Master of Science (Hons) in Computing and Information Technology

at Birmingham City University - City Centre Campus United Kingdom

Want to study both psychology and sociology at University? Our BSc (Hons) Psychology with Sociology degree combines both subjects and allows you to take a year-long industry placement.

Our innovative course will give you a deep understanding of how the core and specialized areas in psychology and sociology contribute to our understanding of contemporary issues. You will apply scientific reasoning and evaluate patterns of behaviour, gaining key transferable skills in communication, teamwork and problem-solving.

Sociology helps us make sense of the societies in which we live and our place within them. Our Psychology with Sociology course brings together two closely interrelated areas, allowing you to gain significant knowledge and insight.

What's covered in this course?

Over your three years of study, your Psychology modules will help you gain an understanding of a person’s mind, behavior and actions, while the Sociology side will equip you with the knowledge of group interactions and society as a whole. Practical in nature, our course will enable you to apply both Psychology and Sociology to human behaviour and society.

Our focus on contemporary and innovative learning practices will help you gain key employability skills, such as communication, teamwork and problem-solving, as well as key skills in two innovative, intriguing disciplines.

The applied nature of our BSc (Hons) Economics degree prepares you to work as an economist, or in a related role which is concerned with the study of the economy and its impact on society and the natural environment.

Economics is a major social science which informs major challenges faced by our societies today, including inequality, environmental sustainability and economic policy. Economics draws on and influences other social sciences and humanities and it is also a core business discipline which is integral to understanding organizational behaviour, strategy and corporate performance.

The unique offering of this course lies in its use of a pluralist approach to teaching, which will empower you to understand the relevance of competing economic theories and their application in your daily life and in your future workplace.

The course will provide you with a firm foundation of economics to interpret, analyse and question diverse economic theories and policies in a real-life context. To do so effectively, this course equips you with a vast analytical toolkit, which includes mathematical and statistical analysis, critical thinking, qualitative techniques and proficiency in a range of industry-specific software packages that are relevant to the Economics profession. You will also learn how to communicate results and ideas concisely to a variety of specialist and non-specialist audiences.

Economics is a global subject. You will be encouraged to look at situations from an international perspective. You will apply the knowledge learnt in the course to examine global events and look at how different economic ideas help us understand and address global challenges such as poverty, inequality, climate change and the impact of new technologies on the economy and society. Moreover, your course will be delivered by a multinational team of experts. Your classmates will also come from a variety of countries and cultural backgrounds. Finally, we offer you a study abroad opportunity: you can study for one term overseas in one of our partner universities.

Whether you're a recent graduate or returning to study after a break, our postgraduate programs in Vocal Performance provide you with advanced-level training in singing. You're encouraged and enabled to increase your experience as a performer and to broaden your repertoire, though you can also take the opportunity to specialise if you wish.

Alongside your vocal studies, our courses provide excellent opportunities for you to develop other skills relevant to a future career in the music profession. A separate postgraduate pathway is available for Jazz vocalists.

You'll receive specialist vocal tuition from leading UK and internationally renowned performers and teachers. In addition, you'll enjoy regular opportunities to sing in a variety of contexts, both as a soloist and in ensembles with other performers. Such opportunities include not only classes and masterclasses (these last being led by distinguished guest performers), but also in concerts and on the operatic stage.

English Language and Literature degrees instil graduates with a vast range of skills, which are highly sought after by employers.

The BA (Hons) English Language and Literature course will support you in developing interdisciplinary skills in both areas, as well as the wider field of humanities.

You will have a unique opportunity to strengthen your critical skills in informed reading and analysis, whilst deepening your appreciation for language and literature. You will develop your writing, close-reading and research skills, and learn to express your arguments coherently and persuasively.

Your language studies will be applied to everyday and professional settings, allowing you to strengthen your understanding of communicative processes, while your literature studies will provide an opportunity to examine literature from all of the major periods, movements and genres. Your degree will allow you to tailor your studies to your individual interests.

What's covered in this course?

English as a discipline continues to be relevant to the lives we lead and is central to a wide range of contemporary and social contexts. It is this fact on which the School has built its philosophy and approach to English as a subject with interdisciplinary reach beyond its own boundaries.

Understanding how language works in practice, engaging with multiple forms of communication, and examining how language and literature engage with societies and cultures in the past and present, are all vital aspects in understanding how the discipline connects with the wider world, enabling you to focus on the production, interpretation and negotiation of meaning and to understand the world from a variety of perspectives.

You will benefit from student-focused and research-informed teaching in a friendly and supportive learning environment. Our graduates are characterised by their extensive subject knowledge, critical thinking and intellectual curiosity, reflected in the skills and abilities that enables them to adapt to a wide range of career paths and employment opportunities.

The School contributes to the cultural life of Birmingham and the wider West Midlands by: working closely with partner colleges and schools; maintaining close links with cultural institutions such as the Birmingham and Midland Institute (BMI) and Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery (BMAG); and working with agencies such as Writing West Midlands. The aim is to provide opportunities for the community to engage with the discipline and the University.

Designed for recent graduates and suitably qualified mature students, our taught Master of Music (MMus) Orchestral Conducting courses provide the technical training, collaborative opportunities and podium time necessary to help you prepare for a career as a professional conductor. Royal Birmingham Conservatoire is currently the most exciting destination for orchestral conductors, with an active concert schedule.

As a Principal Study Orchestral Conductor, you'll be offered individual tuition from our staff conductors, and also from the many distinguished guest conductors who work with our ensembles and orchestras on an occasional basis throughout the year.

You'll work across the whole spectrum of the Conservatoire’s music-making, from core contemporary repertoire and student composition projects, through the central romantic and classic masterpieces back to period performance techniques.

It's normal for conducting students to be proactive in presenting performances of projects that they've generated themselves. You'll receive support and professional advice in pursuing such projects, which should be viewed as an essential element of your studies. Both PgDip and MMus courses provide excellent opportunities to develop other skills relevant to a future career in the music profession.

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.

Our BA (Hons) Fashion Design degree course will equip you with the necessary knowledge and skills to succeed in the fashion industry and have the chance to take part in exciting work placements, with companies such as Ted Baker, Mary Katrantzou, Paul Smith, Topshop and River Island.

You will learn to work with different design systems alongside staff who have valuable industry experience with a range of recognised brands. Each year, a selection of our final-year students showcase their final year work to industry leaders at events such as Graduate Fashion Week and New Designers in London.

What's covered in this course?

The course equips you with the necessary knowledge, skills and attributes to succeed in a wide range of careers in the fashion industry.

Your first year will introduce you to a number of fashion topics, helping you to develop a good foundation of fashion knowledge and skills, in both design and technical areas.

Your second year helps to strengthen your personal and professional development in relation to your own career goals. You will also have the opportunity to take part in the international Erasmus exchange program, spending a semester at an international institution.

An optional placement year takes place between years 2 and 3, providing an opportunity for an internship in industry.

Your final year, gives you the opportunity to specialize in women’s or menswear.  You will focus on your own individual area of practice and produce garments that reflect your personal direction as a creative fashion design graduate.

The LLM International Business Law meets the current demand for specialist knowledge and skills in a rapidly expanding field. The course provides you with the opportunity to explore the legal regulation of the world of international business, and you will acquire knowledge and understanding of the aspects of substantive and procedural law.

You will study all the key areas of International Business Law:

Core taught modules:

• International Corporate Law
• Transnational Commercial Law
• Corporate Criminality and Tax Evasion
• Advanced Legal Research Methods

Two optional modules from the list below:

• International Intellectual Property Law
• Conflict Resolution in Business
• Global Comparative Competition Law
• Corporate Compliance
• Comparative International Corporate Insolvency Law

LLM Masters Stage:

• Dissertation/Live Project/Placement

Professional Placement option

For our International Law LLM degrees, you will have the opportunity to take the Professional Placement version of the course, which 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 and transferable skills. The placement experience will allow you to evidence your professional skills, attitudes and behaviours at the point of entry to the postgraduate job market.

Our postgraduate degree in Jewellery and Related Products is a highly respected, innovative course, which develops your creative potential and in-depth knowledge of theories, processes and techniques.

Students on our course demonstrate understanding, and a critical awareness of current issues and/or new insights.

What's covered in this course?

The focus of this course is very much on developing your entrepreneurial spirit and helping you become the designer you want to be.

You will use a variety of materials, manufacturing techniques and processes.

The scope for design is very broad and builds on knowledge in the area of personal ornaments, body signification and decorative metal objects.

There are affinities with industrial design, fashion design, fine art and sculpture and content is often informed by philosophy, conceptualisation and critical theory.

Project-based activities will develop creative, design and making skills and enhance your professional skills. You will develop concepts and products, analyse problems and reflect on the relationships between personal objectives, cultural values, market identities, prototyping techniques and new technologies.

You will demonstrate a comprehensive understanding of techniques applicable to your own research and advanced creative activity, alongside exhibiting originality in the application of knowledge.

You will demonstrate your practical understanding of how established techniques of research and enquiry are used to create and interpret knowledge in our discipline and create innovative new designs in jewellery and related products.

The course is based at our internationally renowned School of Jewellery, in the heart of Birmingham’s famous Jewellery Quarter. The historical facade of our Vittoria Street building conceals a contemporary environment including workshops, a specialist library, an atrium gallery and exhibition space.

Our MA Art and Design: Interdisciplinary Practices develops your professional practice while engaging with the hybrid nature of art and design in contemporary culture. You will apply art and design methodologies to challenge conventional viewpoints. A multidisciplinary team of expert staff encourages you to work across mediums, processes and working methods (such as photography, installation, print, digital media, sculpture, illustration, curatorial practice, textiles, drawing, sound, graphic design, site-specific art, participatory arts or 3D design).

What's covered in this course?

This stimulating course offers you an education in contemporary art and design from an interdisciplinary perspective. You will be supported as creative individuals from a range of tutors and practitioners, with the aim of pushing your existing practice in new directions. The course helps you develop a wider contextual understanding of your practice, while gaining strong research skills in order to develop interdisciplinary projects underpinned by contextual and theoretical debates.

You will be encouraged to develop independent study in relation to different cultural perspectives and a range of contemporary art and design practices, such as fine art, curation, visual communication, fashion, product and interior design.

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 behaviors 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.

You will be responsible for finding and securing your own placement. The University, however, will draw on its extensive network of local, regional and national employers to support you in finding a suitable placement to complement your chosen area of study. You will also benefit from support sessions delivered by Careers+ as well as advice and guidance from your School.

Do you love the character and buzz of urban places? The Landscape Architecture with Urban Design degree course will help you to gain real industry exposure and work on a wide range of exciting briefs. The course focuses on offering experience through practice, which will enhance your chances of securing a role after you graduate.

In Landscape Architecture with Urban Design, our focus is on a need to transcend traditional built environment disciplines towards the creation of lively and sustainable urban places. Through guided exploration of personal design and research process, you will explore and unwrap many layers to reveal the unlimited design options that our urban landscapes present.

As a compliment to Landscape Architecture, this pathway focuses on urban contexts as social places and looks at ways in which human built-environments can ensure a more sustainable, happy future for all of us.

What's covered in this course?

Covering the spectrum of landscape architecture, with an enhanced focus on urban design.

You’ll work in a design studio culture, which mimics real-world creative practice to prepare you for your future career.

Experience on live local sites and project briefs in design studios will develop your design creativity and hone your professional practice skills. Placements and competitions will give you fantastic opportunities. There are also chances to compete for industry connected awards.

You’ll have the chance to be part of numerous collaborative initiatives within the School of Architecture and Design that give you the chance to work on a diverse variety of live projects. Past examples include: explorations into the death and life of a local high street, wayfinding from forgotten nodes and journeys in hybrid reality.