BA (Hons) Marketing Communications with Public Relations

Core units

• Academic & Professional Practice: You will build your confidence in both academic and professional skills. This unit will cover the academic skills which will be required at degree level study and you’ll practice them throughout the unit with support from key university services including the library and study skills team. There will also be the opportunity for you to reflect on and develop your own professional skills through interactions with employers, careers services and online resources. 
• Collaborative Communication Project: The unit focuses on the centrality of communicaiton, both as a process and as a project. Through the collaborative development of a communication solution to a specific communication problem, the unit aims to promote the principles and practices of team-based iterative project work. 
• Media & Current Debates: You will be introduced to a) the important role and responsibilities of the news media within democratic societies and b) the varied nature of reporting of key events, issues and debates within the contemporary 24/7 news cycle. You will gain an essential level of understanding of what constitues news and what the work of journalists entails. You will also develop an awareness and appreciation of differing coverage of particular stories by a range of news organisations. 
• Media Work: You will become familiar with a range of profiles and career paths in the communication and media industries and be inspired to reflect on and develop your own professional identity. Through case studies of seminal campaigns, programmes and artefacts, profiles of ground-breaking personalities, masterclasses from industry professionals, and guest talks from BU staff who have worked or currently work in marketing, PR, media production, journalism and communications, you will encounter and interact with diverse role models, career trajectories, and types of profressional practice. ​

Core units

• Principles of Marketing Communications: This unit introduces you to the principles of marketing and marketing communications. You will become familiar with the marketing mix, including traditional and innovative marketing techniques and where marketing as a discipline currently stands.
• Academic & Professional Skills: Through engaging in professional-relevant, authentic experiences and assessments to support your development as an independent learner, you will acquire a range of skills required for successful academic and professional practice in marketing communications
• Contemporary Debates in Marketing Communications: This unit aims to provide you with an understanding of the broader role that marketing communications play in contemporary culture.  You will be introduced to theories and concepts designed to help you develop a critical perspective when reviewing and reflecting on the wider impact that marketing communications’ campaigns can have on consumers and society at local, national and global levels.  
• Digital Essentials: The unit will enable you to understand the impact of emerging digital technologies and review, utilise and explore the role of digital communications within marketing communications. You will use research and industry specific tools used for measuring digital communications.
• Research in Action 1: You will explore and learn about the value and the importance of secondary research in a specific context of generating viable audience insights for marketing communications practices. 
• Integrated Marketing Communications: You will gain a critical understanding of how to plan, create, execute and evaluate integrated marketing communication campaigns. Upon completion of the unit, you will have an appreciation of the complexities of the integrated marketing communication campaigns process.

Core units

• Principles of Public Relations: You will be introduced to the main PR concepts and principles of influencer relations and specifically how organisations can leverage the power of influencers using a range of media, including social platforms and “traditional” news media (including broadcast and print).
• PR Events: This unit aims provides you with the knowledge and skills needed to successfully plan, create and execute PR events. By the end of the unit you will demonstrate your ability to execute an event. 
• PR Campaigns in Practice: You will have the opportunity to experience the parameters and constraints of a client brief, where client issues, tight deadlines and the limitations of a budget call for ideas that are practical and realistic, as well as creative and original. 
• Research in Action 2: You will learn about the value and importance of primary research, in relation to your chosen degree, and the place of research ethics. Emphasis will be placed on skills or ‘doing research’, exploring both standard and more innovative ways of obtaining meaningful data and insights for both academic and commercial purposes. You will get hands on experience of qualitative and quantitative methods, modes of analysis, interpretation and presentation of research findings to understand how research is done from beginning to end.
• Content Creation: This unit will provide you with the opportunity to acquire an in-depth understanding of the content, meanings and decoding of marketing communications campaigns and equip you with the skills required to create marketing communications content (e.g. internal communications, posters, brochure, advertising, POS, direct mail) based on the theoretical perspectives learned, making use, where relevant, of software commonly used in industry. 
• Brands & Digital Branding: You will be introduced to the building blocks of brands, the theoretical principles of branding, and will also be exposed to theoretical applications in diverse situations and contexts. This unit will also explore the role of branding as a strategic managerial tool and its implications on businesses, consumers, and markets.

The inclusion of a 30-week placement (minimum) is a key feature in helping you to develop your abilities and understanding of advertising in the work environment. It also provides a platform for successful entry into the profession following graduation.

Core units

• Strategic Management for PR: This unit enables you to gain a critical view of the major perspectives and theoretical approaches in strategic management. It also aims to convey the complexity of strategic management from the environmental analysis, through to strategic options development, implementation, evaluation and performance measurement of the implications for public relations strategies
• Reputation Management & Crisis Communication: By the end of this unit you will have an appreciation of the complexities of the crisis management process as well as the methods for modelling risks. The unit will cover both the specific knowledge and skills required to meet the demands of each of the phases of the crisis management and communication process.
• Dissertation: The dissertation offers you the opportunity to become an expert on a topic of particular interest, and to develop a study that connects your learning with real-world observations.

Option units (choose two)

• Behavioural Psychology: You will be introduced to Behavioural Economics and Choice Architecture. The unit will focus on learnings from cognitive neuroscience, and how these can enhance strategy and creativity, with significantly optimised levels of efficiency and effectiveness across all elements of the communications mix.
• Brand Meaning: You will create your interpretation of brand meaning for a brand of your choice, producing meaning appropriate for a 21st century brand.
• Consumer Insights & Thought Leadership: You will gain a critical appreciation of state of the art thinking within consumer culture studies, and .create industry relevant thought leadership based on consumer insight generating practices that are underpinned by related academic thinking and industry best practice.
• Corporate Sponsorship: You will analyse the growing importance of corporate sponsorship as a marketing communication tool, evaluate approaches in assessing sponsorship effectiveness, and develop a critical understanding of using relevant corporate communications activities to leverage the sponsorship outcomes.
• Persuasion & Influence: You will be provided with an understanding of the psychology of audience members and become equipped to reflect on the ethics of persuasion to critique contemporary persuasive communication in the context of broader social and cultural issues.
• Relationship Marketing: You will gain an understanding and conceptually analyse relationship marketing which is becoming increasingly important given the challenge of attracting, developing and retaining customers within a competitive environment (both for-profit and non-profit organisations).
• Social Media Management: You will gain the ability to critically understand how to plan, create and execute management of social media accounts and activities on a national and global scale.  
• Applied Creativity: This unit will offer you a space to appreciate the value that creativity can add to the development and execution of advertising and other forms of corporate communications.  You will also learn, through practice and reflection, how to develop your own creative abilities and insights, and how to optimise the creativity of others in novel and engaging ways.
• Activism & Communication: This unit will help you to develop critical understandings of historical and contemporary issues and debates on the dynamics of gender, race, ethnicity and culture in media and communication practice and political discourse. You will also develop the cultural competencies needed to articulate the key issues and advance solutions which challenge these issues for a specific industry.

Programme specification

Programme specifications provide definitive records of the University's taught degrees in line with Quality Assurance Agency requirements. Every taught course leading to a BU Award has a programme specification which describes its aims, structure, content and learning outcomes, plus the teaching, learning and assessment methods used.

Whilst every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the programme specification, the information is liable to change to take advantage of exciting new approaches to teaching and learning as well as developments in industry.

If you have been unable to locate the programme specification for the course you are interested in, it will be available as soon as the latest version is ready. Alternatively please contact us for assistance.

A placement should be a highly rewarding experience for you and the employing company and we do our best to ensure that everyone involved feels that they have got the most that they can from the experience.

The benefits to you as a placement student are many. You will have the chance to:

• Put the theory learnt throughout the course into professional practice
• Enhance your study and help you decide on subject options (where appropriate)
• Learn a wide range of skills such as time management, problem solving and team work (all of these are important to succeed in any career)
• Make contacts, as it is not uncommon for our students to be offered permanent positions to return to after graduating
• Gain a real insight into how the industry operates in roles that would be almost impossible to achieve for an outsider.

Many of our students, during their placement, are given responsibilities normally associated with graduate trainees.

You will begin your placement after completion of your second year of study and you must complete a minimum of 30 weeks, although most students choose to work for a full year.

The faculty running your course will offer the support of a Placement Co-ordinator.

Through timetabled sessions and one-to-one appointments, they’ll help support you in your placement search including advice on finding a placement, information and advice on all aspects of job searching and job applications, as well as ensuring your proposed placement meets the requirements of your course.

Our CareersBU service is also available throughout your time at BU, offering services like CV checking and careers fairs to meet employers.

Placement Development Advisors will support you once you have started your sandwich placement – so you will be able to maintain contact with the university throughout.

• The Oracle Group
• Walt Disney Studios
• Liverpool FC
• Kier
• Warner Brothers

Many BU courses have partner universities around the world, offering opportunities for you to apply to study abroad for between one month and a year of your degree. There are usually no additional tuition fees, and the Turing Scheme at BU can often provide grants to support with travel and living expenses*.

As a student studying BA (Hons) Marketing Communications with Public Relations you can apply to study abroad at these international partners:

• Thailand: Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, 
• France: ISCOM School of Communication and Publicity, Paris
• Czech Republic: Charles University, Prague
• Belgium: Thomas More University of Applied Sciences, Mechelen 

Further information can be found here.

*Funding is subject to an annual successful bid and information will be shared with students in the Autumn

During your studies on the BA (Hons) Marketing Communications with Advertising degree, you will have the opportunity to achieve CIM professional qualifications. You can achieve the Level 3 Foundation Certificate in Professional Marketing in the first year of your degree.

Exemption

Our degree has an accreditation, which provide exemptions for some modules in/for Level 4 Certificate in Professional Marketing and Level 6 Diploma in Professional Marketing. 

You will need to achieve a 2:2 or above degree classification and successfully pass the specified (non-exempt) modules at the chosen level of study to be awarded the full qualification by CIM. 

You will need to start non-exempt modules within three years of graduation and complete within five years for exemptions to be valid (consult the CIM for further information).

The Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR) is the chartered body for public relations and the largest membership organisation for PR professionals in Europe.

During the second year of your studies, you will have the opportunity to take a professional qualification with the CIPR. This industry specific qualification will give you an edge when entering the profession. Our accreditation and CIPR certificate, and knowledge reflected from our degree, ensures we're equipping you with the best opportunities for a successful public relations career. 

Benefits for you:

• Opportunity to graduate with two highly recognised qualifications, with professional associations the CIM and the CIPR, alongside your academic degree
• Improved placement and employability prospects, due to achievement of academic and professional qualifications whilst in higher education
• Membership of CIM and associated benefits.

Benefits for employers:

• Graduates and placement students with proven practitioner and academic skills.

BU will provide all tuition and assessment guidance for the Level 3 Foundation Certificate in Professional Marketing at no additional cost. BU will pay the CIM assessment fees for both of the units studied on the CIM Foundation Certificate in Professional Marketing in your first year.

We will ask you to pay the CIM Affiliate Studying Membership fee of £65 directly to the CIM on registering for the CIM programme (for reference, for the academic year 23/24, the fee was £65). This covers the cost of CIM membership for your first year of study on the CIM programme.

In the event of a failed assessment: if you who wish to submit for a later assessment session, you will need to pay the relevant CIM reassessment fee and renew your annual CIM studying membership if required.

We are looking for applicants who are passionate about the PR, marketing, advertising and communication industries and potentially have some relevant work experience in this area. You should be able to communicate why you want to come on this course, what appeals to you about working in this industry and why you feel you have the edge over your peers.

You must have basic computer literacy, including knowledge of Word, Excel and PowerPoint.

We select candidates for this course by looking at your application; there are usually no interviews or selection activities needed. For that reason, make sure your application really stands out from the crowd, and leave us in no doubt as to why you should be joining BU. You can find some handy hints about filling in your UCAS form on our how to apply web pages.

We look at individual applications and make a tailored offer based on your potential to succeed on the course considering a range of factors, including your academic achievements, work and other experience, reference and personal statement, and in some cases, your performance at an interview or a portfolio review. Typically, we make an offer at the bottom of the tariff range.

If you are unable to meet the entry requirements, we may be able to make you an offer through AccessBU if you meet certain criteria e.g. you have been in care or live in an area where fewer people typically progress to Higher Education. If you don't meet our published tariff, we will accept you at least 8 points below if your personal circumstances match our AccessBU criteria. 

Our offer-making will typically be based on your most recent qualifications, including any required subjects where applicable. We'll consider all qualifications when assessing your application, although these may not be part of our offer.

If you do not meet the criteria of your original offer, we may still offer you a place. We will review your whole application and consider all academic qualifications (including those not in the offer) to see if you have the academic potential to succeed on the course. If we feel the answer is yes, we will confirm your place.

AccessBU: AccessBU provides you with the opportunity to tell us about your circumstances that are not always evident in your UCAS application. This widening access initiative also considers relevant criteria such as being in care or if you live in an area with a low participation rate in Higher Education - if you are eligible, your offer could be up to 16 UCAS tariff points below the published tariff.

Apprenticeships: We recognise the transferable knowledge and skills gained through apprenticeships and welcome applications from students with a Level 3 Advanced Apprenticeship recognised by the Institute for Apprenticeships. Each application will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

Deferred entry: We are happy to consider eligible applicants for deferred entry. If you have already submitted your application, please submit your deferral request through our website.

Direct entry: We welcome applications from students who have previously studied at degree level at other institutions and wish to transfer onto a BU course. Our Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) procedure enables credit awarded from one institution to contribute to a BU award, subject to an application process. Please visit our RPL webpage for more information.

Mature applicants: We recognise that mature applicants may have a wealth of experience rather than formal qualifications, so we’ll consider your application on these merits if included in your application. You’ll need to apply to BU in the usual way through UCAS and you may be invited to an interview to discuss your suitability for the course based on the experience you tell us about in your application.

Among the roles you could take on are:

• Account Executive
• Communications Manager
• Executive
• Media and PR officer
• Publicity Co-ordinator
• Senior Publicist and Strategist.

Once you have completed an undergraduate Honours degree, you can further develop your education by studying for a postgraduate degree. Please visit our postgraduate section for further details about our range of Master’s degrees.

What’s included in your tuition fee?

Your tuition fee covers expenses associated with your course including tuition materials, access to facilities, mandatory field trips and the following:

• Materials for laboratory and mandatory field-based teaching activity.
• Support for finding placements (UK or abroad) and fieldwork, and non-financial support whilst on placement if this is part of your course of study
• A range of student services – advisors, help desks, counsellors, placement support and careers service
• The Library – access to a wide range of electronic resources (databases, e-journals and e-books), print and multimedia collections, subject librarians and study spaces
• Access to Brightspace, our virtual learning environment, which offers a responsive and personalised learning experience with powerful learning analytics capabilities, integrated social media and advanced video features.
• IT labs (some open 24/7), wireless network, AV equipment to borrow
• Free software download to your personal device of Microsoft Office 365 ProPlus while you are studying, as well as access to applications provided on AppsAnywhere, subject to licensing and compatibility restrictions
• Peer Assisted Learning (PAL) scheme
• Disability and additional learning support, according to individual circumstances.
• The BU Language Centre to help you develop/improve foreign or English language skills
• 24 hours a day, 365 days a year security team.

Additional costs

We are committed to offering you value for money and ensuring there are no hidden costs while you are studying with us, therefore we have listed below any additional costs you may incur that are not covered by your tuition fee:

• Laptops, tablets and mobile devices and any software used on personal devices. Access to a personal computer is strongly recommended for your study. If you are experiencing financial difficulty, visit our website for information regarding hardship funds.
• Textbooks, general stationery and other supplies. Our award-winning library is stocked with a large range of textbooks and online resources, free of charge. The Students’ Union shop stocks a wide range of stationery supplies.
• Accommodation and living costs. Our accommodation price guide can be found on our website. 
• Travel costs for optional field trips, outdoor wear and footwear for mandatory and optional field trips (if applicable).
• Travel costs to and from the University campus. An annual bus pass is included in your rent if you are living in halls of residence/Unilet accommodation or may be purchased separately.
• Travel costs to and from your placement (both in the UK and overseas). Information about funding your placement year can be found on our website.
• You will need to meet the cost of any Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check if required by your placement setting, including any Post Office verification changes. 
• Optional membership fee of £65 to the Chartered Institute of Marketing
• Clothing or equipment costs required for your placement if this is part of your course of study.
• SportBU membership.

While all aspects of the programme, including required field trips, are included in the fee, additional, optional or extra curricula activities may be available for which a student contribution is required.

If you need to repeat one or more units during the course of your studies (with or without attendance) the pricing will be pro-rata of the full time fee.

Once you are have enrolled as a student at BU, there is a wide range of help and support available, depending on your particular needs.

• Library & Learning support
• Additional Learning support
• Peer Assisted Learning (PAL)
• Transport and travel

Dr Sae Oshima is a trained microethnographer of social interaction. The objectives of her research include revealing the micro-foundations of marketing and management communication, pursuing societal and business outcomes as interactional projects, and proposing implications for training in different workplaces. Sae's research has been disseminated through various academic outlets, as well as collaborations with practitioners and the wider public in the U.S., Denmark, Japan and the U.K.

Hilary Stepien is a Senior Lecturer in Public Relations in the Communication and Journalism department in the Faculty of Media and Communication. She teaches on a variety of degrees including Public Relations, Advertising and Marketing Communications at both the undergraduate and postgraduate levels.

Hilary gained professional communication experience in public affairs, issues management and strategic communication while working in Cabinet Office and the Ministry of Transportation for the Government of Ontario in Toronto, Canada.