Masters Degrees in Audio Technology, United Kingdom

The MSc in Audio and Music Technology is a one-year full-time taught course for graduates who wish to enhance their skills to go on to a career or further research in the varied fields of audio processing, room acoustics, interactive music and audio applications, voice analysis and synthesis, audio programming and other music technology related areas.

The MSc is designed for:
-Graduates of courses in Music Technology or Tonmeister
-Graduates of courses in technology, mathematics, science, engineering or computing who can demonstrate music performance or music production skills
-Graduates of a related subject who can demonstrate an understanding of music theory/digital audio, skills in music production or performance and technical experience or an aptitude for the technical aspects of audio

The course aims to:
-Provide students with a thorough grounding in scientific theory and engineering techniques as applied to digital audio technology
-Develop an understanding of audio processing and acoustic analysis as it relates to speech, singing, music and room/environmental acoustics
-Provide practical experience of audio software programming in a variety of coding languages and a creative approach to audio analysis and synthesis
-Develop communication skills for academic and public engagement purposes, in a variety of writing styles, or for oral presentations

There is a particular emphasis on practical application of theoretical aspects of audio signal processing and acoustic analysis and the programme also helps students to develop other skills such as critical analysis and evaluation, synthesis of theory and practice, creative problem-solving, design and implementation and oral and written communication skills.

The course is also designed to enhance your employability and to prepare you for entering the world of work or research after graduation. Some of the ways we do this are:
-Personal Professional Practitioner module dedicated to enhancing your employability, self-promotion and transferable skills, whether you go on to work in industry or running your own business.
-Hands-on experience of event and project management including the opportunity to design and deliver two events on campus.
-Project Development module furthers your skills in promoting your work/research to the public, presenting to an audience and developing a project plan.
-A substantial piece of individual research or development project, which you undertake over the summer under supervision from a staff member.
-Student section of the Audio Engineering Society regularly runs events with external speakers from the industry - a chance to network with the professionals.
-Group work in some modules allowing you to put your team work and management skills into practice.

Facilities

The course is supported by a wide range of facilities including:
-Three recording studios and Digital Audio Workstation production rooms
-Dedicated listening space with surround sound loudspeaker array
-6-sided anechoic chamber
-Newly equipped Mac Workstation suite specifically for audio app development
-State-of-the art equipment for voice analysis and synthesis
-The opportunity to access audio facilities across campus including the 3Sixty (immersive audio visual space) and the Arthur Sykes Rymer Auditorium (Music Research Centre) as availability allows

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IN BRIEF:

• Study at our state-of-the-art MediaCityUK campus
• Enjoy excellent job prospects in a growing field
• Tap into the expertise of world-class audio-engineering and acoustics researchers
• Part-time study option
• Based at MediaCityUK
• International students can apply

COURSE SUMMARY

On this course, you’ll gain practical, theoretical and creative experience of sound engineering, music production and audio technology.

You’ll explore the design, manipulation and production of audio across many platforms, using our state-of-the-art audio-post recording, radio and TV studios to study a mix of sound engineering and theory modules.

The aim of the course is to develop the skills that you’ll need to create and deliver professional audio, whilst under pinning these skills with a sound theoretical background.

94% of our postgraduates go on to employment and/or further study within six months of graduating.DLHE 2009 and 2010

COURSE DETAILS

This course entails both practical based and theory modules. The modules are delivered in the recording studios, the audio technology suite, audio post production suite and lecture theatres.

DURATION

September start

MSc (one year full-time or up to three years part-time)

PgDip (nine months full-time or 18 months part-time)

January start

MSc (16 months full-time)

PgDip (one year full-time or up to two years part-time)

TEACHING

Teaching and learning involves a mix of lectures and practical sound engineering work, involving individual and group learning, There is an emphasis on motivated students' self-study.

ASSESSMENT

Assessment involves a mixture of practical work, report writing and project work. By the end of the course students will have built up a substantial portfolio of audio, video and new media work.

Assessment is approximately divided across the course as follows:

• Practical work (30%)
• Report/Assignment (35%)
• Presentation (5%)
• Dissertation - that may entail practical elements (30%)

FACILITIES

This degree is based in MediaCityUK,the new home for the BBC, ITV, Coronation Street and parts of the University of Salford. MediaCityUK is located at Salford Quays on the banks of Manchester's historic ship canal. The University has the first four floors of a new, purpose built facility that looks over the water to The Lowry theatre, Imperial War Museum North and the new Coronation Street set. ITV occupy the floors above us, with the three BBC buildings on one side of us and Peel Media Studios on the other.

A number of BBC departments are based at MediaCityUK, having moved from London, including BBC Breakfast, BBC Children's, BBC Radio 5 Live, BBC Future Media and Technology, BBC Learning, BBC Sport and BBC Academy. All of the BBC Manchester operations have also moved to MediaCityUK, including BBC Religion and Ethics, Current Affairs and the BBC Philharmonic.

For more information, check out the Salford MediaCityUK site and the main MediaCityUK site.

Here is a summary of our relevant facilities at MediaCityUK:

• Audio Post Production and Audio Suite - Mac-based suites that run a range of audio software, including Pro Tools, Reason, Cubase and Reaktor. The Post Production suite has a Digidesign Icon D-command desk running Pro Tools.
• TV Studios - full professional specification studios. Studio A has separate vision and audio control rooms. Studio B allows for a full 3D virtual studio.
• Radio Studios - two radio studios, including a small studio space.
• Computer Suites - a range of Mac and PC based computer rooms for general computer work.

On the main campus, we also have a Pro Tools equipped studio recording complex consisting of four control rooms and recording areas. Please see this brochure for more detailed information brochure.

EMPLOYABILITY

The wide range of skills provided on this course will enhance your employability. Possible career paths include: audio manufacturer research and design, broadcast engineer in audio for radio or TV, audio and visual design and installation, education, interactive media and sonic arts.

Possible career paths include:

• Audio manufacturer research and design
• Broadcast engineer in audio for radio or TV
• Recording studio, live sound engineer, music production
• Music technology retail
• Theatre or film audio engineer
• Musical instrument technology
• Audio and visual design and installation
• Education
• Interactive Media
• Sonic arts

LINKS WITH INDUSTRY

Staff have strong links with industry either through collaborative R&D projects with industry through the Acoustics Research Centre and our commercial test laboratories.  Our research department is a Centre of Excellence for BBC Research.

FURTHER STUDY

Some students could go on to study a PhD at our world-class Acoustics Research Centre. We have been carrying out acoustics and audio research for over 30 years. Our research is funded by research councils, government bodies, and industry. It has fed into audio products that companies make and sell worldwide, as well as regulations and standards used in the UK, Europe and beyond. We are also involved in public engagement - getting more people aware of and interested in acoustic science and engineering.

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Aims

Music Technology is a rapidly evolving field of study with a diverse and expanding range of possibilities.

The MSc in Audio Technology is designed to go beyond the simple provision of training, and to instead enable you to engage with current debates and actively participate in some of the most vibrant areas of contemporary research.

Throughout the course you will be encouraged to demonstrate self-direction and autonomy as you critically explore and define your position within the wider field. One overarching aim is that you should leave the course as not only an adept user of various hardware and software technologies, but as someone able to actively shape and develop their own, responding as necessary to future developments.

Thus, in addition to developing your theoretical and methodological understanding, the MSc in Audio Technology features a strong emphasis on practical work in a number of different (but related) areas. For example, you will study modules in Advanced Studio Practice, Sound on Screen, Music Computing and Musical Human-Computer Interaction. These are supported by a technology-orientated Research and Development module that provides robust foundation for the final Audio Technology Project.

Acting as summary of all that you have learned and a portfolio going forward, the Audio Technology Project provides an opportunity to plan and execute a substantial project in an area of personal specialism or interest. Innovative projects are encouraged, and there exists the potential for interdisciplinary and/or collaboration with practitioners in other fields.

Fees and finance

2015/6 Home/EU International
Full time £5,750 £11,960
Part time £2,875

These fees are applicable for new entrants in 2015/6. Fees are for the academic year only, any subsequent years may be subject to an annual increase, usually in line with inflation.

The University also offers a postgraduate loyalty discount: If you have completed an undergraduate degree at the University of Wolverhampton, you may be eligible for a 20% discount on the first year of a taught postgraduate programme.

Employability

The course will actively equip both graduates and those already in industry with a diverse range of skills to enhance their career prospects. It will also develop a range of opportunities for experience and employment in areas such as studio recording, media production and content creation, video game and software development, education (FE/HE), research assistantships/studentships, and employment in HE institutions.

In addition to subject-specific practical skills, you will also acquire a range of transferable skills relevant for pursuing a research degree. These include critical, analytical, project management and research skills from the study of a broad spectrum of literature, research, and external projects.

Outcomes

- Demonstrate knowledge and critical understanding of a variety of issues in the expanded field of contemporary music technology, taking an independent and rounded perspective.
- Apply theoretical discourse relating to aspects such as technologised production and performance, reactive/interactive/non-linear media, and computational creativity (etc.) to practice through a systematic understanding of historical, contextual, philosophical, technical and scientific theory.
- Select, interpret, develop and apply a variety of research methodologies appropriate for their work.
- Critically evaluate and use a wide variety of hardware and software technologies, and, where appropriate, develop their own.
- Exercise personal autonomy in learning through effective self-organisation and management of workload in both individual and group scenarios.
- Understand the possibilities afforded by the contemporary, expanded field of music technology (including its gaps and trends), and be able to position their own work, interests and aspirations within this wider context.

Why Wolverhampton?

The course offers an explicit and concerted move away from the notion of “training” in how to use specific software and/or other music technologies in favour of a more balanced synthesis of theory and practice.

The proposal for the Audio Technology Project is developed in the Research and Development module, providing time and opportunity to consider the project’s direction thoroughly, and to explore possibilities for collaborative/interdisciplinary working.

Course staff specialise in both traditional/well-established areas of music technology (studio production, film sound, audio synthesis and processing) and flourishing areas of contemporary research (musical interaction, generative music).

A wide range of career routes are open to graduates of the course. These are largely dependent upon the nature of the work the student chooses to produce, but may include: studio production, sound for games and film/video/animation, interactive media, interaction design, creative software development, design for music technology, post-compulsory and higher education.

The University of Wolverhampton continues to develop state of the art facilities to greatly enhance your learning experience. The Performance Hub, opened in 2011, has a diverse range of fully equipped music teaching, performance and practice rooms (accommodating single person to large band / ensemble), two high-end professional recording studios, and two bespoke technology suites boasting sixty Apple iMacs running industry standard software including Pro Tools, Logic Pro, Max, Pure Data and SuperCollider.

Our two recording studios offer the perfect blend of digital and analogue technologies giving students the opportunity to combine classic analogue recording technique with the flexibility and reliability digital technology provides. As well as a dedicated live room each for recording, for increased flexibility and choice of room acoustic, any of the music rehearsal rooms surrounding each studio can also be patched into the studio's control room.

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Audio engineering and the science behind it plays a major role in the delivery of music and sound, be that during gigs, conferences or in the recording studio.

Your course combines the study of acoustics, audio system design and software engineering, ensuring you gain a thorough understanding of all aspects of audio and the science behind it. It's our facilities that make us stand out from the crowd. They include a reverberation and anechoic chamber, a suite of high-quality professional music studios and the latest computer resources for software engineering.

You will study advanced audio engineering, including loud speaker design, interface and interactivity, theoretical acoustics, applied acoustics, advanced audio engineering and audio software engineering. You will learn digital signal processing, how to generate audio effects, how to use research on psychoacoustics, analogue modelled effects and music information retrieval. You will also examine the very latest research which is leading to better audio effects.

- Research Excellence Framework 2014: our University demonstrated strength in five emerging areas of research which it entered into the assessment for the first time, including in music, drama, dance and performing arts

Visit the website http://courses.leedsbeckett.ac.uk/audioengineering_msc

Mature Applicants

Our University welcomes applications from mature applicants who demonstrate academic potential. We usually require some evidence of recent academic study, for example completion of an access course, however recent relevant work experience may also be considered. Please note that for some of our professional courses all applicants will need to meet the specified entry criteria and in these cases work experience cannot be considered in lieu.

If you wish to apply through this route you should refer to our University Recognition of Prior Learning policy that is available on our website (http://www.leedsbeckett.ac.uk/studenthub/recognition-of-prior-learning.htm).

Please note that all applicants to our University are required to meet our standard English language requirement of GCSE grade C or equivalent, variations to this will be listed on the individual course entry requirements.

Careers

Whether you are a recent graduate or an audio professional wanting to move up the career ladder, your course combines so many areas of audio you will be able to tailor your studies to your individual interests and ambitions. This could be in live sound, designing venues for live sound, studio design, or as a sonic artist.

- Audio Designer
- Production Engineer
- Acoustic Consultant
- Live Sound Engineer

Careers advice:
Visit the careers site - https://www.leedsbeckett.ac.uk/employability/jobs-careers-support.htm

Course Benefits

You will have access to a phenomenal array of the latest equipment, including our reverberation chamber - in which you can move panels to control reverberation time and accurately create spaces - while our anechoic chamber will provide you with experience of measuring audio equipment.

Thanks to our strong links with live sound industries and audio plug-in development software companies you will hear from industry experts at guest lectures, while our tutors are some of the best acousticians around.

If you're an audio professional, we'll help you formalise your knowledge of acoustics and live sound - from setting up PA systems, sound checks and making modifications when the audience arrives, to improving your knowledge of what is happens to sound so you can build a system that gives an audience the best possible experience.

Core Modules

Acoustics
Develop your expertise in the application of acoustic theory and measurement techniques, and develop skills in communicating their findings in a professional manner.

Advanced Audio Engineering
Explore the technical considerations and challenges behind capturing, processing, recording and reproducing audio signals.

Audio Software Engineering
Study the role that software design and engineering plays in the professional audio industries. You will investigate digital signal processing techniques used for the analysis and manipulation of sound in the production of your own audio software.

Research Practice
Develop your awareness of the methods and skills required in order to carry out successful masters level research.

Final Individual Project
Combine your previous learning into a significant piece of work, the nature of which is determined by you. You will need to reflect and critically evaluate the methods you use.

Interfaces & Interactivity
You will create interactive (or reactive) musical or artistic systems, learning how to integrate control technologies in practical projects, and develop original systems for creating and manipulating sound or music.

Negotiated Skills Development
We will provide you with the opportunity to develop high-level skills in your particular field of study, with the aim of enhancing both your knowledge and employability.

Collaborative Practice
An opportunity to work in a collaborative environment, developing creative and technical work in small groups. We will provide you with guidance on group management, communication, creativity and inclusivity.

Michael Ward

Senior Lecturer

"Whether you're a recent graduate with a music technology or computing qualification, or an audio professional wanting to move up the career ladder - studying a course that combines so many areas of audio will enhance your employability."

Michael Ward spent many years working simultaneously but separately as a software engineer and as a sound engineer before deciding to combine the two interests and entered academia. As well as taking a lead in the MSc Audio Engineering, Michael also combines his industry experience and takes a lead in undergraduate modules in Audio Software Systems, Acoustics and Critical Listening and Mixing and Mastering. He now combines his academic work with a practice as a mastering engineer.

Facilities

- Library
Our Library is one of the only university libraries in the UK open 24/7 every day of the year. However you like to study, our Library has you covered with group study, silent study, extensive e-learning resources and PC suites.

- Broadcasting Place
Broadcasting Place provides students with creative and contemporary learning environments, is packed with the latest technology and is a focal point for new and innovative thinking in the city.

Find out how to apply here - http://www.leedsbeckett.ac.uk/postgraduate/how-to-apply/

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This postgraduate course offers students, who already have a production technology background, an opportunity to develop high level knowledge, skills and understanding in audio and video technology. The course offers a mix of technological and production modules covering media technologies ranging from sound engineering and sound design to video post production, compositing and visual effects. The social technologies module provides a deeper understanding of audiences’ behaviour, online culture, spreadable media and digital identities. The production modules encourage creative skills in: television, audio engineering and video and audio post production.

Key benefits:

• Based at MediaCityUK
• Developed with advice from North West broadcast companies
• Great job prospects in an expanding area of future media

Visit the website: http://www.salford.ac.uk/pgt-courses/digital-media-video,-audio-and-social-technologies

Suitable for

Graduates from a degree discipline that contains significant elements of media technology and production. We expect students to already have experience of recording studio practice and video production and post production techniques.

Programme details

You will learn advanced practical production skills alongside developing an understanding of the technologies that underpin future digital media and the production process. After all, digital media technologies are not just a tool, they are also a driver for creativity in many industries. You will learn a set of specialist skills across a range of future media technologies, including audio applications, social technologies, post production practices, and distribution of digital content. You will have live briefs working with industry during the course through your project work.

Format

• Mix of lectures and practical work in post-production studios
• Individual and group learning
• Mix of assessment, including practical coursework and reports/assignment
• Emphasis on motivated students' self-study

Semester 1

• Research in Emerging Technologies
• Audio Application Project

Semester 2

• Advanced Production Practices
• Spatial Audio and Studio Design
• Collaborative Projects

Semester 3

• Project

Assessment

Varied formative and summative assessment strategies, which are aligned to a module's learning outcomes, are used on this programme. The vocational nature of the programme lends itself to coursework assessment. These would typically include the design and production of video, animation or audio products involving both technical and creative skills.

Career potential

There is an expanding jobs market in new media. Graduates go on to production jobs in television, audio, digital media and emerging technologies. Possible career paths include:

• Broadcast engineer for radio or TV
• Video production, filmmaking
• Video post production, compositing, VFX, animation
• Recording studio, live sound engineer, music production
• Education
• Social media specialists
• Interactive Media content creation

How to apply: http://www.salford.ac.uk/study/postgraduate/applying

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About this course

Audio engineering is a well-developed and far-reaching field encompassing the subjects of loudspeaker and microphone design, analogue and digital electronics, digital signal processing, acoustics, psychoacoustics, computer programming and more. The widespread need for audio engineers in these fields provides an ongoing demand for well-educated and trained professionals. This MSc programme has been devised to allow good graduates of electronic engineering, music technology, or similar courses to develop the higher level expertise needed to enter the field of audio engineering, and to allow those already in it to upgrade their skills and understanding.

You'll be taught by internationally-recognised experts in the field of audio engineering, and will yourself be part of ground-breaking research in the field. We maintain close links with local, national and international industry, as well as professional bodies, ensuring
that the teaching on this course remains contemporary and relevant while bringing in a number of these key contacts to deliver guest lectures, seminars and workshops. This course is designed with a focus on innovation and critical thinking in order to develop graduates capable of driving the next generation of audio technology and remaining on the leading edge of audio engineering throughout their careers.

You’ll develop the skills and knowledge valued most by employers in the field of audio engineering. To do this we have developed the course in consultation with leading organisations in the field and have identified the areas of audio electronics, live sound reinforcement, surround sound systems and software engineering as central to the needs of the industry.

You'll develop your skills in critical thinking and innovative thinking, allowing you to remain at the leading edge of audio engineering and to drive future innovation in audio when you join the industry after graduation.

You'll learn and research in our state-of-the-art facilities including 3D multi-channel sound rooms, live event production spaces and fully equipped analogue and digital electronics laboratories.

You’ll study modules such as:

Audio Electronics
Audio Innovation
Live Sound System Design and Optimisation
Independent Engineering Scholarship
Advanced Surround Systems
Audio Software Engineering
Negotiated Technical Module

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-Explore the most advanced studio techniques, technologies and processes at the forefront of current music production
-Unleash your creative potential and cultivate your own individual style to produce original arrangements, mixes, re-mixes and mastering work
-Deliver comprehensive solutions and support for live sound in a variety of performance settings
-On this postgraduate degree you will create your own A/V interfaces, plug-ins, and programming codes

Why choose this course?

Music specialising in Audio Programming is designed to provide industry-relevant postgraduate education aimed at forming creative professional for the audio, production, and post-production industry, who wish to pursue careers as creative Audio Engineers or Producers within recording, production or as software developers, consultants or audio-media specialists. Students take hands-on sessions in the University's state-of-the-art facilities, including a top-class SSL studio, guided by dedicated tutors with significant industry experience. The postgraduate curriculum covers all the most relevant and current skills of the field, and sessions and assessment are designed to reproduce, as far as possible and appropriate, the realities of the commercial environment.

We are one of the largest music department in the UK, offering a rich portfolio of forward-looking music programmes uniquely designed to develop the most relevant skills in the current industry. The environment is friendly and supportive, and students benefit from being part of a large community of creatives in all fields: from film, to new media, performance, and fine arts.

Our top-class facilities include:
-2 labs, each with 36 workstations dual monitor Apple Intel
-Large recording studio with latest SSL AWS 900+ SE
-Studio with Yamaha 02R/96
-3 monitoring spaces for surround sound
-Dubbing suite for audio-to-video work
-Foley studio for sound design work
-Sony Game studio
-Multimedia studios
-Anechoic chamber
-TV studio
-460-seat state-of-the-art performance venue with A/V recording facilities

Careers

When you graduate from these awards you will be ideally positioned to act as an interface between various music technologies and composers/producers. You may also consider a range of related positions such as lecturer, technical editor for music technology publications and other similar professions in the music industry or consider further study at doctoral level.

Teaching methods

Lecture, seminars and tutorials are typically scheduled over two consecutive days a week, plus some extra sessions for particular workshops, performance and recording. In addition to scheduled sessions, students are expected to engage in self-directed study and studio practice.

Structure

Core Modules
-Creative Economies
-Creative Music Production (Discourse / Reflection)
-Major Study:Music Projects
-Practice 1: Studio Technology, Practices and Processes
-Practice 2: Audio Programming
-Research and Enquiry

Optional
-Creative Economies (Online)
-Research and Enquiry (Online)

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-Explore the most advanced studio techniques, technologies and processes at the forefront of current music production
-Unleash your creative potential and cultivate your own individual style to produce original arrangements, mixes, re-mixes and mastering work
-Deliver comprehensive solutions and support for live sound in a variety of performance settings
-On this postgraduate degree you will create your own A/V interfaces, plug-ins, and programming codes

Why choose this course?

Music and Sound Technology in Audio Engineering is designed to provide industry-relevant post-graduate education aimed at forming creative professional for the audio, production, and post-production industry, who wish to pursue careers as creative Audio Engineers within recording, production or live sound settings. Students take hands-on sessions in the University's state-of-the-art facilities, including a top-class SSL studio, guided by dedicated tutors with significant industry experience. The postgraduate curriculum covers all the most relevant and current skills of the field, and sessions and assessment are designed to reproduce, as far as possible and appropriate, the realities of the commercial environment.

We are one of the largest music department in the UK, offering a rich portfolio of forward-looking music programmes uniquely designed to develop the most relevant skills in the current industry. The environment is friendly and supportive, and students benefit from being part of a large community of creatives in all fields: from film, to new media, performance, and fine arts.

Our top-class facilities include:
-2 labs, each with 36 workstations dual monitor Apple Intel
-Large recording studio with latest SSL AWS 900+ SE
-Studio with Yamaha 02R/963 monitoring spaces for surround sound
-Dubbing suite for audio-to-video work
-Foley studio for sound design work
-Sony Game studio
-Multimedia studios
-Anechoic chamber
-TV studio
-460-seat state-of-the-art performance venue with A/V recording facilities

Careers

When you graduate from these awards you will be ideally positioned to act as an interface between various music technologies and composers/producers. You may also consider a range of related positions such as lecturer, technical editor for music technology publications and other similar professions in the music industry or consider further study at doctoral level.

Teaching methods

Lecture, seminars and tutorials are typically scheduled over two consecutive days a week, plus some extra sessions for particular workshops, performance and recording. In addition to scheduled sessions, students are expected to engage in continuous self-directed study and studio practice.

Structure

Core Modules
-Creative Economies
-Creative Music Production (Discourse / Reflection)
-Major Study:Music Projects
-Practice 1: Studio Technology, Practices and Processes
-Practice 2: Audio Engineering
-Research and Enquiry

Optional
-Creative Economies (Online)
-Research and Enquiry (Online)

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This course will prepare you for a career in Broadcast Engineering, supporting you to continually improve your skills and the quality of service you provide. Through the programme, you will demonstrate technical, research, analytical, planning, design and organisational skills which are highly transferable and can be used in a wide variety of disciplines.

What's covered in the course?

Broadcast technologies are continually evolving and converging with other information and media distribution formats, including the web, games and virtual environments. The UK traditionally has a high calibre of recognition in the TV production and technology industries. Our course aims to capitalise on and maintain the UK expertise in this area, whilst continually evolving the delivery of technology in this rapidly changing area.

Our course is designed both to prepare you for a technical or commercial career and provide a route to the specialisation needed for a research career. It is also suitable for graduates of internet and communications related courses who have worked for several years and wish to update your knowledge at the forefront of the discipline.

The programme is designed to enable you to develop a thorough technical and theoretical understanding, focusing on vocational and practical skills directly relevant to industry. Alongside the development of technical and analytical skills, you will also expand your team and professional development skills through group work, peer review and reflective evaluation, as well as consideration of legal and ethical issues.

We are committed to supporting the broadcast industry and continue to work with and support key stakeholders. We also aim to act as a broker between industry, universities and students to place students in appropriate research positions and placements.

The University is actively involved in SMPTE and we host SMPTE regional meetings at Birmingham City University.

Why Choose Us?

-The School’s pursuance of excellence is recognised by its sole provider status of academic programmes to the BBC’s engineering schemes.
-Our staff are actively involved in professional associations and societies including the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET), Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE), Royal Television Society (RTS), International Association of Broadcast Meteorology (IABM) and Audio Engineering Society (AES).
-The University has been instrumental in working with the IABM to set up the IABM Universities’ Forum to link universities across Europe that deliver broadcasting programmes, with the aim of spreading best practice in broadcast training and supporting students from university into industry.
-Staff are active in research in the School’s Digital Media Technology Lab, which is internationally recognised for its publications in conferences and journals and its engagement with industry.

Course in depth

Knowledge, understanding and intellectual skills are acquired through a variety of practical learning and teaching approaches, these may include: formal lectures, interactive tutorial sessions, laboratory sessions, seminars, residential courses and directed independent learning activities.

Analytical skills are developed through coursework tasks that encourage creativity and problem solving using a range of systems and technologies relevant to commercial web service delivery. Group tutorial and practical work are also utilised in programme delivery. Learners are assessed both formatively and summatively by a number of methods.

Formative assessment occurs throughout the programme and involves feedback from peers and tutors and individual reflection. Feedback on work in progress is available prior to the submission of summative assessments.

A range of summative assessment methods are employed involving both individual and group assignments, written coursework assignments and practical project work, laboratory sessions, tests and examinations.

Summative assessment methods for all modules are identified in a module guide and, for coursework, assessment details and criteria are specified in each assignment brief.

As well as developing and applying skills through assignment work, the Research Methods module in the second semester introduces research skills in preparation for the dissertation. Independent learning is encouraged through research tasks for assignments and in the requirement to plan work schedules to meet deadlines for coursework submission.

Transferable and key skills are core to the learning strategy of the programme. They are pervasive, and are incorporated into modules and assessments as appropriate, e.g. team-working skills are fostered via group, task-based practical projects. Reflection and self-awareness are fostered by keeping logbooks and submitting self-evaluation documentation in support of personal performance.

Modules
-IP Network Technology 20 credits
-Broadcast Workflow 20 credits
-Studio and Broadcast Technology 20 credits
-Media Distribution Solutions and Architectures 20 credits
-Research Methods 20 credits
-Signal Compression and Encoding 20 credits
-Master’s Project 60 credits

Employment Opportunities

This programme aims to enable you to develop specialist and key transferable skills that are essential to a career in broadcast engineering, ensuring that you meet the needs of employers and the standards set out by the Institution of Engineering Technology.

Birmingham City University programmes aim to provide graduates with a set of attributes which prepare them for their future careers. The BCU Graduate:
-Is professional and work ready
-Is a creative problem solver
-Is enterprising
-Has a global outlook

The University has introduced the Birmingham City University Graduate+ programme, which is an extra-curricular awards framework that is designed to augment the subject based skills that you develop through your programme with broader employability skills and techniques that will enhance your employment options when you leave university.

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The Masters in Sound Design & Audiovisual Practice provides advanced training in creative practice with sound and audiovisual technologies. The programme offers topics relevant to practicing musicians, artists, and the creative industries, such as sound shaping and design, audiovisual composition, field recording, creative and experimental approaches to technology, live performance, interdisciplinary perspectives on sound, and sonic aesthetics. You then develop an individual portfolio of sonic and audiovisual artwork based on your particular skills and interests.

Why this programme

◾We are Scotland’s leading research centre in Music, with a mutually supportive community of scholars and practitioners.
◾Glasgow offers a huge range of venues for creative sound work, including the Old Hairdressers, Tramway, Mono, SWG3, and City Halls, all of which have hosted our students’ work.
◾You will benefit from studying in the city of Glasgow, the UK’s first UNESCO city of music, with its vibrant and exciting music scene. Festivals abound, such as Sonica, Counterflows, and Tectonics, as does grass-roots sonic activity such as the Lights Out Listening Group. The presence of ensembles such as the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, RSNO, Scottish Opera, Scottish Ensemble, and experimental music ensembles such as the Glasgow Improvisers Orchestra provides a rich context for your studies.
◾The Glasgow Sound Network provides a forum for sharing of sonic practice involving some of Glasgow’s leading creative media companies, artists and academics, offering excellent opportunities for building professional networks.
◾Sound Design & Audiovisual Practice at Glasgow integrates sound design with visual media through a unit in Audiovisual Composition.
◾The programme offers interdisciplinary perspectives and the chance to work with students from Glasgow School of Art through a unit called Sound Art in Dialogue.
◾We work with the city’s cultural programme (Glasgow Life) to bring leading sonic artists to Glasgow, with associated workshops and collaborative opportunities for our students.
◾Your work can be showcased in our annual postgraduate event Sound Thought, which takes place at the Centre for Contemporary Arts.
◾Your work can also be showcased at the GLEAM (Glasgow Electronic and Audiovisual Media) Festival.
◾You can experiment with building devices for making and controlling sound, enhanced by the presence of prototyping facilities in Glasgow such as Maklab, through our Creating with Technology unit.
◾Our students and graduates engage in a wide range of professional creative work including sound design for film and theatre, live performance and award-winning composition.
◾You will benefit from access to our facilities including an audio lab, three studios, the University’s Concert Hall with Genelec and d&b sound diffusion system, seminar and practice rooms.

Programme structure

The programme aims to:
◾provide artistic and technical experience in working with sound as a culturally significant medium
◾enable you to build your knowledge of tools and methods for manipulating sonic and audiovisual media
◾enable you to design, repurpose and reconfigure technologies for creative compositional ends
◾enhance your creative practice through taking an exploratory and critical approach to sonic design and composition

The MSc comprises 180 credits as follows:

Semester 1 compulsory courses (60 credits):
◾Sound Shaping and Design
◾Creating with Technology

Semester 2 compulsory courses (40 credits):
◾Field Recording, Sound and Place
◾Audiovisual Composition

Semester 2 option (one 20 credit course chosen from):
◾Sonic Art Performance
◾Sound Art in Dialogue
◾Sonic Art Aesthetics and Criticism
◾Music, Sound & Screen

Additionally you will produce an individual creative portfolio over the summer (60 credits).

Teaching methods include small group tutorials, seminars and workshops, lab and studio sessions, and individual guidance meetings.

Career prospects

The attributes you gain will be attractive to employers from the creative industries, and are particularly relevant for contemporary music, sound design and sound production, games, theatre, film and television. Many of our graduates undertake successful portfolio careers as artists and sound practitioners in their own right. The programme also offers an excellent foundation upon which to progress to PhD studies and an academic career.

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This well-established Masters is the world-leading course in audio production, highly regarded both nationally and internationally. It is accredited by the leading industry bodies, including APRS, and is the JAMES National Regional Centre – London, an Apple-accredited training centre and a Skillset Media Academy. The course is designed to meet and exceed professional standards, and will enable you to reach the highest level in the creative use of audio, and explore how creative ideas and new technologies can be combined, enhanced and redefined.

As the major media education site in Europe, the University's Harrow Campus includes 14 professional recording studios (three surround studios), a new teaching recording studio, Music Lab and an array of TV, post-production, radio, film and multimedia facilities built and equipped to the highest standards.

Course content

This innovative course develops your creative abilities in audio across music production, sound design, radio, TV, film and multimedia, all supported by a robust understanding of the technologies involved. You will be able to explore and expand as a creative artist while achieving control and experience of a professional audio environment.

Modules

The following modules are indicative of what you will study on this course.
-Applied Innovation and Interactive Design
-Audio Visual Production and Cultural Theory
-Entrepreneurship and Project Management for Creative Industries
-Major Project
-Music Production and Musicology
-Synthesis and Sound Design for Animation

Associated careers

Possible careers include music producer, audio and audio visual post-production specialist, ADR, audio and audio visual producer, composer, education, Foley artist, interactive audio design teams, location sound specialist, programmer, radio and sound engineer.

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