When studying a vocational subject area like Media, you want to start thinking about possible careers and how to increase your employability from the early days on your course. One thing to think about is the industry connections that your lecturers already have, as these may well translate into opportunities for you. Dr Vanessa Jackson explains the importance of industry connections with our media courses at BCU.
Dr Vanessa Jackson
Interim Deputy Head of English and Media
Within Media at BCU, we are lucky to have a whole host of industry partners. Many of the lecturers have industry backgrounds themselves, and therefore have a network of professional contacts. When I moved from the BBC to teaching at BCU in 2008, I remember being amazed at the number of opportunities we were able to offer students. These include guest speakers, trips and masterclasses, as well as work placements, some of which are voluntary and some of which are paid.
One of strongest and longest partnerships we have is with the broadcaster, Sky. I’ve been managing the relationship for the last 15 years and it had already been going for several years before that. We offer what we call the ‘Sky Scholarship’. It is a two-week paid placement in September down in Sky’s London headquarters. Any BCU Media student can apply and at least three get selected each year. The student who performs best during the fortnight is given an additional cash prize. The partnership is very popular with students, Sky and BCU. Sky love it because they get to see prospective employees in action. Students like seeing how a broadcaster really works, and obviously getting paid is super useful. BCU relish students succeeding, and eventually starting a career. Because of the scheme a number of graduating students secure jobs at Sky each year. We are the only university who run this scheme with Sky.
One of our newest partnerships is with Birmingham City Football Club (BCFC). It feels like a really good fit, especially with both having ‘Birmingham City’ in our names and I can even see the ground from my office window. Over the summer we’ve been training up some student volunteers to work with BCFC on their social media content. So far, it’s going well.
Media Courses at BCU
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We have a very good relationship with the BBC and have been able to offer students voluntary placements on the BBC Young Reporter project as well as tickets for events like BBC Production Unlocked.
We have an online jobs noticeboard where we advertise opportunities to students. You could volunteer to be part of our ‘Photographers Pool’ for the National Exhibition Centre, taking photos at some of the biggest gigs on tour.
Some of our courses have specific links, for instance BA Music Business is in partnership with UK Music, who provide speakers and masterclasses, but the course also has local music industry contacts like Safer Dance who offer work experience placements, and Hot Vox who provide live briefs for module assessments.
The Public Relations lecturers have industry links with different Birmingham-based PR firms, like WPR Agency, East Village PR and Spottydog Communications. The companies can help with work experience opportunities as well as guest speakers and masterclasses.
Our strong industry connections mean that there is a wealth of opportunity for students both within your modules and as extra-curricular activity. Taking advantage of these links will help you build an impressive CV, and a network of industry contacts whilst you are still a student. This means that when you graduate, you’ll be better equipped to start your career.