UDDGMDFY - BA (Hons) Digital Media (including foundation year)

Digital Media has become a rapidly expanding field of research with the rise of desktop and mobile technology; but also with more emergent technologies like social media, augmented reality, virtual reality and the Internet of Things. Changes to how people interact in society follow from these new mediums. Digital media also affects individual and social patterns of consumption of more traditional mediums (television, radio, print media and cinema). Digital media significantly impacts upon the public sphere; on politics, education, art and industry. Digital media now plays a crucial role in people’s lives.

As a result, over the last few decades, many new career opportunities in digital media have arisen. The digital media industry therefore needs qualified professionals, covering key pathways of digital media design, development, media production and digital media research. This course aims to fulfil these needs and equips students with skills in digital media; importantly, with a theoretical, practical and academic focus. The design of digital media has various research narratives which underpin this field of study. The key pathways in this field of study involve creativity and how digital media is produced by creators and platforms. The Digital Media degree approaches these key pathways from a critical and creative practice- based research perspective, enabling students to gain a wide understanding of the field under study. The aim of this course is to allow students to experience these key pathways through various perspectives: theoretical, social, historical, political, strategic, creative and practical.

Throughout this Digital Media degree programme, students will develop an informed and critical understanding of the different types of digital media fields; digital art, digital communication platforms and social media, interaction and user experience design, 2D and 3D animation, web and mobile technologies, augmented and virtual reality. It is hoped that the digital media student will leave this program with a range of skills from the key pathways identified above - and with a portfolio of digital media skills to demonstrate to any prospective employer. Working with professional- standard hardware and software, students will develop creative, practical, and industry- relevant skills in digital imaging, 3D graphics and animation, web design, games design, scripting and digital sound and video. Students will graduate with a personal digital media portfolio of work, and a deeper understanding of the digital media field.

The Digital Media course is taught using a combination of traditional, and innovative teaching methods, fostering practice- based, problem-based and inquiry-based learning with reflective engagement. This active learning is supported by a combination of lectures, workshops, seminars, tutorials, especially prepared online resources, work placement and field trips. Development of employability and professional practice is integrated into the module structure at level 4, 5 & 6. Students are encouraged to reflect on their learning process, preparing them for knowledge creation, life-long learning and leadership. A blended learning strategy is employed to enhance the learning experience, facilitate communication between students and tutors and develop collaboration among students. The Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) will be used as a platform to support online activities, facilitate formative assessment and related feedback, as well as a tool to integrate useful online learning materials provided by research institutions, academic publications, professional organisations and other relevant sources. Students will be able to develop practical skills in a range of cutting edge IT and design programmes, in addition to audio- visual skills. A student will also be developing transferable skills that will be of value in a variety of academic and employment contexts, with various modules helping to develop a range of critical abilities, a creative and imaginative approach to problem solving, and skills of analysis and presentation.

The course focuses on the student’s own creative processes and design. At the end of this course students will have experience of content creation, digital solutions for the corporate, public and voluntary sectors, usability design, project management, the Internet and mobile communications, digital media platform ownership and social media. Students will engage with contemporary ethical, political, economic, cultural and creative debates relevant to digital media, as well as developing a digital portfolio. The BA in Digital Media at London Metropolitan University aims to foster creativity, inspire and focus students along a progressive path towards digital excellence and expertise, through informed research and teaching.

The BA in Digital Media is dedicated to the education of a new generation of digital media professionals able to develop a comprehensive understanding of digital communications. The course does this by providing opportunities for students to develop expertise in a wide range of digital media technologies and forms of communication from theoretical, practical, creative, critical and technical perspectives. In this context, the Digital Media (BA) programme of education, and its aims, are rooted in the central role played by digital media in society, as it is integrated into every aspect of our social, political, economic and cultural life. This programme of study aims to provide the digital tools to live and work in an advanced industrial society.

The aims of the programme are to:
● Develop an understanding of the nature, function, social and cultural contexts of digital media, establishing a sound practical, theoretical and methodological framework for digital media practice.

● Develop professional skills in digital media – conceptualising, designing, planning, development and project management skills, thereby gaining an understanding of the relationship between design, concept development and a range of practice-based approaches to digital media.

● Develop critical practice in interactive digital media - not solely vocational 'how-to' skills but also the ability to think critically about 'why' and 'with what effects' - through understanding the critical, cultural and ideological debates underlying the development of the academic frameworks of digital media, with particular reference to how digital media treats power, gender, sexuality, race, and class.

● Develop a knowledge and understanding of digital media and culture; its historical context through the examination of an appropriate range of materials and practices, expanding knowledge of various global and international contexts increasingly influenced by digital media, through exploring and analysing national and international power relations; in particular how digital media tools, social media tools may contribute to these power relations.

● Develop understanding of student's interests and abilities and the ways in which these might be directed towards particular specialism down a particular pathway within the field of digital media.

● Expand the intellectual and imaginative capacities of students, through the development of an understanding of the changing nature of digital media in society.

● Provide opportunities for students to acquire a range of transferable skills that will enable them to engage critically and creatively with digital media; a range of transferable skills such as communication, problem solving, decision making and information seeking.

● Enabling students to work in a dynamic job market, by helping them to develop skills in independent study, research and synthesis for digital content design and media production, as well as an in-depth understanding of the structure and practices of the digital media industries.

● Widen access to higher education and to create an enabling environment for non-standard and standard students, thereby promoting equality of opportunity for UK, EU and international students.

The following learning outcomes incorporate and depend on systematic understanding of the key streams of the knowledge base of Digital Media, including a coherent and detailed knowledge of some specialist areas selected by the student. Those key streams as mentioned above cover digital media design, development, research and media production. On successful completion of this course students, will be able to:

1. Deploy established techniques of design, production, analysis and enquiry within the digital media field.
2. Suggest solutions and solve problems, using ideas and techniques at the heart of the digital media field.
3. Describe, conduct and comment upon particular aspects of current research in digital media, recognising the uncertainty, ambiguity and limits of knowledge.
4. Manage their own learning, and to make use of scholarly reviews and primary sources (for example, refereed research articles and/or original materials appropriate to digital media).
5. Apply the methods and techniques that they have learned to review, consolidate, extend and apply their knowledge and understanding, and to initiate and carry out projects within the digital media field.
6. Critically evaluate arguments, assumptions, abstract concepts and data (that may be incomplete), to make judgements, and to frame appropriate questions to achieve a solution - or identify a range of solutions - to a problem.
7. Communicate verbally and visually information, ideas, problems and solutions to both specialist and non-specialist audiences.
8. Exercise initiative and personal responsibility, including decision-making in complex and unpredictable contexts.
9. Undertake appropriate further training of a professional or equivalent nature.
10. University Learning Outcome (ULO) - Demonstrate confidence, resilience, ambition and creativity and will act as inclusive, collaborative and socially responsible practitioners/professionals in their discipline. (ULO)

Please check the latest Course Handbook for further information

The following subject benchmark statements are relevant to this degree programme:
This is because the BA Digital Media covers topics classified under the following codes in the Joint Academic Coding System (JACS) contained below the subject benchmark URL link.

A. Art and Design (2017 - Available at https://www.qaa.ac.uk/docs/qaa/subject-benchmark-statements/sbs-art-and-design-17.pdf?sfvrsn=71eef781_16)

B. Communication, Media, Film and Cultural Studies (2019, Available at https://www.qaa.ac.uk/docs/qaa/subject-benchmark-statements/subject-benchmark-statement-communication-media-film-and-cultural-studies.pdf?sfvrsn=28e2cb81_4)

The Digital Media course combines practice-based and theory-based modules which embed assessment and feedback practices informed by reflection, consideration of professional practice, and subject-specific and educational scholarship. Educational scholarship is guided by specialist academics in design, media and education. This Digital Media (BA) embeds both professional practice and subject- specific topics throughout the curriculum core modules. These core modules require students to engage with both theory and practice in the digital media field. Modules at level 6 enable students to extend their expertise in specific areas of digital media, information and communications. The level 6 project module, (SM6P07) enables students to develop an in-depth understanding of a sector of their choice; through research, design, development and media production of a self-defined brief.

Staff and students engage in dialogue to promote a shared understanding of the basis on which academic judgements are made, through the use of student- led module feedback, and formative and summative assessment strategies. Self-assessment, peer assessment and reflection on the process of learning are part of the modules’ assessment strategies. All assessment is coursework- based. Assessment tools for each module are determined by the aims of the module and its learning outcomes. Students are expected to produce a mixture of written, visual and oral work and are required to demonstrate working within a team, working with different media and with multidisciplinary concepts. Students are provided with opportunities to develop an understanding of, and the necessary skills to demonstrate, good academic practice. This is through the variety of types of assessments and adherence to strict principles on plagiarism, originality and academic integrity.

The volume, timing and nature of assessment enable students to demonstrate the extent to which they have achieved the intended learning outcomes through clear marking criteria; for example, if it’s a written assessment a 10% above or below the word count rule. Feedback on assessment is timely, constructive and developmental, and should contain a clear indication of at least 3 points for allowing improvement of grade. Processes for marking assessments and for moderating marks are clearly articulated and consistently operated by those involved in the assessment process, and in line with university policy, employing external moderators who review student’s work.

Embedded throughout every level of the programme is a focus on digital media- related work. Students are introduced at Level 4 to the digital media industry through a module called SM4052 Digital Work. In SM4015 Designing and Scripting for Interactive Media there is a real – life client brief to design a solution. A work placement forms part of a level five module: SM5W50 Work Based Learning for Media. The student will have an opportunity to engage with digital media- related work experience in an organisation and prepare a reflective piece of assessment associated with this placement. In addition, students have the opportunity to be part of the Study Abroad programme which involves an exchange with universities in the United States. Further, our students can engage with the Erasmus study programme and spend a semester at a university in another European country. Work-based learning in a fictional company is offered in an honours level module SM6000 Digital Media Management and Enterprise. On the module, students are given work tasks to complete. Such tasks may include identifying skills that are required for the production of the project, building a team, and managing various stages of the production process.

All core modules are required to gain the BA Digital Media award.

Awards below this can be gained with any combination of modules on the programme to the requisite credit values; these can be made-up of core modules from the programme.

Reflective learning and personal development planning is core to this course. A variety of learning, teaching and assessment methodologies are deployed in order to assist the student in her self-reflected personal development. In the course of their study, students engage with theory-based material and practice- based work, coming up with creative solutions to pre- defined client briefs and a project brief they set themselves in Level 6. Students reflect on theory in their practice, and apply practice to theory; at the same time analysing and documenting their work in progress. Working on projects, they actively construct their learning process by coming up with conceptual frameworks to then continue on to the material production, whilst being supported by their tutors. In many modules, project diaries, design notes and reports form part of the assessment, together with self- and peer-assessment exercises. Presentations and group critiques help the students to reflect critically on their work and achievement.

Portfolio-based learning, teaching and assessment is another main characteristic of the course. Group work and group projects invite peer-led teaching and assessment and contribute to the development of a wide range of reflective learning practices.

Graduating with a portfolio of work, the students produce a portfolio of work of their personal development throughout the course of their study. Reflective learning will vary across modules but will involve at all times engagement with peers and tutors in dealing with both formative and summative feedback on essays and reports. Practice- based modules all offer the opportunity for reflection on design process, theory together with critical analysis of academic literature and policies. Theoretical modules present opportunities to engage with abstract theory and test this against concrete examples.

Career guidance and industry contextualisation is embedded throughout the programme. Visiting lecturers from the digital media industry will be arranged each year. Alumni lecturers from the media, digital media and communications subject area will also be organised regularly. Staff maintain strong links with the industry and receive requests for candidates for both volunteer or junior positions in the industry which are then passed on to the students. Further, an annual event is organised, in the department, to provide the student with advice on careers, and CV writing among other activities. This is primarily aimed at third year students, however second year students also attend and avail of this advice. This day long activity involves the involvement of external invited specialists. Further, the student has the opportunity to access the university careers service.

Part of the course involves studying about and working in an industry-like environment, which strengthens the career education element of the course. Students take on roles of the employees as well as employers with guidance and support from the tutor who makes sure that the process follows marketplace arrangements closely. Another part of the course is concerned with making available to students the means to create their own website where they can promote themselves in the employment marketplace. Upon graduation, the students can advertise their skills to the potential employer with a portfolio of work. Students graduating from Digital Media at London Metropolitan University have the creative, analytical and communication skills to pursue employment in the field of digital media and/ or postgraduate study as evidenced by national statistics. Each year a number of our students immediately go on to Masters Level study in the UK and other European countries, including pan- European Masters Programmes. Each year our students are in-demand, in careers relating to web design and social media.

This course is designed to help you develop a range of skills specific to careers within digital media, as well as transferable skills that are vital in every workplace.

After graduation you’ll be equipped to start a career in the following fields:

• multimedia production
• game and web design
• social media
• web content management
• filmmaking
• video post-production
• project management.

In addition to the University's standard entry requirements, you should have:

• at least one A level (or a minimum of 32 UCAS points from an equivalent Level 3 qualification, eg BTEC Subsidiary/National/BTEC Extended Diploma)
• English Language and Mathematics GCSE at grade C/4 or above (or equivalent, eg Functional Skills at Level 2), if you meet UCAS points criteria but obtained a grade D/3 in English and/or Maths at GCSE you may be offered a University test in these areas

To study a degree at London Met, you must be able to demonstrate proficiency in the English language. If you require a Tier 4 student visa you may need to provide the results of a Secure English Language Test (SELT) such as Academic IELTS. For more information about English qualifications please see our English language requirements.

If you need (or wish) to improve your English before starting your degree, the University offers a Pre-sessional Academic English course to help you build your confidence and reach the level of English you require.