Life in Leeds
Leeds is an exciting and vibrant student city, find out what it has to offer!
Leeds Beckett University - City Campus,
Woodhouse Lane,
LS1 3HE
Undergraduate BA (Hons)
Media and English
Understand the relationship between English literature and modern media, from The Globe to the global.
Course Overview
-
P3Q3 -
L27 -
City Campus -
Full-Time -
3 Years -
20 Sep 2021
In today's media-saturated culture you’re never far from a story.
As part of your course you’ll:
- Understand the connections between the study of media and the study of English literature
- Evaluate a range of literary and media texts, forms and styles to learn how society uses narratives from the 18th Century to the modern day to make sense of itself and the wider world
- See how an interdisciplinary approach can offer fresh critical insights into contemporary issues like Black Lives Matter, poverty, climate change and Covid-19
- Identify and use research methods and analytical skills that are transferable to a range of graduate-level careers
- Graduate with a truly relevant degree and a real insight into how media and literature inform the cultures and societies we live in today
We celebrate students and staff with a true passion for the arts and humanities.
Through inspired teaching and intellectual debate, day-to-day interaction with award-winning authors, a rolling programme of media industry professionals, published lecturers and world-renowned researchers, we’ll nurture your passion by developing your creative and critical thinking.
We’ll open your mind to the wide range of opportunities to pursue a career you love, be it anything from writing and teaching, journalism and copywriting, business and marketing, to research and publishing.
Our research and teaching explore a diverse range of topics, from beauty Influencers and online racism in football to feminist dystopian novels and 21st-century literary genres. We're also very hands-on: from regular conferences, seminars and events organised by our Centre for Culture and the Arts, to collaborations with institutes and cultural organisations.
Why study Media and English at Leeds Beckett University
- Supportive teaching team
- Work with industry professionals
- Interdisciplinary study
- Innovative assessments
- Professional careers advice
BA Media and English - Student View Student Dominic Smith talks about his experience studying at Leeds Beckett University
Everything you need to know
Discover all there is to know about the course, from entry requirements and fees to exploring the school you’ll be joining - we’ve got it covered.
Entry requirements
104
points required
If you're applying via UCAS, find out more about how your qualifications fit into the UCAS tariff.
Entry requirements
104
points required
UCAS Tariff Points: 104 points required.
(Minimum 64 from two A Levels or equivalent, excluding General Studies).
If you're applying via UCAS, find out more about how your qualifications fit into the UCAS tariff.
GCSEs:
GCSE English Language at Grade C or above (Grade 4 for those sitting their GCSE from 2017 onwards) or equivalent. Key Skills Level 2, Functional Skills Level 2 and the Certificate in Adult Literacy are accepted in place of GCSEs.Access to HE Diploma:
Pass overall with a minimum of 104 UCAS tariff points.Scottish Awards:
Minimum of 5 subjects at Grade B at Higher Level.Irish Leaving Certificate:
Minimum of 5 subjects at Grade C1 or above at Higher Level of which at least 3 must be at B2.Selection Criteria
We may use selection criteria based on your personal attributes; experience and/or commitment to the area of study. This information will be derived from your personal statement and reference and will only be used if you have met the general entry requirements.
International baccalaureate
24 points
IELTS
IELTS 6.0 with no skills below 5.5, or an equivalent qualification. The University provides excellent support for any applicant who may be required to undertake additional English language courses.
Mature Applicants:
Our University welcomes applications from mature applicants who demonstrate academic potential. All students will be considered through the contextual admissions policy described above. If you do not meet the requirements through the contextual admissions policy, we may still be able to make you an offer if you have recent relevant work experience through our ‘Recognition of Prior Learning’ policy. Please ensure that you list both your qualifications and any relevant work experience in your application so that we can consider you under both schemes where applicable..
All applicants are required to meet our standard English language and Maths requirement of GCSE grade C or equivalent, for example we accept some Functional Skills Tests.
If you're applying via UCAS, find out more about how your qualifications fit into the UCAS tariff.
Selection Criteria
We may use selection criteria based on your personal attributes; experience and/or commitment to the area of study. This information will be derived from your personal statement and reference and will only be used if you have met the general entry requirements.
International baccalaureate
24 points
IELTS
IELTS 6.0 with no skills below 5.5, or an equivalent qualification. The University provides excellent support for any applicant who may be required to undertake additional English language courses.
Additional entry requirements:
Verify your qualifications
If you are an international student, we can help you to compare and verify your qualifications. Please contact our International Office on +44 (0)113 812 1111 09.00 to 17.00 Mon-Thurs / 09.00 to 16.30 Fri GMT or email internationaloffice@leedsbeckett.ac.uk.Need to improve your English Language skills?
Don't worry if you don't have the level of English required for your chosen course. We offer a wide range of courses which have been designed to help you to improve your qualifications and English language ability, most of which are accredited by the British Council. Check your English and find out more about our English courses.More questions?
No matter what your questions, we are here to answer them, visit our International website to get more information and find out about our online open days.We were awarded silver status in the latest Teaching Excellence Framework, reflecting our commitment to deliver high-quality teaching, learning and outcomes for our students.
As well as learning from expert tutors, you’ll be assigned an academic advisor to give you tailored feedback and support. Our subject-specific librarians will also direct you to the specialist learning and study-skills resources that will underpin your studies.
Teaching & Learning
This interdisciplinary course will enable you to explore the intellectual and creative opportunities offered by the study of English and media. You will study historical and contemporary literary texts alongside a wide range of popular media. The tabs below detail what and how you will study in each year of your course. The balance of assessments and overall workload will be informed by your core modules and the option modules you choose to study – the information provided is an indication of what you can expect and may be subject to change. The option modules listed are also an indication of what will be available to you. Their availability is subject to demand and you will be advised which option modules you can choose at the beginning of each year of study.
Overall workload
224
Hours teaching and learning
976
Hours independent study
Assessment proportions
Year one is assessed by coursework predominantly, with some practical assessments.What you'll learn
This module will support you as you start to work at degree level and develop strategies for the interpretation of contemporary literary texts. You will engage with a range of post-millennial texts that seek to problematize the contemporary period. You teaching will focus on literary innovations and ways in which texts interact with techniques, approaches and debates in literary studies today. Your learning will explore a range of critical approaches through a number of set texts to help you develop key skills that will inform your work at degree level.
Study a wide variety of poetry written in English and gain an understanding of the development of poetry from the Shakespearean period through to contemporary times. You will be better acquainted with a range of poetry in order to develop your sense of literary history. You will study critical and theoretical perspectives and interpretive tools to enable you to approach the reading and analysis of poetry with confidence.
Develops your critical-thinking skills and your ability to interpret literary texts. You will explore major theoretical approaches to the study of literature using extracts from theorists' work and supporting resources.
Develop an understanding of theories and debates in contemporary and 'new' media with a particular focus on the transition from analogue to digital media. You will discuss how people experience, consume and interact with the media forms they encounter in everyday settings.
This module uses American cinema from the 1940s to the present as a prism through which to investigate questions of history, gender and representation. You will use gender as the key organising principle but also examine issues of class and race.
Gain an introduction to the critical techniques you will need to study new media. You will develop your ability to interpret media technologies and practices, and you will hone your analytical and theoretical skills. You will be introduced to a range of challenging and topical case studies and to recent modes of interpretation through training in critical analysis, research, debate and presentation.
Overall workload
216
Hours teaching and learning
985
Hours independent study
Assessment proportions
Year two is assessed by coursework predominantly, with some practical assessments.What you'll learn
Gain a detailed overview of research methods including qualitative and quantitative methods. You will understand the ways in which media and cultural studies research can be carried out.
Look at a carefully selected range of examples to understand where and how theory, text and performance intersect. You will explore what an interdisciplinary approach to cultural studies offers us combining skills from the study of English and media to investigate this new field.
Explore issues of context - what it is, where it comes from and what its relation is to other forms of information. You will develop strong research skills by taking a theoretically informed approach to contextual study of literature.
Explore the emergence and development of the Romantic movement in Britain between 1780 and 1830 through engaging with a range of literature across a wide cultural and historical spectrum. You will analyse Romanticism using theoretical and critical methods.
Gain an understanding of `postcolonial' literature and the conceptual and critical vocabulary you will need to read and analyse texts from formerly colonised regions of the world.
Option modules may include
learning to gain first-hand experience of planning, delivery and evaluating a professional working brief set by an industry partner organisation. You will work as a group across 10 weeks alongside a tutor to design, deliver, present and evaluate the brief to industry standards. As well as conducting a reflective case study of your brief, you will complete a CV, cover letter, LinkedIn profile and undertake a recorded mock interview.
Explore some of the features of professional working practices within the media and cultural industry sectors. During this module you will have the opportunity to work on a practice-based project and learn from visiting tutors who are working in areas such as online marketing, publishing, television and radio production. You will also undertake a series of online-workshop reflective tasks covering aspects of a range of professional skills to help you identify your strengths, develop your skills and prepare you for your future career.
Overall workload
155
Hours teaching and learning
1045
Hours independent study
Assessment proportions
Year three is assessed by coursework predominantly, with some practical assessments.What you'll learn
You will demonstrate a full range of skills, knowledge, and competencies developed over three years of study. This module provides an opportunity for you to choose and explore a field of study that has particularly engaged your interest.
Investigate the relationship between literary and media studies through looking at the process of adaptation. You will study the theories we use to describe that relationship and the tensions it raises when questions of `value' are brought into the mix.
Option modules may include
Explore the development of the Gothic from its literary origins in the mid-18th century through to the mid-20th century. You will analyse the literary and cultural properties of Gothicism as it has shifted and diversified over this period and you will be encouraged to engage with Gothic novels alongside a range of forms across a wide cultural and historical spectrum. This module will also introduce you to theoretical and critical methods of analysing the Gothic such as Freud?s concept of the uncanny and Julia Kristeva?s theory of abjection.
Examine the relationships between writing and the Northern Ireland conflict (1966?1998). You will consider the ways in which writing responds to serious and prolonged political and social crisis and how it offers insights into issues normally considered to be purely within the realm of party or national politics. This module will enable you to understand the way literature negotiates the tensions between the demands of artistic integrity and independence and the pressures to speak out or to contribute towards the resolution of violent political division. You will also look at texts produced after 1998, a time of somewhat uncertain `peace and reconciliation'.
Gain a critical overview of the historical, social, technological and cultural context surrounding digital media such as mobile devices, software apps and computer games. This module explores definitions and interpretations of the term 'digital reality' and how it is used in contemporary culture. You will be encouraged to critically engage with the issues surrounding digitally mediated experiences, especially in relation to interactivity, creativity, community and embodiment.
Gain an understanding of the cultural connections between Africa and the African Diaspora through the analysis of a range of key literary works. Through close reading and analysis of the modules primary texts and the interrogation of postcolonial theoretical debates, you will be encouraged to explore the intersections and tensions between issues of race, gender, identity, education and language within the contexts of slavery, colonialism, migration and exile.
Study contemporary genres with an emphasis on their innovativeness and their interaction with socio-cultural developments of the new millennium. You will engage with cutting edge texts to consider their innovations in and interactions with the contemporary world.
This module draws on recent social theory and on the work of Pierre Bourdieu as a means of examining how identities of class and gender are represented in contemporary media culture. You will use ethnographic case studies to look at the ways audiences consume and interact with lifestyle texts.
Explore the historical connection between popular music and the dissenting voice through a series of indicative case studies beginning with bar-room ballads, soldiers' songs and worksong traditions that include non-Anglophone sources. You will also look at 20th-century modes of dissent including popular song, folk, rock, jazz and soul models. Alongside post-1970 modes of protest, you will look at the use and abuse of sound and technology such as radio and new music media to convey protest.
Study a selection of American plays from the 1920s to the 1990s, focusing on the ways in which they dramatise the relationship between public issues and private concerns. This module investigate the ways in which American drama stages the enduring conflict between the search for individual happiness and the making of social and political bonds in a society based on an ideology of competitive individualism. The module will provide opportunities to refine your skills in collaborative work, oral presentation, guided research, and independent study.
Gain a critical introduction to celebrity studies and literature on film stardom. It also explores their recent cross-overs, hybridisation and yet continuing distinction in the contemporary world. Media celebrity gives focus to television, radio and new media; the dynamics of contemporary celebrity and the theory, analysis and research necessary to make sense of contemporary media celebrity. Particular use is made of the journal Celebrity Studies to explore the cutting edge of developments in ideas and research and methods. Historical contexts of film stardom are addressed yet the key focus is on recent developments of such stardom and research exploring its contemporary dynamics
Engage with debates about masculinity which took place during the long 18th century. You will read a range of literary texts, including novels and poetry and focus on important models of 'manliness' which were prevalent in the period. This module will encourage you to situate texts in relation to historical context, and also to engage with theory.
Study the autobiographical branch of creative non-fiction.You will complete a number of creative writing exercises and regular workshops to help you refine your work with feedback from fellow students and tutor feedback in class, online, verbally, and in writing. This module will see you read a range of exemplary works of autobiographical non-fiction with a critical eye to begin making connections between the techniques and approaches of published works and your own.
Examine the complex relationship between media and sport at both the industry and audience level. You will understand the role sports coverage plays across print, broadcast and online media in all contexts: local, regional, national and global.
Explore 'race' as a mechanism used to justify oppression, slavery and genocide. But what exactly is `race'? How do racisms manifest and change over time? How can we challenge racial discrimination within the media and wider society? These are some of the important questions that this module critically investigates. You will examine and understand the historical and contemporary significance of `race', ethnicity and culture before beginning to apply your knowledge to different aspects of popular culture such as film, TV, social media, advertising and fashion, music, and sport.
Build on your learning from years one and two to complete an in-depth study of genres, their relationship to visual texts, audiences and institutions, and role in everyday life. This module will investigate key studies in film and television and explore ways in which these studies can be linked with broader areas of cultural theory. You will be equipped with the skills to critically analyse models of genre in visual studies and explore the role of genre in making meaning from media texts.
You will use the work of Leeds-based filmmaker Louis Le Prince as a starting point for an exploration of the interpenetration of media, space and place. You will draw on a range of core themes such as modernism, postmodernism, the local and global, and the public and private to understand the transformation of material and symbolic spaces and places that media technologies now enable. Studying this module will place the new media debate in historical context and assess key transformative moments in media history and the implications this has for the cityscape. You will explore a range of media and cultural texts to examine the tensions between the representation and the lived experience of space and place, using Leeds and its cultural venues alongside your own personal media technologies throughout to interrogate critical and theoretical debates.
Understand how writers and film-makers have imagined city spaces and identities in a range of postcolonial locations. Through an exciting range of literary and cinematic texts, and drawing on theories of urban space, place, and postcoloniality, you will explore issues that are of central importance to the world many of us live in today, including migrant labour, asylum seekers, refugees, and illegal immigrants; crime, conflict, and policing; memory, history, and urban space; class, gender, race, sexuality, and the postcolonial city amongst others.
This module will introduce you to the growing area of game studies and will give you diverse methodological tools to approach video games as texts that need a multi-angle approach. Regardless of your gaming background, you will be encouraged to engage with a regular gaming practice and to adopt a reflective and critical approach toward your experiences of play and spectatorship. This module will provide you with the methodological and critical tools to focus on game mechanics and narratives, but also signs, semiotics and politics. In addition to reflecting upon workshops involving play sessions and analytical discussions, this module will include consideration of the game industry and its intricacies.
By reflecting on learning acquired through work placements, this module will focus on promoting self-awareness of your ‘career story’. You will look at how you evaluate your current skills, explore the future possibilities in your career development and navigate pathways through those chosen possibilities. This module will enable you to become ‘cartographer’ of your own future experience. You will embark upon a minimum of 80 hours work placement, supported by reflective exercises, and build expertise and confidence through a range of assessments designed by the course team and employer partners. Conceptualised and designed by digital specialists, the module is purposefully created to be delivered and experienced online – reflecting the increasingly distributed nature of work communications and embracing digital environments as an integral aspect of how employees and the self-employed progress their careers.
Explore the development of 20th-century fiction by women with particular reference to the genre of romantic fiction. You will study a selection of literary fictions by women from this period and examine how a number of writers have modified and transformed the conventions of romantic fiction.
Fees & Funding
£9,250
Home / EU 2021
The tuition fee for the year for students entering in 2021/22 is £9250. The amount you will pay may increase each year to take into account the effects of inflation.
£13,000
International 2021
The tuition fee for the year for students entering in 2021/22 is £13000. The amount you will pay is fixed at this level for each year of your course.
Fees & Funding
£9,250
For students entering in 2021
The tuition fee for the year for students entering in 2021/22 is £9250. The amount you will pay may increase each year to take into account the effects of inflation.
Additional course costs
Tuition Fees
Your tuition fees cover the cost of registration, tuition, academic supervision, assessments and examinations.
The following are also included in the cost of your course:
- 24/7 Library and student IT support
- Free wifi via eduroam
- Skills workshops and resources
- Library membership, giving access to more than 500,000 printed, multimedia and digital resources
- Access to software, including five free copies of Microsoft Office 365 to install on your PC,laptop and MAC, and access to free high-end software via the Leeds Beckett remote app
- Loan of high-end media equipment to support your studies
In many cases, costs associated with your course will be included in your course fee. However, in some cases there are ‘essential’ additional costs (those that you will be required to meet in addition to your course fee), and/or ‘optional’ additional costs (costs that are not required, but that you might choose to pay). We have included those essential or optional additional costs that relate to your course, below.
Optional Costs
- Educational visits; the details and location will vary but the costs you will need to pay could include travel, accommodation and subsistence
Other study-related expenses to consider: materials that you will need to complete your course such as books (whilst the library provides access to readings recommended for your modules, you may wish to purchase your own copies of some books); you can also make suggestions for books to be added to Library stock; placement costs (these may include travel expenses and living costs); student visas (international students only); printing, photocopying and stationery (you may need to pay for multiple copies of your dissertation or final project to be printed and bound); events associated with your course such as field trips; study abroad opportunities (travel costs and accommodation, visas and immunisations). Other costs could include academic conferences (travel costs) and professional-body membership (where applicable). The costs you will need to cover for graduation will include gown hire and guest tickets, and optional extras such as professional photography.
As well as your mobile phone, you will also need access to a desktop computer and/or laptop to complete assignments and access university online services such as MyBeckett, your virtual learning environment. You can book and borrow AV equipment through the media equipment service accessed online via the student hub and located in the library at each campus. Equipment includes: 360 Cameras, iPads, GoPros, MacBooks, portable data projectors, portable projection screens, flipchart stands, remote presenters, digital cameras and camcorders, SLR cameras, speakers, microphones, headphones, headsets, tripods, digital audio recorders and PC/laptops (a laptop loans service is provided on campus in the library on both campuses). Student laptops are also available from the laptop lockers located in the libraries.
This list is not exhaustive, costs are approximate and will vary depending on the choices you make during your course. Any rental, travel or living costs are also in addition to your course fees. If you choose to study via distance learning, you may not be able to access all of the facilities listed if you are not able to visit us on campus.
Additional information
For further information on financing your studies or information about whether you may qualify for one of our bursaries and scholarships, follow the links below:
£13,000
For students entering in 2021
The tuition fee for the year for students entering in 2021/22 is £13000. The amount you will pay is fixed at this level for each year of your course.
Additional course costs
Tuition Fees
Your tuition fees cover the cost of registration, tuition, academic supervision, assessments and examinations.
The following are also included in the cost of your course:
- 24/7 Library and student IT support
- Free wifi via eduroam
- Skills workshops and resources
- Library membership, giving access to more than 500,000 printed, multimedia and digital resources
- Access to software, including five free copies of Microsoft Office 365 to install on your PC,laptop and MAC, and access to free high-end software via the Leeds Beckett remote app
- Loan of high-end media equipment to support your studies
In many cases, costs associated with your course will be included in your course fee. However, in some cases there are ‘essential’ additional costs (those that you will be required to meet in addition to your course fee), and/or ‘optional’ additional costs (costs that are not required, but that you might choose to pay). We have included those essential or optional additional costs that relate to your course, below.
Optional Costs
- Educational visits; the details and location will vary but the costs you will need to pay could include travel, accommodation and subsistence
Other study-related expenses to consider: materials that you will need to complete your course such as books (whilst the library provides access to readings recommended for your modules, you may wish to purchase your own copies of some books); you can also make suggestions for books to be added to Library stock; placement costs (these may include travel expenses and living costs); student visas (international students only); printing, photocopying and stationery (you may need to pay for multiple copies of your dissertation or final project to be printed and bound); events associated with your course such as field trips; study abroad opportunities (travel costs and accommodation, visas and immunisations). Other costs could include academic conferences (travel costs) and professional-body membership (where applicable). The costs you will need to cover for graduation will include gown hire and guest tickets, and optional extras such as professional photography.
As well as your mobile phone, you will also need access to a desktop computer and/or laptop to complete assignments and access university online services such as MyBeckett, your virtual learning environment. You can book and borrow AV equipment through the media equipment service accessed online via the student hub and located in the library at each campus. Equipment includes: 360 Cameras, iPads, GoPros, MacBooks, portable data projectors, portable projection screens, flipchart stands, remote presenters, digital cameras and camcorders, SLR cameras, speakers, microphones, headphones, headsets, tripods, digital audio recorders and PC/laptops (a laptop loans service is provided on campus in the library on both campuses). Student laptops are also available from the laptop lockers located in the libraries.
This list is not exhaustive, costs are approximate and will vary depending on the choices you make during your course. Any rental, travel or living costs are also in addition to your course fees. If you choose to study via distance learning, you may not be able to access all of the facilities listed if you are not able to visit us on campus.
Additional information
For further information on financing your studies or information about whether you may qualify for one of our bursaries and scholarships, follow the links below:
This joint honours course will enthuse students who are fascinated by both traditional literary texts and newer forms of representation, including social media, film and popular music. The course combines academic study with the development of key skills necessary for graduate employment and we work hard to build links between our students and our professional partners working in the media industries.
Dr Katherine Harrison
Course Director
90%
of BA (Hons) Media & English students were satisfied with their course.
Leeds Beckett Being Human Festival On 19 November 2016 academics and students worked together from the School of Cultural Studies & Humanities to run ran a free interactive session Urban Dreams (and Nightmares) as part of the Being Human Festival.
Your future in our hands
There’s a lot to consider when choosing a course. Take a look at the team you’ll be working with, employability statistics and career prospects to help make up your mind.
Dr Katherine Harrison
Course Director / School of Cultural Studies & Humanities
Katherine is the Course Director for BA (Hons) Media & English and a PhD Supervisor in the School of Cultural Studies & Humanities. Her research focuses on visual culture, feminism (including women’s crafting and domestic practices) and representations of poverty and class. She is also currently part of a funded research team working with a film maker to analyse representations of towns, streets and homes in welfare documentary television and has recently published an article about ‘new knitting’ culture and women’s changing position in relation to domesticity.
This course was the right decision for me because I was able to read and study novels, which has always been a passion for me, but also explore skills with TV, radio and magazines, etc. I wanted to make sure that I would have options for my future, and this course allowed me to study two subjects that I love and to make sure I will have a choice of career paths too.
Ellie Durrant
BA (Hons) English & Media (now BA (Hons) Media & English)
Career Prospects
With developed skills in critical thinking, verbal and written communication, teamwork, research and analysis, you’ll be prepared to enter a huge range of graduate careers, from social media marketing and sales to publishing, journalism and PR. Your ability to work well with others and to manage your development will prepare you to succeed in your chosen area. Our graduates have set up their own production companies and PR agencies or are working for well-known media organisations. You’ll also be well placed to go on to further study with us.
Scholarships and bursaries
We are committed to ensuring that the opportunity to experience an education here at Leeds Beckett University is open to all. If you're thinking of joining us to study for your undergraduate degree, you may be eligible for a scholarship or bursary.
Bursaries are usually awarded depending on household income, whilst scholarships are available for a number of areas, and are based on sporting or academic excellence. For more information visit our scholarships and bursaries page.
Beckett Careers Team
Our Beckett Careers Team will support you with all aspects of your career planning, throughout university and beyond. Whether you’re looking for a part-time job or want to gain experience alongside your studies, need help preparing an application or exploring graduate job options, we can provide expert support every step of the way!
Throughout your university journey and up to five years after you graduate you'll have access to a broad range of support and tools to help you with:
- Getting ready to apply for jobs
- Working on your CV
- Preparing for an interview
- Applying for a graduate vacancies or placements
- Connecting with employers and organisations
Your Beckett experience
At Leeds Beckett your experience is important to us, find out more about what to expect from your time on this course and life at uni.
Experience Leeds Beckett
Explore our specialist teaching facilities and premium accommodation that you’ll be proud to call your second home.
