Master of Law in International Law with Professional Placement

at Birmingham City University - City Centre Campus United Kingdom

A law degree is an important first step into a career in law, as well as an important foundation on the route to many other careers, and Birmingham City University is a long-established provider of legal education to the Birmingham legal community and beyond.

This course has been developed to enable anyone wishing to qualify as a solicitor or barrister to undertake this first, important academic stage of their career. To achieve this, the course has been designed to align with the subjects that you will need to study further in order to successfully undertake the Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE), while also meeting the requirements of the Bar Standards Board for an undergraduate law degree.

What's covered in this course?

The study of law is both academic and practical, and therefore both of these are important elements in the LLB (Hons) degree at BCU. Theory and academic study are important on an LLB, but so too is the application of that knowledge, and so our LLB (Hons) degree offers plenty of opportunity for you to develop the practical lawyering skills, as well as the transferable skills enhancing your employability, that graduates will need when entering the workplace.

The different pathways on the LLB course will allow you to make decisions regarding the direction in which you want to take your studies, with named degrees in Law with American Legal Studies, Law with Business Law, and Law with Criminal Justice, as well as a broad range of optional modules ranging from more theoretical topics through to those aimed at the practical application of the law in real-world situations.

You will also have the opportunity to put those skills to practical use, both in the local community and beyond. Whether that is through our programme of placement opportunities with local providers such as Citizen’s Advice and various legal advice charities, through opportunities in the local legal community, or via BCU’s own Law Clinic, established to serve the local community from our City Centre campus, there are plenty of options available to you. You can also apply your legal knowledge further afield, through our US internship programme which has been placing students with attorneys throughout the US for over 20 years.

A professional placement year is also available, between years 2 and 3 of the degree, offering further opportunity for you to put your knowledge and skills to practical use, and thereby enhancing your CV further.

By focussing on the development of a range of transferable skills, the course employs numerous innovative assessment methods, going beyond the typical forms of written academic assessment.

You are also encouraged to engage in extra-curricular activities to support your learning, with student societies such as the highly successful Mooting Society. Furthermore, you will have the ability to engage with the wider Birmingham legal community through our connections with the Birmingham Law Society, the largest regional law society in the UK.

Our BA (Hons) Fashion Business and Promotion degree course enables you to explore a range of roles within the fashion industry, beyond the making and production of clothing.

Guided and supported by a knowledgeable, industry-experienced staff team, you will gain an education across the different fashion sectors and develop skills in order to undertake a number of industry roles, including Buying, Marketing and PR, Trends forecasting and Event Management.

What's covered in this course?

You will learn how fashion roles work together, as well as commercial and consumer and competitive awareness.

You will work on a live project, as well as industry-focused briefs across the first two years and  benefit from regular industry guest speakers.

Throughout the course, we will develop your business knowledge and language, preparing you for delivering presentations, teamwork, writing reports and build skills in creating both paper and digital visual work with the aid of CAD packages.

Looking for a security studies Master’s in Birmingham? Our MA Security Studies is open to graduates from all subjects.

The subject of security has considerable contemporary relevance, both nationally and internationally. A long and diverse list of issues have been characterised as security threats from warfare to global warming.

On this Master's you will consider events such as these across a range of different perspectives discussing their implications for security at the international, national and local levels as well as their relevance to different actors such as the state and the individual.

For example, the ongoing Syrian civil war and the breakdown of the Syrian state may represent a security risk for the UK by giving groups likes ISIS the space to operate and potentially attack the West. However, if we alter our focus we quickly become aware of a range of different insecurities felt by civilians displaced from their homes and struggling to survive as a result of the conflict.

Transform your career with our postgraduate qualification in acting. Designed to advance your practical and professional progress, our MA Acting course provides intense training from staff with rich industry experience.

Previous graduates of this course have gone on to succeed as established performers, including roles at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and the Royal Shakespeare Company.

What's covered in this course?

You will be taught to maintain a high standard of skill and knowledge and how to transform into an independently-minded performer and practitioner. We will enhance your ability to reflect and analyse, through a range of concepts and ideas. You will enhance your technical skills through practice-based study, learning and developing flexibility to confront issues that you may experience within your profession.

Your classes will mainly be practical studio-based sessions, focusing on the practical application of acting, voice, movement and singing. You will also have time assigned for self-directed study, where you will further develop your work from practical classes. For some modules you will have timetabled rehearsal time, where you will work in groups to produce material.

Your studies will help to influence and shape your career. Previous graduates have been commended by industry for their innovative, challenging project work. Danielle Pinnock‘s final project, a 40 minute piece entitled BODY/COURAGE, won her the Best Actress award at the Strawberry Theatre Festival, and has since been performed internationally.

Discover new designs and materials, discuss the theory behind clocks and watches, and develop specialist skills with our Horology degree, one of the only courses of its kind.

You will enhance your skills of servicing and restoration to industry standard, as well as using Computer Aided Design (CAD) and rapid prototyping to explore different methods and designs.

Our MSc Automotive Engineering course will teach you the skills you need to become a highly-skilled engineer, capable of undertaking related tasks within and across different organisations.

Overall the course aims to produce skilled engineers capable of undertaking automotive engineering tasks within and across organisations utilising the latest tools and technologies. The course will encourage the application and development of modern engineering solutions to the problems of fuel efficiency and emissions abatement, as well as the improvement of vehicle performance and stability.

The course explores the wider context of sustainability and climate change, as well as the specific application of advanced control techniques to solve problems through research led powertrain and vehicle system-specific modules.

Professional Placement option

The Professional Placement option will allow you to complete a credit bearing, 20 week Professional Placement as an integral part of your Master’s Degree. The purpose of the Professional Placement is to improve your employability skills which will, through the placement experience, allow you to evidence your professional skills, attitudes and behaviours at the point of entry to the postgraduate job market.  Furthermore, by completing the Professional Placement, you will be able to develop and enhance your understanding of the professional work environment, relevant to your chosen field of study, and reflect critically on your own professional skills development within the workplace.

Our BA (Hons) Applied Theatre aims to inspire the next generation of passionate and skilled theatre-makers. Our focus is on developing the skills and understanding needed to create compelling new performances and theatre projects with purpose. We are concerned not only with how we make theatre, but also why.

What's covered in this course?

The majority of what you will learn through studying Applied Theatre will be through practical experience. You will bring the skills and passion you have, and learn how to apply them; as well as gaining new skills in facilitation, devising, and all aspects of theatre-making. You will not only be creating new drama, but gaining the knowledge and understanding needed to engage communities, and exploring the world in the wide variety of environments covered by the term Applied Theatre – such as schools, community or health centres, prisons, hospitals, or out on the streets.

Our strong industry links and on-going relationships with many experienced practitioners and companies working in the field allow us to prepare you for a varied career. As the course progresses, you will work increasingly independently, spending six weeks of the second year on a full-time placement, and in the third year collaborating with fellow students in forming professional ‘companies’, working collectively in live situations. The course ends with a festival of Applied Theatre, which serves as a showcase of your work and a bridge to a wide range of employment.

At Royal Birmingham Conservatoire we believe that creating theatre with social and political objectives can have a significant impact on the lives of individuals and communities. We use performance as a tool to explore the world, raise awareness, educate, empower, and instigate real and lasting change.

As an emerging practitioner we will supply you with artistic space, autonomy and choice. With a primary focus on performance, you will also explore the reasons behind the work looking at its history and theories while developing an understanding of the need for constant research, discussion, reflection and development of your practice.

Esports has become one of the world’s most exciting entertainment trends with a recent industry report stating that the industry is expected to be worth $1.7 billion by 2021, growing at a rate of 18.4% per year.  With this growth there is the increasing number of job opportunities for graduates with the knowledge and expertise to excel in this environment.

What's covered in this course?

The BA (Hons) Esports Management course will provide you with the academic expertise and contacts to help you develop an exciting professional future in this growing industry.

Combining theory and practical application this course will draw heavily from practicing esports leaders to cover multiple aspects such as technology and digital innovation, marketing, events, operations and analytics. Internships, placements, project fieldwork and workshops will enable you to create a CV that will allow you to apply what you have learnt and make the contacts required to kick start a successful career.

Our MA Fine Art Master’s course embraces art practice, in whatever form it takes (drawing, painting, sculpture, print, photography, installation, lens-based media, performance, participatory, interdisciplinary and expanded practice) and in whichever circumstance it occurs.

It is conceptual at heart, pursuing strong ideas and challenges of art in real life. The artist Joseph Beuys, working in Social Sculpture, famously said: "Each and every man has the most precious building in the world in his head, feelings and free will. And the French poet Baudelaire said: the best form of art criticism is another work of art."

We agree and so art is considered in relationship to philosophy, art history and theory, contemporary discourse and global contexts, establishing critical frameworks in which artists make work. We also have strong links with art galleries and artists communities, including Eastside Projects led by Gavin Wade and Céline Cordorelli.

Professional Placement option

The Professional Placement version of the course is optional and is offered as an alternative to the standard version of the course.

This will allow you to complete a credit-bearing, 20-week Professional Placement as an integral part of your Master’s Degree. The purpose of the Professional Placement is to improve your employability skills which will, through the placement experience, allow you to evidence your professional skills, attitudes and behaviours at the point of entry to the postgraduate job market. Furthermore, by completing the Professional Placement, you will be able to develop and enhance your understanding of the professional work environment, relevant to your chosen field of study, and reflect critically on your own professional skills development within the workplace.

The MSc Building Surveying program with Facilities Management is designed to respond to the dynamic demands for sustainable management of the existing built environment and is accredited by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS).

What's covered in this course?

The course is founded on the principal that participants intend to attain membership of the RICS. The program, therefore, embraces the values of the RICS and reflects the requirements of the professional body in terms of core technical and professional skills and attributes. All students are expected to be student or graduate members of the RICS.

The Building Surveying course content and delivery is underpinned by the need to respond to the RICS Strategic Foresight 2030 report, including incorporation of the seven strategic pillars for the future within learning, teaching and assessment.

The course will provide you with a broad but solid foundation in the fundamentals of organising, managing, and designing work to existing buildings. It seeks to provide you with the knowledge and skills to meet the challenges presented by the globally evolving built environment marketplace.

This course focuses on developing and expanding the knowledge, understanding and ability of practitioners to respond to the challenges of the 21st century. You will receive a rigorous grounding in the advanced skills needed to operate at a high level in industry and become competent in the solving the problems and challenges you will face. You will also be able to add value to your decisions through a thorough analytical approach and be able to better implement them as a competent building surveyor.

The course encompasses the entirety of the property life cycle, allowing you to appreciate how decisions made in one aspect of a property’s development and use can have a significant impact later on in the life cycle.