- Media and Communication
BSc (Hons) — 2025 entry Media and Communication
Do you want an exciting and challenging look into how media and communication are embedded into society? Are you looking for a career where an understanding of media forms, media audiences, social media users, global media and public relations is required for the role? Then our BSc (Hons) Media and Communication course is just the course for you.
Why choose
this course?
- We help you understand the impact contemporary communication has on society, government and business. We also teach you techniques to research different types of media, its audience, and its users.
- You will be taught by research-active media and communications scholars, using the latest research on: media power, regulation, social media, public relations, audiences, ‘big data’, digital platforms, international communication and much more.
- Our research-led teaching, the transferable skills you will gain from your assessments and our focus on employability, will prepare you for a career in media and communications.
- You’ll have the option to take one of our award-winning Professional Training placements that will prepare you for work in industry.
Statistics
4th in the UK
Media studies is ranked 4th for overall satisfaction* in the National Student Survey 2024
12th in the UK
Surrey is ranked 12th in the Complete University Guide 2025
Top 5 in the UK
For student experience in the The Times and The Sunday Times Good University Guide 2024
*Measured by % positivity based on Q1-24 for all institutions listed in the Guardian University Guide league tables.
What you will study
The BSc Media and Communication at the University of Surrey aims to develop digitally confident critical and creative thinkers in a globalised digital media world. Our research-led Media and Communication degree will help you develop a critical understanding of key media theories, institutions, and methodologies relevant to contemporary mediated societies. Our courses explore a range of pressing societal issues, charting developments and exploring solutions: from the challenges and opportunities for audiences in digital societies to consumption and creation of global media and communication.
Our BSc (Hons) Media and Communication course will give you a comprehensive education in contemporary media and communications in global, digital societies.
Our modules on offer include:
- The Internet and Digital Societies
- Media Power and Regulations
- Media Audiences and Users
- Public Relations in the Digital Age
- ‘Big Data’, Platforms, Emerging technologies
- Global Media and Communications
- Music, Media and Society.
We are one of the few media and communication degree courses in the UK that offers modules on ‘big data’. We aim to give you a dynamic grounding in social sciences which you can apply to careers in media and beyond.
Foundation year
If you don’t meet our entry requirements, you might still be able to apply for this degree with a Social Sciences Foundation Year. This is an extra year of study to develop your skills and make it easier for you to get started at university. On successful completion of your foundation year, you’ll be ready to progress to the first year of your degree.
To see what modules you’ll be studying, refer to the foundation tab in the 'Course structure' section.
The academic year is divided into two semesters of 15 weeks each. Each semester consists of a period of teaching, revision/directed learning and assessment.
The structure of our programmes follow clear educational aims that are tailored to each programme. These are all outlined in the programme specifications which include further details such as the learning outcomes.
- Media and Communication BSc (Hons)
- Media and Communication BSc (Hons) with placement
- Media and Communication BSc (Hons) with foundation year
- Media and Communication BSc (Hons) with foundation year and placement
Please note: The full module listing for the optional Professional Training placement part of your course is available in the relevant programme specification.
Modules
Modules listed are indicative, reflecting the information available at the time of publication. Modules are subject to teaching availability, student demand and/or class size caps.
The University operates a credit framework for all taught programmes based on a 15-credit tariff.
Course options
Year 1 - BSc (Hons)
Semester 1
Compulsory
This module introduces students to the history and origins of the discipline of Sociology. Students gain an in-depth understanding of the historical conditions that allowed key theorists to start questioning and conceptualising the social world around them. Students will learn about these key theorists by exploring how they comprehensively attempted to explain how social order was maintained within the social world. We explore the work of Durkheim, Marx and Weber who, collectively, are often assigned the title of the ‘founding fathers’ of the discipline. Students learn about the differing conceptions of the social world so that, by the end of the module, they can employ three differing perspectives to understand the organisation and complexity of the social world. The overall aim is for students to understand three different approaches to conceptualising the social world and to appreciate the legacy in thought each approach has instilled in us as sociologists.
View full module detailsThis compulsory Year 1 module will introduce students to the study of media and communication though an exploration of central theoretical and conceptual debates in the field of media and communications as a social science and consideration of a range of contemporary topics, themes and examples. The module integrates this introduction to key conceptual concepts and themes with the development of key study skills. The substantive components of the module locate media and communication as an interdisciplinary field, introducing students to sociological, cultural, political-economic theories which shape the way we have approached media and communications, paying attention to changing communication environments and the transforming role of media and mediation in contemporary media and data-saturated societies. Students on the module will examine technological, institutional, textual and user-related approaches to the relationship between media and societies/cultures. The module will critically evaluate different theoretical and empirical approaches to this relationship, and students will examine the strengths and weaknesses of these different approaches in relation to a variety of contemporary themes and topics.
View full module detailsSemester 2
Compulsory
The module will examine different case studies, concepts, and debates of new media developments in relation to media technologies, media participation and the relationship between media production and consumption in the digital age. It will enhance student skills in digital capabilities, resourcefulness and resilience, and address career pathways in media and communication. The module will critically evaluate different approaches to contemporary issues in media and communication in the digital age and examine the strengths and weaknesses of these different approaches.
View full module detailsThis module introduces students to the role and significance that popular culture plays in everyday society. Students explore how mediated societies have placed popular culture at the centre of our lives as we engage with it in its various forms in every aspect of our lives. The course covers the everyday significance of contemporary popular culture in an ever increasingly mediated society, including visual/screen media; music, and celebrity/tabloid culture. It also focuses upon the analysis of consumer culture, the social significance of phenomena such as music and fashion and the distinction between popular and high forms of culture. Students learn a wide range of perspectives and theories to understand the impact and significance that popular culture plays within our lives.
View full module detailsThis module introduces students to the ways that different visual media construct different visual cultures. Visual imagery in culture does not simply reflect reality, but is active in constructing certain realities and not others. Students will be supported in developing key skills in analysing and interpreting visual media, which may include photography, film and television, advertisements, music videos, video games and other digital imagery. The module provides students with an introduction to visual methodologies, as well as to different ways of thinking about visual culture and the construction or subversion of social difference. The module therefore also acts as an introduction to visual politics.
View full module detailsSemester 1 & 2
Compulsory
This module introduces students to qualitative and quantitative approaches to research design, methodology and data analysis. Part A focuses on qualitative field methods, including in-depth interviews, focus groups, and ethnographic observation, and their place within the wider research process. Students will explore the insights and possibilities generated by qualitative research as well as some of the challenges that qualitative researchers may encounter. Students will gain experience in designing, collecting, producing, and analysing their own data. Part B is designed to introduce students to the statistical techniques necessary for implementing and critically evaluating quantitative social research. Emphasis will be put on when and how data is collected, how to use basic statistical techniques to analyse the data appropriately, and how to interpret results. Students will also acquire a familiarity with R, a software environment for statistical computing and graphics.
View full module detailsYear 2 - BSc (Hons)
Semester 1
Compulsory
This module expands student knowledge of the role of media and media industries in contemporary societies, placing particular emphasis on questions of domination, influence, regulation, control and inequality. We examine contrasting perspectives on the ways in which societies should regulate and manage media, covering public service broadcasting, neo-liberalism, ownership and control and questions of censorship. Students will also examine the relationship between media, social cohesion and different forms of social division and consider global perspectives to media, power and regulation.
View full module detailsAn understanding of how audiences engage with media content is fundamental to the study of media and communication. This module supports students to develop a critical appreciation of the role played by audiences and users in contemporary media-saturated societies and to understand how people from diverse social positionings may engage actively with media in different ways. Students will learn about key developments in audience research, tracing changes in media environments, audience practices and key debates, disagreements and shifting priorities in the history of audience research. Students will explore international case studies from print to broadcast to digital and mobile technologies and will develop their understanding of a wide variety of methods of audience research.
View full module detailsOptional
International migration has increasingly become a focus of attention across a range of academic disciplines as well as for politicians, policy makers and the media. Various factors - and combinations of factors - global political and economic restructuring, mobilities, conflicts, ambitions – mean more people move across international boundaries. With the increasing movement of people governments in Britain and Europe have been tightening control on the entry of migrants and making entry ever more conditional. As countries in the Global North recognise the need to recruit migrants to fill labour shortages a ‘managed migration’ approach has driven national government’s migration policy. Managed migration means an increasingly selectivity about who is allowed to cross borders. This creates highly differentiated status and rights given to the different categories of migrant. The arrival and settlement of migrant populations in countries of destination like the UK and other European nations has meant an increasingly preoccupied with social exclusion, social cohesion and integration. The policy approaches that have developed out of these concerns are often controversial and seen a rise in the numbers of residents with insecure statuses, and emphasised divisions between migrants and citizens, and between migrants with different legal statuses. These issues, debates and policies have profound and on-going implications for processes of identity, belonging and multiculture.
View full module detailsThis module introduces students to the origins of the internet and its development over time. Students will explore internet-mediated communication and social media platforms, and gain the critical and analytical skills needed to understand their social, political and economic implications. Students will be introduced to a variety of academic approaches to the internet, as well as encouraged to bring key academic scholars to bear on internet issues. The module provides a theoretical and scholarly basis to think about a range of internet-specific phenomenon, such as online communities, social media identity, hashtag activism and more.
View full module detailsThis module looks at the role of contemporary technologies within crime and the criminal justice system and critically engages with current thinking around the extent to which technology can be a ‘enabler’ or ‘facilitator’ of crime. The module seeks to develop critical understanding of the increasing role of technology within the criminal justice system – for example, forensic technologies such as fingerprinting and DNA profiles, ‘predictive’ technologies such as polygraph tests and neural scanning and enforcement/punitive technologies such as tasers. The module pays special attention to arguments that ‘technological fetishism’ may be undermining the autonomy of the justice system, with the result that ‘technological justice’ may be replacing due process and the rule of law, engaging with the increasing role of AI and automation within justice.
View full module detailsA number of key global challenges are introduced in this module, focusing on the valuable contribution social research can make to addressing issues such as climate emergency and sustainable living, food insecurity, precarious work and resilience, energy crisis and health inequalities. We examine the role of research in developing, evaluating and improving policy at local, national and global levels. The process of policy making is studied at its different stages, how researchers can contribute and the types of interventions that are possible and effective. Only by understanding this process can research be designed and communicated in appropriate ways to inform policy and change behaviour, so increasing the value of the research, of the work of the researcher and the impact the research has. The concept of research impact is explored as part of the module, in terms of making a positive contribution to improve practices, as well as in terms of academic agendas for impactful research and its relationship to funding. In particular, we employ the latest Research Evaluation Framework (REF) Impact Case Studies to explore good examples of impactful research. This also serves to reinforce an understanding of the relationship between good project design and research outcomes, and provides an opportunity to showcase the impactful work of Surrey University staff. Students will have the opportunity to study a series of specific social challenges, with access to academic experts sharing the challenges, recommendations and impacts of the research they have contributed to address these. Not only does this enable research-led teaching, but students will build up an understanding of the specific global challenges and policy areas, as well as what the research, policy making and evaluation career pathways can involve.
View full module detailsThis module introduces students to the forms, functions, role and use of social media in contemporary society. Students will explore the role of social media in key aspects of society, including social life, politics, culture and celebrity, and students will develop key skills in analysing these phenomena. Centering both employability and the further development of digital capabilities, students will be introduced to a range of social media careers, and create a social media campaign plan as part of their assessment.
View full module detailsThis innovative, interdisciplinary and university-wide module explores multiple aspects of popular culture in the contemporary world. The module considers how and why some works acquire the status of popular culture and how these works permeate everyday life. Through an overview of contemporary issues and approaches to popular culture in social, literary, filmic, musical and sociological contexts, you will consider the values inherent in some cultural works, and how these transform to reflect societal preoccupations. You will examine case studies from Dickens through Disney to the Diva, considering the creative choices and the critical reception. This module will equip you with a sophisticated understanding of the academic approaches to culture which will inform and illuminate your work in other disciplines. In particular the module embeds the University Pillars of Resourcefulness & Resilience, Digital Capabilities, Global and Cultural Capabilities. This original module is delivered by staff specialising in diverse forms of popular culture across the university, including from the Department of Music and Media, School of Literature and Languages and GSA.
View full module detailsSemester 2
Compulsory
This module provides students with an overview of key methodological approaches to the study of media and digital communication in society. Students will learn about methods for systematic analysis of a variety of media products including printed texts, such as newspapers and magazines, in addition to television, radio and the Internet. Students will be encouraged to reflect on how these methods of textual analysis complement approaches that focus on audiences or on media production. Research designs for application within media studies will be explored. Students will develop skills in designing and conducting their own media and communications research projects, preparing them for dissertation research and developing transferable skills for careers in media and communications
View full module detailsIn this compulsory module in the BSc in Media and Communications degree, students will research, investigate and communicate knowledge about the global nature and implications of media and communications. Students will delve into theories and practical case studies around inequalities and diversities within media and communications, cross-media case studies from around the world, global mediated politics, mediated families, mediated childhood and societies. Students will develop significant digital capabilities through both their assignments. Students will be equipped to engage with media and communications scholarship from the global south and to mobilize theoretical lenses from communications studies across diverse national and cultural contexts. Students will use their digital, global and cultural capabilities to synthesize and communicate knowledge to a variety of sectors and stakeholders.
View full module detailsOptional
The relationships between crime and the media have long been the subject of intense debate. This module introduces students to the sociological analysis of crime and its representation in the media. We will explore how crime is portrayed in the media and assess the extent to which such media representations are accurate. We will also examine what effects, if any, these representations have on offending and public opinion about crime as well as on criminal justice.
View full module detailsConsumption is not only essential for survival but is an integral part of everyday life important for individual and group identity, relationships and the performance of social practices. However, the environmental and social consequences of the scale of contemporary consumption cannot be ignored. This module introduces students to a range of theoretical approaches which they apply to understand everyday consumption (of food, clothes, household objects, technology and energy) sociologically. It encourages them to locate their own consumption within its global environmental and social consequences, and to think critically about pathways to more sustainable modes of consumption.
View full module detailsThis module introduces students to an understanding of how culture is communicated through the fine arts and popular culture across a range of media and genres (including, but not restricted to, painting, theatre, film, television, classical and popular music and literature). Students will explore key theoretical approaches, concepts and frameworks relevant to understanding how culture is communicated in contemporary society, and how culture is produced and consumed. The module is particularly interested in how power structures and social, cultural and economic inequalities shape our experience, production, understanding and valuing of different cultural objects and media. Students will develop their own critical and creative communication skills (including digital) by discussing a range of contemporary and changing case studies.
View full module detailsGender is a major consideration in sociological work as a key social division. This module deconstructs societal understandings of gender and explores cultural and social divisions in contemporary society. It also supports students in constructing new models of understanding gender based on contemporary sociological literature. This take account for the complex multi gendered world in which we live. Drawing upon feminist theory throughout, the module contextualize shifts in thinking about gender and student’s gain particular knowledge of intersectionality. Students demonstrate how they can apply such sociological theory to other social divisions that gender intersects with, including race and class. Otherconsiderations include how sex, bodies, and masculinities/femininities impact the ways in which people become gendered. At its core this module is an inclusive and contextually aware meaning student gain particular global and cultural capabilities, as well as the recognition of the importance of sustainability in terms of gender quality.
View full module detailsWork is important for individuals, for identity and survival, and for society, for stability and productiveness. This module focuses on the changing role of work, what impacts how it is experienced, and how theoretical approaches both inform and are informed by the study of working life. Students will explore the concept of work and its representation through different media, including film, music, fiction, art, photography, and virtual, augmented and mixed realities. The module offers a global perspective at its core, appreciating the importance of rooted historical accounts and diversity of cultural experience, but recognising the interconnectivity of issues of work and employment (as well as the lack of it) in the global economy. Students will also consider the future of work, its sustainability and connect this to employability, equipping students to evaluate their own work experience, resilience and career aspirations from a sociological perspective.
View full module detailsThis module builds upon the research methods training which students receive in their first year in order to provide students with a more detailed understanding of qualitative methods. While recognising interplay between the different stages, this module is structured around the general stages of conducting qualitative research - planning, conducting, analysing and writing about qualitative research. Students will learn about new developments in qualitative research including creative and visual methods, different types of ethnographies and mobile methodologies. They will also enhance their skill set by learning different methods of analysing qualitative data including computer assisted qualitative data analysis.
View full module detailsCommunication is a key skill in the information society, from making sense of the world around you to making yourself heard in different settings, including university, work, with friends and family, and in society. This module will introduce students to key concepts in communication as they are relevant to communicating in 21st century society. Accounting for the fact that most of our communication is mediated in some way, the module will give students a strong contextual understanding in mediated communication. This is followed by an interdisciplinary approach to communication in which students will learn about the way we communicate and understand communication in a range of areas, including business, medical settings, science, language, and psychology.
View full module detailsOptional modules for Year 2 - FHEQ Level 5
Students choose 4 modules, 2 options in each semester.
As part of your optional module selection, you are able to choose up to 15 credits from our range of interdisciplinary modules (subject to availability). For more information please refer to the website (https://www.surrey.ac.uk/personalising-your-degree-university-surrey)
Year 3 - BSc (Hons)
Semester 1
Compulsory
In this compulsory module in the BSc in Media and Communications degree, students will research, investigate and communicate knowledge about the societal implications of new and emerging digital technologies. Students will delve into theories and practical case studies around Big Data, platforms, wearable technologies, artificial intelligence, automated decision-making, data justice, platform responsibility and people’s skills, critical capabilities and literacies with data and platform technologies. Students will develop significant digital capabilities and be equipped to engage with practical and theoretical lenses from communications studies as they analyse the societal impact of datafication in global contexts, as one of the grand challenges of contemporary times. Students will use their digital, global and cultural capabilities to synthesize and communicate knowledge to a variety of sectors and stakeholders both within and outside academia, as they are equipped to engage with these sectors through written, oral and audiovisual means.
View full module detailsOptional
This module focuses on family life and family diversity. A range of empirical data and theoretical perspectives on the family and its relationship to society will be drawn upon to explore topics such as marriage and partnerships, housework, parenting, and the intersection of families with the state and other social institutions. We will pay particular attention to the relationship between production and reproduction, specifically, examining the household division of labour and how this has varied over time and in relation to external pressures, especially the demands of paid work. The module will consider how family life is mediated by gender, class, ethnicity, and sexuality, and use contemporary, historical and cross-cultural material to highlight processes of change and development in contemporary family life. This optional module builds upon core and optional material taught in year 1 and year 2 about family change and gender inequalities in domestic life and beyond, consolidating and furthering existing learning by providing a detailed and nuanced discussion of key issue related to families.
View full module detailsThis module examines the significance of popular music in mediated societies, focusing on music industries, content, technologies and audiences. A range of topics are explored, including authenticities, standardisation, global music flows, new digital technologies and a range of issues regarding music consumers and communities. The module also addresses the connections of popular music with social divisions/identities, including those relating to ethnicity, gender and class.
View full module detailsThe module explores human sexuality from diverse perspectives and across different topic areas, but central to the module is a sociological approach that regards sexuality as primarily a social construction. The module provides a global perspective on sexuality, drawing on studies and theories from many different societies, whilst paying attention to the historical and scientific roots of sexuality. Topics cover issues related to the diversity of experience related to sexuality and sexual identity, recognizing too the interconnectivity of sexuality with other social identities and sources of social division e.g gender, ethnicity, age, amongst others. The module covers several specific areas of sexuality, which allows students to connect academic topics with ‘real-world’ examples and write critically, analytically and logically thereby increasing employability. The module requires students to undertake individual and group level formative work, thereby enhancing skills of resourcefulness and resilience.
View full module detailsThis unit is concerned with understanding the role of political communication in contemporary politics. Arguably parties use the media to influence voters, but the media also has a role in holding (selected) politicians to account. This unit explores the various theoretical perspectives on the role of political communication and the media, before moving on to consider a series of empirical examples. The unit also covers key topics relevant to political communication including the relationship between political parties and the national media; whether it is the role of political broadcasts, televised debates, or the impact of rolling news coverage on the ability of politicians to control the media. It considers how changes in media have offered new opportunities for citizenship and democracy, including agenda setting. It also considers how parties and political organisations have adapted to use these new media. There is a focus on key issues in contemporary politics and case studies will be situated throughout the module. Students will also gain coding and content analysis skills in order to explore how key topical political themes are framed in political communication. The module complements and expands elements of POL 1012 (Introduction to Politics), particularly structuralist theories of the state. It will also complement knowledge gained of British politics in POL 1017 (Debates in British Politics). The coding and content analysis skills also build on knowledge gained in Approaches to Research (POL 2027); although this module is not a pre-requisite – full training will be given as part of this module. There are no pre-requisites for this module and students have the opportunity to carry out independent research on a media/theme of their choice for the critique assessment.
View full module detailsThis module introduces the students to the key ethical and regulatory issues associated with artificial intelligence, as well as to the methods of analysis of those issues used in ethics and in law. The focus of the module is on the current state of the art in the applications of artificial intelligence (in particular: of machine learning), with smaller emphasis on hypothetical future developments. The module makes use of the case study method to introduce students to ethical and regulatory (legal) questions through discussion of relevant major incidents from recent years. The module helps students develop their thinking on how to translate abstract ethical (and regulatory) requirements of fairness, explainability or privacy into engineering and business practice.
View full module detailsSemester 2
Compulsory
This module will examine public relations as a core part of culture and consumer society. Throughout the module, students will examine different concepts, theories and debates surrounding public relations, and apply them to diverse case studies. Students will understand the different public relations strategies used by organisations to influence their publics, and how this has changed as new media technologies emerge. The module will enhance student skills in digital capabilities, resourcefulness and resilience, sustainability, and address career pathways in the public relations sector. The module will critically evaluate different public relations approaches and strategies in the digital age, with students applying this knowledge to create their own public relations campaign.
View full module detailsOptional
This module centers around the core concepts of race, ethnicity, racism and intersectionality. It explores how modern society emerged and developed in tandem with the concept of race and strategies of racism. The module will examine the historical construction of race in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries before considering theoretical approaches to the study of race and gender, race and class, whiteness, multiculturalism and cultural racism, space and segregation, mixed-race studies and decolonisation. We will consider whether we are moving towards a 'post-race' society, and whether this is possible and indeed desirable. The module relates to the degree programme more broadly by discussing ethnicity, racism, social justice, and notions of identity and diversity. As such it builds upon previous learning that students will have undertaken in prior modules throughout the first two years of their degree programme.
View full module detailsIn the preface to the third edition of their textbook, Rogers and Pilgrim (2005) emphasize that their book is ‘A sociology of mental health and illness’ and not ‘The sociology of mental health and illness’. They make this point because any book (or indeed course) on mental health and illness will have to be selective and will not be able to cover everything. They also highlight how the word ‘sociology’ in the title is a little troublesome as “sociological analyses of our topic are not offered only by sociologists”. In this module students will encounter a range of sociological perspectives on mental health and illness and will delve into critical debates surrounding definitions, concepts and the ways in which mental health has been ‘organized’ and responded to. Through focusing on topics such as inequalities, and mental health in prisons, students will be equipped to think critically about current, global, mental health care policy and practice. At points in the course, students will have the opportunity to meet professionals working in related fields and connect this to their own employability.
View full module detailsThis module focuses upon the development, characteristics and contemporary significance of a range of different aspects of youth culture in the context of mediated societies. Topics covered include the construction and development of understandings of adolescence as a distinct life course period, the relationship between youth and both traditional and digital forms of media, questions of class, ethnicity and gender, the significance of on and offline spaces, and debates relating to youth communities and subcultures.
View full module detailsSemester 1 & 2
Compulsory
This module enables students to focus on and research a topic of significance of their own choice. It enables them to build on, bring together and demonstrate the range of analytic, knowledge based and digital skills they have developed throughout their degree and equips them with new transferable skills of designing and developing an independent project. Students will use their digital, global and cultural capabilities to synthesize and communicate knowledge within their chosen project. Students work on their project with the guidance of an individual supervisor and participate in a series of workshops designed to provide guidance for key stages of the project. Students conduct independent research which will involve reviewing appropriate literature, developing a suitable research approach and carrying out appropriate forms of analysis. Project approaches are diverse and include collection of primary data (e.g through interviews or surveys); secondary analysis of existing data sets; analysis of documentary or media sources or a systematic review of existing literature. A final project report of 10-12,00 words is prepared.
View full module detailsOptional modules for Year 3 - FHEQ Level 6
Students in level 6 will choose two optional modules in semester 1, and one optional module in semester 2.
Year 1 - BSc (Hons) with placement
Semester 1
Compulsory
This module introduces students to the history and origins of the discipline of Sociology. Students gain an in-depth understanding of the historical conditions that allowed key theorists to start questioning and conceptualising the social world around them. Students will learn about these key theorists by exploring how they comprehensively attempted to explain how social order was maintained within the social world. We explore the work of Durkheim, Marx and Weber who, collectively, are often assigned the title of the ‘founding fathers’ of the discipline. Students learn about the differing conceptions of the social world so that, by the end of the module, they can employ three differing perspectives to understand the organisation and complexity of the social world. The overall aim is for students to understand three different approaches to conceptualising the social world and to appreciate the legacy in thought each approach has instilled in us as sociologists.
View full module detailsThis compulsory Year 1 module will introduce students to the study of media and communication though an exploration of central theoretical and conceptual debates in the field of media and communications as a social science and consideration of a range of contemporary topics, themes and examples. The module integrates this introduction to key conceptual concepts and themes with the development of key study skills. The substantive components of the module locate media and communication as an interdisciplinary field, introducing students to sociological, cultural, political-economic theories which shape the way we have approached media and communications, paying attention to changing communication environments and the transforming role of media and mediation in contemporary media and data-saturated societies. Students on the module will examine technological, institutional, textual and user-related approaches to the relationship between media and societies/cultures. The module will critically evaluate different theoretical and empirical approaches to this relationship, and students will examine the strengths and weaknesses of these different approaches in relation to a variety of contemporary themes and topics.
View full module detailsSemester 2
Compulsory
The module will examine different case studies, concepts, and debates of new media developments in relation to media technologies, media participation and the relationship between media production and consumption in the digital age. It will enhance student skills in digital capabilities, resourcefulness and resilience, and address career pathways in media and communication. The module will critically evaluate different approaches to contemporary issues in media and communication in the digital age and examine the strengths and weaknesses of these different approaches.
View full module detailsThis module introduces students to the role and significance that popular culture plays in everyday society. Students explore how mediated societies have placed popular culture at the centre of our lives as we engage with it in its various forms in every aspect of our lives. The course covers the everyday significance of contemporary popular culture in an ever increasingly mediated society, including visual/screen media; music, and celebrity/tabloid culture. It also focuses upon the analysis of consumer culture, the social significance of phenomena such as music and fashion and the distinction between popular and high forms of culture. Students learn a wide range of perspectives and theories to understand the impact and significance that popular culture plays within our lives.
View full module detailsThis module introduces students to the ways that different visual media construct different visual cultures. Visual imagery in culture does not simply reflect reality, but is active in constructing certain realities and not others. Students will be supported in developing key skills in analysing and interpreting visual media, which may include photography, film and television, advertisements, music videos, video games and other digital imagery. The module provides students with an introduction to visual methodologies, as well as to different ways of thinking about visual culture and the construction or subversion of social difference. The module therefore also acts as an introduction to visual politics.
View full module detailsSemester 1 & 2
Compulsory
This module introduces students to qualitative and quantitative approaches to research design, methodology and data analysis. Part A focuses on qualitative field methods, including in-depth interviews, focus groups, and ethnographic observation, and their place within the wider research process. Students will explore the insights and possibilities generated by qualitative research as well as some of the challenges that qualitative researchers may encounter. Students will gain experience in designing, collecting, producing, and analysing their own data. Part B is designed to introduce students to the statistical techniques necessary for implementing and critically evaluating quantitative social research. Emphasis will be put on when and how data is collected, how to use basic statistical techniques to analyse the data appropriately, and how to interpret results. Students will also acquire a familiarity with R, a software environment for statistical computing and graphics.
View full module detailsYear 2 - BSc (Hons) with placement
Semester 1
Compulsory
This module expands student knowledge of the role of media and media industries in contemporary societies, placing particular emphasis on questions of domination, influence, regulation, control and inequality. We examine contrasting perspectives on the ways in which societies should regulate and manage media, covering public service broadcasting, neo-liberalism, ownership and control and questions of censorship. Students will also examine the relationship between media, social cohesion and different forms of social division and consider global perspectives to media, power and regulation.
View full module detailsAn understanding of how audiences engage with media content is fundamental to the study of media and communication. This module supports students to develop a critical appreciation of the role played by audiences and users in contemporary media-saturated societies and to understand how people from diverse social positionings may engage actively with media in different ways. Students will learn about key developments in audience research, tracing changes in media environments, audience practices and key debates, disagreements and shifting priorities in the history of audience research. Students will explore international case studies from print to broadcast to digital and mobile technologies and will develop their understanding of a wide variety of methods of audience research.
View full module detailsOptional
International migration has increasingly become a focus of attention across a range of academic disciplines as well as for politicians, policy makers and the media. Various factors - and combinations of factors - global political and economic restructuring, mobilities, conflicts, ambitions – mean more people move across international boundaries. With the increasing movement of people governments in Britain and Europe have been tightening control on the entry of migrants and making entry ever more conditional. As countries in the Global North recognise the need to recruit migrants to fill labour shortages a ‘managed migration’ approach has driven national government’s migration policy. Managed migration means an increasingly selectivity about who is allowed to cross borders. This creates highly differentiated status and rights given to the different categories of migrant. The arrival and settlement of migrant populations in countries of destination like the UK and other European nations has meant an increasingly preoccupied with social exclusion, social cohesion and integration. The policy approaches that have developed out of these concerns are often controversial and seen a rise in the numbers of residents with insecure statuses, and emphasised divisions between migrants and citizens, and between migrants with different legal statuses. These issues, debates and policies have profound and on-going implications for processes of identity, belonging and multiculture.
View full module detailsThis module introduces students to the origins of the internet and its development over time. Students will explore internet-mediated communication and social media platforms, and gain the critical and analytical skills needed to understand their social, political and economic implications. Students will be introduced to a variety of academic approaches to the internet, as well as encouraged to bring key academic scholars to bear on internet issues. The module provides a theoretical and scholarly basis to think about a range of internet-specific phenomenon, such as online communities, social media identity, hashtag activism and more.
View full module detailsThis module looks at the role of contemporary technologies within crime and the criminal justice system and critically engages with current thinking around the extent to which technology can be a ‘enabler’ or ‘facilitator’ of crime. The module seeks to develop critical understanding of the increasing role of technology within the criminal justice system – for example, forensic technologies such as fingerprinting and DNA profiles, ‘predictive’ technologies such as polygraph tests and neural scanning and enforcement/punitive technologies such as tasers. The module pays special attention to arguments that ‘technological fetishism’ may be undermining the autonomy of the justice system, with the result that ‘technological justice’ may be replacing due process and the rule of law, engaging with the increasing role of AI and automation within justice.
View full module detailsA number of key global challenges are introduced in this module, focusing on the valuable contribution social research can make to addressing issues such as climate emergency and sustainable living, food insecurity, precarious work and resilience, energy crisis and health inequalities. We examine the role of research in developing, evaluating and improving policy at local, national and global levels. The process of policy making is studied at its different stages, how researchers can contribute and the types of interventions that are possible and effective. Only by understanding this process can research be designed and communicated in appropriate ways to inform policy and change behaviour, so increasing the value of the research, of the work of the researcher and the impact the research has. The concept of research impact is explored as part of the module, in terms of making a positive contribution to improve practices, as well as in terms of academic agendas for impactful research and its relationship to funding. In particular, we employ the latest Research Evaluation Framework (REF) Impact Case Studies to explore good examples of impactful research. This also serves to reinforce an understanding of the relationship between good project design and research outcomes, and provides an opportunity to showcase the impactful work of Surrey University staff. Students will have the opportunity to study a series of specific social challenges, with access to academic experts sharing the challenges, recommendations and impacts of the research they have contributed to address these. Not only does this enable research-led teaching, but students will build up an understanding of the specific global challenges and policy areas, as well as what the research, policy making and evaluation career pathways can involve.
View full module detailsThis module introduces students to the forms, functions, role and use of social media in contemporary society. Students will explore the role of social media in key aspects of society, including social life, politics, culture and celebrity, and students will develop key skills in analysing these phenomena. Centering both employability and the further development of digital capabilities, students will be introduced to a range of social media careers, and create a social media campaign plan as part of their assessment.
View full module detailsThis innovative, interdisciplinary and university-wide module explores multiple aspects of popular culture in the contemporary world. The module considers how and why some works acquire the status of popular culture and how these works permeate everyday life. Through an overview of contemporary issues and approaches to popular culture in social, literary, filmic, musical and sociological contexts, you will consider the values inherent in some cultural works, and how these transform to reflect societal preoccupations. You will examine case studies from Dickens through Disney to the Diva, considering the creative choices and the critical reception. This module will equip you with a sophisticated understanding of the academic approaches to culture which will inform and illuminate your work in other disciplines. In particular the module embeds the University Pillars of Resourcefulness & Resilience, Digital Capabilities, Global and Cultural Capabilities. This original module is delivered by staff specialising in diverse forms of popular culture across the university, including from the Department of Music and Media, School of Literature and Languages and GSA.
View full module detailsSemester 2
Compulsory
This module provides students with an overview of key methodological approaches to the study of media and digital communication in society. Students will learn about methods for systematic analysis of a variety of media products including printed texts, such as newspapers and magazines, in addition to television, radio and the Internet. Students will be encouraged to reflect on how these methods of textual analysis complement approaches that focus on audiences or on media production. Research designs for application within media studies will be explored. Students will develop skills in designing and conducting their own media and communications research projects, preparing them for dissertation research and developing transferable skills for careers in media and communications
View full module detailsIn this compulsory module in the BSc in Media and Communications degree, students will research, investigate and communicate knowledge about the global nature and implications of media and communications. Students will delve into theories and practical case studies around inequalities and diversities within media and communications, cross-media case studies from around the world, global mediated politics, mediated families, mediated childhood and societies. Students will develop significant digital capabilities through both their assignments. Students will be equipped to engage with media and communications scholarship from the global south and to mobilize theoretical lenses from communications studies across diverse national and cultural contexts. Students will use their digital, global and cultural capabilities to synthesize and communicate knowledge to a variety of sectors and stakeholders.
View full module detailsOptional
The relationships between crime and the media have long been the subject of intense debate. This module introduces students to the sociological analysis of crime and its representation in the media. We will explore how crime is portrayed in the media and assess the extent to which such media representations are accurate. We will also examine what effects, if any, these representations have on offending and public opinion about crime as well as on criminal justice.
View full module detailsConsumption is not only essential for survival but is an integral part of everyday life important for individual and group identity, relationships and the performance of social practices. However, the environmental and social consequences of the scale of contemporary consumption cannot be ignored. This module introduces students to a range of theoretical approaches which they apply to understand everyday consumption (of food, clothes, household objects, technology and energy) sociologically. It encourages them to locate their own consumption within its global environmental and social consequences, and to think critically about pathways to more sustainable modes of consumption.
View full module detailsThis module introduces students to an understanding of how culture is communicated through the fine arts and popular culture across a range of media and genres (including, but not restricted to, painting, theatre, film, television, classical and popular music and literature). Students will explore key theoretical approaches, concepts and frameworks relevant to understanding how culture is communicated in contemporary society, and how culture is produced and consumed. The module is particularly interested in how power structures and social, cultural and economic inequalities shape our experience, production, understanding and valuing of different cultural objects and media. Students will develop their own critical and creative communication skills (including digital) by discussing a range of contemporary and changing case studies.
View full module detailsGender is a major consideration in sociological work as a key social division. This module deconstructs societal understandings of gender and explores cultural and social divisions in contemporary society. It also supports students in constructing new models of understanding gender based on contemporary sociological literature. This take account for the complex multi gendered world in which we live. Drawing upon feminist theory throughout, the module contextualize shifts in thinking about gender and student’s gain particular knowledge of intersectionality. Students demonstrate how they can apply such sociological theory to other social divisions that gender intersects with, including race and class. Otherconsiderations include how sex, bodies, and masculinities/femininities impact the ways in which people become gendered. At its core this module is an inclusive and contextually aware meaning student gain particular global and cultural capabilities, as well as the recognition of the importance of sustainability in terms of gender quality.
View full module detailsWork is important for individuals, for identity and survival, and for society, for stability and productiveness. This module focuses on the changing role of work, what impacts how it is experienced, and how theoretical approaches both inform and are informed by the study of working life. Students will explore the concept of work and its representation through different media, including film, music, fiction, art, photography, and virtual, augmented and mixed realities. The module offers a global perspective at its core, appreciating the importance of rooted historical accounts and diversity of cultural experience, but recognising the interconnectivity of issues of work and employment (as well as the lack of it) in the global economy. Students will also consider the future of work, its sustainability and connect this to employability, equipping students to evaluate their own work experience, resilience and career aspirations from a sociological perspective.
View full module detailsThis module builds upon the research methods training which students receive in their first year in order to provide students with a more detailed understanding of qualitative methods. While recognising interplay between the different stages, this module is structured around the general stages of conducting qualitative research - planning, conducting, analysing and writing about qualitative research. Students will learn about new developments in qualitative research including creative and visual methods, different types of ethnographies and mobile methodologies. They will also enhance their skill set by learning different methods of analysing qualitative data including computer assisted qualitative data analysis.
View full module detailsCommunication is a key skill in the information society, from making sense of the world around you to making yourself heard in different settings, including university, work, with friends and family, and in society. This module will introduce students to key concepts in communication as they are relevant to communicating in 21st century society. Accounting for the fact that most of our communication is mediated in some way, the module will give students a strong contextual understanding in mediated communication. This is followed by an interdisciplinary approach to communication in which students will learn about the way we communicate and understand communication in a range of areas, including business, medical settings, science, language, and psychology.
View full module detailsOptional modules for Year 2 (with PTY) - FHEQ Level 5
Students choose 4 modules, 2 options in each semester.
As part of your optional module selection, you are able to choose up to 15 credits from our range of interdisciplinary modules (subject to availability). For more information please refer to the website (https://www.surrey.ac.uk/personalising-your-degree-university-surrey)
Year 3 - BSc (Hons) with placement
Semester 1
Compulsory
In this compulsory module in the BSc in Media and Communications degree, students will research, investigate and communicate knowledge about the societal implications of new and emerging digital technologies. Students will delve into theories and practical case studies around Big Data, platforms, wearable technologies, artificial intelligence, automated decision-making, data justice, platform responsibility and people’s skills, critical capabilities and literacies with data and platform technologies. Students will develop significant digital capabilities and be equipped to engage with practical and theoretical lenses from communications studies as they analyse the societal impact of datafication in global contexts, as one of the grand challenges of contemporary times. Students will use their digital, global and cultural capabilities to synthesize and communicate knowledge to a variety of sectors and stakeholders both within and outside academia, as they are equipped to engage with these sectors through written, oral and audiovisual means.
View full module detailsOptional
This module focuses on family life and family diversity. A range of empirical data and theoretical perspectives on the family and its relationship to society will be drawn upon to explore topics such as marriage and partnerships, housework, parenting, and the intersection of families with the state and other social institutions. We will pay particular attention to the relationship between production and reproduction, specifically, examining the household division of labour and how this has varied over time and in relation to external pressures, especially the demands of paid work. The module will consider how family life is mediated by gender, class, ethnicity, and sexuality, and use contemporary, historical and cross-cultural material to highlight processes of change and development in contemporary family life. This optional module builds upon core and optional material taught in year 1 and year 2 about family change and gender inequalities in domestic life and beyond, consolidating and furthering existing learning by providing a detailed and nuanced discussion of key issue related to families.
View full module detailsThis module examines the significance of popular music in mediated societies, focusing on music industries, content, technologies and audiences. A range of topics are explored, including authenticities, standardisation, global music flows, new digital technologies and a range of issues regarding music consumers and communities. The module also addresses the connections of popular music with social divisions/identities, including those relating to ethnicity, gender and class.
View full module detailsThe module explores human sexuality from diverse perspectives and across different topic areas, but central to the module is a sociological approach that regards sexuality as primarily a social construction. The module provides a global perspective on sexuality, drawing on studies and theories from many different societies, whilst paying attention to the historical and scientific roots of sexuality. Topics cover issues related to the diversity of experience related to sexuality and sexual identity, recognizing too the interconnectivity of sexuality with other social identities and sources of social division e.g gender, ethnicity, age, amongst others. The module covers several specific areas of sexuality, which allows students to connect academic topics with ‘real-world’ examples and write critically, analytically and logically thereby increasing employability. The module requires students to undertake individual and group level formative work, thereby enhancing skills of resourcefulness and resilience.
View full module detailsThis unit is concerned with understanding the role of political communication in contemporary politics. Arguably parties use the media to influence voters, but the media also has a role in holding (selected) politicians to account. This unit explores the various theoretical perspectives on the role of political communication and the media, before moving on to consider a series of empirical examples. The unit also covers key topics relevant to political communication including the relationship between political parties and the national media; whether it is the role of political broadcasts, televised debates, or the impact of rolling news coverage on the ability of politicians to control the media. It considers how changes in media have offered new opportunities for citizenship and democracy, including agenda setting. It also considers how parties and political organisations have adapted to use these new media. There is a focus on key issues in contemporary politics and case studies will be situated throughout the module. Students will also gain coding and content analysis skills in order to explore how key topical political themes are framed in political communication. The module complements and expands elements of POL 1012 (Introduction to Politics), particularly structuralist theories of the state. It will also complement knowledge gained of British politics in POL 1017 (Debates in British Politics). The coding and content analysis skills also build on knowledge gained in Approaches to Research (POL 2027); although this module is not a pre-requisite – full training will be given as part of this module. There are no pre-requisites for this module and students have the opportunity to carry out independent research on a media/theme of their choice for the critique assessment.
View full module detailsThis module introduces the students to the key ethical and regulatory issues associated with artificial intelligence, as well as to the methods of analysis of those issues used in ethics and in law. The focus of the module is on the current state of the art in the applications of artificial intelligence (in particular: of machine learning), with smaller emphasis on hypothetical future developments. The module makes use of the case study method to introduce students to ethical and regulatory (legal) questions through discussion of relevant major incidents from recent years. The module helps students develop their thinking on how to translate abstract ethical (and regulatory) requirements of fairness, explainability or privacy into engineering and business practice.
View full module detailsSemester 2
Compulsory
This module will examine public relations as a core part of culture and consumer society. Throughout the module, students will examine different concepts, theories and debates surrounding public relations, and apply them to diverse case studies. Students will understand the different public relations strategies used by organisations to influence their publics, and how this has changed as new media technologies emerge. The module will enhance student skills in digital capabilities, resourcefulness and resilience, sustainability, and address career pathways in the public relations sector. The module will critically evaluate different public relations approaches and strategies in the digital age, with students applying this knowledge to create their own public relations campaign.
View full module detailsOptional
This module centers around the core concepts of race, ethnicity, racism and intersectionality. It explores how modern society emerged and developed in tandem with the concept of race and strategies of racism. The module will examine the historical construction of race in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries before considering theoretical approaches to the study of race and gender, race and class, whiteness, multiculturalism and cultural racism, space and segregation, mixed-race studies and decolonisation. We will consider whether we are moving towards a 'post-race' society, and whether this is possible and indeed desirable. The module relates to the degree programme more broadly by discussing ethnicity, racism, social justice, and notions of identity and diversity. As such it builds upon previous learning that students will have undertaken in prior modules throughout the first two years of their degree programme.
View full module detailsIn the preface to the third edition of their textbook, Rogers and Pilgrim (2005) emphasize that their book is ‘A sociology of mental health and illness’ and not ‘The sociology of mental health and illness’. They make this point because any book (or indeed course) on mental health and illness will have to be selective and will not be able to cover everything. They also highlight how the word ‘sociology’ in the title is a little troublesome as “sociological analyses of our topic are not offered only by sociologists”. In this module students will encounter a range of sociological perspectives on mental health and illness and will delve into critical debates surrounding definitions, concepts and the ways in which mental health has been ‘organized’ and responded to. Through focusing on topics such as inequalities, and mental health in prisons, students will be equipped to think critically about current, global, mental health care policy and practice. At points in the course, students will have the opportunity to meet professionals working in related fields and connect this to their own employability.
View full module detailsThis module focuses upon the development, characteristics and contemporary significance of a range of different aspects of youth culture in the context of mediated societies. Topics covered include the construction and development of understandings of adolescence as a distinct life course period, the relationship between youth and both traditional and digital forms of media, questions of class, ethnicity and gender, the significance of on and offline spaces, and debates relating to youth communities and subcultures.
View full module detailsSemester 1 & 2
Compulsory
This module enables students to focus on and research a topic of significance of their own choice. It enables them to build on, bring together and demonstrate the range of analytic, knowledge based and digital skills they have developed throughout their degree and equips them with new transferable skills of designing and developing an independent project. Students will use their digital, global and cultural capabilities to synthesize and communicate knowledge within their chosen project. Students work on their project with the guidance of an individual supervisor and participate in a series of workshops designed to provide guidance for key stages of the project. Students conduct independent research which will involve reviewing appropriate literature, developing a suitable research approach and carrying out appropriate forms of analysis. Project approaches are diverse and include collection of primary data (e.g through interviews or surveys); secondary analysis of existing data sets; analysis of documentary or media sources or a systematic review of existing literature. A final project report of 10-12,00 words is prepared.
View full module detailsOptional modules for Year 3 (with PTY) - FHEQ Level 6
Students in level 6 will choose two optional modules in semester 1, and one optional module in semester 2.
Year 3 - BSc (Hons) with placement
Semester 1 & 2
Core
s module supports students’ development of personal and professional attitudes and abilities appropriate to a Professional Training placement. It supports and facilitates self-reflection and transfer of learning from their Professional Training placement experiences to their final year of study and their future employment. The PTY module is concerned with Personal and Professional Development towards holistic academic and non-academic learning, and is a process that involves self-reflection, documented via the creation of a personal record, planning and monitoring progress towards the achievement of personal objectives. Development and learning may occur before and during the placement, and this is reflected in the assessment model as a progressive process. However, the graded assessment takes place primarily towards the end of the placement. Additionally, the module aims to enable students to evidence and evaluate their placement experiences and transfer that learning to other situations through written and presentation skills.
View full module detailsThis module supports students’ development of personal and professional attitudes and abilities appropriate to a Professional Training placement. It supports and facilitates self-reflection and transfer of learning from their Professional Training placement experiences to their final year of study and their future employment. The PTY module is concerned with Personal and Professional Development towards holistic academic and non-academic learning, and is a process that involves self-reflection, documented via the creation of a personal record, planning and monitoring progress towards the achievement of personal objectives. Development and learning may occur before and during the placement, and this is reflected in the assessment model as a progressive process. However, the graded assessment takes place primarily towards the end of the placement. Additionally, the module aims to enable students to evidence and evaluate their placement experiences and transfer that learning to other situations through written skills.
View full module detailsThis module supports students’ development of personal and professional attitudes and abilities appropriate to a Professional Training placement. It supports and facilitates self-reflection and transfer of learning from their Professional Training placement experiences to their final year of study and their future employment. The PTY module is concerned with Personal and Professional Development towards holistic academic and non-academic learning and is a process that involves self-reflection. Development and learning may occur before and during the placement, and this is reflected in the assessment model as a progressive process. However, the graded assessment takes place primarily towards the end of the placement. Additionally, the module aims to enable students to evidence and evaluate their placement experiences and transfer that learning to other situations through written skills.
View full module detailsOptional modules for Professional Training Year (PTY) -
Students taking the PTY Year must choose one of the following modules; SOCP010, SOCP011 or SOCP012
BSc (Hons) with foundation year
Semester 1
Compulsory
The module examines law in a social, ethical, political, historical, and international context. Students will be introduced to the English Legal System and analyse how laws in England and Wales are implemented. The focus will be on contemporary issues, to illustrate how academic studies relate to law in practice and the impact it has on society. It requires students to examine how public opinion, politics and the media influence lawmakers and provides students with a variety of transferable employability skills including group work and self-reflection.
View full module detailsThis module introduces students to contemporary issues in sociology, media and communication, and criminology. Students will build foundational knowledge around the three disciplines, exploring key concepts and debates. The focus of the module is to encourage students to evaluate and think critically about the social world and structures they reside in, and to identify ways in which research in these disciplines can help us to understand society and solve contemporary issues.
View full module detailsSemester 2
Compulsory
The module: Provides an overview of the core characteristics of contemporary political issues Introduces distinctions between and demonstrate interactivity between empirical and conceptual frameworks for understanding those issues Introduces key domestic and international political institutions Introduces students to key research and concepts on domestic and international politics Introduces problem areas such as Ideology, Brexit, Populism, Representation, Security.
View full module detailsThis module will involve students collaborating on a week-long group project, with a primary emphasis on addressing issues within their respective subject areas that serve the public interest and promote the common good. After participating in a series of preparatory workshops, student groups will actively engage in identifying a societal need, scoping out the problem, defining a solution, executing the plan, and measuring its impact. Subsequently, they will present their solution to an academic panel and then the relevant social stakeholders. In addition to their group efforts, each student will compose a reflective project report to encapsulate their individual learning and growth throughout this experience.
View full module detailsThis module will be based around an innovative assignment: a student-led broadcast - The Weekly Social - devised, researched, delivered and reviewed by groups of students who will take on the roles of producers, researchers and presenters on a rolling basis. Underpinned by specialist lectures in the relationship between the law, politics and sociology with the media, and supported by media theory and broadcast practice, the module will allow students to apply key learnings across real-world situations in the social sciences through innovative learning practices that will build skills in social science research, written and oral communication, team working and presentation.
View full module detailsSemester 1 & 2
Compulsory
The module creates opportunities for students to draw on their learning from the law, politics and sociology modules and apply them to social issues, enabling them to recognize the interplay between the subjects. The module will ensure topical social issues are raised and analysed from the political, sociological, and legal perspectives. Learners will develop knowledge and understanding of how the policy landscape and other interventions may tackle social issues. They will also complete activities that help them to understand their own aptitudes and learning preferences.
View full module detailsOptional modules for Foundation - FHEQ Level 3
For further information on FHEQ levels 4, 5 and 6 please view the programme specification for the full-time BSc (Hons) Media and Communication programme.
BSc (Hons) with foundation year and placement
Semester 1
Compulsory
The module examines law in a social, ethical, political, historical, and international context. Students will be introduced to the English Legal System and analyse how laws in England and Wales are implemented. The focus will be on contemporary issues, to illustrate how academic studies relate to law in practice and the impact it has on society. It requires students to examine how public opinion, politics and the media influence lawmakers and provides students with a variety of transferable employability skills including group work and self-reflection.
View full module detailsThis module introduces students to contemporary issues in sociology, media and communication, and criminology. Students will build foundational knowledge around the three disciplines, exploring key concepts and debates. The focus of the module is to encourage students to evaluate and think critically about the social world and structures they reside in, and to identify ways in which research in these disciplines can help us to understand society and solve contemporary issues.
View full module detailsSemester 2
Compulsory
The module: Provides an overview of the core characteristics of contemporary political issues Introduces distinctions between and demonstrate interactivity between empirical and conceptual frameworks for understanding those issues Introduces key domestic and international political institutions Introduces students to key research and concepts on domestic and international politics Introduces problem areas such as Ideology, Brexit, Populism, Representation, Security.
View full module detailsThis module will involve students collaborating on a week-long group project, with a primary emphasis on addressing issues within their respective subject areas that serve the public interest and promote the common good. After participating in a series of preparatory workshops, student groups will actively engage in identifying a societal need, scoping out the problem, defining a solution, executing the plan, and measuring its impact. Subsequently, they will present their solution to an academic panel and then the relevant social stakeholders. In addition to their group efforts, each student will compose a reflective project report to encapsulate their individual learning and growth throughout this experience.
View full module detailsThis module will be based around an innovative assignment: a student-led broadcast - The Weekly Social - devised, researched, delivered and reviewed by groups of students who will take on the roles of producers, researchers and presenters on a rolling basis. Underpinned by specialist lectures in the relationship between the law, politics and sociology with the media, and supported by media theory and broadcast practice, the module will allow students to apply key learnings across real-world situations in the social sciences through innovative learning practices that will build skills in social science research, written and oral communication, team working and presentation.
View full module detailsSemester 1 & 2
Compulsory
The module creates opportunities for students to draw on their learning from the law, politics and sociology modules and apply them to social issues, enabling them to recognize the interplay between the subjects. The module will ensure topical social issues are raised and analysed from the political, sociological, and legal perspectives. Learners will develop knowledge and understanding of how the policy landscape and other interventions may tackle social issues. They will also complete activities that help them to understand their own aptitudes and learning preferences.
View full module detailsOptional modules for Foundation (with PTY) - FHEQ Level 3
For further information on FHEQ levels 4, 5 and 6 and professional training year please view the programme specification for the full-time with PTY BSc (Hons) Media and Communication programme.
Teaching and learning
You’ll benefit from a range of teaching methods, including small group tutorials, projects and workshops, as well as lectures and classes. We find that our students learn more effectively in this environment, and projects will contribute to the development of your personal skills in leadership, effective communication and analytic ability.
During your studies, you’ll develop sophisticated skills in conducting both qualitative and quantitative research. Our excellent facilities – including a range of audio-visual equipment and a networked computer suite – are available to aid your studies.
Our teaching is led by our research as well as the latest developments in the media and communications industries. This enables us to build courses which reflect the fast paces of change within media and communications industries. We are proud of our work on online research methods (Christine Hine), and young people and digital media (Emily Setty). Our research also includes the future of audiences in the face of emerging technologies (Ranjana Das), the role of social media in mental wellbeing (Ranjana Das and Paul Hodkinson), the relationship between celebrity, popular culture and politics (Nathalie Weidhase), gender and popular culture (Robyn Muir, Nathalie Weidhase) audiences and controversial media content (Ranjana Das), as well as youth sub-cultures (Paul Hodkinson), among many others.
Our teaching is led by our research as well as the latest developments in the media and communications industries. This enables us to build courses which reflect the fast paces of change within media and communications industries.
We are proud of our work on online research methods, and young people and digital media. Our research also includes the future of audiences in the face of emerging technologies, the role of social media in mental wellbeing, the relationship between celebrity, popular culture and politics, audiences and controversial media content, as well as youth sub-cultures, among many others.
- Group work
- Independent study
- Lectures
- Project work
- Seminars
- Tutorials
- Research work
- Workshops
Assessment
We assess modules individually and award credits for the successful completion of each one. Assessment takes place through a combination of examination and/or coursework, practical examinations, and reports.
General course information
Contact hours
Contact hours can vary across our modules. Full details of the contact hours for each module are available from the University of Surrey's module catalogue. See the modules section for more information.
Timetable
Timetables are normally available one month before the start of the semester. Please note that while we make every effort to ensure that timetables are as student-friendly as possible, scheduled teaching can take place on any day of the week (Monday – Friday). Wednesday afternoons are normally reserved for sports and cultural activities. Part-time classes are normally scheduled on one or two days per week, details of which can be obtained from the course administrators. View our Code of practice for the scheduling of teaching and assessment (PDF).
Location
Stag Hill is the University's main campus and where the majority of our courses are taught.
We offer careers information, advice and guidance to all students whilst studying with us, which is extended to our alumni for three years after leaving the University.
Your employability is central to our degree. Our BSc Media and Communication course will build your ability to analyse complex issues and reach sound conclusions. This is highly desirable for a variety of careers in business, government or third-sector organisations.
We follow an approach that embeds employability into the media curriculum, through a pathway from first year through to third year. Your employability will be enhanced by the following:
- Innovative assessments in each year that equip you with transferable skills. Recent examples of these include: blog portfolios, designing your own public relations campaign, as well as remote and e-working team presentations
- Our campus location offers a range of optional practical media involvement. Whilst our course is not a practical one, we are home to STAGMEDIA, Stag TV, Stag Radio, The Stag magazine, and Subcultured Magazine which all provide the opportunity for hands-on, optional media experience.
Depending on which modules you choose, you can use media and communication to develop expertise for a range of different occupations. Specifically:
- It provides the knowledge and analytical skills needed to pursue a career in journalism and broadcast media, social media, and digital industries.
- It provides the strong media research and literacy skills useful for careers in marketing, advertising, market research and public relations (PR).
- It is a first step for future graduate study in media and communication and allied disciplines in order to become a researcher or lecturer.
In the survey, Graduate Outcomes 2024, HESA, results show that 91 per cent of undergraduates from Sociology go on to employment or further study. Our graduates enter a wide range of careers in the UK and abroad. Sectors include PR, journalism, broadcast media, advertising, digital industries, market research, media and communication management and research.
Postgraduate study opportunities
About a quarter of undergraduate students in Sociology go on to postgraduate study. On successful completion of this course you might want to progress to one of our masters courses.
Career destinations
Graduates over the last few years have secured roles such as:
- Channel Planning Assistant, UKTV
- PR Coordinator, NBC Universal
- Media Analyst, Kantar Media
- Production Secretary, Comic Relief
- Social Media Executive, Hotelplan
- Corporate Communications Account Manager, Surrey Police
- Sales Executive, Global Data.
Madi
Student - Media and Communication BSc (Hons)
I am hoping to go into the magazine industry as an editor, which is why I believe my role as editor-in-chief of The Stag student magazine is such a great opportunity.
Ivy
Graduate - Media and Communication BSc (Hons)
I plan and create organic social media content for different clients such as Hard Rock Cafe, CarFest, and many more. It's a really fun job and I'm certain that the skills and knowledge I developed during my time at Surrey were a great contributor in securing it.
Learn more about the qualifications we typically accept to study this course at Surrey.
Typical offer
- BSc (Hons):
- BBB
- GCSE or equivalent: English Language at Grade 4 (C). Typically Mathematics at Grade 4 (C) will also be required, however applicants that don't meet this requirement will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
- BSc (Hons) with foundation year:
- CCC
- GCSE or equivalent: English Language at Grade 4 (C) and Mathematics at Grade 4 (C).
Please note: A-level General Studies and A-level Critical Thinking are not accepted for either route. Applicants taking an A-level science subject with the Science Practical Endorsement are expected to pass the practical element.
- BSc (Hons):
- DDM.
- GCSE or equivalent: English Language at Grade 4 (C). Typically Mathematics at Grade 4 (C) will also be required, however applicants that don't meet this requirement will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
- BSc (Hons) with foundation year:
- MMM.
- GCSE or equivalent: English Language at Grade 4 (C) and Mathematics at Grade 4 (C).
- BSc (Hons):
- 32.
- GCSE or equivalent: English A HL4/SL4 or English B HL5/SL6. Typically Maths (either course) HL4/SL4 will also be required, however applicants that don't meet this requirement will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
- BSc (Hons) with foundation year
- 29
- GCSE or equivalent: English A HL4/SL4 or English B HL5/SL6 and Mathematics (either course) HL4/SL4.
- BSc (Hons):
- 75%.
- GCSE or equivalent: Either English Language (1/2) 6 or English Language (3)7. Typically Maths 6 will also be required, however applicants that don't meet this requirement will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
- BSc (Hons) with foundation year:
- 68%
- GCSE or equivalent: Maths 6 and either English Language (1/2) 6 or English Language (3)7.
- BSc (Hons):
- QAA recognised Access to Higher Education Diploma with 45 level 3 credits overall including 27 credits at Distinction and 18 at Merit.
- GCSE or equivalent: English Language at Grade 4 (C). Typically Mathematics at Grade 4 (C) will also be required, however applicants that don't meet this requirement will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
- BSc (Hons) with foundation year:
- QAA recognised Access to Higher Education Diploma with 45 level 3 credits overall including 21 credits at Distinction, 3 at Merit and 21 at Pass.
- GCSE or equivalent: English Language and Mathematics at Grade 4 (C).
- BSc (Hons)
- ABBBB.
- GCSE or equivalent: English Language: Scottish National 5 - C. Typically Scottish Nation 5 Maths grade C will also be required, however applicants that don't meet this requirement will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
- BSc (Hons) with foundation year
- BBBCC.
- GCSE or equivalent: English Language: Scottish National 5 - C Maths - Scottish National 5 - C.
- BSc (Hons):
- BBB from a combination of the Advanced Skills Baccalaureate Wales and two A-levels.
- BSc (Hons) with foundation year:
- CCC from a combination of the Advanced Skills Baccalaureate Wales and two A-levels.
Please note: A-level General Studies and A-level Critical Thinking are not accepted. Applicants taking an A-level science subject with the Science Practical Endorsement are expected to pass the practical element.
GCSE or equivalent: Please check the A-level drop down for the required GCSE levels.
Applicants taking the Extended Project Qualification (EPQ) will receive our standard A-level offer for this programme, plus an alternate offer of one A-level grade lower, subject to achieving an A grade in the EPQ. The one grade reduction will not apply to any required subjects.
Applicants can only receive one grade reduction from the published grades, an EPQ grade reduction can’t be applied in addition to other grade reductions made through other schemes such as Contextual Admissions or In2Surrey.
English language requirements
IELTS Academic: 6.5 overall with 6.0 in writing and 5.5 in each other element.
View the other English language qualifications that we accept.
If you do not currently meet the level required for your programme, we offer intensive pre-sessional English language courses, designed to take you to the level of English ability and skill required for your studies here.
International Foundation Year
If you are an international student and you don’t meet the entry requirements for this degree, we offer the International Foundation Year at the Surrey International Study Centre. Upon successful completion, you can progress to this degree course.
Selection process
We normally make offers in terms of grades.
If you are a suitable candidate you will be invited to an offer holder event. During your visit to the University you can find out more about the course and meet staff and students.
Recognition of prior learning
We recognise that many students enter their higher education course with valuable knowledge and skills developed through a range of professional, vocational and community contexts.
If this applies to you, the recognition of prior learning (RPL) process may allow you to join a course without the formal entry requirements or enter your course at a point appropriate to your previous learning and experience.
There are restrictions on RPL for some courses and fees may be payable for certain claims. Please see the code of practice for recognition of prior learning and prior credit: taught programmes (PDF) for further information.
Contextual offers
Did you know eligible students receive support through their application to Surrey, which could include a grade reduction on offer?
Fees
Explore UKCISA’s website for more information if you are unsure whether you are a UK or overseas student. View the list of fees for all undergraduate courses.
Payment schedule
- Students with Tuition Fee Loan: the Student Loans Company pay fees in line with their schedule.
- Students without a Tuition Fee Loan: pay their fees either in full at the beginning of the programme or in two instalments as follows:
- 50% payable 10 days after the invoice date (expected to be early October of each academic year)
- 50% in January of the same academic year.
The exact date(s) will be on invoices. Students on part-time programmes where fees are paid on a modular basis, cannot pay fees by instalment.
- Sponsored students: must provide us with valid sponsorship information that covers the period of study.
Professional training placement fees
If you are studying on a programme which contains a Professional Training placement year there will be a reduced fee for the academic year in which you undertake your placement. This is normally confirmed 12 to 18 months in advance, or once Government policy is determined.
Additional costs
There are no associated costs with this course.
Optional expenses
Occasional optional trips to London or within Surrey will be organised by the School which may incur travel costs – £70 approximately.
Our award-winning Professional Training placement scheme gives you the chance to spend a year in industry, either in the UK or abroad.
We have thousands of placement providers to choose from, most of which offer pay. So, become one of our many students who have had their lives and career choices transformed.
Media and communication placements
Students in Sociology have gained placements at organisations including:
- Gloucestershire County Council
- Magimix
- Moving Picture Company
- Showcentral Ltd
- TVB1 (Hong Kong)
- Wigwam PR .
The process of preparing and applying for placement jobs significantly enhances your job-seeking skills, which come into play in your final year and beyond when you apply for graduate employment. We have media students who have secured placements at companies including:
- A+E Television Networks
- The Department of Culture, Media and Sport
- The Walt Disney Company.
After graduation, many of our students take up permanent posts with their Professional Training placement employer. Our students tend to return to their final year significantly more confident and with enhanced career aspirations and prospects, so you are likely to be more focused, perform better and achieve better results.
Placement opportunities are selected according to your interests, career plans and location preferences. Many placements are paid, usually in the region of £12,000-£15,000 a year.
If you choose to take an unpaid placement, you can claim additional financial support and may also work a reduced amount of time.
Applying for placements
Students are generally not placed by the University. But we offer support and guidance throughout the process, with access to a vacancy site of placement opportunities.
Find out more about the application process.
Discover, develop and dive in
Find out how students at Surrey developed their skills in industry by undertaking a placement year.
Discover, develop and dive in
Find out how students at Surrey developed their skills in industry by undertaking a placement year.
"There are so many reasons why I love Surrey but I think the main one is that Surrey feels like a home away from home, everyone is so friendly and approachable and it is always so lively."
Study and work abroad
Studying at Surrey opens a world of opportunity. Take advantage of our study and work abroad partnerships, explore the world, and expand your skills for the graduate job market.
The opportunities abroad vary depending on the course, but options include study exchanges, work/research placements, summer programmes, and recent graduate internships. Financial support is available through various grants and bursaries, as well as Student Finance.
Perhaps you would like to volunteer in India or learn about Brazilian business and culture in São Paulo during your summer holidays? With 140+ opportunities in 36+ different countries worldwide, there is something for everyone. Explore your options via our search tool and find out more about our current partner universities and organisations.
Apply for your chosen course online through UCAS, with the following course and institution codes.
About the University of Surrey
Need more information?
Contact our Admissions team or talk to a current University of Surrey student online.
- BSc (Hons)View ULE10F0014U
- BSc (Hons) with placementView ULE10S0014U
- BSc (Hons) with foundation yearView ULE10F0017U
- BSc (Hons) with foundation year and placementView ULE10S0017U
Terms and conditions
When you accept an offer to study at the University of Surrey, you are agreeing to follow our policies and procedures, student regulations, and terms and conditions.
We provide these terms and conditions in two stages:
- First when we make an offer.
- Second when students accept their offer and register to study with us (registration terms and conditions will vary depending on your course and academic year).
View our generic registration terms and conditions (PDF) for the 2023/24 academic year, as a guide on what to expect.
Disclaimer
This online prospectus has been published in advance of the academic year to which it applies.
Whilst we have done everything possible to ensure this information is accurate, some changes may happen between publishing and the start of the course.
It is important to check this website for any updates before you apply for a course with us. Read our full disclaimer.