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BA (Hons) Journalism with Integrated Foundation Year

Learn essential journalism skills and produce content for print and online platforms. Be a journalist from day one, working for our award-winning radio station and websites in our mediaHUB. Cover news, sport, fashion, arts, and entertainment. Study for the NCTJ diploma.

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Journalism staff and students working in the media hub on a news day
UCAS codeP502
Duration4 years
Fee (UK)£9,790
LocationOn campus

Course summary

Learn essential journalism skills and produce content for print and online platforms. Be a journalist from day one, working for our award-winning radio station and websites in our mediaHUB. Cover everything from news, sport, fashion, arts, and entertainment. Study for UK journalism's gold standard qualification, the National Council for the Training of Journalists (NCTJ) diploma.

You'll be under the guidance of professional journalists who have worked for The Mirror, Grazia, Private Eye, and many more. We'll teach you how to:

  • Write and research news stories and feature articles
  • Creative video and interactive content
  • Design newspaper, web, and magazine pages
  • Become adept in using the latest digital storytelling tools for websites and social media

You'll also study the development of journalism and its principles and ethics.

There are a great range of optional modules you can take to build on your experience. For example, sports writing, fashion journalism, public relations, and investigative journalism.

This degree prepares you for a wide range of careers. For example, in newspapers, magazines, radio, TV, public relations, and new media industries. Our graduates have secured employment at Sky News, The Guardian, the Daily Mirror, the BBC, and regional newspaper groups Reach, JPIMedia, and Newsquest.

Why Sunderland for Journalism

Integrated Foundation Year

This course is available with an Integrated Foundation Year, an extra year of your degree. This route offers a supportive way of transitioning into university study. It may be suitable for you if you:

  • Have valuable work or life experience but no formal qualifications
  • Are returning to education after a break
  • Want to change direction or explore a new career path
  • Have just missed the entry requirements for the three-year course.

We’re enhancing our Integrated Foundation Year to give you an even stronger start to your degree. The updated modules will align more with your chosen subject area. This will help you build the knowledge, confidence, and skills you need for your studies. We'll share full details soon and can't wait to tell you more.

Please note, this route isn’t available to international students.

Accreditations and approvals

This course is accredited by the National Council for the Training of Journalists (NCTJ).

National Council for the Training of Journalists (NCTJ) logo(opens in new tab)

What you'll study

Many of our courses include a range of modules you can choose from. Some options may only be available if you’ve already studied specific modules. If you’re not sure what you need before picking a module, your course leader can help.

Undergraduate module credits should total 120 credits per academic year. If optional modules are available, choose an amount that totals 120 credits.

How you'll learn

Teaching methods include lectures, news days, seminars, workshops and group projects. Your teaching staff have all worked as journalists and have strong links with regional employers and industry organisations. We also invite experienced industry professionals to carry out regular guest lectures.

In your first year, you'll learn different types of journalism, gain an understanding of media law, and discover the latest digital storytelling techniques. This is a great chance to see what kind of journalism suits you best.

During your second and final year, you’ll study topics in more depth. You’ll experience our newsroom in action, learn how to do newspaper, web and magazine design, try your hand at video, audio and social media journalism and develop your online skills. You’ll also undertake a shorthand course free of charge. Throughout your study you can add to your skillset with optional modules.

In your final year, you'll go out on placement. This can be at any kind of journalism or communications organisation. You’ll produce a large-scale piece of journalism, which will be a significant piece to add to your portfolio of work to present to prospective employers.

Assessment methods include portfolios of practical work, essays, examinations, reports, and presentations.

Entry requirements

Fees and finance support

UK£9,790

The tuition fee includes the NCTJ exam fees. It covers the cost of one attempt at all seven exams required for the NCTJ Diploma, including each shorthand speed.

Undergraduate fees are set according to rules from Government in line with forecast inflation. If you're a Home fee-paying student, the fee for your first year of study for 2026/27 will be £9,790. You'll pay tuition fees for every year of study. Fees may increase every year based on the Retail Price Index.

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See all course tuition fees.

Full-time UK/Irish/EU settled/EU pre-settled students may be eligible for financial support. This would cover your fees for the full four years. UK and EU settled students may also be eligible to receive a maintenance loan.

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UK students

Disclaimer

We want to make sure you have clear and accurate information about our courses. Our website always shows the latest updates. If you’ve applied and you're offered a place, we’ll contact you in writing if anything important changes.

For more information, view our programme specifications. These include course content, learning outcomes, and the skills you'll gain.