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Bachelor of Communication
BM1801
Course details
-
Contact Wendy.Richdale@wintec.ac.nz about mid-year study options.Feb 2021
- Three years
- Full-time or Part-time
- $7,356* per year
- You may qualify for fee free study under Fees-Free Policy
- Level 7
- Available for International Students. International Fee Guideline
- Hamilton City Campus
Summary
This degree has been designed for students to develop skills to thrive in the media and communications industry. The programme focuses on media communication and marketing craft, along with critical thinking, creative media, content production, and professional practice. Students will have the opportunity to undertake collaborative real-world projects with students from other disciplines, and with industry.
The degree has pathways in Creative Media and Digital Marketing. A hybrid Screen Arts and Production pathway is also available.
Creative media
Students will develop skills in content creation, strategy and storytelling.
Students will learn:
- Writing and storytelling
- Journalism
- Photography
- Video production
Not only will students develop sound communication skills and understand how to gather, analyse and present data, they will also develop the technical skills to shoot and edit video and photography for multiple platforms, including produce podcasts. Students
will hone their writing skills and creative eye to generate engaging, creative media that will address a brief and appeal to their intended audience.
Digital marketing
Students will gain confidence to be persuasive and think strategically. They will leverage digital channels such as search engines, social media, email, and websites to connect with specific audiences.
Students will learn:
- Brand strategy
- Social media strategy
- Campaign development
- Project management
Students will be able to connect appropriate content with a brand’s audience. The skills they learn in analysis will help them to understand how people tick. Students will generate creative briefs and campaign strategies for brands and direct the
creation of content for marketing, advertising and storytelling. Day-to-day students will produce tailored content, manage campaigns, understand and manage web and social marketing, and evaluate analytics.
How you'll learn
Project zones
Project-based learning is at the heart of what students will do. Each term students will do a bunch of structured learning with their tutors and in the last four weeks of the term they will get to apply their learning to a project, we call this time ‘project zones’. The project zones also provide opportunities for students to collaborate with students across the creative disciplines of Media Arts: Music and Performing Arts, Design (Visual Communication), Design (Fashion) and Contemporary Art.
Classrooms for creatives
Students will be with us Monday to Thursday, spending the majority of their time in a creative agency environment, alongside their peers. This time is structured so students can find their rōpū (group) and build a creative network, replicating the environment graduates will work in post-study while also allowing the time and space to explore and experiment. Students will have 24-hour access to our studios and workshops, so they can work whenever inspiration hits.
Specialists and mentors
Students will have a backstage pass to our events, industry talks, gallery exhibitions, festival week, and performances. These events enhance our teaching programme and provide conversations to provoke, challenge, and inspire; fuelling your progress, and connecting students with experts that will help launch a creative career.
Internships and industry
By the time students reach their third year of study, they will be able to take their developing specialised skills, springboard off our connections, and be ready to move into a robust internship programme that takes up the last half of the final year with us. The internships sets students up with real on-the-job experiences as they prepare for life beyond study.
What you'll learn
In the first year of the Bachelor of Communication, students will take three core modules:
- Communication Craft: Develop your specialised skills
- Critical Methods: Understand the arts and the cultural world
- Professional Practice: Learn the ways of industry
To complement, students will add two electives of their choice so they can broaden their creative toolkit, from a range of options including the fundamentals in graphic design, sound, or photography.
These courses will give students a secure grounding in the
technical, theoretical, and professional skills, while also exposing them to broader ideas about the arts and the cultural world around them.
View programme modules
Note: No value in the pre/co-requisite columns means there are no pre/co-requisites for that module.
Craft and Core Modules:
| Module Code | Module Title | Level | Credits | Pre-Requisites | Co-Requisites |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| COMM510 | Communications 510 | 5 | 30 | ||
| COMM520 | Communications 520 | 5 | 30 | | |
| COMM610 | Communications 610 | 6 | 30 | ||
| COMM620 | Communications 620 | 6 | 30 | ||
| COMM701 | Communications 701 | 7 | 30 | ||
| CRIT501 | Critical Methods 1 | 5 | 15 | ||
| CRIT601 | Critical Methods 2 | 6 | 15 | CRIT501 | |
| PROF501 | Professional Practice 1 | 5 | 15 | ||
| PROF601 | Professional Practice 2 | 6 | 15 | PROF501 | |
| PROF701 | Professional Practice 3 | 7 | 30 | PROF601 |
Project Modules:
| Module Code | Module Title | Level | Credits | Pre-Requisites | Co-Requisites |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CRTV701 | Research Methods | 7 | 15 | CRIT601 | |
| CRTV702 | Freelance Project | 7 | 15 | COMM610 & 620 or DSGN610 & 620 or CART610 & 620 or MAPA610 | |
| CRTV703 | Capstone Project | 7 | 15 | COMM701 or DSGN710 or CART701 or MAPA701 | |
| CRTV704 | Matauranga Toi - Art Education | 7 | 15 | COMM610 & 620 or DSGN610 & 620 or CART610 & 620 or MAPA701 & 620 | |
| DFNZ701 | Design Factory 1 | 7 | 30 | 90 credits at level 6 |
The 30 credit module DFNZ701: Design Factory 1 can be offered as an option within any Wintec degree programme, wherever the degree programme structures allows such an option. Admission into the Design Factory module is on negotiation with the Centre Director or delegated authority and selection into the module is in line with the Design Factory process.
Elective Modules:
| Module Code | Module Title | Level | Credits | Pre-Requisites | Co-Requisites |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DSGN502 | CMS Web Publishing | 5 | 15 | ||
| DSGN503 | Graphic Design Fundamentals | 5 | 15 | ||
| CRTV501 | Creative Special Topic 1 | 5 | 15 | ||
| CRTV502 | Creative Special Topic 2 | 5 | 15 | ||
| CRTV601 | Creative Special Topic 3 | 6 | 15 | 60 credits Level 5 | |
| CRTV602 | Creative Special Topic 4 | 6 | 15 | 60 credits Level 5 | |
| BMAXX100 | Moving Image: An Introduction | 5 | 15 | ||
| BMALX142 | Storytelling, Myth and Ritual | 5 | 15 | ||
| BMALX110B | History and Theory in Visual and Design | 5 | 15 | ||
| BMALX179 | Interpreting Visual Culture | 5 | 15 | ||
| PRNT501 | Screen Printing | 5 | 15 | ||
| MAPA502 | Sound Fundamentals | 5 | 15 | ||
| MAPA503 | Lighting Fundamentals | 5 | 15 | ||
| MAPA504 | Songwriting | 5 | 15 | ||
| MAPA505 | Intro to Ensemble Performance | 5 | 15 | ||
| BMAVX212 | Textile Design | 5 | 15 | DSGN510 & 520 or DSGM503 or equivalent knowledge or skills. | |
| SCRN502 | Screen Fundamentals | 5 | 15 | ||
| SCRN503 | Screen Technology One | 5 | 15 | SCRN502 | |
| JOUR505 | Media Law and Context | 5 | 15 | ||
| BMA0G210 | Illustration, Concept Media | 6 | 15 | DSGN510 & 520 or CART510 & 520 or DSGN503 | |
| DSGN603 | Type Design | 6 | 15 | DSGN510 & 520 or DSGM503 or equivalent knowledge or skills. | |
| DSGN602 | Motion Graphics | 6 | 15 | DSGN510 & 520 or DSGM503 or equivalent knowledge or skills. | |
| PHOT501 | Photography Fundamentals | 5 | 15 | ||
| PHOT502 | Photography Tech One | 5 | 15 | PHOT501 or equivalent knowledge or skills. | |
| CART502 | Drawing Fundamentals | 5 | 15 | ||
| CART503 | Painting Fundamentals | 5 | 15 | ||
| COMM602 | Feature Writing | 6 | 15 |
Or other modules and packages of learning as agreed to by the designated Media Arts staff.
Design Factory NZ
In their third year of study, students can apply to study the 30 credit Design Factory NZ module. This experience teaches a range of problem-solving methodologies, which students will apply to a real-world challenge provided by an industry partner. Students
will work in a multi-disciplinary team alongside students from engineering, business, IT, sport and exercise science, media arts, and more.
Joining Design Factory NZ will provide students with the opportunity
to learn and work in new ways, prototype solutions to complex problems, and develop their soft skills of creativity, empathy and communication - all in high-demand for the workplace of the future.
Read more about Design Factory New Zealand here.
Career/further opportunities
- Writer
- Content creator
- Media and brand strategist
- Journalist
- Social media marketer
- Advertising account manager
- Storyteller
- Editor/publisher
- Event manager
- Marketing communications
- Producer
Graduates of this programme will be qualified to work in a range of communication, media and creative related roles. Graduates will have developed transferable skills and professional attributes that will position them for many other jobs. They will have the skills to work collaboratively and creatively within the increasingly complex and dynamic creative industries.
Graduates of the Bachelor of Communication are positioned to pathway into postgraduate programmes at Wintec such as the Bachelor of Media Arts with Honours then Master of Arts.
Frequently asked questions
What can I expect from the class schedule and workload?
Expect to spend about 26 hours a week in scheduled classes. Some of these will be on campus, but students will also spend time on industry visits and working on client projects.
How much time outside of class will I need to spend on study?
Students are expected to do another 14 hours of independent learning on top of classes - in total the mix of class time and independent study should add up to about 40 hours per week.
What opportunities will I get to work on industry projects?
There are four project zones per year, during which students will work for up to three weeks with an industry or community partner on a cross-disciplinary project. Students will also do a work placement in second year and a major internship in their third year.
Undergraduate, semester, pathway, module and cross-disciplinary - what do these words mean?
Undergraduate means any study up to the level of completing a bachelor degree. Our academic year is made up of two main semesters, one from February to June and the other from July to November. We also have a summer semester for some classes. A degree is made up of a mix of compulsory and elective modules, modules are worth between 15 and 60 credits. A year’s worth of full time study is 120 credits.
Events
Disclaimers
Entry criteria
a) Candidates are required to have:
i. NCEA Level 3 comprised of 60 credits at NCEA Level 3 or above and 20 credits at NCEA Level 2 or above, including:
(1) 14 credits each at NCEA Level 3 in three approved subjects, including a Language
Rich subject; and
(2) Literacy (10 credits at NCEA Level 2 or above made up of 5 credits each in reading and writing); and
(3) Numeracy (10 credits at NCEA Level 1 or above); or
ii. A relevant level 4 qualification; or
iii. Equivalent.
b) In exceptional cases, candidates with 60 credits at NCEA Level 2 across four subjects including 12 credits in a Language Rich subject, or equivalent, will be considered.
Special admission
Domestic applicants aged 20 years or above who have not met the General Admission or entry requirements for a programme but whose skills, education or work experience indicate that they have a reasonable chance of success may be eligible for Special Admission. Special admission will be granted at the discretion of the relevant Head of School/Centre Director or designated nominee. Such applicants may be required to successfully complete a foundation, bridging or tertiary introductory programme as a condition of entry into higher level programmes.
Provisional entry
Domestic applicants aged under 20 years who have not met the general academic admission and entry criteria for a programme but who can demonstrate a reasonable chance of success through other educational attainment and/or work or life experience may be
eligible for provisional entry at the discretion of the relevant Head of School/Centre Director or designated nominee. Provisional entry places restrictions on re-enrolment to be lifted if the applicant’s performance is deemed satisfactory
by the relevant Head of School/Centre Director or designated nominee.
Selection criteria
a) Where there are more applicants than the number of places available, selection will be determined on the basis of the candidate’s application and submitted portfolio work.
b) An interview and written language test may also be required as part of the selection process.
English language requirements
a) Candidates who have English as a second language are required to have an International English Language Test System (IELTS) score of 6.0 with no individual band score lower than 5.5; or,
b) Equivalent.
Want to see full details of the entry criteria?
Don't meet the entry criteria?
Pathways
Please check the entry criteria for each programme to see which course is the best level for you to begin with. The entry criteria information can be found on each of the programme pages here online. You can also contact us directly to discuss the appropriate level for you at info@wintec.ac.nz.
Your first day
Are you ready for your first day of class? Check out your start date and where you need to be. You can also find useful information about studying at Wintec on our Welcome page.
Year 1 students beginning February 2020
Date: Monday 10 February 2020
Time: 9am-4pm
Venue: The Atrium, City Campus
Timetable:
- 9am - Powhiri
- 10am - Welcome and staff introductions
- 10:30am - Tours, ID cards and parking
- 12pm - Lunch
- 1pm- Classes
Year 1 students Beginning July 2020 (Elective students only- due to module availability).
Date: Monday 20th July
Time: 9am-4pm
Venue: Events room 1, City Campus
Timetable:
- 9am - Powhiri
- 10am - Welcome and staff introductions
- 10:30am - Tours, ID cards and parking
- 12pm - Lunch
- 1pm- Classes
Prospectus (course guide)
The Wintec Prospectus (otherwise known as a course guide) outlines everything you need to know about Wintec. It contains information about the Wintec campuses, student life, and the programmes that are on offer.
Access your copy of the Wintec Prospectus
The Wintec Prospectus (course guide) is available by downloading the file - click on the document below to access the file. Alternatively, to request a copy via email or the post, please complete the form below.
Request an emailable or printed copy of the Prospectus
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