BA (Hons) Social Media Management
University of Sunderland
Course Overview
Nearly every type of business, from established start-ups to global conglomerates like Coca-Cola and Netflix, is utilizing social media. The goal of this course is to provide you with the knowledge and expertise you need to become a skilled social media manager and satisfy the growing demand in a variety of industries. As a content provider, you will also discover how to fascinate and grow your audience.
This 3+0 Social Media Management degree offers hands-on experience in managing social media platforms, creating engaging content, and leveraging analytics for audience understanding. You will cover social media strategies, execution, and effective communication, providing insights into persuasion and content shareability.
You will graduate from this course with the abilities, know-how, and practical experience needed to pursue a career in communications, social media, and content.
Why Choose this Programme at IACT?
- Gain valuable skills that are highly sought after in today's job market.
- Have the opportunity to network with industry professionals and potentially secure internships or job opportunities.
- Explore a variety of job opportunities in industries ranging from entertainment to technology.
- Get a prestigious British degree ranked 4th in The Best UK Universities of 2024 at a fraction of the cost.
- Be exposed to project-based learning with practical assessments, with 100% coursework driven.
- Learn practical skills that are directly applicable to the workplace, such as content creation, analytics interpretation, and campaign management.
About University of Sunderland?
The life-changing University of Sunderland is committed to widening participation with their world-leading research, public and private sector collaborations and track-record for providing quality student experiences that result in graduates who are the tomorrow-makers of societies and economies. The University was also shortlisted for University of the Year for 2021, the leading category in the annual THE – Times Higher Education – awards. They were recently named University of the Year for Social Inclusion (The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2021).
How Do I Get In?
- IACT College Foundation in Media Studies– minimum CGPA 2.0
- IACT Diplomas – minimum CGPA 2.0
- A-Level – minimum of grade D in 2 subjects,
- STPM – minimum of grade C in 2 subjects and an average CGPA of 2.0
- UEC – minimum of grade B in 5 subjects
- SAM, AUSMAT or CPU – 5 subjects with a minimum score of 50%
- Matriculation or Foundation – minimum CGPA of 2.0
- Other qualifications recognized by the Ministry of Education Malaysia
English Language Proficiency
- SPM 1119 (GCE-O) – C
- IELTS – Band 6.0 with a minimum of 5.5 for each component, AND
- Applicants must submit a portfolio for assessment and approval
Hello there, welcome to IACT College!
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COURSE MODULES
Year 1
Introduction to Social Media A
This module will equip you with skills in video production, photography, and graphic design, enabling you to research audiences, develop brands, and create engaging content, ultimately equipping them with strategic social media management.
Introduction to Social Media B
This module will teach you about audience research, brand development, and content creation. It will cover academic and industry concepts, focusing on social media communication and factors affecting engagement. Upon completion of this module, you will have a solid understanding of the social media landscape, content creation and analytics skills.
Essential Media Law and Regulation
This module will prepare you to be a legally and ethically-responsible publisher, whether in print, online, broadcast, or social media platforms. You will learn about anonymity, libel, privacy, copyright, and contempt of court in journalism. You will also explore court reporting, copy checks, and ethical code application, including The Editors' and Ofcom codes.
Essential Journalism
This module will give you a broad introduction to the role of the journalist and the practical skills required for news, magazine, fashion and sports journalism. You will learn how to find and research a news story, track down sources, conduct interviews, identify angles, write headlines and intros and structure stories in a coherent way. You will also be given an introduction to using analytics and social media to promote stories and understand their reach.
Popular Culture
In this module, you will explore popular culture from sociological perspectives, focusing on cinema and television drama, literature, popular music and celebrity, food, shopping and street culture, and cyberculture and new media. You will learn about the roles and influence of popular culture on daily life, using various sociological approaches.
Community Engagement
This module will introduce you to online communities and the role of community managers. It explores co-existence, evolution, growth, moderation, participation, engagement, and success measures. You will learn how to create digital communities and analyze existing ones, preparing for strategic business, marketing, and public relations communication.
Introduction to PR Theory and Practice
This module offers an introduction to the theory and practice of public relations, enabling you to position PR within a business context. It traces the emergence and development of PR through analysis of case studies and theoretical models, and will introduce you to key skills in planning, strategy, team working, news release writing and communication skills across a range of media.
Digital Image Creation for Visual Branding
This module will equip you with experience in publication, editorial tasks, grid techniques, advanced typography, image manipulation, and multi-page document design. You will also delve into visual branding and identity creation for brands.
Research Methodology
This module aims to teach you the significance of research in today's world. You will learn various concepts, theories, and techniques of quantitative and qualitative communication research methods, enabling critical thinking and effective research responses.
Year 2
Practical PR, Strategy and Theory
You will enhance your understanding of PR theory, critical planning models, research importance, and case studies to create effective PR strategies for clients or organisations. You will also learn about ethical codes and the societal impact of public relations activity.
Data Analysis and Visualisation
This module focuses on data analysis in social media management, exploring data sets and analytics to identify trends. It covers data analysis, statistics, spreadsheet functions, and software. It also enhances content creation skills, focusing on visual and interactive methods for specific audiences and platforms.
Social Media: Theory and Practice
This module teaches you how to develop and implement a social media strategy using professional scheduling software and analytics tools. It covers creating and pitching campaigns, audience research, attribution methods, ROI, social listening, and hashtag tracking. It also focuses on data analysis in social media management, statistics, spreadsheet functions, and software, and enhances content creation skills for specific audiences and platforms.
Ready Player One: Operating within the Streaming Industry
You will learn about the livestreaming economy, a rapidly growing media sector. It covers product launches, live reveals, events, and storytelling. You will also gain a better understanding of content creation, audience relationships, branding, planning, ethical practices, and broadcast regulations, enhancing their understanding of the industry.
Social Media Marketing
This module will give you an overview on effective social media marketing techniques and strategies to cultivate high user engagement on the internet and mobile devices.
Placement and Practice
This module offers a comprehensive understanding of the social media industry, covering commercial, organizational, marketing, and publishing aspects. It includes a week-long industry placement, seminars, guest talks, and independent research. You will develop employability skills, create digital CVs and cover letters, and build an online professional identity.
Year 3
Advanced Public Relations
The module enhances your understanding of PR principles and the economic value of corporate reputation, its implications, and community relations. It covers the complexity of corporate communications, internal and external communication, employee engagement techniques, and implementing PR campaigns for real-life clients.
Advanced Community Engagement
This module focuses on community engagement in crowdsourcing using social and digital technology. It covers methods to encourage participation, impact of identity, motivations, gamification, influence, and crowd user types. It also discusses how to moderate crowd contributions, manage legal and ethical risks, and how crowdsourcing can build awareness, engagement, loyalty, and innovation.
Social Media Management Practical Project A
This social media project is a final year module that combines content creation, strategic communications, community management, public relations, and data analysis skills. It focuses on developing an original idea for a strategic social media project, demonstrating high-quality content production, research, strategy development, audience engagement, data analysis, and theoretical approaches. The project will be presented to lecturers and peers.
Social Media Management Practical Project B
This social media project is the culmination of the content creation, strategic communications, community management, public relations and data analysis skills you have developed throughout your degree programme. The initial idea will be pitched to both lecturers and peers in a presentation at the end of the first semester. Throughout the presentation and production process, you will be supported through a series of one-to-one personal tutorials and tailored group workshops to reinforce, enhance and develop your existing skills as a social media manager.
Branded Content and E-commerce Video
This module will provide you with the opportunity to further develop a range of video production skills, optimised for online usage, that will increase your awareness and knowledge of branded content and current trends in ecommerce. Successful participation in this module will further enhance your production skills, whilst focusing on a growth area of employment, and freelance enterprise. You will work on live briefs which will enhance the skills needed to work with clients and build commercial relationships.
In-Company Training
This module enables you to apply your learning beyond education, develop strategies, and merge with industry through internship reflection, enhancing critical thinking, communication, and identifying relevant professions.
Elective Modules
The Moving Camera
This module will enhance your understanding of moving cameras and their impact through practical application of various camera conveyances. It encourages single-camera shooting on location, enhancing camera skills and capturing proficient shots. You will submit portfolios showcasing your work and your creativity, originality, and experimentation to enhance production value and professionalism will be accessed.
Podcasting
This module teaches cross-disciplinary skills for podcasting production, exploring its historical, technical, and theoretical aspects. It explores the output of emerging businesses and offers a new distribution platform for transmedia output. Podcasting supports student learning, distance learning, and amateur content for niche audiences. You will engage in research, skills development, and production, creating unique content and extending modular projects into a new digital space.
Fashion Styling
Fashion Styling teaches you creative imagery techniques for fashion media and brands, focusing on personal, aesthetic, and historical influences. You will learn practical styling, sourcing themes, garments, models, hair, makeup, and acting as stylists and art directors.
Narrative Documentary Podcasting
This module teaches you the essential skills for creating podcast and radio documentaries, including researching ideas, evaluating audiences, managing content, and telling stories through sound. You will develop and produce a podcast documentary using interviews, narration, and actuality recordings. You will also submit a file demonstrating your engagement and create a forward plan for your major project.
High End Video Project
You will be divided into small groups to create a corporate video project for a client, showcasing your technical ability, audio levels, mixing, and editing. The video should promote a business, individual, event, or band. You will also create a showreel showcasing your best work from previous modules, uploaded to an online platform.
Advanced Fashion Styling
You will operate as a professional stylist, undertaking styling challenges in the photographic studio, and developing a portfolio of styled images. In post-production, you will produce imagery and content for an online editorial brand. You will research, plan, and implement a location fashion shoot, that will appeal to the target audience of an editorial brand, and tie in elements such as theme and props. You will produce social media content and a video to promote your fashion shoot
MPU Modules
Appreciation of Ethics and Civilisation / Malay Communication 2 (International Students)
Appreciation of Ethics and Civilisation aims to provide a true understanding of the concept of ethical appreciation, especially in complying with the National Principles (Rukun Negara), government policies, unity efforts and national development. In this module, students will also be enlightened on Malaysian history before and after its independence, and efforts undertaken in building the nation's civilisation. Malay Communication 2 helps you communicate effectively in a formal/informal setting, building your confidence as you hone your interaction skills in the national language.
National Language A / Academic Writing
National Language A helps you grasp the national language to effectively communicate, and express thoughts clearly and creatively through verbal and written communication. Academic Writing introduces the basics of English through writing, critical thinking skills and brainstorming. You will be exposed to means and methods of using English to write and communicate effectively.
Philosophy and Current Issues
This module covers the relation between philosophy, the National education Philosophy and the National Principles of Malaysia (Rukun Negara).
Serving Our Society (S.O.S)
This module discusses the concept of community engagement projects, preparation of proposal papers and effective project features. It will provide you the understanding and appreciation in implementing community engagement projects. Teaching and learning will be conducted in the form of interactive lectures, discussion groups, experience-based learning through group activities and volunteer spirit.
TUITION FEES
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MALAYSIAN STUDENTS |
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Year 1 |
Year 2 |
Year 3 |
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Resource Fee: RM1,000 per year |
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INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS |
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Year 1 |
Year 2 |
Year 3 |
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Resource Fee: RM1,000 per year |
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