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BA (Hons)

Sports Journalism

Attendance

Campus

Start

Book an Undergraduate Open Day

Duration

3 Years

Start

September 2023

UCAS Code

P501

Delivery

Campus Taught

Foundation entry

Sport is a world full of moving stories of human drama, joy and pain. Discover how to tell them, on our outstanding sports journalism course.

On our practical, hands-on BA (Hons) Sports Journalism degree we focus on helping you secure the job of your dreams when you graduate. Journalism is, in a nutshell, about telling stories and we’ll teach you how to do this in a variety of ways. From written news reports to television broadcasts, podcasts to digital video, magazines to social media.

We offer one of only a few sports journalism courses in the UK which are accredited by the Broadcast Journalism Training Council (BJTC), who are partners with the BBC and Sky. We also pay for you to sit your National Council for the Training of Journalists (NCTJ) exams. This makes us the only sports journalism course in the country which enables you to graduate with both the BJTC and NCTJ qualifications.

In September 2022, we celebrated 60 years of journalism at UCLan, making ours the longest running journalism course in the UK. Our strong heritage began in 1962 and we continue to offer high-quality, innovative journalism courses that confront vital issues facing the profession.

On this course you’ll not only learn how to operate as a sports reporter, with all the personal and technical skills a professional journalist needs. You’ll also study a range of issues in sport, exploring its development into a multi-billion-pound industry.

From day one, you’ll become a reporter. It’s hands-on and hard work, but it’s also a lot of fun. You’ll join our newsroom environment, report on matches and press conferences and get to interview a wide variety of sportsmen and women. Throughout the course you’ll attend lectures led by many of the major players in the sporting media. Recent guests have included:

BBC presenter Gaby Logan
Sports editor Dan Roan
Sky Sports F1 reporter Craig Slater
Football managers Ian Holloway, Simon Grayson and Neil Critchley
Premier League referee Anthony Taylor
Cricket’s Jonathan Agnew
Boxing’s Steve Bunce
BBC commentators John Murray, Ian Dennis and Gary Flintoff.

You’ll learn by taking on the role of a real journalist. We’ll help you develop all the skills and knowledge you’ll need to thrive in the digital age. You will follow in the footsteps of previous graduates who’ve gone on to report on the Olympics and Champions League football. Working with organisations like the BBC, ESPN and Sky. We work closely with industry professionals to help you gain real-world work experience throughout the course.

In Year 1 you’ll be given the opportunity to write for a professional sports website. Here, you'll be able to attend Premier League, Women’s Super League, and Football League games.

Then in Year 2 you’ll have the chance to spend time studying abroad in the USA, Asia, Australia or Europe, and we regularly arrange trips abroad. In recent years we’ve taken our students to China and Kenya. You’ll also have the chance to gain industry experience. One student will get to spend two weeks on an all-expenses-paid work placement at Chelsea Football Club. Two students will take up the opportunity to go on a year-long internship with the international graphics company AE Live. If you’re lucky enough to be chosen you’ll be paid £19,500 a year to travel the world covering major sporting events.

In Year 3 we work closely with major web company Planet Sport, which takes on many of our students and gives them the opportunity to impress. Leading to jobs covering sports like football, Formula 1, tennis and golf after graduation.

We work closely with the BBC and Reach, the UK’s biggest media organisation, as well as football clubs such as:

Preston North End
Burnley FC
Bolton Wanderers
Fleetwood Town.

As well as other major sporting bodies to ensure you get the chance to gain vital experience while still a student. We’re also partnered with the John Schofield Trust, providing students with one-to-one mentorship from a professional reporter working at the BBC or Sky.

Why study with us

Our Journalism courses are the best in England, according to the Guardian University Guide 2022, which placed UCLan number one in the country. Sports Journalism scored 100% for overall satisfaction and academic support in the 2020 National Student Survey and 94% in 2021.
Two second years are paid £19,500 a year to work with an international sporting graphics company. You could spend an all-expenses paid fortnight in the press office at Chelsea FC. We offer placements to all at football clubs, sporting organisations and in television, radio and print news rooms across the UK. The whole point of the course is to get you a good job afterwards.
You’ll work in state-of-the-art TV and radio studios exclusive to journalism students. You will take part in industry-standard news days; producing shows, podcasts, digital videos and bulletins.

Interested?

Download

Hear from graduate Tom about his time studying here

A day in the life of a Journalism student

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What you'll do

You’ll study the technical skills of broadcast and digital journalism, make podcasts, magazines and videos, as well as examining various topics across a wide range of sports.
This is a practical course, offering a wide range of modules, on which you’ll operate as a trainee journalist from day one and spend time on work placements.
You’ll hear from a wide range of industry and sporting professionals – past speakers include presenters Dan Walker and Gabby Logan, BBC sports editor Dan Roan, commentators Alistair Mann and John Murray, and sports figures such as Ian Holloway, Ellen White and Dame Tanni Grey-Thompson.

Module overview

Course delivery

This course is taught face-to-face at one of our UK campuses.

100%Face-to-face

Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of our published course information. However, our programmes are subject to ongoing review and development. Changing circumstances may cause alteration to, or the cancellation of, courses. Changes may be necessary to comply with the requirements of accrediting bodies or revisions to subject benchmarks statements. As well as to keep courses updated and contemporary, or as a result of student feedback. We reserve the right to make variations if we consider such action to be necessary or in the best interests of students.

Join us on campus

Book a place at our Undergraduate Open Day on Saturday 17 June. Here you'll be able to explore our campus and facilities, meet academic staff and chat to students.

Book your place

View the course facilities

Accreditations

This course has been accredited by the BJTC and recognised as providing 'general excellence in broadcast journalism training'. The BJTC is an industry-led body offering accreditation to courses for aspiring journalists.

Future careers

With superb connections and a hands-on approach, our Sports Journalism BA (Hons) degree programme has a proven track record of turning students into sports journalists and communications experts.

Being a sports journalist is one of the most exciting jobs around – and for many years, we have been helping people like you make the move into the industry.

The modules you’ll study offer a practical approach, ensuring you don’t just learn, but do – going beyond the classroom to write, produce and deliver sports journalism in a real-world setting. As such, you’ll gain the kind of skills and experiences that employers look for.

In your final year with us, you’ll have the chance to go on a placement to put what you’ve learned into action in a professional environment. You could also boost your employability by studying abroad with one of our academic partners in the USA, Spain or China.

At our annual cJAM event you’ll have the chance to make some valuable connections and hear insights about careers in the creative industries. With a skills-focused speed-dating-style event, you can meet up to 30 industry professionals looking for a student like you to work on a placement – it’s your chance to impress.

Every year, our graduates have gone onto roles with some of the country’s leading sports broadcasters and news organisations – BBC, Sky Sports, Eurosport, ESPN, Talksport, Trinity Mirror – as well as a wide range of clubs, teams and sporting bodies, including Manchester United, Manchester City, Liverpool, Everton, Surrey County Cricket Club, UK Athletics, The Lawn Tennis Association and many more.

Fees and funding

2022/23

Full-time£9250 per year

Sandwich year£1000 for the sandwich year

International

Full-time£14250 per year

2023/24

Full-time£9,250 per year

International

Full-time£14,900 per year

Scholarships and bursaries

We have a wide range of bursaries, scholarships and funds available to help support you whilst studying with us.

Select your country to see eligibility information and how to apply by selecting more info on the cards below.

Select your country/region

This course offers a powerful blend of theory and practice, with the teaching methods to match. So, as well as a mix of lectures, seminars, tutorials and independent study, you’ll have plenty of practical work – learning how to work with the processes, people and technology you’ll find in the real world of sports journalism.

You’ll learn in our School of Journalism, Media and Performance, which is home to a wealth of state-of-the-art technology and multimedia facilities, ensuring that you’ll be up to speed with the latest industry developments. We have invested more than £250,000 in upgrading these facilities, from newsrooms and news feeds to TV and radio studios. Our sports facilities meet the same high standard. In fact, they were named the best in any new university in a recent national survey, with the highest possible rating.

We maintain an impressive network of connections across professional sport and media. We have close ties with Preston North End, as well as partnerships with Chelsea FC, Burnley, Bolton Wanderers and Fleetwood Town – giving our students the chance to report on matches and press conferences, and to go on valuable placements.

We are also part of the Google News Lab University Network, which provides training and resources on topics ranging from immersive storytelling, data journalism, trends, trust/verification and more, together with networking opportunities and the chance to learn from current experts and professionals in the field.