Bachelor of Science (Hons) in Music and Sound Design Technology

at University of Hertfordshire - De Havilland Campus United Kingdom

This degree involves a practical workshop programme, establishing and refining your understanding of the tactile qualities and properties of materials and how they can be manipulated to express your ideas. In the First Year you’ll learn contemporary approaches to designing and making across a range of 2D and 3D media. Then, in the Second Year, you’ll focus your interests in order to reach the high level of refinement necessary for the professional marketplace. Our students produce a richly diverse range of artefacts, such as tableware, experimental objects, sculptures, architectural pieces, tiles and conceptual pieces for exhibition or commission.

• Contemporary Design Crafts Ceramics and Glass degree encourages fresh ideas, inventive use of materials and techniques, and awareness of contemporary markets.
• You establish and refine your interests in the field of ceramics and glass to reach the high level of skills demanded by the professional marketplace.
• Placements develop a versatile understanding of the workplace, establishing our graduates as contemporaries in a competitive professional market.

Indicative course structure
A business degree is a powerful, career-launching qualification, and if you’re interested in a career in business, combining two subjects will give you sought-after skills, exciting experiences and a whole world of future career opportunities.

We’ve designed our course to get your career off to an incredible start. You’ll be able to study product innovation, consumer buyer behaviour, and marketing planning as well as key modules on managing media and communications and market and social research. Marketing is creative, strategic and hugely dynamic, spanning a whole range of jobs in advertising, social media, consumer insights, communications, market research, public relations, sales, brand management, product innovation, retail services and the creative industries.

• Open the door to a broad spectrum of careers in industry, commerce and the public sector.
• Develop your knowledge in a broad range of business areas.
• Learn the key elements of marketing and put theories into practice.

What is it for sounds, gestures and marks on paper to have meaning? What are the various uses to which we can put language, and how does it manage to have the effects it has? How do we learn language? And how does the language we use reflect society, the nature of our thoughts, and what we take reality to be like?

Our BA Philosophy and English Language degree allows you to examine the nature of language, through two distinct approaches. You’ll develop a range of skills in analysing the structure of the English language and how it is used in a variety of situations, while exploring and challenging the assumptions about the nature of language, its limits and how it functions.

In your first year, alongside core linguistics modules, you’ll learn to think critically by examining how language may be used – and misused – in reasoning and persuasion. You’ll also study social and political philosophy, covering topics such as freedom of speech, and examine the nature of mind and reality.

All our philosophy lecturers are active researchers, so you’ll share the excitement of doing original work in a supportive and highly-rated academic community. Our Philosophy team is in the top 15 in the Guardian League Table 2019 and rates as one of the 100 best Philosophy departments worldwide in the 2017 QS rankings.

Our English language lecturers are research-active academics working in cutting-edge areas such as language and gender, formulaic language, corpus studies, bilingualism, bilingual processing and codeswitching.

Core modules in your second year focus on English grammar and the sounds of English. You can explore theories of how and why language developed and study language-related real-life problems such as plagiarism and crime investigation in forensic linguistics. In Philosophy, you may explore a wide variety of topics, including the option to learn some languages of logic.

One final-year option is corpus studies in English language, which will develop your research skills through your use of Sketch Engine, a text analysis tool that allows you to search vast samples of language, or corpora. In Philosophy, there is the option to study more advanced contemporary themes and theories in the philosophy of language, and also to take a module which focuses in particular on Ludwig Wittgenstein’s influential work on the nature of language.

• A flexible programme of study, allowing you to concentrate on areas you find especially interesting
• An exceptional academic team, conducting internationally renowned research
• Stimulating, innovative courses that allow you to make rewarding connections between two disciplines
• CV-building potential through extra-curricular activities

This course focuses on contemporary approaches to fine art and the practice and theories that inform it. You’ll be actively encouraged to explore your ideas through a range of media including painting, drawing, sculpture, printmaking, video, installation, photography and digital media. Supporting you will be a team of internationally practising artists, each bringing their unique research, experiences and interests directly into their teaching. The lively and diverse lecture programme sees visiting artists and art professionals discuss their own practice while encouraging debate and discussion. Throughout the course, we’ll foster your natural abilities and interests in a stimulating environment. Excellently equipped facilities and your own personal studio space allow you to experiment and develop your practice.

Our course has an international and outward-looking approach. From year one, our students are offered a range of external opportunities, including:

• The option to take a semester-long, funded Erasmus residency in one of our overseas partner institutions in Europe
• A year-longer Study Abroad residency, in one of our global partner institutions, e.g. North America, Japan, Canada, Australia.
• The chance to exhibit their work nationally and within the region, in venues such as Courtyard Arts, Hertford, the Truman Brewery, London and the renowned UH Arts Gallery on campus.
• Participation in collaborative projects with our international schools in places such as Moscow.

Closer to home, students benefit from opportunities to:

• Undertake a sandwich year placement to gain more extensive experience within the creative sector.
• Benefit from the programme’s close ties with University of Hertfordshire’s MA in Art Therapy, through access to staff and when relevant, taught modules.

A distinctive feature of the programme is that from the outset students develop a strong and supportive peer group dynamic that frequently results in ambitious collaborative projects, sharing of opportunities, a growing network and a proactive alumnus.

Teaching and technical Support

The program values one-to-one teaching in support of individual development, alongside peer learning within technical skills workshops and group seminars.

Teaching on the program is delivered by tutors who are practicing artists exhibiting internationally and supported by a vibrant program of visiting artists and industry professionals. Within the School, there is a lively and diverse lecture program with contributions from artists, poets, art critics and curators, so our students can link with practicing artists and contemporary artwork.

Taught workshops traverse all areas of contemporary practice, including painting, sculpture, digital imaging, printmaking, moving image, installation, photography, moving image and more. Alongside this, the Critical and Cultural Studies modules provide students with the skills to critically analyse contemporary visual arts and culture, both in written studies and within the context of the studio.

The MA Journalism and Media Communications (with Advanced Research) is a two-year, full-time taught programme. This route is available to those students who would like the opportunity to have a research focus in a specialist area of media practice developing innovative solutions to ‘real world’ problems. 

Study our MA in Journalism and Media Communications and gain the skills you’ll need for a successful, dynamic career in today’s complex global media industries.

This Masters course aims to prepare you in both practice and analysis of global journalism and media. You’ll benefit from our extensive links with the media industry, including the BBC and the Sunday Times, and gain a grounding in all its aspects, from fast-changing multimedia to magazines, advertising and the excitements of sports journalism.

You may have studied humanities subjects and be looking to deepen your research interests. Or you may have been working in areas such as business or healthcare and need communications skills. Whatever your background, taking this MA will enhance your career by equipping you to operate effectively in a professional media environment. Our business-facing approach means you’ll be taught by lecturers with extensive professional experience of print, web design, journalism and PR, giving this MA its strong focus on your future employability.

During the course you’ll explore the synergies between social media, PR and journalism, focusing on current media practice and the technologies of convergence. You’ll consider how to make communication more effective in professional settings by looking at journalism and its associated business models; learn how to interview and report on events; gain expertise in internal and external corporate communications; and analyse the impact of technology on the communications industries.

Modules may change from year to year but are likely to include Corporate Communication, PR and Advertising; International Journalism Trends; Writing for Magazines; Sports Journalism; and Media Production as well as modules on research methodology. You also have a range of options for your final project. This can be a dissertation on a media subject of your choice, a short work placement, the one-year sandwich placement or a larger media research project, depending on your chosen route.

For Media Production you’ll create multimedia – podcasts, video and advertising – for online magazines, pitch and measure a campaign and use social media to promote your work.  A strong practical element in Writing for Magazines will equip you to write for social media and understand how to create content and engage audiences.

Our module International Journalism Trends explores news ownership and media production on a global scale and provides deeper insight into the theoretical and cultural framework of media and journalism. Sports Journalism will give you a grounding in the exciting practices of sports journalism, from interviewing top stars to reporting on breaking sports stories.

Two modules on research methods and critical and theoretical debates will equip you with advanced research skills and the transferable communications skills - including interviewing, identifying a story and building connections - that are vital for roles in PR and Corporate Communications.

In addition to these modules, in your second year you will also take Advanced Media Research (30 Credits) and the Media Project (60 Credits). The focus of these modules is to develop your professional practice by applying skills learnt to advance your career.

Why choose this course?
We give you:

• A broad range of media communications skills with a strong focus on digital media
• Expert lecturers widely experienced in the communications industry
• An opportunity to take a short work placement in a media-based environment
• Insights into emerging trends in the fast-changing digital media world
• Research and transferable skills valued by a range of related industries

Indicative course structure
The course looks in depth at a range of core business areas, including accounting, marketing, operations and human resources. At the same time, you’ll gain a specialism in tourism, in which you’ll explore career planning in the tourism industry, passenger tourism transport, visitor attraction management, strategic tourism planning and responsible tourism. There's also the chance to travel and experience different cultures and study tourism’s impact on domestic and international destinations.

• Gain the skills and expertise you need to start a career in the dynamic and challenging tourism industry.
• Develop a firm understanding of the role of organisations in society.
• Develop your knowledge in a broad range of business areas.

This course specialises in the design and production of immersive, innovative and surprising interior spaces. There’s great emphasis on the understanding and use of materials as you explore surface design and detailing. Throughout the course you’ll work with existing buildings and conditions, producing refit, refurbishment, retrofit, re-use and place-making designs. As you progress you’ll develop an expertise in producing impressive drawings, images and models, as you not only design functional, contemporary and innovative interiors, but – above all else – create immersive atmospheres.

• Interior Architecture and Design students have participated in live projects with a number of commercial partners including Letchworth Garden City urban regeneration, Jamie Oliver’s Fifteen, Smirnoff Nightlife Exchange, The Forum Hertfordshire, Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council and St Albans Museums.
• The degree focuses on working with existing buildings and spaces and exploring different possibilities for habitation.
• The Interior Architecture and Design degree pursues a progressive and holistic teaching approach as we consider the design process as something non-linear or sequential (i.e. research first, design later).
• Graduates from the course are eligible for associate membership to professional institutions such as: The British Interior Design Association, The Society of British Interior Design and The Chartered Society of Designer.

MA Fashion is a Masters award within the MA Art and Design programme at the School of Creative Arts. Within the programme there is strong emphasis on professional practice and the real-world applications of art and design. You will develop key research skills and gain a good understanding of the work of other practitioners in your field.

Through working alongside artists and designers on other Fashion postgraduate course, you will explore the possibilities for the fashion designer today, questioning conventions and refining your practice and design capabilities by working with and understanding materials. The course provides you with research skills and an understanding of fashion and its contexts and, at the end of your studies, you will have the expertise to promote your own practice, either as a small business or in the context of global fashion markets.

Our staff are experienced in research, industry and professional practice, and you will also benefit from contributions from visiting fashion designers and design professionals, as well as from involvement with our international exhibitions programme. Our fashion courses also have close links with a wide range of industry partners and contribute to major national and international events in the fashion industry.

The Postgraduate Fashion programme is to equipped to provide you with the skills, knowledge and understanding required to practice at an advanced level, as well as fostering your creativity and enhancing your employment opportunities. Induction, seminars and social events for students and staff mean that you will be part of a friendly and supportive postgraduate community, which also includes film makers, musicians and professionals working in new media. Senior research staff and internationally renowned artists work with postgraduate students, helping you to develop original and challenging work.

This course combines two highly respected subjects to give you a powerful business degree with real career potential. You’ll learn from Hertfordshire Business School’s highly experienced, research-active academic team. You’ll develop an in-depth understanding of the role finance and economics plays in the health of an economy, as well as have the opportunity to become part of a new generation of international financial experts.

As well as deepening your knowledge of these important areas, your lecturers here at Hertfordshire will be firmly focused on your employability, giving you the advanced skills that employers today demand.

• Understand the role economics and finance play in analysing current problems.
• Develop a firm understanding of key business functions, the industrial structure of market economies and the global environment.
• Learn how to analyse data from a financial point of view.
• Enhance your experience through a 12-month work placement or study abroad year.

Like the BEng, this course specialises in aircraft design, especially aircraft structures, materials and aerodynamics. You’ll follow the same pathway as the BEng programmes, but in your extra year you’ll deepen your knowledge and understanding of aerospace topics. You’ll also sharpen your business and management skills. The team project is multidisciplinary and involves applying your skills to solve an unusual and challenging problem, for example the design of an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) for surveillance on Mars. You can also participate in competitions such as BMFA Heavy Lift competition, where you and your fellow students have the chance to design and build your own UAV and compete against teams from across Europe.

• This MEng degree in Aerospace Engineering has an excellent, long-established reputation with the aerospace industry
• The University of Hertfordshire has produced aerospace engineers with practical experience of design and development for future aerospace systems
• Our MEng Aerospace Engineering students have previously completed work placement years at companies including: Marshall Aerospace, Virgin Atlantic Engineering, and Rolls Royce plc
• You will have access to the best equipment: flight simulator, wind tunnels, specialist laboratories and CAE software
• You will be offered a flying experience at a local flying school with one-to-one instruction on fixed wing aircraft
• Our aerospace staff have a wealth of industrial experience which gives an applied approach to their teaching and their contacts prove invaluable to graduates seeking employment
• Recent Aerospace Engineering graduates have gone on to work at organisations including Ministry of Defence, Shell UK, and Telefonica