Curious about studying Marketing with Advertising and Public Relations - BA (Hons)at Birmingham City University? We've gathered all the key details—entry requirements, modules, fees, and more. Hear from real students by checking out reviews, or take the next step by booking an open day to explore it for yourself.
Bachelor of Arts (with Honours) - BA (Hons)
City Centre Campus (The Curzon Building)
Full Time
Sep 2027
3 Year
A brand’s external image and reputation are just as important as the product or service they provide. Our BA (Hons) Marketing with Advertising and Public Relations course gives you the practice-based skills needed to succeed as an advertising and PR specialist. You will gain not only the knowledge needed to become a capable marketer but also the personal skills and real-world experience employers desire, enabling you to make an immediate impact upon graduation. Employability, sustainability and the optimisation of emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, simulation and data analytics are key fundamentals of this course as you prepare for a career in advertising and/or PR in any modern business. These skills, alongside the opportunity to obtain real-world experience with live clients will allow you to be an innovative, agile and flexible advertising or PR professional able to be reactive to brewing situations and opportunities to be immediately impactful a competitive and ever changing working environment. A key benefit of the course is the opportunity to join The Link Agency - our student-led, in-house marketing agency. The Link Agency gives you the opportunity to work on live projects with real-world clients. Past clients of The Link Agency include the BullRing Shopping Centre, Acorns Children’s Hospice and Solihull Moors FC.
What's covered in this course?This course covers the fundamentals of marketing with a specific focus on advertising and public relations. Alongside core marketing principles such as consumer behaviour, budgeting and finance, data, insights and analytics and live event experience, you’ll also gain a deeper understanding of contemporary advertising, digital enterprise, personal branding, digital analytics and public relations and reputation management. There is also a focus on crisis management, giving you all the necessary skills to be able to manage any number of PR, branding or reputational situations which may occur. Employability and entrepreneurship are at the core of this course and these transferable skills will give you a solid foundation from which to build your career in marketing. By choosing this course, you’ll have the opportunity to undertake a one-year, paid work placement in addition to the opportunity to work on live, real-world projects through the Link Agency. We have links with many businesses, locally and worldwide. This means you’ll get really valuable, direct experience on your paid placement. Previous students have undertaken placements with companies such as Sky, Johnson & Johnson, and Disney. As a student on the course, you will also get to participate in The Pitch, a nationwide marketing competition held annually by the Charted Institute of Marketing (CIM), that allows you to apply your academic knowledge and creative skills to real-world marketing problems. This opportunity serves as a critical steppingstone for future marketing professionals by enhancing your employability and practical skills.
Professional Placement YearThis course offers an optional professional placement year. This allows you to spend a whole year with an employer, following successful completion of your second year, and is a great way to find out more about your chosen career. Some students even return to the same employers after completing their studies. If you choose to pursue a placement year, you will need to find a suitable placement to complement your chosen area of study. You will be able to draw on the University’s extensive network of local, regional, and national employers, and the support of our Careers teams. If you are able to secure a placement, you can request to be transferred to the placement version of the course. Please note that fees are payable during your placement year, equivalent to 20% of the total full-time course fee for that year.
In Marketing Principles and Practice, you will learn the role that marketing plays within an organisation and how to apply some of the key tools and techniques that professional marketers use on a regular basis. For those undertaking a marketing degree, this module will provide a solid foundation for your course; for those studying other disciplines, the concepts presented here are valuable tools for a future career in all walks of business.
The aim of this module is to develop your skills and understanding pertaining to the design aspects of marketing. This module significantly contributes to the programme philosophy, introducing the important elements of the design process, giving both an academic and practitioner perspective in line with programme aims.
This module offers an in-depth exploration of Data Analytics and its application in different aspects of business. The module also explores Artificial Intelligence (AI) and its role in contemporary business practices. It is designed to provide you with a practical understanding of the real-life application of data analytics in Business settings. The module brings together the worlds of business and technology and is ideal for those pursuing careers in business related fields, or business analytics. It equips you with essential critical thinking and data analytics skills that are highly in demand in today’s as well as the future employment market.
This module will provide a gentle introduction to the world of accounting and finance for business managers of the future and is designed for those new to accounting or those studying on non-accounting related degree programmes.
In Digital Marketing Principles, you will learn the pivotal role that websites play in driving digital marketing efforts, exploring how they integrate with key strategies such as search engine optimization (SEO), social media marketing, content marketing and email campaigns. In addition to this, you will also learn how to leverage websites for lead generation, analytics and customer experience enhancement.
This module provides a comprehensive exploration of entrepreneurship, equipping you with the skills, perspectives, and theories applicable across industries and professions. It covers both new venture creation and innovation within existing organisations, emphasising entrepreneurial thinking and mindset.
The Consumer Behaviour module builds on foundational marketing concepts, deepening your understanding of consumer behaviour in both domestic and international contexts. It unpacks the complex factors that drive decision-making, offering an insightful exploration of individual, social, and cultural influences.
The aim of this module is to explore principles involved in the professional practice of advertising and public relations (PR). It introduces you to the range of techniques and tools used in advertising and PR.
The Brand Management and Visual Communications module delves into the art and science of building successful brands. It equips you with the knowledge to develop and manage impactful brands by exploring both the strategic and creative aspects of branding. You will learn how to craft compelling brand identities and understand the vital role of visual communications in amplifying a brand’s message and influence.
In today’s fast-paced and interconnected world, effective marketing communications are the cornerstone of successful marketing strategy as they give visibility to, and understanding of, an organisation’s products and / or services in order to drive a response from a target audience. The Integrated Marketing Communications module will explore the principles, tools and techniques of marketing communications and look at how these can be used to develop campaigns that resonate meaningfully with the desired audience.
This module is designed to provide you with the opportunity to undertake a credit bearing, 40- week Professional Placement as an integral part of your Undergraduate Degree. The purpose of the Professional Placement is to improve your employability skills which will, through the placement experience, allow you to evidence your professional skills, attitudes and behaviours at the point of entry to the postgraduate job market. Furthermore, by completing the Professional Placement, you will be able to develop and enhance your understanding of the professional work environment, relevant to your chosen field of study, and reflect critically on your own professional skills development within the workplace.
Marketing is usually involved in providing information used in strategic decision-making and is often in the forefront of executing such decisions. It is very important for marketers to have an understanding of strategy and planning as it enables marketing activities to be directed to the specific needs of that organisation. You must appreciate the complexities of preparing and implementing longer-term, customer-focused plans and the significant role of marketing and management in contributing to the core vision of the organisation and the achievement of its plans.
Whilst marketing has contributed to many of the issues faced by today’s society, the Sustainable Marketing module offers an alternative perspective of marketing and the critical role that it has to play in facilitating a sustainable future. During this module, you will explore some of the key drivers of the sustainability agenda, as reflected in the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and develop an understanding of how marketing can develop strategies to support this agenda whilst still meeting the commercial needs of the business.
Contemporary Advertising, will explore best practice advertising techniques, In this field creative, marketing communication tools and techniques are continuously evolving. Current examples pulled from real-world experiences, will be analysed from the view of a practitioner’s perspective. Taking a comprehensive view of the industry, advertising will be analysed from the creative standpoint and continuing to address the importance of integrated marketing communications in the field of advertising and how it impacts advertising strategy through featured campaigns.
Public relations is a strategic asset of any firm or organisation and the ability to appraise and analyse the characteristics of a successful PR strategy is fundamental to a successful practitioner. PR utilises a variety of techniques and skills to create the compelling content and word of mount media coverage that makes this PR, after personal recommendation, the most effective marketing channel.
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