Bachelor of Media (Screen & Sound)

Program Summary

Program Description

The Bachelor of Media (Screen and Sound) [UNSW BMedia (S&S)] is designed to provide you with foundational and applied skills, knowledge and capabilities relevant to career pathways in a broad range of audio-visual production industries. Students specialise in audio-visual media and film studies, in a degree which is both ideas driven and vocationally relevant in its orientation. All students are given foundational practical experience in the thoughtful and creative applications of established and emerging audio-visual media technologies, while also being immersed in the culture and philosophy of media studies through their courses in the media core.

Levels I and II cover audio-visual production and contextual film and media studies. As students proceed into the third level, the program expands and deepens knowledge and understanding in the technical, analytical and conceptual application of media technology to the design of various audio-visual media projects, as well as focussing on emerging trends and innovations in contemporary film and media practices.

The UNSW BMedia (S&S) can be completed full-time in Stand-Alone mode (normally 3 years), in Concurrent Mode (the equivalent of two years full-time study) or part-time. The basic requirements of the program are simple. The BMedia (S&S) has a depth component and a breadth component. Students enrolled in Stand-Alone mode do both the depth and breadth component while students enrolled in Concurrent Mode only complete the depth component.

The Depth component (Blue Zone) is:

1. The completion of a Media core (30 UOC - 5 courses)
2. The completion of a prescribed Media elective (6 UOC - 1 course)
3. The completion of a Screen and Sound core (42 UOC- 7 courses)
4. The completion of a prescribed Screen and Sound electives from List A (12 UOC - 2 courses)
5. The completion of a prescribed Screen and Sound elective from List B (6 UOC - 1 course)

The Breadth component (for students completing the program in Stand-Alone mode) (Green Zone) is:

1. Free Electives (36 UOC - 6 courses) which can be taken either within or outside the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences
2. General Education (12 UOC - 2 courses) which must be taken outside of the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences

Program Objectives and Graduate Attributes

The UNSW BMedia (S&S) aims to prepare graduates for a leadership role in the thoughtful application of audio-visual technologies informed by a solid understanding of media theory. Students are not simply skilled up in the use of video and sound recorders, computers and media applications, but are encouraged to become media innovators who are able to tackle complex issues by drawing on their integrated practical and theoretical expertise. Students become immersed in the current culture of contemporary audio-visual production and theory. They are encouraged to test out emerging ideas and developments and look for novel ways to approach the production of contemporary audio-visual media. Graduates will gain foundational expertise in a range of medial production tools, but more importantly, they will be able to interpret and reflect on emerging audio-visual practices, enabling them to take leading creative roles in the rapidly changing media industries.

The Graduate Attributes for this Program are as follows:

1. The skills to produce effective and engaging screen and sound texts
2. An understanding of the methods of analysis and thinking specific to the disciplines of screen and audio production
3. A knowledge of the historical development of screen and sound as both specific media and as part of a constantly evolving media landscape
4. An understanding of the aesthetic, technical, and cultural dimensions of screen and sound
5. The ability to recognise the different interpretive frameworks and value systems that inform understandings of screen and sound in various social and cultural discourses
6. The skills to analyse and interpret written and audio-visual texts
7. The ability to link creative production with theoretical and critical knowledge
8. The conceptual and organisational skills required to undertake self-directed learning
9. The organisational and communication skills required for effective and creative collaborative work
10. Skills in scholarly research as applied to and appropriate for the fields of screen and sound
11. An understanding of the role and importance of various forms of archives and information environments for research in media

Career Opportunities

This program provides foundational skills and concepts relevant to career pathways in a broad range of audio-visual production industries. Examples include multimedia or screen director, editor, sound designer, producer and other roles within video and audio production. With its training in research, self directed learning, critical thinking and collaborative working skills, this program also allows graduates to achieve the skills necessary for and adaptable to employment in areas as diverse as film criticism, arts administration, festival programming, communication research and media marketing.

Program Structure

The basic requirements for the degree are:

Stand-Alone mode (144 UOC) made up of:

1. A Media core (30 UOC )
2. Prescribed Media elective (6 UOC)
3. A Screen and Sound core (42 UOC)
4. Prescribed Screen and Sound electives List A (12 UOC)
5. Prescribed Screen and Sound elective List B (6 UOC)
6. Free Electives (36 UOC)
7. General Education (12 UOC)

Concurrent Mode (96 UOC) made up of:

1. A Media core (30 UOC )
2. Prescribed Media elective (6 UOC)
3. A Screen and Sound core (42 UOC)
4. Prescribed electives List A (12 UOC)
5. Prescribed elective List B (6 UOC)

Core Courses

Media Core

Level 1

• ARTS1090 Media, Culture & Everyday Life (6 UOC)
• ARTS1091 Media, Society, Politics (6 UOC)

Level 2

• ARTS2090 Publics and Publishing (6 UOC)

Level 3

• ARTS3091 Advanced Media Issues (6 UOC)
• MDIA3005 Engagement (6 UOC)

Screen and Sound Core

Level 1

• ARTS1060 Introduction to Film Studies (6 UOC)
• MDIA1000 Time, Space and Experience (6 UOC)
• SOMA2602 Sound Media 1 (6 UOC)

Level 2

• ARTS2065 Working with Image and Sound (6 UOC)
• MDIA2000 Animating Media (6 UOC)
• SOMA1603 Digital Video 1 (6 UOC)

Level 3

• ARTS3061 Video Project (6 UOC)

Prescribed Electives

Media