Bachelor of Arts in Creative Writing

at Brunel University London United Kingdom

This dynamic military history course will offer you an in-depth study of warfare on land, sea and air across a range of periods and continents, from the Classical Age to the present.

Far from being just knowledge of the past, you will receive a detailed insight into issues relating to defence, security, intelligence and strategy. Taught by expert military historians, you will be highly valued by employers within these fields.

Three exciting core modules will take you into the arena of the subject: ‘War in History’ which considers the impact of war through the centuries; ‘The Royal Navy in the Twentieth Century’ which charts the pinnacle and decline of the British sea power; and ‘European Warfare in the Age of Muscle' that examines impact of warfare on politics and society in Europe from ancient times to 1453.

Your choice of an optional module provides the opportunity to study the Second World War, or drawing on experts from the University’s internationally renowned Centre of Intelligence and Security Studies (BCISS), either ‘Intelligence History: Failure and Success’ or ‘International Security’.

Along the way, you will build a toolkit of transferable skills gained through evidence gathering, analysis, problem solving, drafting and communications, which can be applied to a wide range of industries within the public and private sector.

Studying military history at Brunel has many advantages. Situated in London, the course has established links to world-renowned archives and libraries based in and close to London, including the Caird Library (National Maritime Museum), The National Archives and the Imperial War Museum, among others. Additionally, the original WWII operations bunker used by Sir Winston Churchill on the former RAF Uxbridge site is a walk away from campus.

As a Brunel student you can also look forward to membership to the Royal Institute for International Affairs, as well as access to the specialist Angus Boulton Military History Library housed on campus.

Guest speakers add further military expertise to the programme and have included Professor Ilan Pappe (University of Exeter), Emeritus Professor Avi Shlaim of Oxford University, Sir Tony Brenton (Cambridge University), and Professor Brian Holden-Reid (KCL).

If studies of the mind and mental health interest you, this socially and culturally focused course may provide a rich alternative to more scientific studies in psychology and psychiatry.

Study this course and you will investigate psychological and psychiatric issues from an anthropological perspective, addressing issues at the forefront of debates in social policy, morality, personal identity, and mental health.

By considering cases from around the world you’ll explore how person, consciousness, and experience are shaped through cultural practices and political realities.

Examining world ethnography (including the UK), you’ll learn about selfhood, emotion, personality, and understandings of ‘madness’ and mental illness in cultural context.

Brunel students come from varied professional and academic backgrounds, many taking time out for professional development. If you haven’t studied anthropology before, you’ll be offered introductory modules in anthropological theory to help prepare you for the rest of the course.

Anthropology at Brunel is well-known for its focus on ethnographic fieldwork and you will be expected to get out of the library and undertake your own, original research – whether in the UK or overseas – and to present your findings in a dissertation.

Your fieldwork can be taken anywhere in the world, locally, previous students have explored psychic training, Pentecostal churches, and mental health charities, and internationally, students have explored subjects like funerals in Iran, Amazon neoshamanism, and autism programmes in Belgium.

The Brunel Management MSc offers students a critically aware understanding of management and organisations relevant to their career path. This is achieved through the study of organisations, their management and the changing contexts in which they operate.

You will gain an advanced and applied understanding of contextual forces on organisations – be they legal, ethical, economic, environmental, social and technological; together with business strategy, markets and customers, financial management, and the management and development of people.

Career progression and finding suitable jobs are key for our students, so employment experience is part of the degree course with the option of a six to twelve week or yearlong work placement. From your placement you identify a project, linked to the dissertation, and produce an internal consultancy report for the company. 

The Brunel Management MSc allows you to study general business management or to select a specialist pathway which reflects your strengths and interests.

If you start your course in September you can study one year full-time,16 months full-time (with a 6-12 weeks placement), or two years full-time (with one year's placement). If you start your course in January, you can study 15 months full-time, 19 months full-time (with 6-12 weeks placement), or 27 months (with one year's placement).

The four pathways for the Management MSc are

Management (General Management) MSc

• Develop a generalised knowledge of theory and its practical applications to business, public sector and third sector organisations.

Management (Marketing and Brand Management) MSc

• A mix of general management study with specialism in marketing and branding issues followed by a related dissertation topic.

Management (Technology and Innovation Management) MSc

• Combine a study of general management with technology and innovation issues followed by a related dissertation topic.

Management (Digital Entrepreneurship and Creativity Management) MSc

• Gain knowledge of general management while studying issues related to the media industry and media management followed by a related dissertation topic.
• You will be given the opportunity to choose your specialist Management MSc degree pathway in induction week, and to choose elective modules during the first two weeks of your course. You can attend different pathway-related and elective classes, in order to help you make your choice by the end of the two-week period.
• If you are late to enrol, you will be given information on arrival relating to your pathway and elective options. However, you will be expected to make your final choices within 48 hours of enrolment.
• This course has a placement option. Find out more about work placements available.

Psychology in Sport, Health and Exercise is an area of growing interest, particularly in the world of professional sport. Through studying the link between the mind and the body, we can understand things like motivation and determination, and the effect that physical activity has on the brain.

This course is jointly delivered by the Divisions of Psychology and Sport, Health and Exercise Sciences. It is accredited by the British Psychological Society.

The Division of Psychology offers a firm foundation of learning including cognitive psychology, developmental psychology, and biological psychology. Quantitive and qualitative research methods are taught to support experiments you may carry out as research for your dissertation.

The Division of Sport, Health and Exercise Sciences will cover the fundamentals of sports psychology, and how to apply research knowledge to real-world situations. You will learn about experiences you may encounter as an applied psychology practitioner in both sport and exercise contexts.

As an accredited course, should you graduate with a 2:2 grade or higher, you will be eligible to apply for graduate membership of the British Psychological Society. Membership will be key if you choose to pursue postgraduate training. It’s also a pre-requisite of entry to all accredited Stage 2 and Doctoral programmes needed to become a chartered psychologist – be it in Sport and Exercise or otherwise.

How does human activity affect our planet? How can these effects be managed?

This course develops your understanding of environmental problems at a master’s level and gives you the skills to analyse and develop long-term solutions. You’ll be able to oversee environmental performance in the private, public and voluntary sector ensuring that improvements are made where possible and legislation is followed. This course seeks to raise your ability to understand and analyse environmental problems, in order to develop long-term solutions.

You can take the course with or without a Professional Development work placement. Both options are accredited by the Institution of Environmental Sciences (IES) and the Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management (CIWEM).

The Professional Development option provides you with an integrated work placement. You’ll have the opportunity to work on various projects and graduate with hands-on professional experience, something that will make you stand out when you embark on your career. At Brunel, we have excellent links with many organisations through our research activities so you can be assured of a high-quality placement at a relevant organisation. Opportunities for our MSc students include placements at The Environment Agency and international placements at the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and with the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA).

Have you grown up with a deep interest in film and television and the thinking that goes into bringing entertainment to homes across the country? Take a step into this fast-paced and exciting industry by studying Brunel’s Film and Television Studies and English BA.

Your degree will give you a thorough understanding of film and television by examining a wide range of recent and contemporary productions for both the big and small screen. You will gain an insight into a range of genres as your studies will explore Hong Kong to Hollywood cinema, science fiction, documentaries, and everything in between.

By opting for this joint honours degree with English, you will also study the major areas of English literature from the Renaissance to the most recent publications in poetry, fiction and drama, whilst developing an informed understanding of current debates in the subject.

This is an exciting, dynamic, wide-ranging course with plenty of flexibility allowing you to follow your own individual tastes and literary passions.

The film and television industries are very hands-on and wide-ranging fields, therefore you will be able to make modules choice accordingly. After the first year, up to 40% of your module choices can be practical so you are able to take the theory you have learned and put it into practice by applying it to your own work.

As well as enhancing your learning by attending screenings at the British Film Institute, the Institute of Contemporary Arts and other cinemas across the capital, you will also be eligible to enter our annual Brunel University Film Festival (BUFF) with categories including Best Fiction, Best Non-Fiction and Best Overall Film. This will allow you to put all your practical and theory skills into practice and will give you the opportunity to showcase your talents.

Brunel offers students access to fantastic editing suites with up-to-date production software including Avid with accredited training facilities for Final Cut Pro 10, allowing you to bring your ideas, thoughts and inspirations to life.

As you’ll be taught and supported by academics who are experts in their field, you’ll develop skills that can be applied from the classroom to the workplace. They know the industry inside out, so you know you are learning from experienced professionals who will bring their unique insights into your learning.

Gain an insight into life after your studies by putting your learning into practice by opting for a one-year work placement. You will graduate with valuable work experience to enhance your employment prospects and will be able to develop an understanding the working world within the film industry. We have excellent links with a wide range of notable external organisations, so you will have the opportunity to apply for high quality placements across London.

The Film and Television Studies and English BA is a part of the BAFTA albert education partnership. This accreditation provides students with exclusive access to the industry’s BAFTA albert carbon calculator, a tool used by Netflix, BBC, ITV, Channel 4, UKTV and Sky when producing their content. Participating students will work towards creating environmentally-friendly, sustainable content. Upon completion you will be presented with industry-recognised certification and become an official “BAFTA albert graduate”. This opportunity is provided at no extra cost.

As a graduate of this dynamic degree, you will leave us with the confidence to be able to develop a creative idea and see it through to the end – a transferable skill valuable in any sector.

Perhaps you enjoy writing, but prefer working with the facts rather than fiction? Or you have a keen interest in presenting to camera as a broadcast journalist or you’re an experienced blogger or vlogger. If so, a journalism degree might be good match for you.

Brunel’s Journalism and Culture BA course offers a balanced combination of journalism practice and theory to help provide the tools you need to pursue a variety of roles within the industry.

As part of the course you will learn the skills of journalism such as research, pitching story ideas, interviewing, reporting and writing across multi-media platforms as well as the relationship between journalism and culture and society.

You’ll learn across video, audio and magazine journalism and because it’s so hand-on you’ll feel like you’re building real skills for future.

As you journey through the course you’ll develop a critical understanding of the communication environment where journalism and media and cultural industries operate, as you develop the analytical ability to explore intellectual inquiries and present findings.

This London journalism course is taught by world-class academics, many of whom are active professional journalists who will be sources of inspiration when you come to do your own journalism research project in your final year.

Journalism and Culture BA has a strong emphasis on digital technology and multi-platform journalism and you will learn in a 24-hour, state-of-the-art, multi-platform digital newsroom and broadcast facilities, using the latest edition industry-standard hardware and software.

The course will also enable you to develop a critical and in-depth understanding of the media industry that will help you succeed in the fast-changing digital world.

In your second year, you’ll have the option to take the NCTJ (National Council for the Training of Journalists) Diploma in Journalism at no extra cost. The NCTJ Diploma is the number one industry recognised gateway into journalism, sought after by media professionals worldwide.

Once you graduate, you’ll have a unique set of skills and expertise that will give you a competitive edge when applying for jobs with cultural, political and social decision-making organizations in the UK and across the world.

Brunel students enjoy their own creative writing journal to showcase their talents as well as the Brunel Union of Students ‘Le Blurb’ publication, so they’ll be plenty of avenues to practice your craft.

You’ll also get to hear from alumni and guest speakers about what it’s really like to work in the journalism. Previous representatives from small papers, as well as the BBC and The Guardian have helped to provide further insight into the industry.

The location of the University is within easy reach of London and the West End, the British Library, museums and other research centres of national and international importance, offering endless opportunities for additional learning and leisure.

Who has political power? Why do they have it? To whom are they accountable? Is violent protest ever justified? If these questions evoke a response in you and raise more questions in turn, politics is the degree for you.

Politics is an exciting and dynamic subject, simulating debate and offering insight into how the ever-changing world around us works. It’s also a degree that can demonstrate your intellectual acumen and understanding of world affairs, which will be an asset in many fields of work.

The broad-based nature of the course at Brunel means you will be studying a wide breadth of modules from British politics to US foreign policy and political change. But you’ll not only be learning about politics – you’ll be analysing politics using the tools of political science to help deepen your understanding and critical thinking.

Opt for a placement year and you'll gain work experience that is highly valued by employers. Brunel students have secured placements in the Environmental Audit Committee, the House of Commons, Directorate of Gender Affairs, HM Treasury and the Competition Commission, to name only a few.

You can also opt to take part of your degree abroad in one of our partner universities in Europe, or participate in an exchange programme to China or the USA to study politics in a different part of the world whilst experiencing a new culture.

Brunel is a dynamic university choice for your politics course. You’ll be taught by politics experts who are often called on to comment on radio and television. The Brunel campus has hosted the filming of BBC’s Question Time and is a political hub during local and national elections.

Brunel politics graduates enter diverse careers. Many of our former students go into politics and the civil service and some are currently at GCHQ and military intelligence. Others work in the public and private sector like the NHS, international banks, business consultancy, law, NGOs and the media. Whichever route you chose, a politics degree with Brunel will set you up for a successful future.

In today’s business landscape, brand is everything. But what exactly is brand and how do we manage it for the best possible outcome? Brunel’s Corporate Brand Management MSc examines the importance of branding, corporate identity, image and reputation.

You will study a wide-range of brands (e.g. product, service, personal, company) from a variety of cultures and sectors (private, public and not-for-profit) including start-ups, SMEs, and multinationals. You will also study how corporate branding is key to an organisation’s overall marketing strategy.

Brunel Business School was the first school to introduce a specialised MSc in corporate brand management back in 2007. The Corporate Brand Management MSc is taught by an enthusiastic team including Professor John M.T. Balmer, who is highly regarded in the corporate brand domain, as well as renowned brand specialists Dr Sharifah Alwi and Dr Yousra Asaad, amongst others.

You have the option of taking either a year-long or six to twelve week work placement, depending on your needs, to help you enhance your skills and boost your career prospects while you study. We were one of the first business schools to offer postgraduate degrees with placement and the feedback has been that this is incredibly useful as you can put your learning into practice immediately. It’s also a great way to make business contacts with the possibility of a job offer from your placement employer once you’ve graduated. Find out more on our work placements page.

Accredited by the Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM), this course offers the option to study the CIM Certificate in Professional Marketing alongside your degree. Find out more on our accreditations and exemptions page.

Topics covered on the degree include corporate and product brand identity, corporate and product brand image and reputation, corporate marketing, and corporate communications. You will also study marketing communications and strategy from a corporate branding perspective.

How does the media shape culture and society? What role does the media play in people’s lives? Are audiences now producers? Are young people disconnected from traditional politics?

On this course you’ll explore the answers to these questions and many more. You’ll focus on the rapid changes in global media and communications and their social and cultural consequences within an international context. You’ll have the opportunity to meet professionals working in the broadcast, advertising and marketing industries who visit us on campus and through organised field trips.

Maybe your background is in media, sociology or another relevant discipline, or perhaps you are already a professional in the communications or broadcast industry seeking to gain a more sociologically-informed understanding of those industries. On this course you’ll develop the advanced skills and knowledge you need.