Course information

Length

Three academic terms (September-June) equivalent to part-time study

Course overview

The PGCert in Film and Screen Studies offers a unique combination of critical and creative approaches to the past and the future of audiovisual media.

The PGCert will equip you with skills and knowledge to address current transformations of moving image media in a globalised world, from the media in your pocket to architectural screens. It explores both the old and the new, philosophy and history, theory and practice, to help you understand the challenges of the 21st century's culture of moving images, changing artistic and political contexts as well as ever-developing technologies.

Innovative learning and research

What distinguishes the PGCert in Film and Screen Studies is an innovative approach to learning and research. It takes you well beyond the borders of traditional film studies. It encourages you to think critically and imaginatively, across media forms, disciplinary boundaries as well as conceptual and creative work. Students taking the Media Arts pathway will have the opportunity to submit some work in non-traditional forms.

The Department of Media, Communications and Cultural Studies has been ranked 2nd in the UK for 'world-leading or internationally excellent' research (Research Excellence Framework, 2021) and 12th in the world (2nd in the UK) in the 2022 QS World Rankings for communication and media studies.

Learn from international experts

Teaching draws on the diverse research strengths of the globally renowned academics at one of the world's leading media communications, and cultural studies departments, which also has strong traditions in audiovisual practice.

You'll be taught by scholars of international standing who have expertise in the interface between film criticism and creation; new screen technologies; in early cinema and the media archaeology of modernity; in artist’s film; and in non-fiction film (eg documentary and avant-garde). See more information about our research interests.

Choose a pathway

Moving Image Studies pathway

The moving image media today are a concentrated form of culture, ideas, socialisation, wealth, and power. 21st-century globalisation, ecology, migration, and activism. How have the media built on, distorted and abandoned their past? How are they trying to destroy, deny or build the future?

This pathway explores new critical approaches that address the currency of moving image media in today's global context – their aesthetics, technology, and politics. It seeks to extend the boundaries for studying moving images by considering a wider range of media and will introduce you to a wider range of approaches for investigating moving images' past and present.

Media Arts Pathway

The most intense and extreme forms of media, experimental media arts, test our established ideas and practices to breaking point. From wild abstraction and surrealist visions to activist and community arts, they ask profound questions about high art and popular culture, the individual and the social, meaning and beauty.

This pathway explores these emerging experimental practices of image-making and criticism. Students on this pathway are encouraged not just to study but to curate and critique past, present and future media arts by building exhibitions and visual essays of their own. Short practical workshops will enable you to make the most of the skills you bring onto the programme.

Contact the department

If you have specific questions about the degree, contact Rachel Moore.

What you'll study

Compulsory Modules

The modules you will study on this programme depend on your chosen pathway.

Compulsory modules (Media Arts)

Module title Credits
Archaeology of the Moving Image 30 credits or 15 credits
Experimental Media 30 credits or 15 credits

Compulsory modules (Moving Image Studies)

Module title Credits
Archaeology of the Moving Image 30 credits or 15 credits
Politics of the Audiovisual 30 credits or 15 credits

Download the programme specification.

Please note that due to staff research commitments not all of these modules may be available every year.

Entry requirements

Applicants will normally have, or expect to gain a first degree of at least upper second class standard (or equivalent).

The programme is suitable for students from a wide range of disciplinary backgrounds within the humanities and limited prior knowledge of scholarship on screen-based media is required.

International qualifications

We accept a wide range of international qualifications. Find out more about the qualifications we accept from around the world.

If English isn’t your first language, you will need an IELTS score (or equivalent English language qualification) of 6.5 with a 6.5 in writing and no element lower than 6.0 to study this programme. If you need assistance with your English language, we offer a range of courses that can help prepare you for postgraduate-level study.

Fees, funding & scholarships

To find out more about your fees, please check our postgraduate fees guidance or contact the Fees Office, who can also advise you about how to pay your fees.

Additional costs

In addition to your tuition fees, you'll be responsible for any additional costs associated with your course, such as buying stationery and paying for photocopying. You can find out more about what you need to budget for on our study costs page.

There may also be specific additional costs associated with your programme. This can include things like paying for field trips or specialist materials for your assignments. Please check the programme specification for more information.

Funding opportunities

Find out more about postgraduate fees and explore funding opportunities. If you're applying for funding, you may be subject to an application deadline.

How to apply

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