Screen Production

About this course

About

The BA (Hons) in Screen Production is delivered in a brand new studio complex in heart of Belfast's city centre. It is part of the Ulster Screen Academy, bringing together courses in film, television, interactive design and media, animation and gaming design. It is located in an exciting and dynamic part of the city known as the 'Cathedral Quarter'. Nearby are many of the biggest production companies in Northern Ireland and the campus is only a short distance from the famous 'Paint Hall' studios where Games of Thrones was filmed.

The BA (Hons) in Screen Production will introduce you to the widest possible experience of film and television production, combined with critical thinking to help you originate new content and unlock your creativity. We can help you develop the skills you will need to enter the industry with our innovative combination of production and theoretical modules.

The degree can be taken over three or four years. It will take four years if you decide to spend year three working in the industry on placement (earning a Diploma in Professional Practice)or if you chose to study abroad (earning a Diploma in International Academic Studies).

You will receive significant software training in non-linear editing using the Adobe Creative Suite for video, sound and VFX. We have a dedicated screening room with 5.1 surround sound and large Apple Mac labs offering full access to the Adobe Creative Suits software on campus. Our studio space is fully equipped with green screens, lighting desk and live broadcast facilities. We have a full range of 4k Blackmagic cinema cameras.Students can edit and colour grade their work in our dedicated editing suites. Uniquely, we also have a brand-new, state-of-the-art Virtual Production Studio.

Screens are part of our everyday life. We want you to be prepared to join a fast-growing, exciting and ever-changing industry that creates the content for all of the screens in our lives, big or small. Through practice-based learning, you will acquire the skills needed for digital film and television production combined with knowledge of how the industry works, and the writing skills to tell the stories you want to make.

The screen-based sector is one of the fastest growing sectors of the Northern Ireland economy. This programme has been developed with industry partners to ensure that it addresses current and future skills gaps in the sector helping to produce creative graduates who can help grow the local creative economy.

Year One – Much of your time in the first year will be spent learning the craft skills you need in order to create high-quality film and television outputs. You will study Cinematographyand Editing for Film & TV to develop camera and post-production skills for the screen. You will study Sound Production and Screenwritingto develop your storytelling and audio skillsfor Film and TV production. These are combined with two core modules in critical and theoretical aspects of screen production: Screen Theory and Screen Stories. In these modules you will be introduced to the core of TV production: compelling stories. You will also gain an understanding of how media affects the world around usand how culture and politics are embedded in the media we produce and consume.

Year Two – building on your technical and storytelling skills from year one, you will focus on our four core production areas: Fiction Film, Documentary, Live Television and Virtual Production. You will work in production groups with your fellow students to develop a wide range of creative outputs. You will experience a range of industry roles, therefore better understanding and focusing your career pathway. Alongside production modules, you will study Screen Identities where you will consider the cultural formation of the nation and the role of the film and television within it. You will explore traditions of representation and the power relations that give rise to them and the attempts to reimagine and rebrand cities, regions and nations in the context of globalisation and in an era of transnational media.

On completion of year two, you can opt to take a sandwich year, either undertaking a year-long placement in industry (earning a Diploma in Professional Practice) or studying in one of our partner institutions in America, Europe, or Asia (earning a Diploma in International Academic Studies).

Year Three/Four (after a year out) – In your final year of study, you will have the choice of working individually or in groups to develop an innovative Major Project in any of our four core production areas: Fiction Film, Documentary, Live TV or Virtual Production. Live TV projects must be group projects. This will allow you to graduate with a large portfolio of workin a range of industry roles helping to demonstrate your skills and knowledge in media production – making you as employable as possible.

Modules

Courses are continually reviewed to take advantage of new teaching approaches and developments in research, industry and the professions. Please be aware that modules may change for your year of entry. The exact modules available and their order may vary depending on course updates, staff availability, timetabling and student demand. Please contact the course team for the most up to date module list.

Year One

Cinematography

This skills-based module combines the fundamental principles of cinematographyand camera craft in Film and TV with a critical approach to image-making for screen production. This module gives students the necessary core skills in camera and lighting operations for screen projects. Whilst students will study the role and function of the cinematographer in the professional production environment, the principal aim of this module is to provide the student with an understanding of industry-standard camera and lighting techniques and their close relationship with storytelling. It will consider how images construct and reinforce narrative meaning as well as support the overall aesthetic and visual language in Film and TV production. The organisational, managerial and decision-making skills of the professional cinematographerwill also be explored through practical assessments.

Editing for Film and Television

This module introduces students to the theory and practice of visual editing. Students will be introduced to key concepts related to visual editing practice such as meaning-making and narrative construction. These will be related to key movements in editing practice such as continuity editing, montage editing and postmodern editing. Students will develop their editing skills through hands-on editing workshops using Adobe Premiere CC and the production of an editing practice portfolio.

Screen Theory

This module explores critical ideas we can apply to screen culture – specifically Film and TV. The module will invite you to think about how screen culture is produced and consumed by applying a variety of media and cultural theories. You will be introduced to key intellectual figures whose thinking has helped us understand the social and cultural significance of screen images and stories. We do this because screens do not merely reflect society, nor should we think of them as innocent, transparent ‘windows on the world’. Rather, as this module will argue, there is a very intimate relationship between screen media and the world around us, to such an extent that screen culture plays a profound role in shaping that world and the social, human relationships within it. This means that people involved in screen production, in all its variety, should feel the weight of responsibility upon their shoulders every time they wield a camera.

Screen Stories

This module is about how we tell stories on screen. It begins by considering the style of the classical Hollywood period and it ends by considering the more demanding style of a deliberately political cinema. In between it raises questions about how genre and style shape the stories that we consume and produce, as well as issues surrounding authorship and spectatorship. The module will seek to impress upon you the cultural and political significance of the screen entertainment we make and consume. It will try to persuade you that the stories we enjoy on-screen resonate with us in profound ways that shape how we see and experience the world and therefore act in it. That’s why analysing these texts is so intriguing. It will make you more self-conscious with regards to what you watch, and hopefully influence your own screen productions.

Sound Production 1

This module introduces sound for Film and TV i.e. audio recording and production. Core concepts of sound for screen are addressed, including the association between sound and vision for storytelling. The module will cover a broad range of practice-based skills and the technical knowledge required for producing high quality sound in screen-based media. This will be balanced with creative design and the aesthetic considerations that make compelling and engaging soundtracks that support the narrative. The module will also introduce students to important historical developments in sound theory for screen media, the language of sound analysis and location parlance of production. The emphasis will be placed on good sound acquisition skills on location and audio editing in post-production. Students will use a range of equipmentand software to capture and manipulate sound, and in so doing begin to establish connections between story, image, sound design and emotion in film. This module will be delivered in the context of a lecture series and intensive practical workshops that considers these multifaceted aspects of sound production.

Screenwriting

Screenwriting is as essential to the development and production of on-screen drama as storytelling is to being human. This module introduces students to the process of screenwriting: its key skills and a range of aesthetic and technical considerations necessary in developing a script for screen. It presents this writing practice in context of an understanding of the history and theory of screenwriting and allows students to demonstrate their knowledge in this field by writing a short screenplay.

Year Two

Screen Identities

This module will introduce you to the role of film and television in the making of national and regional identities.Living and/or working in Belfast gives us an opportunity to offer some important and interesting insights into the making of national and regional identities, and the role of media representation and cultural expression in giving ‘us’ a sense of who ‘we’ are. The ideas that you will encounter in this module can be carried into and explored further through your own screen productions. In this module we will theorise identity and consider the cultural formation of the nation and the role of the film and television within it. We will consider traditions of representation and the power relations that give rise to them and the attempts to reimagine and rebrand cities, regions and nations in the context of globalisation and in an era of transnational media.

Documentary Film

This module introduces students to key concepts in relation to the history, theory and practice of the documentary genre. It will cover key movements in the genre such as cinéma vérité and direct cinema, alongside contemporary sub-genres such as Reality TV and the mock-documentary. The module encourages students to consider how the platform affects the content e.g. short-form broadcast content and long-form content on streaming services such as Netflix. Students will apply this knowledge to their own documentary practice by working individually or in groups to produce 2x2min short-form documentaries that demonstrate understanding of the codes and conventions of the expository and poetic forms. Students will also write a individual critical reflection on their developing documentary practice.

The Short Film

Short Films, as a delivery mechanism for a story, continue to be viewed by the film industry as both calling card for new film makers and as an area for experimentation. In addition to providing valuable experience, for students they are a demonstration of ability, creativity and potential. This module builds upon the skills and knowledge acquired in the Year 1 as itallows students to deploy and develop those skills and knowledge by working in groups to plan, write and produce a short film.It also enables students to critically reflect upon and understand their role(s), and the roles of others, within the production team. Moreover, the delivery of a short film utilises many of the transferable skills that are vital for those seeking professional employment in both the film and television industries. Students will formally pitch their scripts to a panel with accompanying visual and written material. The production teams will steer their projects through pre-production, production and post-production before screening the finished project. The ambition of this module is to create short films of sufficient creative, artistic and technical merit to allow for submission to student film festivals and competitions.

The Live Broadcast

One of the most complex, versatile, and exciting forms of television is a live programme that includes pre-recorded and/or live inserts. Whether your project is as small in scale as a two-camera regional news bulletin or as large as the opening ceremony for the Olympics, the core skills you need to master remain the same. The ability to successfully deliver a live television programme will equip you with the transferable skills necessary to deliver all other forms of broadcast television. Students who can deliver live programmes demonstrate that they can meticulously plan a project, work under pressure and deliver to deadlines timed to the second. This module introduces students to a multi-camera, studio-based, live television production environment. Students will work in small research teams to create insert material(video packages) and as such the module is an opportunity to consolidate core production skills learned to date. Students will also work in large production teams to create a half-hour live magazine style studio show - think of 'The One Show' as a structural template.

This module brings together skills in writing and research for factual based television programmes, presentation skills, editing, lighting, audio, producing, social media and camera craft. To enable the TV programme to be broadcast live, students must also engage with production theory such as compliance, editorial policy, clearance, copyright, the Broadcasting Code and Ofcom guidelines. Students must, therefore, learn to manage risk in all its forms as it relates to television production.

VFX and Virtual Production I

Visual Effects, or VFX, are usually associated with summer blockbusters - where story content has often been replaced by visual spectacle - but they are actually a staple across all the screen industries. VFX play an often invisible key role in supporting genres as diverse as War, Period Drama, Westerns, Thrillers and Musicals, offering access to stories and narrative ideas that cannot be addressed in any other way. Understanding VFX is essential to working in the modern screen industry. This module will introduce students to a range of digital VFX storytelling technologies such as After Effects and Virtual Production. Working in groups or as individuals, you will study a range of narratively focused but visually-realised VFX techniques, which will increase your skills as moving-image storytellers. This will also significantly enhance your employability whilst providing unique material for a showreel. Practical skills and theoretical understanding are linked in a written critical reflection on your developing VFX practice.

Year Three

Industrial Placement: Media (DPP) (This module is optional)

This module provides students the opportunity to experience life as a professional media practitioner by undertaking a placementover the course of the academic year. They will be expected to conduct themselves professionally and act as an ambassador for the University during this period. They will be supported by an academic Module Coordinator.

Media: Study Abroad (DIAS) (This module is optional)

This module provides an opportunity to undertake an additional academic year of study outside the UK. Those who successfully complete it get an extra qualification - the Diploma in Academic Studies (DIAS).

Year Four

Major Project I: Pre-production

This module will act as the culmination of students' creative, technical and theoretical study across the 3 years of their degree where they are given the choice of working individually or in groups to plan and research a Major Project in any of our core production areas: Fiction Film, Documentary, Live TV or Virtual Production. Live TV projects must be group projects. Students will produce a creative pre-production portfolio that evidences the creative and theoretical approaches that will underpin their projects as well as evidencing solid pre-production planning skills.

Major Project II: Production

In this module students will have the choice of working either individually or in groups to create a final year Major Project in any of our key production areas: Fiction Film, Documentary, Live TV or Virtual Production. Live TV projects must be group projects. Students will identify and analyse the theoretical and ideological underpinnings of their work by writing a 3000-word creative analysis of their Major Project.

Sound Production II (This module is optional)

This module allows students to further enhance their sound production skillsdeveloped in first and second year. Students will work in groups to create a sound-led short film and will also write an individual reflection on their production. The module focuses on the language and art of crafting engaging sound that supports the narrative goals of screen-based media. It introduces theoreticaland conceptual strategies that help you to consider how sound can function within cinema and provides an opportunity to develop skills that will enable you to realise your ideas.

VFX and Virtual Production II (This module is optional)

This module allows you to further enhance your VFX skills developed in Year 2. With a focus on narrative and VFX, and green screen techniques, you will work in groups to create a short VFX sequence. You will also write an individual critical reflectionon your production. This module will include a masterclass in the Virtual Production studio around halfway through the semester where you will consider how you might incorporate VP into your practice as a storytelling device.

Screen Analysis (This module is optional)

This module is an opportunity for students to focus on research and critical writing skills whilst demonstrating your ability to be self-motivated and independent in your learning. You will have the opportunity to explore a topic of your choice related to your degreeand will work towards producing a piece of written research on this topic under the supervision of the Module Coordinator.

Counter Screens (This module is optional)

Film and TV are powerful media that reproduce and uphold dominant narratives; however, they can also act as important spaces where counter-narratives develop that challenge dominant ideologies. In this module you will develop understanding of how film and TV encourage us to question the status quo and allow new norms to develop. With a focus on gender, sexuality, race and (dis)ability, by engaging with film and TV that might be considered ‘counter’ cinema e.g., ‘Promising Young Woman’ (2020), 'Gods Own Country' (2017), ‘The Boys’ (2019-present), students will expand their knowledge of how these media act as transformational societal forces. You will apply key theories and concepts learned in class to regular screenings, gradually working towards completing a creative portfolio evidencing your learning from, and engagement with, the film/TV content. You will enhance your learning further by analysing a film/TV clip via a group presentation.

Associate awards

Diploma in Professional Practice DPP

Diploma in International Academic Studies DIAS

Attendance

This course must be completed as a full-time degree over three years or four years should you opt to take a placement or international study year.

In line with the University’s attendance policy, attendance at all taught sessions is compulsory. It is expected that you will engage not only with the taught elements but also with independent learning.

Start dates

• September 2023

Teaching, Learning and Assessment

Students are assessed through creative production outputs, written essays and presentations.

Academic profile

The University employs over 1,000 suitably qualified and experienced academic staff - 59% have PhDs in their subject field and many have professional body recognition.

Courses are taught by staff who are Professors (25%), Readers, Senior Lecturers (20%) or Lecturers (55%).

We require most academic staff to be qualified to teach in higher education: 82% hold either Postgraduate Certificates in Higher Education Practice or higher. Most academic staff (81%) are accredited fellows of the Higher Education Academy (HEA) by Advanced HE - the university sector professional body for teaching and learning. Many academic and technical staff hold other professional body designations related to their subject or scholarly practice.

The profiles of many academic staff can be found on the University’s departmental websites and give a detailed insight into the range of staffing and expertise.  The precise staffing for a course will depend on the department(s) involved and the availability and management of staff.  This is subject to change annually and is confirmed in the timetable issued at the start of the course.

Occasionally, teaching may be supplemented by suitably qualified part-time staff (usually qualified researchers) and specialist guest lecturers. In these cases, all staff are inducted, mostly through our staff development programme ‘First Steps to Teaching’. In some cases, usually for provision in one of our out-centres, Recognised University Teachers are involved, supported by the University in suitable professional development for teaching.

Figures correct for academic year 2021-2022.

Modules

Here is a guide to the subjects studied on this course.

Courses are continually reviewed to take advantage of new teaching approaches and developments in research, industry and the professions. Please be aware that modules may change for your year of entry. The exact modules available and their order may vary depending on course updates, staff availability, timetabling and student demand. Please contact the course team for the most up to date module list.

Year one

Screen Stories

Year: 1

Status: C

Screen Stories will invite students to explore how film and television dramas resonate with us in profound ways that shape how we see and experience the world, and therefore act in it. The module sets out to establish some key categories of screen analysis - classic narrative, trans-narrative forms, genre, questions of style, auteur and the ideology - and it provides students with many examples of how to analyse the film and television drama. By being better placed to analyse screen drama, the module strives to make students more self-conscious about the aesthetic choices they make in their own screen productions.

Cinematography

Year: 1

Status: C

The module is an introduction to the essential skills of video production and the moving image. It allows students to acquire skills in video production, sound, lighting and the moving image and develop a portfolio of short films which showcase their technical skills and competencies.

Sound Production 1

Year: 1

Status: C

This practice based module considers core concepts in sound for screen and the association of sound and vision in storytelling. The module brings together the core practical skills needed for good location sound and the history and theory of sound for screen. It will also consider a range of technical and aesthetic considerations in producing sound for screen based media. Students will be introduced to sound capture and software manipulation for post production as well as techniques for studio and location sound recording.

Screenwriting

Year: 1

Status: C

Screenwriting is as essential to the development and production of on-screen drama as storytelling is to being human. Complimenting the student's understanding and knowledge acquired during Storytelling for Screen, this module introduces students to the process of screenwriting; its key skills; and a range of technical, aesthetic considerations in developing a script for screen. It presents this writing practice in context of an understanding of the history and theory of screenwriting, and allows students top demonstrate their knowledge in this field.

Screen Theory

Year: 1

Status: C

This module will invite students to think historically and critically about what appears in cinemas, on television and the various mobile devices that entertain and inform us. Students will be introduced to key intellectual figures whose thinking has helped us to understand the social and cultural significance of the media in all its variety. In this respect, the module underpins the screen production elements and helps students to understand the social formation of screen forms, and the theoretical and critical debates relevant to them. Students will look at semiotic, psychoanalytic and political economic approaches to understanding what appears on screen; they will look also at ideology, power and pleasure as these pertain to the media and screen cultures in particular.

Editing for Film and Television

Year: 1

Status: C

This module introduces students to the theory and practice of visual editing. Students will be introduced to key concepts relating visual editing practice such as meaning-making and narrative construction. These will be related to key movements in editing practice such as continuity editing, montage editing and postmodern editing. Students will develop their editing skills through hands-on editing workshops using Adobe Premiere CC and the production of an editing practice portfolio.

Year two

Documentary Film

Year: 2

Status: C

This module introduces students to key concepts in relation to the history, theory and practice of the documentary genre. It will cover key movements in the genre such as cinéma vérité and direct cinema, alongside contemporary sub-genres such as reality television and the mock-documentary. The module encourages students to consider how the platform affects the content e.g. short-form broadcast content and long-form content on streaming services such as Netflix. Students will apply this knowledge to their own documentary practice by producing 3x2min short-form documentaries that demonstrate understanding of the codes and conventions of particular forms e.g. expository, participatory and poetic.

Screen Identities

Year: 2

Status: C

Screen Identities introduces students to the historical and contemporary debates about national screen cultures and cultural identity. The module seeks to develop students' sociological and cultural understanding of questions of identity on screen.

The Short Film

Year: 2

Status: C

In the Short Film module students will produce a 10 minute short fiction film, that draws upon skills already developed previously including sound production, cinematography and screenwriting. The module will seek to build an appreciation of the form as a powerful storytelling medium but also as a development tool for the artist and an industry tool to seek out new talent in fiction filmmaking. The module introduces students to a variety of short fiction film, television drama genres and styles; crime, soaps, comedy, documentary drama, realism, modernism and postmodernism. It invites students to produce a short drama for screen that observes generic codes and conventions of the cinema.

The Live Broadcast

Year: 2

Status: C

A live television programme module that explores the skills and knowledge required to create live broadcasts. Following the full production cycle of live programme making for television, students get a direct engagement in industry practice, develop enhanced team working skills, an awareness of best practice in industry and build links with the wider community and broadcast industry.

VFX and Virtual Production 1

Year: 2

Status: C

In this module students will work with green screen and LED monitors, camera tracking technology and computer generated photorealistic virtual worlds to enable them to discover exciting new visual effects techniques for use in their own work and in the industry today. The module will enable students to create new types of content and add value to their portfolio whilst enhancing their own employability and learning experience.

Year three

Industrial Placement: Media

Status: O

Year: 3

This module is optional

This module provides students the opportunity to experience life as a professional media practitioner. They will be expected to conduct themselves professionally being an employee of a company and an ambassador for the University during this period. They will be supported by an academic coordinator.

Media: Study Abroad (DIAS)

Status: O

Year: 3

This module is optional

This module provides an opportunity to undertake an additional academic year of study which is spent outside the UK. Those who successfully complete it get an extra qualification - the Diploma in Academic Studies (DIAS). Students will develop an enhanced understanding of the media and engage with it first-hand in international contexts. The opportunity to generate educational and cultural networks will be available to the student.

Year four

Major Project I: Pre-production

Year: 4

Status: C

This module will act as the culmination of the students' theoretical study across the 3 years of their degree where they are able to independently plan and research a major project in the key practice areas of drama or documentary. Students will produce a portfolio that evidences the theoretical and professional pre-production planning and processes that underpin their Major Project. Students will also produce a 3000-4000 word textual analysis of existing media texts.

Major Project II: Production

Year: 4

Status: C

In this module students will create a final year screen production project under the guidance of an appointed member of Media Studies staff in the key practice areas of drama or documentary. Students will identify and analyse the theoretical and ideological underpinnings of their media practice by writing a 3000-4000 word textual analysis of their major project.

Screen Analysis

Status: O

Year: 4

This module is optional

This module is an opportunity to focus on research and critical writing skills whilst demonstrating the student's ability to be self-motivated and independent in their learning. The module will explore a topic of the student's choosing related to the area of Screen or Media Studies and key skills needed to deliver this work will be delivered over two semesters with research skills being taught by academics and projects supervised throughout. Students will learn to author extended essays and develop research proposals. The module offers students a more traditional pathway through the Screen Production degree at level 6 and the opportunity to produce a dissertation appropriate to stage.

Virtual Production and Visual Effects 2

Status: O

Year: 4

This module is optional

This module is a pioneering module in the use and application of real time visual effects for film and television. The module is one of the first of its kind in the UK and Ireland in Virtual Production. In this module students will work with green screen and LED monitors, camera tracking technology and computer generated photorealistic virtual worlds to enable them to discover exciting new visual effects techniques for use in their own work and in the industry today. The module will enable students to create new types of content and add value to their portfolio whilst enhancing their own employability and learning experience.

Year six

VFX and Virtual Production 2

Year: 6

Status: C

This module is a pioneering module in the use and application of real time visual effects for film and television. The module is one of the first of its kind in the UK and Ireland in Virtual Production. In this module students will work with green screen and LED monitors, camera tracking technology and computer generated photorealistic virtual worlds to enable them to discover exciting new visual effects techniques for use in their own work and in the industry today. The module will enable students to create new types of content and add value to their portfolio whilst enhancing their own employability and learning experience.

Standard entry conditions

We recognise a range of qualifications for admission to our courses. In addition to the specific entry conditions for this course you must also meet the University’s General Entrance Requirements.

A level

Grades BBB

Applied General Qualifications

QCF Pearson BTEC Level 3 Extended Diploma / OCR Cambridge Technical Level 3 Extended Diploma (2012 Suite)
Award profile of DDD

RQF Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma / OCR Cambridge Technical Level 3 Extended Diploma (2016 Suite)
Award profile of DDM

QCF Pearson BTEC Level 3 Diploma / OCR Cambridge Technical Level 3 Diploma (2012 Suite)
Award profile of DD plusA Level Grade B

RQF Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Diploma / OCR Cambridge Technical Level 3 Diploma (2016 Suite)
Award profile of DM plusA Level Grade B

QCF Pearson BTEC Level 3 Subsidiary Diploma / OCR Cambridge Technical Level 3 Introductory Diploma (2012 Suite)
Award profile of D plusA Level Grades BB

RQF Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Certificate / OCR Cambridge Technical Level 3 Extended Certificate (2016 Suite)
Award profile of D plusA Level Grades BB

Irish Leaving Certificate

120 UCAS tariff points to include a minimum of five subjects (four of which must be at higher level) to include English at H6 if studied at Higher level or O4 if studied at Ordinary Level.

Irish Leaving Certificate UCAS Equivalency

• View tariff point chart

Tariff point chart

Scottish Highers

Grades BBBCC

Scottish Advanced Highers

Grades CCC

International Baccalaureate

Overall profile is minimum 26 points (including 13 at higher level)

Access to Higher Education (HE)

Overall profile of 65% (120 credit Access Course) (NI Access Course)

Overall profile of 24 credits at Distinction and 21 credits at Merit (60 credit Access Course) (GB Access Course)

GCSE

For full-time study, you must satisfy the General Entrance Requirements for admission to a first degree course and hold a GCSE pass at Grade C/4 or above in English Language.

Level 2 Certificate in Essential Skills - Communication will be accepted as equivalent to GCSE English.

English Language Requirements

English language requirements for international applicants

The minimum requirement for this course is Academic IELTS 6.0 with no band score less than 5.5. Trinity ISE: Pass at level III also meets this requirement for Tier 4 visa purposes.

Ulster recognises a number of other English language tests and comparable IELTS equivalent scores.

• English language requirements
• Your country

Additional Entry Requirements

There may be limited places available for Y2 entry. Should there be availability personal statements (along with academic qualifications) will be used in the selection process.

Acceptable alternative qualifications include:

Pass HND with overall Merit to include 60 distinctions in level 5 credits/units may be specified.

Pass HNC with overall Distinction to include 90 distinctions in level 4 credits/units may be specified.

You may also meet the course entry requirements with combinations of different qualifications to the same standard as recognised by the University (provided subject requirements as noted above are met).

Exemptions and transferability

The University will consider applications for entry with advanced standing on the basis of experiential learning, prior certificated learning and where articulation arrangements exist (i.e. on the basis of the Northern Ireland Media Academy agreement).

Careers & opportunities

Career options

Career options

Illustrative graduate roles include:

• Directors and producers
• Writers and researchers
• Cinematographers and camera operators
• Production designers and production managers
• Vision mixers

Relevant progression routes within the University include MA Journalism and MSc Digital Media Communication. In addition, the school aims to develop specialist postgraduate programmes that will serve as a relevant progression route across the various programmes within the Ulster Screen Academy. Across the UK and Ireland, there are further opportunities for relevant postgraduate study. Illustrative examples include:

• Screenwriting for Television and Film (Royal Holloway)
• Creative Documentary by Practice (UCL)
• Global Digital Cultures (SOAS)
• Global Creative and Cultural Industries (SOAS)
• Film Curation (Glasgow)
• International Film Business (Exeter)
• Post Production in Film and Television (Solent)

Work placement / study abroad

On successful completion of Year 2 studies, you have the opportunity to take the optional module Diploma in Professional Practice (DPP) or (DPPI). This provides an opportunity for you to gain first hand practical experience within a professional environment such as an advertising agency or brand consultancy prior to your final year of study. This module links the education experience to the real life situation of practice in the creative industries. It provides you with a range of experiences and skills relative to your practice, future career and professional development.

You also have the opportunity to take the other optional module Diploma in International Academic Studies (DIAS). This optional module provides an opportunity for you to undertake an extended period of study outside the UK and Republic of Ireland, developing an international perspective and an appreciation of cultural sensitivities which are desirable qualities in any graduate. You will develop an enhanced understanding of the academic discipline whilst generating educational and cultural networks.

Apply

Start dates

• September 2023

Contact

For more information visit

• Visit Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences
• Visit School of Communication and Media