You’ll develop the skills to identify, understand and critically appraise evidence and research which can inform social work practice.

Our Chemical Engineering MEng 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 MEng chemical engineering course can be studied full-time over four years, or five 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.

If you follow the news and keep up-to-date on what’s happening in the world, you will know that the challenge of keeping people and nations secure is a focus and a priority across the globe. What does the future hold for keeping us safe, and how are solutions concluded?

Everyone wants to feel secure. Whether it is the security of our borders, our food and water supplies, our data or our homes, securing the safety of our resources and ourselves has never posed as big a challenge as it does today.

Alongside 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, this pathway will give you a greater understanding of security issues, whether they’re on the ground, in space or in cyberspace.

Your studies are structured into three levels which reflect the depth and breadth of the subject: integrated, applied and advanced security. The integrated security modules in your first year will introduce you to four themes including security, intelligence, reasoning and influence. In your second year you move on to look at applied security issues to help integrate your knowledge into new topics of war and crime, space and risk. Then, in your final year, you go on to look at more advanced security themes like threats and government.

As part of your course, you will also investigate some of the measures adopted in crisis management including the security implications of militarisation. This interesting course will take you on a journey through variety of subjects including military studies, criminology, sociology, politics and war.

Throughout your course you will build your ability to work in a team as you build skills in project management, 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.

Our Structural Engineering MSc degree is a highly specialist course that has been developed to equip you with a broad range of knowledge and management skills to meet the real-world needs of safety and sustainability in the civil engineering and construction industry.

You will study the traditional elements of structural engineering and deepen your knowledge of structural analysis and design, and sustainable construction. You’ll also develop advanced and specialist knowledge on topical subjects such as fire protection, environmental hazards and energy efficient buildings.

You’ll have access to our custom-designed technical facilities for the testing of materials and structures. The latest industry standard engineering software packages are available for you to use in the purpose-built computer laboratories.

During your studies, there is a residential field trip with hands-on construction experience where you will build a scaled-down version of a bridge, building or dam. You will also benefit from guest lectures delivered by industry professionals, as well as visits to construction sites and civil engineering development projects.

Our MSc structural engineering degree is accredited by the Joint Board of Moderators (JBM). The JBM comprises the Institution of Civil Engineers, the Institution of Structural Engineers, the Chartered Institution of Highways and Transportation, and the Institute of Highway Engineers. These four professional bodies ensure that your engineering degree meets the academic requirement to qualify as a professional engineer. This accredited MSc degree in structural engineering fully meets the educational requirement for progression to Chartered Engineer (CEng) status. It is studied full-time over one year.