Foundation Degree (FdA) Creative and Broadcast Media

The Foundation Degree in Creative and Broadcast media is a predominantly practically led degree, focusing on relevant and required industry skills. This course is ideal for those interested in working in the media industry.

Unit information

For every 10 credits, students should engage with around 100 notional hours of learning. This will be approximately 30% direct learning contact and 70% independent student learning.

The course consists of the following modules:

Year 1 (Level 4)

Essential Technical Skills (10 credits, core)

This module will enable learners to develop an understanding of the basic equipment setup and calibration principles and theories. The learners will also gain an understanding of working within a professional environment. (Practical Assessment 100%)

Contextual Studies (10 credits, compulsory)

This unit aims to enable students to understand how media has evolved, to demonstrate an understanding of how theories relating to media work in practice and to explain how media production works in practice. (Presentation 40%, Practical Assessment 60%)

Professional Broadcast Techniques (20 credits, compulsory)

The module will enable the learners to gain an understanding of the concepts involved in pre-production, production and post-production. Students will learn how to capture audio and video materials from a range of digital sources, understand and use audio and video compression techniques and store material efficiently. In addition, students will develop an understanding of how audio and video sequences communicate ideas and information. (Portfolio 100%)

Animation and Visual Studies (20 credits, compulsory)

This module aims to impart knowledge of basic visual techniques to enable the learners to design and create a physical or digital animation. It will cover the graphic design and animation principles, giving learners the ability to match self-generated creative ideas to specific techniques, processes and practices. (Written Assessment 10%, Practical Assessment 60%, Portfolio 30%)

Research and Study Skills (10 credits, core) This module aims to develop the study skills of the students, enabling the production of sound academic writing, the introduction of critical thought and basic research skills. It will enable students to develop skills in academic writing, the use of academic conventions, information research, reflection and the management and organisation of their work. (Written Assessment 100%)

Employability-based Learning 1 (20 credits, compulsory) This module aims to enable learners to carry out a number of employment related tasks, negotiated jointly with employers/industry representatives and Grŵp-based staff. (Written Assessment 100%)

Multi-Camera Production (10 credits, compulsory)

This module will enable the students to develop knowledge and skills in multi-camera operations and productions, to work to plan and produce a multi-camera production to a specified brief and to reflect on their own performance and that of other members of the production team as well as the finished product. (Written Assessment 20%, Practical Assessment 80%)

Creative Media (10 credits, compulsory)

This module will enable learners to develop an understanding of the principles of storytelling, character development and narrative structure. The learners will also gain an understanding of storyboarding and screenplay formats. (Portfolio 100%)

Audio Production (10 credits, compulsory)

This module will enable learners to develop an understanding of the basic principles and theories of audio production. The learners will also gain an understanding of digital recording principles, how to capture, edit and broadcast their output within the framework of a media production. (Written Assessment 20%, Practical Assessment 60%, Portfolio 20%)

Year 2 (Level 5)

Research Methods and Study Skills (20 credits, core)

The module aims to consolidate, further develop and extend the student’s capacity to apply a range of academic skills appropriately within a chosen discipline. It will enable students to enhance their skills in academic writing and information research, introduce and apply a range of research methodologies and instruments and argue convincingly. (Written Assessment 100%)

Major Video Project (20 credits, core)

This module aims to provide students with the knowledge and skills required to plan and manage a media project. It will seek to provide students with enhanced skills relating to the specialist production area including the ability to combine skills from different areas to produce a single coherent project. In addition, students will learn how to devise and comply with self-imposed schedules (negotiated with project supervisor), manage their own learning and present a practical approach to a project brief. (Presentation 20%, Written Assessment 10%, Practical Assessment 70%)

Entrepreneurship and Self-promotion (20 credits, compulsory)

This module aims to analyse how people working in media, market and promote themselves, to write business documentation such as business proposals and business plans, to identify a range of financial considerations and to enable students to develop their own marketing and self-promotion skills. (Practical Assessment 40%, Portfolio 60%)

Visual Effects and Motion Graphics (20 credits, compulsory)

This module aims to impart knowledge of how computer-generated images and photorealistic images are created and how they are then composited seamlessly into a scene. How 2D and 3D assets can be created and then digitally animated. In addition, it will aim to develop practical ability in the creation of digital content for compositing and improving on animation techniques. Enabling students to reflect on their own production and post-production work. (Presentation 40%, Written Assessment 10%, Practical Assessment 50%)

Television Studies (10 credits, compulsory)

The unit aims to develop the student’s approach to present the results of research in an appropriate form and consider the implications of the chosen form in terms of style, structure and the relevant presentational conventions. (Presentation 30%, Practical Assessment 70%)

Working to a Professional Brief (10 credits, compulsory)

This module aims to consolidate previously developed knowledge and skills in order to encourage the development of original, critical and independent thinking applicable to a range of workplace practices appropriate to the discipline. This module enables a student to undertake a set industry brief that is relevant to their potential career direction which also contributes to the fulfilment of the course aims and objectives and the programme learning outcomes. (Written Assessment 40%, Portfolio 60%)

Employability Learning 2: Professional Reflection and Personal Development (20 credits, compulsory)

This module aims to provide learners with the opportunity to analyse the value of their learning within vocational and work-specific contexts. In so doing, it will require learners to reflect upon their learning experience in terms of how it has enhanced their academic and vocational knowledge and skills, self-esteem and current and future employability. This will enable learners to link their increased effectiveness in a range of work-based tasks and contexts to their extended and enhanced knowledge and skills sets.

In addition, the module will focus upon the creation of a comprehensive and vocationally-relevant personal and professional development plan, arising from forward reflection. The plan will identify a range of future academic and vocational developmental needs, specific to and within a range of work-based and employability contexts, which result in the identification of attainable goals. The plan will also identify and establish how progress towards stated goals may be measured. (Individual portfolio 40%, Personal and professional development plan 20%, Reflective journal 40%)