BA (Honours) Marketing Communications and Advertising with Foundation Year

Year of Entry 2024/25
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BA (Honours)

Marketing Communications and Advertising with Foundation Year

Full-time Marketing

Become a creative and strategic marketer with the skills to develop innovative content and communication strategies for diverse audiences.

Everything you need to know...

  • Pound sign

    What is the fee?

    Home: £9,250 per year (£1,200 for placement year)
    International/EU: £16,655 per year

  • Time

    How long will I study?

    4/5 Years

  • Location

    Where will I study?

    City Campus

  • Bookmark

    What are the entry requirements?

    64 UCAS Points

  • Checkmark

    What is the UCAS code?

    A078

  • Date

    When do I start?

    September 2024

  • Avatar

    Placement year available?

    Yes


Student satisfaction

This course scored 93% for teaching satisfaction in the 2023 National Student Survey.

Course summary

  • Gain a varied skill set across campaign creation, planning, social, PR and branding.
  • Use innovative tools to develop integrated marketing communications strategies.
  • Complete real-world consultancy projects with leading brands to build your profile.
  • Join a supportive community of creatives and entrepreneurs in our award-winning enterprise centre.

Our BA (Hons) Marketing Communications and Advertising degree provides knowledge, skills and real-world experience – meaning you can enter the job market as a creative, resourceful and adaptive marketer. You’ll prepare for a range of advertising and marketing specialisms, such as digital and social media marketing, campaign planning and management, branding, customer insights and entrepreneurship.

If you’d like extra preparation before starting degree-level study, we recommend you join the foundation course – which has been designed to encourage exploration and experimentation.


Sheffield Business School accreditation

Sheffield Business School is accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB), placing us in the top 5% of business schools globally.

How you learn

All our courses are designed around a set of key principles based on engaging you with the world, collaborating with others, challenging you to think in new ways, and providing you with a supportive environment in which you can thrive.

Based in the Sheffield Business School, you’ll join a global community where business leaders, researchers and 7,000 students all come together to solve problems and make things better. 

You’ll be taught by industry experts, who bring their industry experience and insights from cutting-edge research into the classroom. Through our relationships with leading local and global brands, you’ll have the opportunity to access placements, volunteering programmes, training schemes, internships and work experience. 

You learn through:

  • On-campus lectures, seminars and tutorials 
  • Consultancy projects for real-world businesses
  • Digital learning platforms
  • Industry visits and field trips
  • Independent study
  • Practice-based learning and group work 
  • Simulated work environments
  • Problem-solving workshops
  • Class debates and presentations

We use a wide variety of assessments that respect the diverse ways people learn. These include tests, essays, presentations, project plans and reflective writing.   

Key Themes

By applying theory to real world examples, you’ll develop an understanding of contemporary marketing communications that’s underpinned by broader marketing and business principles. You’ll then study specialist modules to learn how to create and manage multimedia marketing communications campaigns. 

Topics include integrated marketing communications, digital marketing, and campaign planning and management – as well as media planning, branding, sustainability and customer analysis. 

Through these, you’ll develop your creativity, confidence and resilience – becoming a marketer with a valuable specialism in communications and advertising. 

Course Support

Throughout your learning journey, you’ll experience a range of dedicated support, such as:

  • Access to our unique student support to help with your personal, academic and career development.
  • Access to our Skills Centre with one-on-ones, webinars and online resources.
  • Industry-specific employability activities such as live projects, learning in simulated environments and networking opportunities.

Course leaders and tutors

Elizabeth Lye
Elizabeth Lye
Senior Lecturer

Key achievements are Placement and Employability tutor for BA Marketing and BA Marketing Communications and Advertising courses (2014- present), academic link with C … Read more

Applied learning

We think the best way to learn something is to do it in the real world. That means putting learning into practice through placements, internships and consultancy projects through our global network of leading businesses.

Work Placements

You’ll have the opportunity to arrange a year-long work placement. This gives you valuable work experience to prepare you for your future career – and allows you to graduate with an Applied Professional Diploma to add to your CV. 

Previous students have worked at local and global brands, such as Disney, Siemens, Rise at Seven and ilk Agency.

You’ll also have summer and winter school opportunities in a variety of locations. Recently these have included France, Germany, Spain and Morocco. You might even be eligible to study abroad for a semester at one of our partner universities in Europe, the US, Australia and beyond.

Live Projects

All students on the course work on live client briefs set by industry experts, creating engaging marketing content that inspires, persuades and influences target audiences. 

You’ll develop your skills in these areas by working on consultancy projects, planning and running campaigns, and learning to analyse performance. 

Field Trips 

Through our marketing society, you’ll have the opportunity to visit leading UK brands and agencies, plus renowned institutions such as the BBC’s MediaCityUK in Manchester and ITV Studio in London.

Networking Opportunities

With the support of our award-winning i-Lab business hub, you’ll have the opportunity to collaborate with creatives, entrepreneurs and investors across Sheffield. Here, you can form lucrative business networks, brainstorm entrepreneurial ideas and even launch your own venture.

You can also hear first-hand from business leaders and esteemed alumni as they deliver guest masterclasses while having the opportunity to build your profile through work experience and consultancy projects.  

We also support you to run local student societies and join UK-wide networking events such as The Marketing Club.

Competitions

You can build your profile by taking part in competitions, such as The Pitch, delivered by the Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM). 

One of our students recently won a competition held by Rise at Seven, securing a graduate job with the agency as a result.

Teaching Quality

Sheffield Hallam University is ranked 11th amongst UK providers for marketing and public relations in the Guardian University Guide 2023 league table.


Future careers

Graduates from this course go on to a wide range of careers in Marketing, both in creative agencies and a variety of communications roles in a broad range of organisations. These roles involve media selection, content creation and development of persuasive messages. 

Previous graduates of this course have gone on to work at prestigious local and global brands, including:

  • Asda
  • Bosch
  • Deloitte Digital
  • Disney
  • Formula 1
  • Gymshark
  • ilk Agency
  • JCDecaux
  • Mattel
  • M&C Saatchi
  • Next
  • Pretty Little Thing
  • Rise at Seven
  • Sky
  • Vodafone

As an additional benefit, students who graduate with a minimum 2:2 classification will be exempt on an APL (Accreditation of Prior Learning) basis from one module on the CIM level four Certificate in Professional Marketing and one module from the level six Diploma in Professional Marketing. 

All degrees which receive CIM accreditation are now also automatically recognised by the Australian Marketing Institute (AMI). 

Where will I study?

You study at City Campus through a structured mix of lectures, seminars and practical sessions as well as access to digital and online resources to support your learning.

City Campus

City Campus is located in the heart of Sheffield, within minutes of the train and bus stations.

City Campus map | City Campus tour 


City Campus map
Location

Howard Street
Sheffield
S1 1WB

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Adsetts library

Adsetts Library is located on our City Campus. It's open 24 hours a day, every day.

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Equipment and facilities

You’ll study in world-class learning facilities, such as specialist labs, design studios, practice facilities, simulation environments, our award-winning enterprise centre and a 24/7 library.

You may also have access to specialist marketing platforms and equipment, such as:

  • Marketing intelligence platforms such as Mintel and EuroMonitor
  • SEO analytical software
  • Design and video editing tools from the Adobe Suite
  • Video cameras and recording equipment
  • Social media management platforms 
  • Consumer insight tools
  • The World Advertising Research Centre
  • Business gamification simulation equipment 
  • LinkedIn Learning 

As part of our campus masterplan, we’re developing a brand new, net-zero-ready building right at the heart of the city centre.

You’ll benefit from dedicated business facilities such as a business lounge, trading floor and languages hub, plus plenty of room to study in social learning spaces, seminar rooms and PC labs – all set in 400 square metres of stunning green space, where you can socialise, eat, relax and study.

Entry requirements

All students

UCAS points

  • 64

This must include at least 32 points from one A level or equivalent BTEC National qualifications excluding general studies For example:

  • CC at A Level
  • MPP in BTEC Extended Diploma.
  • Pass overall from a T level qualification with D or E from core
  • A combination of qualifications, which may include AS levels and EPQ.

You can find information on making sense of UCAS tariff points here and use the UCAS tariff calculator to work out your points.

GCSE

  • English Language at grade C or 4 or equivalent
  • Maths at grade C or 4 or equivalent

• Access to HE Diploma from a QAA recognised Access to HE course. Normally we require 15 credits at level 2 and 45 at level 3. At least 15 level 3 credits must be at merit grade or above from a QAA-recognised Access to HE course, or an equivalent Access to HE certificate.

If English is not your first language, you will need an IELTS score of 6.0 with a minimum of 5.5 in all skills, or equivalent. If your English language skill is currently below IELTS 6.0 we recommend you consider a Sheffield Hallam University Pre-sessional English course which will enable you to achieve an equivalent English score.

Additional information for EU/International students

If you are an International or non-UK European student, you can find out more about the country specific qualifications we accept on our international qualifications page.

For details of English language entry requirements (IELTS), please see the information for 'All students'.


Modules

Module and assessment information for future years is displayed as currently validated and may be liable to change. When selecting electives, your choices will be subject to the core requirements of the course. As a result, selections may be limited to a choice between one of two or more specified electives in some instances.

You will be able to complete a placement year as part of this course. See the modules table below for further information.

Year 1

Compulsory modules

Module
Credits
Assessment
Going Global
Credits 20
Assessment Coursework(100%)
People, Decisions And Behaviours
Credits 40
Assessment Coursework(100%)
Preparing For Success
Credits 20
Assessment Coursework(100%)
Sustainable Innovation
Credits 40
Assessment Coursework(100%)
Year 2

Compulsory modules

Module
Credits
Assessment
Contemporary Marketing
Credits 40
Assessment Coursework(100%)
Foundations Of Business
Credits 40
Assessment Coursework(80%) , Practical(20%)
Foundations Of Marketing Communications And Advertising
Credits 20
Assessment Coursework(100%)
Understanding People And Cultures
Credits 20
Assessment Coursework(100%)
Year 3

Compulsory modules

Module
Credits
Assessment
Campaign Creation And Management
Credits 40
Assessment Coursework(100%)
Managing Business And Financial Performance For Marketers
Credits 20
Assessment Coursework(100%)
Professional Development For The Marketer
Credits 40
Assessment Coursework(100%)

Elective modules

Module
Credits
Assessment
Experiential Marketing Events
Credits 20
Assessment Coursework(100%)
Foreign Language (French,Spanish,Italian,Chinese)
Credits 20
Assessment Coursework(100%)
The Corporate Customer
Credits 20
Assessment Coursework(100%)
The Digital Customer Experience
Credits 20
Assessment Coursework(100%)
Year 4

Optional modules

Module
Credits
Assessment
Placement Year
Credits -
Assessment
Final year

Compulsory modules

Module
Credits
Assessment
Branding, Advertising And Corporate Communications
Credits 40
Assessment Coursework(100%)
Consultancy Project In Marketing
Credits 40
Assessment Coursework(100%)
Strategy In The Global And Digital Environment
Credits 20
Assessment Coursework(100%)

Elective modules

Module
Credits
Assessment
Consumer Psychology 
Credits 20
Assessment Coursework(100%)
Contemporary Leadership In Context
Credits 20
Assessment Coursework(100%)
Marketing In A Global Context
Credits 20
Assessment Coursework(100%)

Fees and funding

Home students

Our tuition fee for UK students starting full-time undergraduate study in 2024/25 is £9,250 per year. These fees are regulated by the UK government and are therefore subject to changes in government policy. During your placement year you will pay a reduced fee of £1,200.

If you are studying an undergraduate course, postgraduate pre-registration course or postgraduate research course over more than one academic year then your tuition fees may increase in subsequent years in line with Government regulations or UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) published fees. More information can be found in our terms and conditions under student fees regulations.

International students

Our tuition fee for International/EU students starting full-time study in 2024/25 is £16,655 per year. During your placement year you will pay a reduced fee of £1,200.

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Financial support for home/EU students

How tuition fees work, student loans and other financial support available.

Learn more

Additional course costs

This link allows you to view estimated costs associated with the main activities on specific courses. These are estimates and, as such, are only an indication of additional course costs. Actual costs can vary greatly depending on the choices you make during your course.

Additional costs for Marketing courses (PDF, 237.6KB)

Legal information

Any offer of a place to study is subject to your acceptance of the University’s Terms and Conditions and Student Regulations.

 

How do I apply?

Apply now via UCAS

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Why not come to our next open day? Open days are the perfect place to talk to staff and students, visit our campuses and get all the information you need. Alternatively, feel free to ask us a question.

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Why choose us?

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Teaching

We are Gold rated in the Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) for the outstanding quality of our teaching and student outcomes

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Employment

95% of our UK graduates are in work or further study 15 months after graduating (2020/21 Graduate Outcomes Survey)

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Graduate

Graduate from Sheffield Business School – rated in the top 5% globally for excellence in teaching and research

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