Master of Arts in International Social Welfare and Social Development

at University of Bedfordshire - Luton Campus United Kingdom

Marketing graduates, with understanding of the dynamics of modern business marketing, are highly employable, and this professionally-accredited degree will ensure you are up-to-date with developments in communications, digital and social media as well as essential business functions like finance, HRM and operations.

Marketing embraces psychology, consumer behaviour, management, innovation, sociology and popular culture and is central to life in the 21st century.

After studying buyer behaviour, marketing data analysis, branding, competition, and media and communications, you will combine it all in practical assignments.

Why choose this course?

• Learn from staff with extensive industry experience as you engage with real marketing projects
• Study the latest marketing developments ensuring you graduate with up-to-date knowledge
• Develop your career opportunities with an optional placement and links to industry practitioners
• Gain knowledge of marketing and communications areas including management, marketing in contemporary contexts, marketing data and international business
• Explore a range of potential career options including sales, brand management, business development, market research, communications and customer liaison
• Benefit from studying a degree accredited by the Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM), with an optional placement (sandwich) year.

In each year of study, you will be involved in  practical marketing projects from real companies and you will interact with professional practitioners, allowing you to engage with theory and practice and encourage you to make links between your studies and workplace practice.

This provides you with an understanding of modern business marketing and will ensure that you are up-to-date with developments in communications, digital and social media, as well as business functions like finance, HRM and operations.

Our professionally-accredited course will provide you with the opportunity to take the Introductory Certificate in Marketing qualification awarded by the renowned Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM), with further exemption opportunities for the CIM Professional Certificate and CIM Professional Diploma.

After graduation, this could provide a great way to start your marketing career and save you time and money towards your professional marketing qualification

The development of safe and effective new drugs is a challenging and rewarding field. Our Pharmacology Master’s gives you the high-quality training, knowledge and key skills required to make your mark in the pharmaceutical industry and ultimately benefit wider society.

The course gives you a broad knowledge of drug discovery and development, focusing on the mechanisms of drug action at molecular level; the treatment of human diseases; and the latest cell and molecular technologies used in pharmacology. You gain an in-depth understanding of individual examples of modern drug research and development before moving on to specialise in one research area through the completion of a laboratory research project.

Why choose this course?

• Study the principles of drug design, pre-clinical evaluation, clinical trials, regulatory affairs and the application of new technologies in the drug discovery and development process
• Explore the latest therapeutic concepts and principles relating to causes, epidemiology, diagnosis and the treatment of human diseases in current clinical practice
• Develop a systematic understanding and critical awareness of new technologies in cell and molecular biology
• Gain a wide range of valuable practical skills and the ability to devise an experimental plan as an independent investigator

The MBA (Finance) is a flagship qualification designed to meet the needs and aspirations of early career individuals through the combination of a general management education with the specialist area of Finance.

It is designed for individuals who want to develop their leadership and management skills along with their interest in Finance and for those seeking fast track career progression opportunities.

This postgraduate degree aims to enhance your professional prospects by developing your capability to apply the latest thinking relating to organisational development and change in the competitive global context. Successful completion of the MBA (Finance) highlights your potential to have a real impact on the transformation of the organisation you join.

Our courses are designed to be engaging, attractive and flexible in the current global marketplace. There are six entry points through the year. This allows you to start when it is most suitable.

Your course takes place over three semesters. Depending upon when you join the course, this will determine the order of units which you will study. You will benefit by beginning your studies with others who started at one of the earlier points of entry.

Why choose this course?

• The course adopts a practical and applied business curriculum and aims to develop an advanced knowledge of organisations and their effective management in the dynamic competitive global context, and the ability to creatively apply this knowledge and understanding to complex issues to systematically and innovatively enhance strategic business and management practice.
• This offers a challenging learning opportunity to encourage the integration of theory and practice supported by experienced academics with substantial management experience.
• You will work with academics and professors of practice on live consultancy projects with leading employers in organisations across private, public and not-for-profit sectors to support your personal and professional development as a creative and innovative leader with the knowledge and skills needed in the global, knowledge-based economy.
• You will develop the attributes and skills expected of post-graduates confirmed by partner industry bodies including the Chartered Management Institute and the Confederation of British Industry, including team-working, negotiation skills, leadership, confidence and the ability to apply critical and creative thinking to complex and unclear problems to develop innovative solutions

The growth and commercialisation of sport and rapid development of digital and social media tools makes sports journalism an exciting and fast-moving branch of the industry. This specialist course gives you the skills you need to be a 21st-century sports journalist.

Learn the core practical skills of journalism and how to apply them to a sports specialism using traditional research and writing as well as new and developing media forms.

Sharpen these skills with an in-depth understanding of the political, social, historical and economic sporting environment - as well as the legal and ethical frameworks journalists work within - adding depth and authority to your reporting.

You benefit from studying with a team of industry specialists in both sports reporting and general journalism, across a range of platforms, and have opportunities to hear from leading academics, sports participants and masterclass speakers from the worlds of both sport and media.

Why choose this course?

• Gain core communication and multimedia skills that are highly valued across a range of graduate industries
• Put your skills into practice via real-life sports reporting assignments
• Explore opportunities for work experience within radio, television, print and online journalism
• Develop a portfolio of work and contacts while honing your skills through regular news days
• Report from your first year for our news website and present your own show on our community radio station, Radio Lab
• There’s the option to take this course over four years and benefit from a fee-free industry placement (see below) where you gain experience, build your CV and make contacts for the future
• If you need a step into the full degree, you can start with a Foundation Year (see below) which guarantees entry to the Undergraduate course

The MSc Software Engineering and Applications is designed for graduates and experienced programmers who want to solve real-world problems, evaluating advanced software engineering environments and building up complex software applications based on emerging technologies.

The course covers a range of topics from advanced programming, design patterns and data modelling to popular development platforms, open source frameworks and cloud computing will be explored to open up your career.

The aims of the course are to provide you with a critical understanding of Software Engineering Techniques such as advanced programming, design patterns and databases.

You will be able to follow significant trends in system development, including software development, version control with GitHub, open source frameworks such as OpenCV and Tensorflow along with web services and cloud computing.

You will have developed your problem solving skills with respect to software engineering and develop your analytical and evaluative skills with respect to information technology.

Why choose this course?

The MSc in Software Engineering and Applications with Placement course is about building professional software developers and helping them to create applications of latest emerging technologies. It is an ideal course for Computer Science graduates and experienced programmers who want to solve real-world problems, evaluating advanced software engineering environments, and built up complex software applications based on emerging technology with improved readability, testability, and extensibility. A range of topics from advanced programming to popular development platforms, open source frameworks, Big Data ecosystem and Cloud Computing will be explored to fulfil the goal and to open up your career opportunities.

This British Psychological Society (BPS) accredited course is your first exciting step towards becoming a counselling psychologist, helping people deal with issues like bereavement, domestic violence, sexual abuse, traumas and relationship difficulties.

Psychology, Counselling & Therapies offers a unique approach, blending knowledge and practice from counselling and coaching psychology. You study classic and contemporary theories of counselling and psychotherapy - including psychodynamic, person-centred and cognitive behavioural approaches - to gain a thorough understanding of the core areas. Alongside this, you learn how to apply your knowledge to everyday, real-life situations, taking different perspectives on psychological issues and problems.

The course gives you the skills you need to move on to professional postgraduate training in a wide range of inspiring and rewarding careers across the different fields of counselling and psychology.

Why choose this course?

• Benefit from a BPS-accredited degree taught by registered clinical psychologists, practitioners and researchers
• Learn from an academic team who are members of the Research Centre for Applied Psychology
• Develop the skills needed to be an effective counsellor or therapist, from role play and peer coaching practice up to pre-practitioner level
• Explore issues, research methods and ethical considerations in counselling and coaching psychology as well as general psychology
• Gain insight into psychological practice in the NHS as well as awareness of the career paths the NHS offers
• Opt to take the course over four years and include a year’s placement in professional practice (see below), gaining experience and making contacts for the future
• If you need a step-up into higher education, you can take the degree with a Foundation Year (see below) which guarantees you entry to the Undergraduate course

On this Master’s course, you learn how biotechnology and engineering can be used to treat human disease, exploring areas of biological science that offer clear commercial applications for future healthcare developments.

Biomedical engineering is at the forefront of medical research, advancing our understanding of biology and improving healthcare. As a professional in this field, you will be able to use biotechnology and engineering to create new products and medicines aimed at solving a wide range of medical problems.

When you join this course, you start by learning about new technologies in cell and molecular biology before focusing on genomic and systems’ data; cell visualisation; and protein localisation in cells and tissues. You also study methods to create three-dimensional cultures and tissues.

Why choose this course?

• Benefit from a wide choice of laboratory-based research projects using state-of-the-art technologies and instruments
• Study with a research-active academic team who possess wide-ranging research experience in each subject area
• Benefit from the expertise of visiting specialists from external academic institutions, industry or government agencies
• Develop the ability to synthesise and use information from relevant sources, independently and critically evaluating current research and advanced scholarship
• Gain the practical, hands-on knowledge and expertise that will equip you to work within emerging areas of the biotech and pharmaceutical industries

The world needs accountants and finance professionals who can make informed, strategic choices for businesses that enable them to grow and survive in a competitive market. This course provides you with the skills to make these investment decisions across a range of business environments.

This degree gives you the understanding and skills to record, classify, summarise, interpret and communicate financial information while you help a business to follow correct accounting standards and comply with the law.

Studying in a simulated business environment, you explore business practice from regulatory and risk management issues to how financial markets operate and what makes them crash. Units include corporate governance; data analysis; auditing; and taxation.

The course is accredited by the Association of International Accountants of Chartered Certified Accountants and the Association of International Accountants.

Why choose this course?

• Learn about both the power and limitations of accountancy and its financial techniques, and how these impact on areas under the wider business umbrella
• Explore contemporary issues in accounting or finance through your supervised research dissertation
• ACCA awards exemptions from its F1 to F9 papers if you successfully complete relevant course units – the maximum ACCA exemptions available at undergraduate level
• Successfully completing relevant course units also makes you eligible for exemptions from the AIA’s Foundation level and Professional level 1 papers
• Acquire transferable, professional skills in communication, problem-solving, teamwork and leadership
• Develop your interest in specialist areas, with the opportunity to progress to Masters’ level
• If you need to step up into higher education, start with a Foundation Year (see below) which guarantees entry to the degree course

While teaching you all the essential skills you need to work creatively as an animator - including visual thinking, model-making, 3D design, digital illustration and time-based media – this wide-ranging course also gives you the confidence to respond to briefs, create independent projects and work collaboratively within the creative industries.

Our Animation BA (Hons) is based in narrative and storytelling for short-form film, the moving image industry and communication design. Students work on live briefs, submit for national competitions and work on projects with our expert academic team.

You learn your craft through practical workshop sessions, sustained practice in the studio, some work-related learning opportunities with ‘live briefs’, one-to-one tutorials, seminars, demonstrations and independent research. All your instruction takes into consideration professional and work-related practices.

In the first year, we introduce the key skills in animation, building a close relationship between practice and theory. In your second year, you work more independently, taking ownership of your creativity and its outcomes.

At the end of the course, you take on a creative project of your own, demonstrating your insight into the critical, cultural and professional contexts in which your work is placed.

Why choose this course?

• It enables you to study, develop and apply critical enquiry skills to a wide range of key ideas and contemporary professional practice
• Practical learning activities give you the opportunity to tackle visual problems and explore ideas relevant to animation
• It builds your understanding of animation’s different contexts, and its wider global impact on social, environmental and political issues
• It equips you with the knowledge, experience and understanding of design environments you need to communicate and present ideas and work to audiences in a range of situations
• It gives you the skills to work effectively with others, through collaboration, collective support and negotiation
• It offers insights into professional practice that will prepare you for a future career in the creative industries as well as the world of work generally
• You have the option to take your degree over four years and include a fee-free placement year in industry when you can gain practical experience, build your CV and make valuable contacts

Develop the skills and confidence to deliver real-world, research-informed health and social care, on a degree course that opens up a wide range of career roles.

This course gives you a broad understanding of contemporary health and social care and its application in the wider social, policy, legal and organisational environment, both within the UK and internationally.

Areas of study incorporate sociology, public health, law and the human services. In your second and third years, follow your interests with optional units in mental health, disability, safeguarding, addictions, human rights and care of older people. In your final year, undertake an independent research project, with the support of our experienced academic team.

There is a strong vocational focus, ensuring you develop transferable, employability-enhancing skills. Take this course over four years and include a fee-free one-year placement in industry* where you gain practical experience, build your CV and meet potential future employers.

Why choose this course?

• Understand and confidently apply evidence-based theory to practice, delivering excellent health and social care outcomes to all those who access these services
• Study with an academic team who have wide experience in the field and are actively involved in health and social care research
• Benefit from the opportunities offering by the University of Bedfordshire’s new Health & Social Care Academy, run in partnership with local councils and NHS Trusts, to recruit and train health and social care workers
• Take the course with a placement year (see below) and benefit from our wide range of relevant placement opportunities including roles in research assistance, social media and community advocacy as well as internships
• If you need to step up into higher education, start with a Foundation Year (see below) which guarantees entry to the undergraduate course
• The course opens up career paths within local authorities, public health, civil service, social enterprises and the NHS as well as in the private and not-for-profit sectors
• Our Health and Social Care course received a 91% satisfaction rate in the National Student Survey 2020