PRO GRESS Birmingham City University Postgraduate Magazine 2014
Protecting nature’s resources How we are restoring peatlands
Pioneering research New opportunities in arts and humanities
Visiting excellence How outside experts help our students
Partners in education How our students shape the way they learn
Building careers Our graduates secure top roles
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ProGress 2014 Welcome
Contents
WELCOME
02-03 Welcome
Welcome to the latest edition of ProGress magazine. Whether you have already applied to study with us, or are still deciding, we hope you will find plenty of interest to you in here.
04-07 Research 08-09 Visiting Excellence 10-11 Academic Excellence 12 Employability 13
Student Engagement
14-18 Student Success 19
New Courses
20-21 Investing in Your Future 22-23 Why Birmingham? 24-25 Support 26-27 Funding
We want to be the leading university for creative and professional practice-based learning – that means helping you to gain the knowledge and skills employers want. We enjoy close relationships with businesses and organisations in the city of Birmingham and the surrounding area, providing unparalleled opportunities for work experience and networking opportunities with the many successful firms in the city. We want your time here to leave you highly employable with the knowledge, attributes and practice skills to successfully progress in your life and career. We also aim to be placed in the top 10 per cent of research-engaged universities in research quality and to double our research income by 2020. You can see on pages 6 and 7 how we are forging ahead towards this target through the forthcoming Government assessment process, the Research Excellence Framework 2014. The development of our estate and facilities strategy continues to be a news highlight for future students. In this edition we outline details of a further new teaching building now rising out of the ground next door to our award-winning Parkside Building. For the latest on our campus investment plans, please see page 20. Our graduates are continuing to shape the world and you may have seen our ‘Shaping the world’ campaign highlighting the achievements of many of our former students (you can read more of them on our website at www.bcu.ac.uk/stories) and you could be next. I hope to welcome you as a student soon, and if you have any queries in the meantime, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with us. Professor Cliff Allan Vice-Chancellor
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WHY CHOOSE BIRMINGHAM CITY UNIVERSITY? We know that choosing a university is a huge decision. Whether you are looking to work with academic experts, are seeking professional accreditation or simply pursuing a change in direction, we want to show you why Birmingham City University is the right choice for you. • We are one of the UK’s top 20 universities for our spending on facilities (Complete University Guide 2014) with current and recent investment totalling £260 million. • We work with companies like Apple, Cisco and Cartier to develop cutting-edge curriculums and collaborate on course projects. • Our pioneering virtual learning environments recreate professional workplaces such as TV studios, school classrooms, solicitors’ offices and hospitals. • We won the Times Higher Education award for Best International Strategy (2011) and Outstanding Support for Students (2010). The latter was in recognition of our Student Academic Partners scheme, where students work with staff to find ways to enhance how their courses are taught. • Many of our academics are practising professionals – including exhibiting artists, celebrated legal experts, professional musicians or published writers – ensuring the University stays up to date with the latest thinking in their sectors. • In the 2008 Research Assessment Exercise (RAE), we had one of the highest percentages of submitted work rated as ‘world leading’ compared with other modern universities in the UK and we were ranked third in the UK for music research at conservatoires.
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ProGress 2014 Welcome
WHY POSTGRADUATE STUDY?
KEY FACTS On average, someone with a Master’s degree earns £5,500 more per year, or £200,000 over a 40-year working life than someone with just a degree (Sutton Trust 2013).
Whether you are coming to the end of your undergraduate studies, or you have been in your job for a while and want to change direction, a postgraduate qualification gives you the opportunity to stand out from the crowd in a competitive market. Studying at postgraduate level gives you advanced knowledge of your subject as well as transferable skills that employers value, while the new relationships you will build with academics, visiting lecturers and fellow students can help you to build useful professional contacts. And for our students, that investment in their futures pays off – 93 per cent of our postgraduates find work or go into further study within six months of leaving (DLHE survey 2011/12).
Employment opportunities In some fields, such as academia, a postgraduate qualification is a requirement, while for others it may prove highly useful. For example, a PGCE is often the easiest way to enter teaching if your degree is not in education or a related subject, while an MBA may be the best route to acquiring the skills required in certain high-flying business roles. According to the Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Services, there is an increasing number of occupations where employers require a postgraduate qualification, including law, engineering, teaching, professional psychology roles, international development and nongovernmental organisations (NGOs), technical
roles in the environment professions and quantitative roles in investment banking. And those employers that need this additional expertise are increasingly prepared to pay for it. Research by the Sutton Trust found that earnings for postgraduates were significantly higher than for those with a degree only. Professional qualifications include Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) and Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA)-accredited accountancy courses, the Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR) certificate and diploma for those working in public relations, Subject Knowledge Enhancement courses for teachers, a wide range of professional development programmes for healthcare staff, plus a host of construction, media and engineering accreditations. Our postgraduates have gone on to work in senior roles with such well-known companies and organisations as Jaguar Land Rover, Ernst & Young, Norwich Union, Network Rail, General Electric, Capgemini, DHL, the Metropolitan Police Authority, Motorola, the Crown Prosecution Service, NEC Group and the BBC.
Personal development
93 per cent of our postgraduates found work or entered further study within six months of graduating (DLHE survey 2011/12). Someone with a postgraduate degree is 12 per cent more likely to be in employment or further study than someone with a degree alone and 26 per cent more likely to be in a professional or managerial role (HECSU 2013). “Postgraduate study can be a route to advancing in an existing career as well as opening up new employment opportunities.” (Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, 2010).
Postgraduate study involves a large amount of independent work and you will need strong motivation and time management skills, which will also be of use later in life. By becoming a specialist in your field, you will have the chance to advance thinking in that subject and to lead, rather than follow, the latest developments.
www.bcu.ac.uk/postgraduate
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ProGress 2014 Research
PIONEERING SCHEME TO REVOLUTIONISE ARTS EDUCATION We have recently become part of a pioneering centre of excellence for arts and humanities research in the Midlands, with the first 12 research projects set to commence in September.
Craig Hamilton is one of the first to accept a studentship award. His research, ‘The Harkive Project: Rethinking Music Consumption’, looks at music consumption in the media age.
We are one of six universities in the Midlands3Cities (M3C) Doctoral Training Partnership, a £27 million scheme to offer 410 studentships to support excellent PhD research in the arts and humanities. The partnership is backed by a £14.6 million award from the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC), and new studentships will be offered annually over the next five years.
Professor Tim Wall, who leads our contribution to the consortium, said: “The partnership will revolutionise the way we support our postgraduate students – it will open up so many doors to those who are studying as part of the scheme, and those in our wider doctoral community.
The scheme is a collaboration between Birmingham City University, De Montfort University, Nottingham Trent University, the University of Birmingham, the University of Leicester and the University of Nottingham. Students are encouraged to consider the impact of their PhD research and its contribution to the wider world, and to use their studies to develop their own professional careers. The studentships cover the cost of fees and the payment of a stipend. Students holding an M3C award benefit from supervision, mentoring and support from our experts and experts from any of the other five partner universities.
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He said: “I’m delighted to have received this award. To be able to spend the next three years studying something that is my passion is an incredible opportunity, and I aim to make the most of it.”
“All six universities in the consortium are equal partners, all sharing their resources, expertise and, crucially, their links in the creative and cultural industries, to help create a new generation of highly skilled arts and humanities researchers. “Each institution has its own academic strengths and links with cultural partners.” M3C students are based in our research centres in Birmingham Institute of Art and Design, Birmingham Conservatoire, Birmingham Centre for Media and Cultural Research and the schools of English and Law. They all have extensive links with commercial partners, policymakers and arts organisations in the UK and abroad. More information can be found at www.midlands3cities.ac.uk
OUR 2014 RESEARCH AREAS INCLUDE: English
Law
• Disability poetics • English language in the War of the Roses.
• Securing private contractors and sovereignty.
Fine Art
• Music consumption in the digital age • Use of social media in the creative industries • Defining live music curation.
• Velatura as practice • Feminism and polymorphous performance art • Landscape and digital systems • Palimpsest - an interrogation of underwriting and queer enactments.
Media
Music • Experimental music • Performance of conceptual music.
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ProGress 2014 Research
STUDYING SOCIAL MEDIA IN BIRMINGHAM’S CREATIVE INDUSTRIES One of our postgraduates to have been awarded a studentship is Karen Patel, who also works in our Research, Innovation and Enterprise (RIE) department. She will look at the use of social media in the creative industries, questioning its role in the personal and professional lives of creative workers. She will also look at how it can help inform understanding of creative communities for cultural policy makers.
Professor Tim Wall
Professor Tim Wall “All six universities in the consortium are equal partners, all sharing their resources, expertise and, crucially, their links in the creative and cultural industries.”
Karen developed an interest in the area during her undergraduate degree in Journalism and her Master’s in Media and Creative Enterprise, both of which she undertook with our School of Media. “I looked at online communities for my degree dissertation, and during my Master’s I did a module on cultural policy, which I really enjoyed. The PhD will draw upon what I learned from both,” she explained. The studentship has provided Karen with valuable funding to pursue her PhD, setting her on her way to a future in research.
“It has finally put me on the track I wanted to be on ever since I finished my Master’s in 2010.” she said. “During my Master’s, and even when I was working, I was applying for studentships wherever I could because I could never have afforded to fund it myself. “I’m looking to learn an awful lot about being a researcher. I have a fair idea as I work in the Research Office in RIE – and that experience in itself has been very helpful – but this will fully immerse me in the experience of research, drawing on all the expertise across the consortium.” While Karen will benefit from support offered by Birmingham School of Media, she will also have access to resources offered by any of the six universities involved in the Midlands3Cities partnership, including additional PhD supervision if required. Describing the consortium, she said: “It’s certainly unique. I’m absolutely delighted to have been selected: it’s an honour and a privilege. I’m especially pleased that I will once again be part of Birmingham School of Media.”
YOU TOO CAN APPLY! AHRC funding is open to all UK and EU students who meet the academic and residency eligibility criteria. Applications for 2015 will be welcomed soon. This studentship covers the full cost of fees for the doctoral programme and a full-time student stipend of £13,726 per annum (in 2014) for living expenses, plus funding for specific expenses associated with the doctoral research and professional development of full-time or part-time applicants. Email m3c@bcu.ac.uk for more information.
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ProGress 2014 Research
REACHING TOWARDS 2020 We are a dynamic research force within the UK higher education sector, committed to continuing growth in research excellence, new knowledge generation and knowledge exchange. Our aim is to be recognised nationally as a research-engaged university, with distinctive and well-supported niche areas of international excellence and regional relevance. Since 2001 the breadth, diversity and quality of our research has improved significantly. The results of the Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) 2008, which measured research quality in UK higher education institutions, demonstrated this improvement with almost one fifth of our submission judged 4* (‘world leading’) and three-quarters of internationally recognised quality. Our submission to the Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2014, which replaces RAE, is now complete, and we have presented more staff and more Units of Assessment than ever before. We also submitted impact case studies – showing our contribution to society, research and the economy – and details of our research environment. This demonstrates the progression of our research, and brings us closer to achieving our objective. Professor Keith Osman, Director of Research, said: “The size of our submission to REF involved a huge team effort by the academic and support staff involved to make sure that we met the exacting standards and maximised the overall quality of the submission for the benefit of the University. This is a real opportunity to build on our success and showcase the very best of the University’s research.
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“Positive results from REF 2014 will influence our position in many league tables and determine the amount of funding we receive from 2015/16 onwards. This is crucial to maintaining our research position within the sector and ensuring that we continue to reach towards our targets for 2020.” By building on the results of REF we will develop a motivated and innovative research community, carrying out relevant demandled research. We will be well recognised as delivering increasingly tangible benefits to all our stakeholders, and being internationally excellent, irrespective of the measurement tools or metrics used. We will achieve these aims by: • Investing in our researchers, central support services and research infrastructure • Ensuring financial sustainability through knowledge exchange activity and demandled research, with a particular focus on Birmingham and the West Midlands • Continuing to embed innovation, entrepreneurship and business engagement in our research and teaching • Expanding research within larger collaborative projects, particularly those funded by European funding through Horizon 2020 and Knowledge Innovation Communities (KICs).
Find out more: www.bcu.ac.uk/research
Professor Keith Osman
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ProGress 2014 Research
ALL WORK UNDERTAKEN BY OUR RESEARCH COMMUNITY IS VALUABLE AND MAKES A SIGNIFICANT CONTRIBUTION TO OUR INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL DEMAND-LED PRIORITIES.
BRINGING TECHNOLOGY TO THE MUSICIAN Dr Jamie Bullock is a senior researcher for Birmingham Conserv atoire. He aims to make music technology more accessible to concert musicians. Dr Bullock ’s research has resulted in a range of real world applications. His work on Integra Live software has been used by the Liszt Academy of Music in Hungar y, and in 2012 his work was used by the BBC Symphony Orchestra in a performance of Harvey’s Madonna of Winter and Spring at the Barbican, which was broadcast to a worldw ide audience on BBC Radio 3.
RESTORING PEATLANDS FOR THE FUTURE Environmental researcher Professor Mark Reed has spent the last decade exploring the science behind restoring the UK’s peatlands. Funded by bodies such as the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and South West Water, his research is making a critical impact on this important environmental priority. The UK’s peatlands form a vital habitat for internationally important wildlife and are crucial in ensuring clean drinking water supplies. They are also the UK’s largest soil-carb store, absorbing carbon slowly
over millions of years. If they become damaged, they release carbon back into the atmosphere; sadly, according to the data released by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) in 2011, around 80 per cent of UK peatlands have already been harmed.
He explained: “My research is about opening up new creative possibilities for musicians through technology, allowing more interaction with music in new and exciting ways. “My research is primarily targeted at concert musicians, composers and performers – musicians who might not necessarily use technology in their performances. I’d like to bring the technology to life by reframing it in language which is understandable to everyone.” To hear Dr Bullock talk about his research, go to www.bcu.ac.uk/cmp.
“Working with land managers, we are now starting to identify which areas to target for peatland restoration. These are places where improvements will give the most benefits to the most people,” Professor Reed commented. To find out more about Professor Reed’s research, you can watch a video interview with him at www.bcu.ac.uk/cesr. www.bcu.ac.uk/postgraduate
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ProGress 2014 Visiting Excellence
VISITING EXCELLENCE At Birmingham City University, many of our lecturers have recently come from and maintain their links with industry, ensuring you gain an insight into the latest developments in your chosen area of study. But you won’t just benefit from the expertise of our full-time members of staff – we also welcome a wide range of visiting lecturers and professors to the University to provide specialised insight and work on specific projects. Here are just a few of them…
PRISON PSYCHOLOGIST SHARES REAL-LIFE EXPERIENCE Professor Michael Brookes, Director of Therapeutic Communities at HMP Grendon, is a consultant chartered and registered forensic psychologist. His professional career has been primarily concerned with the application of psychological theories and principles to individuals or groups of offenders, managers of secure establishments and those who work in custodial therapeutic environments. He regularly delivers academic papers about his work, which cover his research at the prison and the translation of psychological theory into practice. He shares his expertise with students on our BA and MA Criminology and MSc Forensic Psychology courses. He said: “I’ve worked in prisons for nearly 30 years and in secure settings for 35 so I know the types of environment they are, the types of people you get there, the different approaches staff use, and some of the issues and problems they face. This helps students to learn the practical realities of working in these settings.”
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SHARING INTERNATIONALLY SHARING INDUSTRY ACCLAIMED TALENT EXPERIENCE Students studying at Birmingham Conservatoire benefit from the expertise of a wide range of visiting tutors and consultants specialising in their chosen instrument. One such expert is internationally renowned virtuoso classical pianist, promoter, artistic director, educator and writer Peter Donohoe. Peter is Vice-President of Birmingham Conservatoire and a piano consultant, acclaimed as one of the foremost pianists of our time for his musicianship, stylistic versatility and commanding technique. Since his success as joint winner of the 1982 International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow, he has developed a distinguished international career and his accolades include the Grand Prix International du Disque Liszt and the Gramophone Concerto award. His close association with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra dates back to 1974 and he was Artistic Director of the Solihull Festival from 1991 to 1996. He has been awarded Honorary Doctorates of Music from a number of universities and was awarded a CBE for services to music in the 2010 New Year Honours List.
After graduating with a degree in Sound Engineering and Production in 2010, Paul Smith built a successful career in the music industry and returned to teach students taking the course he studied. He lectures in mastering, advanced mixing techniques, effects and processes, advanced recording techniques, microphone placement, microphone design and drum tuning, and teaches about the legal and contractual issues encountered by mixing and recording engineers. His other roles include lead sound engineer and tutor at Base Studios in Stourbridge in the West Midlands, and he regularly produces artists’ work. He has undertaken projects around teaching disadvantaged young people for organisations such as Youth Music, as well as Arts Council England, European Union and National Lottery-funded initiatives. Additionally, he has taught BTEC awards and accredited college courses. With a passion for live music, Paul records and engineers live acts and plays as a session musician. He plans to use his background in electrical engineering to move into lighting installation and custom-made studio furniture.
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ProGress 2014 Visiting Excellence
IMPROVING MEDICAL CARE FOR THE MILITARY Consultant plastic surgeon Professor Lieutenant Colonel Steven Jeffery, is a leading expert in improving the medical and surgical care of military personnel injured on the battlefield. His career has included three operational tours of duty in Northern Ireland and a further three in Afghanistan. In 2013, he became the fourth professor to join our Tissue Viability Practice Development Unit, initially on a visiting basis. Steven joined the Royal Army Medical Corps as a student in 1986 and qualified in 1989. He served as a Medical Officer with the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders before completing his basic surgical training, becoming a Fellow of both the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh and the Royal College of Surgeons of Glasgow.
NEW CITY TALKS PROGRAMME SHARES KNOWLEDGE WITH CITY We aim to be a ‘university without walls’, open not only to staff and students but also to the people of the city and the wider region. Our City Talks lecture series, launched in 2013, features a programme of high profile speakers who share their views and insights on a range of topics free of charge to local people and our University community. Highlights so far include best-selling crime writer R J Ellory, who spoke on the rich and varied history of his home city of Birmingham – a heritage he argued many of its residents had forgotten. The author explained that Birmingham can trace its origins to the Romans but came to global prominence during the Age of Enlightenment through its contribution to the Industrial Revolution.
In 2007, he moved to Birmingham’s Selly Oak Hospital, becoming the city’s first military plastic surgeon and forming part of a burns team. In recognition of his contribution to developing military plastic surgery medical and nursing teams, he received the Military Civilian Partnership Award for ‘Regular of the Year’ in 2011. In the same year, he received the Wounds UK Key Contribution award and the Smith and Nephew Customer Pioneer of the Year award.
BIG OPPORTUNITIES FOR SMALL- AND MEDIUM-SIZED ENTERPRISES Bringing 50 years of experience to Birmingham City Business School, Paul Forster is a Visiting Professor of Management Practice, currently leading a project to build new relationships between the School and small- and
medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the West Midlands. Beginning his career in 1963 as marketing manager at Birmingham-based chocolate maker Cadbury, he went on to serve as Chief Executive of advertising agency Euro RSCG London and found customer value management consultancy Lifetime Business Group Ltd. He spent 10 years as Chairman of Prostate Cancer UK, during which time he built it up to become the country’s preeminent men’s health charity. Paul joined us in 2011 as a Visiting Professor and a member of Birmingham City Business School’s advisory board, initially providing expert knowledge to students in the field of marketing and communications. Last year, he started work on the new project, which will allow participating SMEs to access details of students who are looking for placement opportunities, including two-minute audiovisual presentations as well as traditional CVs. He said: “We know that half of SMEs have never talked to a higher education institution but, of those who have recruited a university graduate, most were very highly satisfied – this project is about improving prospects for students and small businesses, and making the relationship work both ways.”
Investigative journalist Mark WilliamsThomas was interviewed by fellow TV reporter Donal MacIntyre about his exposé of Jimmy Savile – and the seismic consequences of this explosive story, which lifted the lid on shocking abuse and exploitation. The child protection expert and visiting lecturer explained the truth behind the exposé and examined the ethics of revealing the facts many wanted to keep hidden from public view. BAFTA award-winning film director Ian Emes (see right) revealed how some of the biggest names in rock and pop – including Pink Floyd – became his inspiration. He is recognised as a key figure in the cultural and musical revolution that shaped the 1970s and beyond. In his talk he revisited this heady period, which was when he first heard a friend play a Pink Floyd record that then inspired him to create a short film – a project that would transform his life. To register to attend future events, please visit bcucitytalks.eventbrite.co.uk.
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ProGress 2014 Academic Excellence
OUR STAFF IN THE NEWS Our academics are regularly asked to share their expertise. Their research and comments can be found in media ranging from the BBC and commercial radio stations to national newspapers and specialist websites. Professor Lubo Jankovic Professor of Zero Carbon Design
Ron Austin Senior Lecturer
Professor Lubo Jankovic is a leading academic in zero carbon buildings at Birmingham School of Architecture whose research has involved the creation of a learning simulation model for buildings, a patent for an expandable and contractible building and research into nature’s zero carbon designs and zero carbon retrofit of buildings using the groundbreaking Birmingham Zero House. His research in zero carbon living led to the publication of his book, Designing Zero Carbon Buildings Using Dynamic Simulation Methods, which demonstrates that technologies can be used to design new or retrofit buildings.
With 17 years of industry experience, Ron Austin lectures on computer networks. He has published papers on virtual learning and remote learning, and has interests in network security, hacking, wireless and mobile technologies and telecommunications and mobile applications. Thanks to his extensive expertise, he was invited to speak to the BBC about website hacking after a new generation of website technology was designed to prevent attacks on websites.
He has been called upon by the media to speak about issues concerning the environment, and recently gave his opinion on the Government’s plans to carry out fracking, arguing that it would mean a huge step back in dealing with climate change. In interviews with BBC Radio WM, Capital FM, the Solihull Observer and website occupy.com, he stated that fracking was only a temporary technology and urged the Government to invest in renewable energy. Speaking to the Solihull Observer, he said: “I think we should start developing renewable energy now as the UK is bound by legislation to reduce their carbon emissions by 80 per cent by 2050 which can be done by replacing fossil fuels with renewable sources.”
Charlotte Carey has experience as a freelance artist and filmmaker and lectures in new media, multi-media design and web design in learning organisations across the West Midlands.
Professor Lubo Jankovic
Charlotte Carey Senior Lecturer
Based at Birmingham City Business School, she is an expert in fields related to gender, the creative industries, entrepreneurship and enterprise education. She teaches digital marketing, digital communication, design in marketing and marketing for the creative industries. In February, she spoke to The Independent about the limitations for female entrepreneurs in industry. She discussed how women are being held back in the creative fields in particular.
Ron Austin
Charlotte Carey
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ProGress 2014 Academic Excellence
Dave Harte
Dave Harte Senior Lecturer in Media and Communication Dave Harte is an expert in social media with experience working closely with Birmingham’s vibrant digital media sector, acting as a link between public sector and the business community. He appeared on BBC Online about his research into social media that showed that Birmingham has more hyperlocal news websites – social media websites containing local news relating to a particular town or postcode area – than any other council area with a total of 28 of the sites. The report came out at a time when the use of social media soared during last year’s snow disruption. He has also appeared as an expert in The Guardian, providing advice for jobseekers using social media.
Professor Mike Jackson Director of Academic Quality and Enhancement, Birmingham City Business School Professor Mike Jackson has research interests centred on database technology, as well as pervasive computing and the development of context aware software systems. His research into how the internet and social media have an impact on society led to him being approached to speak to the media about internet trolling. He has commented on the BBC’s Midlands Today and Capital FM, and he was also asked to give an expert opinion on the introduction of Twitter’s ‘report abuse’ button on New Media Knowledge, a specialist website for professionals working in social media.
Hollie Wright Visiting Lecturer Hollie Wright has led a project to commemorate the centenary of the start of the First World War. A poignant installation made up of paper and cardboard that depicted the Battle of the Somme was unveiled in The Parkside Building at the City Centre Campus in February. It included life-size trenches, poor outdoor sleeping quarters and injured soldiers created from brown paper. Hollie spoke to the BBC and the Birmingham Post about the exhibition.
Professor Mike Jackson
Nigel Penny Lecturer in Applied Physiology Nigel Penny specialises in human nutrition, nutritional therapy, physical activity for health and exercise science. He has commented in media as diverse as Marie Claire and the Express, which featured him as an expert on remaining healthy over the winter. In the article, which appeared in October 2013, he explained the importance of a varied diet of fruit and vegetables, eating foods to boost the immune system and ensuring that breakfast is not missed.
Hollie Wright
Nigel has also written for Nutrition Expert, a nutrition advice website run by vitamin and mineral company Healthspan.
Nigel Penny
www.bcu.ac.uk/postgraduate
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ProGress 2014 Employability
NATIONAL SURVEY SHOWS OUR GRADUATE EMPLOYABILITY 93 per cent of our postgraduates who left in 2011/12 found work or further study within six months of graduation. As one of our postgraduates you will learn through doing – preparing you for the workplace and helping you gain the skills to become a professional in your field. It is part of our vision to make sure you leave us as a highly employable graduate with the knowledge, attributes and practice skills to successfully progress in your career.
At Birmingham City University, we have been launching careers since 1843, and the latest survey of our postgraduates shows this is still the case 170 years on, with the vast majority quickly gaining employment, and many of them going straight into professional or managerial positions. Figures from the latest Destination of Leavers from Higher Education (DLHE) survey, a poll of university leavers conducted by the Higher Education Statistics Agency, showed that
Our students benefit from the best teaching staff, who are not only academic experts but also experienced business leaders or industry-acclaimed professionals. All our lecturers are abreast of the latest knowledge, with industry contacts that bring a threedimensional perspective to your learning experience.
of Nursing and Midwifery went into employment after leaving. Most obtained professional or managerial positions. • 90.9 per cent of leavers from our School of Engineering, Design and Manufacturing Systems obtained professional or managerial posts, earning an average salary of £46,700. • Art and design graduates have gone on to work for brands such as Laura Ashley, Harrods, Abercrombie and Fitch and Burberry. • The average salary for a Birmingham City Business School leaver in full-time employment was £36,700. • 98.2 per cent of leavers from our School of Education’s postgraduate courses who went into employment obtained either a professional or managerial position.
Occupations pursued by our postgraduate leavers range from architects, designers and journalists to teachers, researchers, legal trainees, radiographers and software consultants, working for top names such as the BBC, Sky, Ford and British Gas. Leavers have also gone on to work for local authorities, Government departments such as the Ministry of Justice and public bodies such as the Environment Agency.
• Many leavers from our performancerelated courses are now forging reputations as freelance actors and musicians — some with the BBC, ITV, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and the National Theatre.
• 100 per cent of leavers from our School of Health and Social Care and our School
www.bcu.ac.uk/studentservices
Enhancing your future employability is our top priority, so we offer a range of careers advice, mentoring, industrial placements and work experience that is second to none.
GAIN EMPLOYMENT EXPERIENCE WHILE YOU STUDY Our ‘OpportUNIty – Student Jobs on Campus’ initiative has been created to help you find paid part-time work with us during your studies. As soon as you enrol, you will be able to sign up to the scheme and start applying for jobs on campus. You will be invited to tell us about any skills you have and we can use that information to match you to jobs when they become available. You will receive feedback at every stage of your employment experience so that if, for example, your CV needs some work, you will be pointed
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towards assistance we can provide in this area. We also offer ongoing support in developing your employability skills in 22 key areas identified by the University, following consultation with organisations including the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) and the National Union of Students (NUS). Line managers will provide feedback, helping you to articulate your employability to future employers. The types of roles available include student mentor, office assistant, concert steward and marketing assistant.
Our Careers and Job Prospects team can provide face-to-face help and advice throughout your time at the University and beyond. You can also access the team’s expertise online, including a series of ‘how-to’ videos that cover key aspects of kick-starting your career. Topics include writing a CV, job searching, application forms, interviews and psychometric testing, as well as how to make the most of your first few weeks in a new job.
www.bcu.ac.uk/careers
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ProGress 2014 Student Engagement
ENGAGING WITH POSTGRADUATES At Birmingham City University we encourage you to be our partners in education and we believe that engagement not only encourages you to be involved and enthused but also enables you to gain substantial personal development and employability skills. Luke Millard
Our Centre for Enhancement, Learning and Teaching (CELT) initiates and develops activities that enhance the quality of the learning experience. Building on a partnership with Birmingham City University Students’ Union, the Centre provides guidance and funding that brings together student and staff innovators from across the University. Academic staff from CELT produced a book that explores the best ways to engage students in education developments. Student Engagement – Identity, Motivation and Community is a product of engagement with all chapters written in collaboration with our students. Luke Millard, Head of Learning Partnerships, said: “We encourage students to be partners and we believe that engagement not only encourages them to be involved and enthused but also enables them to gain substantial personal development and employability skills.” Since 2009 CELT has supported 345 engagement projects involving 1,023 students and 482 staff. Initiatives include: 1. The Postgraduate Research Network (PGRNet) Research and Career Development Centre was established to assist research students throughout their studies. The aim is to increase students’ knowledge, intellectual abilities, techniques and personal qualities to aid in managing and completing research degree programmes. PGRNet works closely with the Library, Student Services and the Alumni Department to deliver tailored events. Support is delivered through workshops, seminars and the ‘research community’ widget on iCity, our online student portal. The centre provides access to a range of resources and information on issues such as literature review search strategies, an introduction
to data analysis software and networking tips. An alumni panel event, made up of PhD graduates, will assist postgraduates in planning their careers, both in academia and industry. 2. Many postgraduate students travel from abroad to study at Birmingham Conservatoire, standing up to the challenges presented by learning in a different culture and language. The Conservatoire International Postgraduate Students Project draws on the first-hand experience of four student partners who are involved in planning and delivering workshops to small groups of new international postgraduates. It is hoped that the project will inform the long-term strategy for the induction of new international students at Birmingham Conservatoire, identifying areas of concern and considering how they might best be addressed. 3. Senior students on art and design courses help newer students facilitate design projects, develop skills, integrate technology and compose drawings and models as part of the mentoring project, Go Between Mentors: Enhancing Learning and Teaching at Birmingham School of Architecture. The mentors assist students in understanding and acting on the feedback from staff, and may facilitate small discussion groups or interact during studio days. Students can also engage with mentors via a Facebook group. Mentoring also benefits senior students, helping them develop the skills and experience required to enter employment in architectural or design education.
will be extended to early career researchers who have recently completed a PhD in art or design. This initiative develops peer mentoring between students and early career researchers, combining academic and doctoral mentoring. 5. Research has shown that those who feel a sense of belonging and fully engage in student life are more likely to complete and succeed in their studies. Birmingham School of the Built Environment (BSBE) has established the ‘BSBE Buddies’ Induction Mentoring Scheme, which is intended to provide a stronger start to student life in the School, setting expectations and providing a sense of belonging from the start of a student’s course. Under the scheme, students are provided with a structured set of activities and resources. All incoming students will have a nominated ‘BSBE Buddy’ who will be their first contact on arrival and will codesign and participate in all induction week activities. The buddy will gradually hand over to course mentors for ongoing support.
4. The Research Mentoring Initiative: improving the student experience and employability of Birmingham Institute of Art and Design (BIAD) research students is aimed at developing and implementing a mentoring initiative for PhD students, which www.bcu.ac.uk/postgraduate
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ProGress 2014 Student Success
EXPOSING THE SECRETS OF UK ASSASSINS When MA Criminology student Liam Brolan heard the programme’s director, Professor David Wilson, discussing research into contract killing he asked if he could get involved. Professor Wilson agreed and Liam soon found himself working as a research assistant, helping leading criminologists carry out the first ever study into British hit men. Liam worked alongside Professor Wilson, Dr Liz Yardley and Visiting Professor Donal MacIntyre on the research, which was published in The Howard Journal of Criminal Justice in January and attracted media attention from the likes of The New York Times, The Guardian, Sunday Mail and The Observer. Professor Wilson also spoke about the study on BBC Radio 4’s Thinking Allowed programme. The researchers established a new typology to identify four different classes of hit man, described as the Novice, the Dilettante, the Journeyman and the Master, and it is hoped that the study will be used in law enforcement. Liam’s contribution was to build a database of articles from national and local newspapers from across Britain. This enabled the team to piece together a list of cases that could be defined as contract killings. “We discovered some pretty interesting information. The youngest hit man that we found was 15 years old. He was paid just £200 to kill his victim. We classed him as a Novice, which is a younger type of hit man with little or no experience of contract killing, but being a Novice doesn’t mean he’s not effective. The only thing that prevented him from being a Master hit man was the fact that he got caught,” explained Liam.
www.bcu.ac.uk/postgraduate
“The typology is now there for people to challenge; it’s to give a framework for debate. “It felt great to have my name published. I’m privileged to have been a part of it. “I’d recommend to anybody to throw themselves into their studies. I definitely think that at the University, especially at postgraduate level, the opportunities that are available to you are second to none.” His plan for the future is to remain in academia, going on to complete a PhD in criminology. “It just fascinates me. The sheer breadth of topics you can study in criminology is phenomenal. “The staff here are brilliant. David Wilson is a well-respected, high-profile criminologist and I’m learning from the best, so I’m very lucky.”
www.bcu.ac.uk/courses/ criminology-pgcert-pgdip--ma
Liam Brolan “As a postgraduate student, you get out what you put in. The more opportunities you take, the better the experience you’ll have.”
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ProGress 2014 Student Success
GRADUATE SECURES TV COMMISSION
FIRST CREATIVE WRITING PHD BEGINS Although she did not have an undergraduate degree, Rhoda Thompson impressed lecturers so much with her talent that they offered her a place on our MA Writing programme. She is now the first student to undertake a PhD in creative writing at the University. Rhoda has always wanted to write and was inspired to apply for the MA after undertaking an evening class in creative writing. Her PhD – ‘Rolling the hand grenade across the kitchen floor: representations of the domestic and the familial in short fiction’ – includes a selection of short stories and research looking at feminist literary theory and anthropology, and short story criticism. “One of the key elements of my PhD exegesis (the scholarly part of the thesis) will be to examine the link between short fiction and the domestic, including the formal correspondences between the compression of the short story and psychological claustrophobia in the home,” she explained.
Gautier Dubois comes from Bordeaux in France, but chose Birmingham to pursue his MA in International Broadcast Journalism, completing the course in 2011. Since graduating, he has acted as a co-author and assistant director on a documentary commissioned by French national public television broadcaster France Télévisions as part of its plans to commemorate the centenary of the outbreak of the First World War.
Allons Enfants... takes its name from the opening words of the French national anthem La Marseillaise. It tells the story of how, in 1880, French primary schoolchildren were brainwashed as part of a strategy to produce a generation prepared to serve in the army and win back territories in eastern France that had been lost to the Germans during the Franco-Prussian War.
Now in the second year of her PhD, she has been involved in various projects at the University, including running a creative writing workshop as part of a staff engagement initiative. She has also been asked to lecture and mentor other students. Her studies have led to opportunities outside the University, such as a role as a shortlisting judge at the Wenlock Poetry Competition at the Wenlock Poetry Festival.
Shooting took place last year and the film will be aired in July 2014. It will also be used as an educational tool and shown in primary schools across France.
Rhoda will develop her writing further after she completes her PhD. She commented: “I am going to write a novel and ideally I would like to do some teaching or lecturing, and maybe run some creative writing workshops.”
www.bcu.ac.uk/int-broadcast-journalism
www.bcu.ac.uk/mawriting www.bcu.ac.uk/postgraduate
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ProGress 2014 Student Success
SHOOT TO LIVE: RESEARCH FOR SOCIAL CHANGE Research student Rachel-Ann Charles has been using media to make a difference to the lives of young people in her home country of Trinidad and Tobago. As part of her PhD in Media and Cultural Studies she has worked on a community media project that focuses on two communities where there is a real risk of young people getting involved in gang violence and crime. After working with non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and development agencies in Trinidad and Tobago, she felt that she could do something to help communities by drawing on her media background. The Shoot to Live programme gave boys aged 12 to 18 the opportunity to learn about photography and film, and equipped them with valuable life skills. Rachel-Ann was attracted to the subject because it combined her passion for media with her interest in psychology, sociology and developmental studies. “My PhD combines all of these elements,” she said. “I enjoy that I can show someone that they can maximise their full potential, especially in those communities where people resort to violence. “It is going to have an impact not just in my country but also within a Caribbean context.” Gaining her PhD will be an achievement, but the real reward is helping someone turn a corner. “It is good to have a piece of paper but it will be great to see young men turn their lives around,” she said. Now in the final year of her PhD, Rachel-Ann has benefitted from the guidance she received and has plans to continue to use her skills in an international context. “The University has provided academic and teaching support in a lot of ways. The supervisors are there to guide and mentor you and they prepare you in becoming a postdoctoral researcher in higher education. “My ideal job would be working in international development where I can use my skills on international projects all over the world.” www.bcu.ac.uk/postgraduate
Rachel-Ann Charles “Showing that there is hope is really critical.”
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ProGress 2014 Student Success
STUDENT’S ART TELLS A MAGICAL STORY Inspired by the popular Disney films, J K Rowling’s Harry Potter books and J R R Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings, The Legend of Everwinter is set in a faraway land and tells the magical tale of three outrageous companions who set out on an heroic journey to fulfil an ancient prophecy. Penned by his partner, Tara Behan, the children’s book was illustrated by Matthew Hill, who completed BA and MA degrees with us before embarking on his current training in teaching art in post-compulsory education. His dedication to his subject began when, at the age of nine, he won £5,000 in a nationwide art competition to promote healthy school meals. He has gone on to win numerous awards, such as the Whitworth Wallis painting award, and has exhibited artwork in cities across the UK, including London, Birmingham, Worcester and Coventry.
Since graduating, Matthew has worked as a professional illustrator, producing both traditional and digital artwork for a broad range of clients within the creative industries, including architectural design companies and iPhone game development studios. Using his art, he has also contributed extensively to his community, providing local schools with colourful illustrations to inspire their pupils, and delivering lectures and workshops to both young and adult audiences. On the use of his illustrations in The Legend of Everwinter, Matthew said: “I have always wanted my artwork to inspire others and I am delighted that I have been able to use my artistic skills on such a rewarding project.” www.bcu.ac.uk/fine-art-ma
MEDIA GRADUATE EARNS RACING STRIPES WITH ASTON MARTIN Marcelo Maia completed our MA Television Production course last year and gained the opportunity to work with iconic British sports car manufacturer Aston Martin during his studies, filming the GT4 Challenge European racing series.
Aston Martin took him on again to produce and direct this season’s GT4 Challenge, giving him an excellent grounding for his career and he says that the University provided him with a good start to working in television production.
Marcelo, who came to the University with a BA in Journalism, was selected after Aston Martin approached Birmingham School of Media about recruiting students to film the annual semiprofessional gentleman’s driver series. Tutors recommended Marcel and he went on to film some of the most iconic British racetracks, as well as the famous Spa-Francorchamps circuit in Belgium.
“I’m assisting in studio sessions for BA and MA students and I keep close ties with Birmingham School of Media.
Although he didn’t have an existing interest in motorsports, it was a valuable experience. He commented: “Covering the GT4 series has been a challenge in itself, but a very rewarding one. “I was never into motorsports before this but you grow an interest after working in it for a while. I really like the excitement of it and the thrill of being at the racetrack.”
“It has helped me immensely,” he explained.
“I’m also engaged in a business incubation scheme with the University and I’m developing projects with different departments as well as external clients.” Marcelo aspires to work for National Geographic or the Discovery Channel as a director or field producer.
Marcelo Maia
You can view his coverage of the GT4 series at bit.ly/1mpOPgT, on Marcelo’s website at xelini. wix.com/portfolio#!2013 or on the Aston Martin website at www.astonmartin.com/en/ racing/series/gt4-challenge.
“I wasn’t nervous but you have those butterflies in your stomach telling you that you are working with a big brand. I have never let that go over my head.”
www.bcu.ac.uk/tv-interactive-content www.bcu.ac.uk/postgraduate
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RECOGNISING OUR TOP ACHIEVERS The Extra Mile Awards bring together people from across the whole of Birmingham City University to celebrate the achievements of students and staff. The Postgraduate Student of the Year award is one of nine categories at the awards, recognising some of the exceptional work done by our postgraduate students.
Kate McInernery Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) Primary and Early Years Winner – Postgraduate Student of the Year Kate was named Postgraduate Student of the Year in recognition of her outstanding support to her peers. Although busy with her studies, she volunteered to represent the University at the televised Educate and Celebrate Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) History Month event at the new Library of Birmingham. This involved leading a session with 10- and 11-year-old children, based on work she had explored during a University session on children’s literature that promoted equality. In addition to this, Kate has joined a poetry research group, attended a research retreat day and helped to deliver a teaching and learning presentation at the National Association for the Teaching of English conference in June 2013, and our own Education Research Conference in July 2013. As a leading member of the group, she responds to developments in the education sector quickly and positively, and has set up a website which acts as a support network for everyone in her module group. She plans to write a collaborative professional article based on recent poetry teaching experiences in the primary classroom. She also contributes practical poetry ideas to Teachit Primary, an education resource website for primary school teachers. Kate is committed to developing the research project over the summer and hopes to maintain strong connections with us during and beyond her newly qualified teacher (NQT) year. Kate is also one of the PGCE Primary Student Representatives, which involves sharing her peers’ successes and concerns at Board of Studies meetings.
Grace Alexandra Williams Research to PhD - Art and Design, School of Art Runner-up – Postgraduate Student of the Year Grace is a PhD student who has been central in facilitating open accessibility for students on the website for our Centre for Fine Art Research (CFAR), which has required a tremendous amount of extra work and attention to detail. She has almost single-handedly made it possible that the international profile of CFAR remains updated, strong and vibrant – which is vital in the run-up to the Research Excellence Framework mentioned on page 6. Grace also set up the ARTicle press research publication website, which involved getting books online, handling packaging and distribution, setting up contracts and dealing with people needing to get their books into the public domain. She also won the Gertrude Aston Bowater award for doctorial study. Other work includes setting up both the MA and PhD networks, making a significant contribution to the wellbeing of her peers. She has also recorded a video of seminars, which has had a major impact on the School of Art and the research culture within it.
www.bcu.ac.uk/postgraduate
ProGress 2014 Student Success
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ProGress 2014 New Courses
UNIVERSITY LAUNCHES A NEW APPROACH TO POSTGRADUATE STUDY Birmingham City University has launched a new framework of cross-disciplinary Master’s courses aimed at those who are looking to combine an interest in management with a desire to work in a particular industry. The courses blend specific subject knowledge in fields such as the arts, data analytics, design, fashion, education, media, luxury products, the oil and gas industry, and textiles, with management know-how, providing a truly multi-disciplinary learning experience.
• Improve your knowledge and understanding of the fundamentals of management that are appropriate and portable to all management roles, irrespective of the industry • Develop your knowledge, skills and insights and increase your employability and career prospects • Become an effective manager in your specialism, through the business and
management subjects of your programme • Stand out from the crowd with an established qualification, business acumen and behaviours, and a skill set in two subjects that are highly sought after by employers • Optimise your learning and development, and your employment potential, through an integrated, yet balanced, curriculum.
They run over one year and build expertise to manage in the globalising world and develop key skills and techniques that will enhance knowledge of your chosen subject. You will develop an integrated and critically aware understanding of management and organisations, by combining and applying the learning and teaching of the business and management modules within the context of your chosen specialism. As a result, you will develop the ability to apply knowledge and understanding of business and management to complex issues, to improve practices within your chosen field. University Vice-Chancellor Professor Cliff Allan said: “I know that selecting the right management course to help progress your career in a specific area can be a difficult decision. By combining management with specialist subject areas our new suite of postgraduate programmes will maximise students’ educational experience, broaden their employment options and help them to realise their career aspirations.” For more information, visit www.bcu.ac.uk/pgframework.
THE BENEFITS OF A CROSSDISCIPLINARY MASTER’S COURSE You will: • Enjoy a programme that blends two key subject areas to broaden your education and boost your employment opportunities • Learn from academics with exceptional real-world knowledge and experience to really bring the subject areas to life
FULL LIST OF CROSSDISCIPLINARY MASTER’S COURSES: MA Arts and Project Management MSc Data Analytics and Managem ent MA Design Innovation Managem ent MA Fashion Management MA Fashion Media Management MA Fashion Retail Management MA Global Education Management MA Global Media Management MA Global Media Management (Advertising Industry) MA Global Media Management (The Music Business) MA Global Media Management (The New s Business) MA Luxury Brand Management MA Luxury Jeweller y Managem ent MA Luxury Product Management MSc Oil and Gas Management MA Textile Management www.bcu.ac.uk/postgraduate
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ProGress 2014 Investing in Your Future
NEW CITY CENTRE BUILDING TAKING SHAPE Following the successful completion of The Parkside Building – which opened its doors to students on our design and media courses in September – work is now well under way on the next phase of our City Centre Campus development.
rooms, as well as more informal ‘break out’ areas.
A second new building, The Curzon Building, will house our business, law, social science and English courses from September 2015, as well as new library, IT and student support facilities, providing a ‘one-stop shop’ for all our students’ needs.
The development is also benefiting current students, with those on our architecture and construction-related courses getting the opportunity to visit the site to shadow staff from contractors Willmott Dixon Construction, giving them a greater insight into the design and building process. There will also be an opportunity for up to seven students to gain placements on site, with one placement being a fully paid position.
With the foundations and steel frame of the building complete, work is now starting to take place on the internal structure. The landmark building will feature two wings of teaching accommodation, linked by a central atrium. Our flexible teaching space will incorporate traditional lecture theatres and seminar
Our Student Services team is consulting with students to find out what they want from the new hub, while the steering groups for students studying courses relating to business, education, law and social sciences are also involved in gathering the opinions of students.
NEXT PHASE OF DEVELOPMENT IS ANNOUNCED As part of our £260 million investment in developing our estate and learning facilities, we have recently unveiled plans for a further £58 million of improvements to consolidate most of our teaching onto two state-of-the-art campuses, together with plans for a new £40 million home for Birmingham Conservatoire. From 2017 we plan to move all teaching and learning, research and business engagement services, student support and professional services to our City South Campus in Edgbaston and the City Centre Campus within Eastside – which encompasses our satellite sites for the School of Art and School of Jewellery. Both sites will benefit from new purposebuilt facilities. A new home for Birmingham Conservatoire will also be constructed at our City Centre Campus site, opening in 2017. It will be a unique contemporary building, incorporating two major performance spaces including a fine new concert hall for orchestral training and public performance, private rehearsal and practice rooms, and teaching spaces for musicians from a variety of disciplines. Vice-Chancellor Professor Cliff Allan said that the long-term estates strategy would ensure that we are best-placed to become a university of choice for Birmingham, the West Midlands, the UK and internationally, by providing facilities and a learning experience which are world class. “Positioning the University at the heart of the city will enable us to capitalise on connections and better engage with local and national business, enabling us to continue our focus on professional and practice-based courses and development to attract students to the city and retain highly-skilled graduates in the region,” he said.
The Curzon Building www.bcu.ac.uk/postgraduate
“The significant amount of new build on both sites will enable us to create best practice facilities and an environment which embraces new technology and the innovative methods of teaching and learning required by today’s students and business partners.”
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ProGress 2014 Investing In Your Future
OUR FACILITIES Wherever you study at Birmingham City University, you can be sure you will benefit from access to some of the best facilities available for your chosen subject. Our City Centre Campus in Eastside currently consists of two buildings – Millennium Point and The Parkside Building – with more developments planned over the coming years. Students on our technology, engineering, acting, media and design courses are already learning here. Our state-of-the-art Mediahouse, within The Parkside Building, includes four industry-standard TV studios, plus our green screen MILO studio, providing the largest concentration of TV facilities between London and Salford, as well as radio studios and Avid editing suites. Students on our design-related courses benefit from dedicated workshops for print, textiles, woodwork, ceramics and glass; photography studios and darkrooms; and digital print and pattern-making facilities. Facilities available on our technology courses include noise and vibration cells, a robotic laboratory and fantastic recording facilities, including a vintage mixing desk. Our £4 million purpose-built Birmingham School of Acting benefits from 10 studios with specially sprung floors and a large performance studio regarded as a benchmark for drama training facilities in the UK. Our trainee health professionals enhance their skills in the most realistic environments possible at the City South Campus, where facilities include mock hospital wards, an operating theatre and birthing room, a simulated home environment, virtual radiotherapy suite and radiography training centre. Facilities at our City North Campus include mock classrooms for our education students
and an imitation courtroom for the use of trainee lawyers – so realistic it has been used as a set by TV drama producers! A Grade I listed Venetian Gothic building at Margaret Street in the heart of Birmingham city centre provides inspiration for our art students, who also have access to cuttingedge resources with light and airy studios, gallery and installation spaces and dedicated workshops for wood, metal, plaster, fibreglass, ceramics, digital media, print and photography. One of the most significant jewellery schools in the world stands in Vittoria Street, in the heart of Birmingham’s famous Jewellery Quarter, where much of Britain’s jewellery is made today, providing great opportunities to build contacts with future employers. You’ll benefit from industry-standard equipment, exhibition space and a specialist library. Music students at Birmingham Conservatoire are based in the heart of the city, close to the Symphony Hall and Town Hall venues. Facilities include state-of-the-art recording and editing suites, 50 dedicated practice rooms and our 520-seat concert hall. In 2017, Birmingham Conservatoire is due to move to a new £40 million home at our City Centre Campus.
THE PARKSIDE BUILDING LANDS GREEN TITLE Our new Parkside Building, which opened in September 2013, is not just providing a fantastic learning environment for our design and media students – it has also been recognised for its high architectural and environmental standards.
After being named one of the region’s best new buildings at the RIBA West Midlands Awards in April, it was put forward to represent Birmingham at the RIBA National Awards. It also picked up the ‘Sustainability Award’ at the Inside West Midlands Property Awards in November 2013. Beating competition from the new Library of Birmingham and the Two Snowhill office development, it was praised by judges for the ‘attention to detail’ put into the project, with innovations including solar panels, a biomass boiler and a ‘brown roof’ providing natural habitats for wildlife. www.bcu.ac.uk/postgraduate
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ProGress 2014 Why Birmingham?
A STUDENT’S GUIDE TO BIRMINGHAM English student Sarah Holmes gives her guide to the city As I come from a mid-sized town, Birmingham seemed to go on forever, yet, while you soon get to know your way around the main areas, there is always a new hidden gem to be found.
Shopping Birmingham’s Bullring shopping centre has over 160 shops but if you can’t find what you need there, you’ll find it in the rest of Birmingham city centre or nearby Solihull. Digbeth is home to the Custard Factory, which houses independent retailers, galleries, music shops and monthly vintage fairs. Another alternative shopping destination, the Oasis Market, is where you’ll find independent retailers, music stores, and unique fashion.
Art Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery (BMAG) houses some of the Staffordshire Hoard along with part of the largest public Pre-Raphaelite collection in the world. With Birmingham’s great rail connections, you can also get to The New Art Gallery in Walsall and The Herbert in Coventry in less than 30 minutes, and London, too, is only an hour and a half away by train! Sophie Bancroft, a recent MA Fine Art graduate says: “Brum has the kind of arts scene that makes you want to live here even beyond your degree, from painting shows to performance events, galleries in all corners of the city and events in the coolest of bars. The arts scene in Brum is a proper community and so exciting to be part of, whether as a practitioner or just a viewer.”
Music Birmingham can cater for all music tastes. Urban Coffee Company in Church Street puts on monthly open mic nights, Live Music Friday, where they stay open late and serve coffee and tea as well as alcoholic beverages. The Yardbird has live music most nights (and an ostrich burger stand outside). Two of Birmingham’s larger venues, the LG Arena and the National Indoor Arena also host gigs from a range of big acts. The O2 Academy www.bcu.ac.uk/postgraduate
and The Institute also have regular gigs and club nights. If pop isn’t your thing, Birmingham is the only city outside the capital to have a worldclass symphony orchestra, and the Symphony Hall puts on regular shows.
Food Birmingham’s Balti Triangle is famous for its array of restaurants and takeaways offering spectacular curry dishes. Every nation is represented in Birmingham with Portuguese, Hungarian, Lebanese, Indian, Polish and Caribbean restaurants dotted about the city.
The Plough, a pub in Harborne, serves excellent meals with two-for-one offers during the week, and Cafephilia in Moseley offers Has Bean coffee (a favourite of mine) along with a range of snacks including freshly baked bread toasted and served with butter and jam – simple but perfect! I have also been highly recommended Mount Fuji, a Japanese restaurant in Spiceal Street, part of the Bullring, and Indianos in Acocks Green. And when you’re cooking for yourself, you’ll never fail to find an ingredient in Birmingham’s range of world-food stores, supermarkets and farmers’ markets.
Cinema Alongside two Odeons, a Cineworld and the Big Screen at Millennium Point, Birmingham hosts the UK’s oldest working cinema, The Electric. With sofas, a bar and waiter service, you can enjoy screenings of independent films, foreign movies and classics alongside the best reviewed mainstream releases in style.
Outdoors Birmingham might be known as Britain’s second biggest city, but it doesn’t take too long to find some peace in the great outdoors. Birmingham’s canals offer relaxing routes for walking and cycling, and the cycle paths are undergoing a great improvement. Most
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ProGress 2014 Why Birmingham?
notable for me is the Rea River Valley route which takes you from Digbeth to Longbridge via Cannon Hill Park. Winding paths through parks full of football players and kite flyers alongside the rumbling River Rea make for a beautiful, easy Sunday afternoon. Many don’t know that Europe’s largest urban park is in north Birmingham: Sutton Park covers 2,400 acres and has seven lakes, beautiful woodland, restaurants and a donkey sanctuary!
Nightlife Birmingham is the youngest city in Europe, with under-25s accounting for nearly 40 per cent of the population. Because of this, the city has an abundance of opportunities for the young including a booming nightlife scene. From the glitzy bars and multi-roomed clubs of Broad Street, to the underground scene in Digbeth and the pubs and bars of student-rich Selly Oak, there is something for everyone. My housemate loves the alternative nights at bar Scruffy Murphy’s and club Subside, highlighting their ’wicked drinks deals‘. If you are more interested in cocktails and dancing, the Jewellery Quarter
has a lot of bars including The Rectory, with cocktail deals if you get there before 9pm. My favourite bar, BrewDog, prides itself on interesting ales but also stocks great whisky and bar snacks.
Events Watching a performance by spoken word artist Kate Tempest at mac birmingham was one of the best experiences I’ve had in Birmingham. Strong rap-esque vocals blasted triumphantly from the enigmatic performance artist over a live score. In the introduction, Kate told the audience how much she loved Birmingham, saying that unlike London, her hometown, everyone in Birmingham is so friendly. Based in one of Birmingham’s largest green spaces, Cannon Hill Park, mac birmingham is well worth a visit. It hosts regular art, theatre, dance and music events along with independent cinema showings. As well as hosting independent events such as this, this year, Birmingham plays host to the Wireless Festival, featuring Kanye West, Drake, Pharrell and Rudimental. Birmingham event guide livebrum.com is your one-stop resource for what’s on.
Recruitment and Career Opportunities Many former students have chosen Birmingham to launch their careers. Birmingham City University offers many degrees that integrate work placements, and we also have our own employment agency, OpportUNIty – Student Jobs on Campus, providing jobs for students while they study, so they graduate ahead of the field.
WORKING IN BIRMINGHAM Birmingham is a great place to work. Based in the centre of the UK, it is highly accessible and there’s a wealth of opportunities for anyone starting their career in the city, but don’t just take our word for it. • Home to 75,000 companies, including 1,190 international firms, Birmingham is a leading business destination. • 52 per cent of our graduates find employment in Birmingham and 72 per cent go on to work in the West Midlands. We think this shows how much the city and the region have to offer our graduates. • They provide a base for global companies from various sectors, such as Jaguar Land Rover, just one of the firms with which we work. • The city’s location in the heart of the UK and its proximity to the motorway network brings 90 per cent of the country within a fourhour travel time. Air, road and rail links provide a gateway to 400 million people across Europe. • In 2011, significant foreign investment led to 6,738 jobs from 58 projects, giving Birmingham the second highest number of jobs of any city outside of London. Sources: Business Birmingham and DLHE 2011/12.
www.bcu.ac.uk/postgraduate
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ProGress 2014 Support
FIVE STEPS TO FINDING NEW OPPORTUNITIES What can you do to stand out in the job market? Sonia Hendy-Isaac, Senior Lecturer in Curriculum Design for Employer Engagement, offers an expert perspective. There is so much advice available on raising your employability profile to improve your opportunities, from CV top tips to interview techniques. In a challenging economic climate, it’s difficult to find new ways to stand out from the crowd when applying for opportunities and root out jobs that aren’t advertised through traditional means. So what can you do about it?
Step one – who are you? First things first: who are you? No, really – check who you are according to the web! Employers, especially in the current climate, will Google you ahead of shortlisting, so before you’ve even started an application form or sent off that CV, check yourself out. Embarrassing photos, questionable status updates and controversial tweets can present a version of you that might not be the one you intended. Check and change your privacy settings on social media outlets and take down what you can that’s even slightly dodgy from the perspective of an employer. Remember, the web search is often the first impression you’ll make (beyond the application form, of course) – make it a professional one! There are also people who advocate, and use, NSFW (not safe for work) profiles which might be worth considering if you’re happy to manage several versions of ‘you’. Just be careful not to mix these up – ramp up the privacy settings and ensure you limit things like email account crossover!
Step two – who do you want to work for? People often focus simply on the job pages or sign up with recruitment agencies to seek out vacancies. This is a logical place to start, but try to think a little deeper than that – make a www.bcu.ac.uk/postgraduate
list of your ideal employers and then hit the social media outputs for all of them. Create a ‘hotlist’ of their online vacancy pages and check them daily; some employers reserve the right to withdraw vacancies as soon as they have sufficient applicants who meet the criteria. The other trick is to think laterally – what is it about the company that makes you want to work for them? Identify these values or attributes and then seek these out in other companies from different sectors – this is especially important if your career choice or job role has obvious crossover potential.
Step three – making applications personal Many companies favour online applications nowadays and often the only space you have to be ‘you’ is the dreaded personal statement; think of this as the best way to get across your personality, alignment to the role and overall career ambitions. Analyse the job specification and ensure that you have, and demonstrate, the relevant experience. If this isn’t the case, be honest and gently broach the subject, placing this in the context of your willingness to learn new skills. It’s also important to emphasise the type of person you are and what you value; for example, if you claim to be a generous character, how does this manifest itself? How would this characteristic benefit your potential employer? More often than not, employers love to see their own values reflected in yours so make sure you think about how you might do that. The other key thing is to make sure your personal statement is readable, not only in terms of grammar and spelling, but also in terms of storytelling – does it construct a coherent narrative? Does it get across your personality, alignment to the role and overall career ambitions?
Step four – making contact OK, so we all know about the Old Boys’ Network, but the majority of us don’t actually have access to it. My advice – create your own! Networking is crucial when times are tough, and the easiest way to start is to explore who
you know – family, friends, peers and even colleagues from part-time employment. Having the confidence to ask your existing network for a career move can be challenging, but this may give you an early heads-up in terms of upcoming roles and a personal contact can give you a quick win in terms of shortlisting. The other areas that often get neglected are open business breakfasts and networking events such as conferences and showcases. Make the time to attend these if you can, have a business card and CV at the ready, and be prepared to introduce yourself to strangers – it’s a brave move but at the very least, you’ll have gathered some contacts to follow up and add to your network. Finally, where you see a role advertised, make contact with the employer. Discuss your experience with them, check for values alignment, give them a sense of yourself and then say when you’re applying. Include their name in your personal statement and/or any covering letter/email. Make it personal!
Step five – think outside the box Right on the tail of ‘making it personal’ for an advertised role comes the next level – creating contact where there is no current vacancy. Contacting HR departments and/or the area within a company you would like to work with via a simple phone call seems a little old fashioned, especially in the modern age of email! But making a quick, concise, wellplanned phone call highlights your initiative and opens a line of communication that didn’t exist before. As a postgraduate, there is an expectation that you will somehow know exactly what it is you want to do and how to get yourself there – but carving out a career can be a tough task! Analyse your values and ambitions carefully and check you are looking for the right type of role for you. Remember, opportunities don’t happen by accident, so use as many tools as possible to create them.
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ProGress 2014 Support
FAQS: EMPLOYABILITY AND SUPPORT Our award-winning support services ensure that the help you need to succeed is available at every stage of your journey with us. Our friendly Student Services team offers expert advice on a wide range of practical and personal issues, including money matters, childcare, health and wellbeing, careers and job prospects, visas and immigration and complaints and appeals. Here, they answer a few questions about postgraduate study and support. Why do people choose to undertake postgraduate study? From an employment perspective, some people choose to study at postgraduate level to boost their employability, hone and develop those skills learned at undergraduate level, and climb the ladder in their present or another organisation. It can, of course, also boost potential salary!
Why do people choose to undertake postgraduate study? According to the Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Services, there is an increasing number of occupations where employers require a postgraduate qualification, so for some careers it is a requirement. For others, it may boost career prospects by giving access to industry contacts. Some postgraduate courses are professionally accredited and so reflect the industry’s ever-changing needs. A postgraduate course can also help with a change of career direction as conversion courses allow you to specialise in a different sector.
How can I develop my employability skills? Gain work experience, get involved in extracurricular initiatives such as mentoring and join in Students’ Union activities. Make use of the Careers and Job Prospects Team and attend a wide range of career events organised by students. Many postgraduate courses also offer work placement opportunities.
What support can you offer me in improving my employability? Mentoring a first year student to help them settle into university life develops leadership and communication skills, while being mentored yourself by an employer can provide industry insight to develop your commercial awareness. Our team of qualified and experienced career professionals is committed to providing impartial advice and guidance to support you in your career choices, and this help continues after you complete your course.
How do I gain work experience? Work experience provides the chance to gain a real insight into an industry and to boost your skills and knowledge. It’s also a chance to ‘road test’ a job and see if it’s right for you. Many postgraduate courses have work placements as part of the curriculum, allowing you to gain practical experience with real employers, while we also have a dedicated online jobs board, exclusively available to students and graduates. OpportUNIty: Student Jobs on Campus ensures that you are given the chance to fill one of the many temporary paid positions within the University.
What should I be looking to gain when choosing work placements/ experience?
thing to remember is any work experience is valuable, as long as you evidence the transferable skills you have gained. If there is a particular employer you would like to work for, approach them to see if they have any opportunities such as paid employment/work shadowing or simply an office visit.
What techniques should I employ when looking for work? Our Career and Job Prospects team continues to provide support after you have completed your studies. We can support you with where to look for suitable job vacancies, how to market yourself, how to make use of social media to promote yourself and look for work, effective networking, accessing the hidden job market and interview tips and techniques.
What about opportunities to become self-employed? Students may consider self-employment for any number of reasons. The biggest hurdle can be how to turn an idea into a reality. There are a number of extracurricular programmes designed to help you develop your entrepreneurial skills, including access to finance, enterprise, events and networking, training and mentoring, and support and guidance. To find out more about this and other opportunities that are available to you within the University, please send an email to enterprise@bcu.ac.uk with ‘postgraduate magazine: self-employment’ in the title and a brief description of the information you would like.
Support is available face-to-face, by phone or online. For more information, contact us at www.bcu.ac.uk/askus or phone +44 (0)121 331 5588.
If you have an idea of the type of role or organisation you would like to work in, have a look online and research what seem to be the main attributes relevant employers are seeking. Look at the job description and person specifications for similar roles. The www.bcu.ac.uk/postgraduate
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ProGress 2014 Funding
FUNDING FURTHER STUDY One of the biggest obstacles for prospective postgraduate students is the cost. Here, Graduate Prospects gives advice on how to find out what funding is available to help make it easier. Finding a place on a course is the simple part of postgraduate study. The hard part is working out a way to pay for your course fees on top of supporting yourself financially. Because of this, it’s vital that you put funding at the top of your list of priorities and try to secure some as early as possible.
www.bcu.ac.uk/postgraduate
Research Council grants The biggest source of funding available to universities to support postgraduate students on research courses comes from the UK’s seven Research Councils, which cover the full range of academic disciplines. Those awarded a studentship receive a stipend that normally covers tuition fees and contributes to the cost of living. Applications must be submitted to university departments and not directly to the Research Councils. Be sure you ask about the availability of Research Council funding in your chosen faculty and school.
Professional and Career Development Loans Student and professional loans can be arranged through most of the major banks in one form or another. The most notable are Professional and Career Development Loans (PCDLs), offered by Barclays and The Co-operative. You can borrow between £300 and £10,000, with the interest paid by the Skills Funding Agency while you study. Repayments begin one month after you graduate and you can organise a payment plan to last for between one and five years.
27
ProGress 2014 Funding
CAN OUR FUNDING PORTAL HELP YOU? There are restrictions on the type of course you can take when funding it with a PCDL. Barclays and The Co-operative will only grant a loan if you are enrolled on an approved vocational course and are unable to meet the costs yourself. The banks pay the course fees directly to the University, and it can take up to three months for a loan to be approved. You can only apply to one bank at a time.
Part-time work While course fees, living costs and study materials can take up the majority of your budget, it’s how you find the extra money that can make the difference. Many postgraduates get part-time jobs to help fund their studies and universities present a good source of employment, with flexible hours to fit around study.
Other options University funding: Visit the Student Services department to discuss any funding that may be available and specific to you based on your course and circumstances. Employer sponsorship: You might be able to persuade your employer to pay for your course if you can show how it will be beneficial to the business. You may also have to sign an agreement keeping you at the company for a specific period of time so they get a return on their investment. Disability funding: The Disabled Students’ Allowance (DSA) is paid in one lump sum to students with disabilities, mental health conditions or learning difficulties. Emergency funding: The Access to Learning Fund, or Hardship Fund, provides emergency loans to students in severe financial difficulties. Funds, which do not need to be repaid, are likely to go to students hit with unexpected costs or experiencing delays in receiving their PCDL.
Our Student Services department has set up a new online funding portal to enable you to search for additional funding from external trusts and charities to support you through your education.
Making your application
Birmingham City Open 4 Learning is an innovative and easy-to-use funding information tool that is updated daily by a dedicated research team who investigate all UK and international funding opportunities.
Most postgraduate applications can be made at any time of the year, although some courses may close early due to popular demand. Some may have earlier application deadlines. The online course informawtion page will have this information.
It gives you access to over 25,000 funding opportunities, including statutory grants, loans and awards available from European, national and local government. These include the Access to Learning Fund, Care to Learn and National Scholarship Programme (NSP), as well as details of corporate and industrial funds from businesses and charitable trusts that support individuals in education.
Most postgraduate applications should be made directly to us. Where there are exceptions, such as PGCE or law, this is detailed on the relevant course information page on our website.
University application forms are available from the relevant faculty admission office or can be downloaded from the relevant course page via www.bcu.ac.uk/ postgraduate. International students should see www.bcu.ac.uk/international/apply for details on how to apply.
The portal provides step-by-step guides, useful tips and case studies providing advice on how to apply for funding. You can also find a wide range of information relating to course fees equipment purchase, travel expenses, childcare costs and living costs.
Want to find out more?
Birmingham City Open 4 You is only available to Birmingham City University students. You can register using your University email address at www. open4learning.info/birminghamcity.
We hold at least one Postgraduate Open Evening every year and several other allencompassing Open Days throughout the year. If you want to meet our academics and see our facilities then please come along to one. Details can be found at www.bcu.ac.uk/opendays.
Funding support For 2014/15, all of our faculties will offer a loyalty fee waiver of 10 per cent, plus an additional 10 per cent given at the Dean’s discretion, to students who completed their undergraduate course with us. More details are available online at www.bcu.ac.uk and from our faculties.
You can keep up to date with the latest postgraduate news and information relating to the University at www.facebook.com/bcupostgrad or follow us on Twitter using @mybcu.
In the meantime course information is available at www.bcu.ac.uk/postgraduate and our excellent Course Enquiries team is available to talk to you on +44 (0)121 331 5595.
For more information, visit www.prospects. ac.uk/funding_postgraduate_study.htm. www.bcu.ac.uk/postgraduate
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How to contact us Birmingham City University City North Campus Perry Barr Birmingham B42 2SU
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T: +44 (0)121 331 5000 E: mainreception@bcu.ac.uk F: +44 (0)121 331 7994 W: www.bcu.ac.uk For UK/EU course enquiries T: +44 (0)121 331 5595 W: www.bcu.ac.uk/enquiries For international course enquiries T: +44 (0)121 331 6714 E: bcuinternational@enquiries.uk.com F: +44 (0)121 331 6314 W:www.bcu.ac.uk/international For UK/EU applicant enquiries T: +44 (0)121 331 6295 E: admissions@bcu.ac.uk For international applicant enquiries T: +44 (0)121 331 5389 E: international.admissions@bcu.ac.uk
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