News - Broadcast Journalism Training Council Impressed
University College Falmouth press release
University College Falmouth's MA in Multimedia Broadcast Journalism and MA in International Journalism have been widely praised by a visiting panel from the Broadcast Journalism Training Council (BJTC) in a recent report.
The College's MA in Multimedia Broadcast Journalism has been praised for its technical provision, which is "dazzling in its breadth and range" and career outcomes that would be the "envy of other courses", whilst student satisfaction on MA International Journalism is incredibly high with students informing the panel that "the course is fabulous, strongly vocational and academically challenging."
The panel is recommending full three-year accreditation of both courses when the BJTC's Council meets on 21 April 2009.
Joint Course Leader of MA Multimedia Broadcast Journalism, Guy Pannell, said: "The recognition of one of the UK's longest established broadcast journalism training courses as a comprehensive multimedia MA demonstrates our commitment to preparing our students for a multi-platform digital future, where they must be as ready to write and upload video, photographs and audio to a website, produce a blog or keep their audience informed through Twitter, as they are to produce reports for radio and television.
We are delighted with the outcome of the visit, which demonstrates the success of UCF's investment in a multi-million-pound Media Centre, and its insistence on the highest standards of teaching. This is a vote of confidence in our technology and our staff."
Among the areas highlighted by the BJTC panel were:
. Online - "Falmouth is clearly developing some real strengths in this area. . The teaching is very thorough as well as being extremely good."
. Equipment - "The Falmouth Media Centre remains one of the best equipped across the whole network of accredited courses. Technical provision is dazzling in its breadth and range. The largest TV studio in the West Country, of which excellent use is made to extend the news coverage into features and current affairs."
. Career/vocational outcomes - "Falmouth continues to be remarkably successful. In the light of the current state of the economy and the increasingly serious problems within the media ecology, these outcomes would be the envy of most course leaders."
The report also praises some "cracking good news bulletins" produced for radio together with the high quality of television presentation, packages and longer reports, and concludes that the MA in Multimedia Broadcast Journalism and its sister course in International Journalism "are certainly worthy of flaunting."
Of the MA in International Journalism, which focuses on international journalism within UK newsrooms as well as reporting from the world's hotspots, the BJTC reported that "some of the final projects were outstandingly good and the one about the Kenyan township could have gone straight onto the Unreported World slot on Channel Four as it stood."
"It is great to see MA International Journalism gaining further recognition and respect from within the news industry," commented Course Leader, George Matheson. "This can only enhance the job prospects of our students in an area of journalism that is growing worldwide."
"This is why Falmouth stands head and shoulders above the rest in terms of practice-based media education and training," added Director of the School of Media, Paul Inman. "The combination of industry accreditation through organisations such as the BJTC and Skillset; academic excellence; enviable facilities and international contacts enables Falmouth to create new opportunities within markets, networks and communities; to capitalise on emerging technologies; and to provide our students with the very best chance of success."
For further information about MA Multimedia Broadcast Journalism at University College Falmouth, visit http://www.falmouth.ac.uk/multimediabroadcastjournalism, email admissions@falmouth.ac.uk or telephone Admissions on 01326 214386.
For further information about MA International Journalism at University College Falmouth, visit http://www.falmouth.ac.uk/internationaljournalism, email admissions@falmouth.ac.uk or telephone Admissions on 01326 253661.
University College Falmouth is the only independent Higher Education institution in Cornwall with the powers to award degrees in its own name. It has two campuses in Cornwall - at Woodlane in Falmouth and Tremough in Penryn (which it owns, and jointly manages with the University of Exeter) - and a third campus at Totnes in Devon, following its merger with Dartington College of Arts in 2008.
This merger created a new institution focusing on the expansion of Falmouth's expertise in Art, Design and Media and Dartington's expertise in Choreography, Music, Theatre, Art and Writing. The Devon-based courses will relocate to a new, high-specification Performance Centre at Tremough in 2010, paving the way for a new specialist Arts University in Cornwall by 2012, that will be unique to the South West.
The College is a founding partner in the Combined Universities in Cornwall (CUC), a unique initiative to promote regional economic regeneration through Higher Education, funded mainly by the European Union, the South West Regional Development Agency, and the Higher Education Funding Council for England, with support from Cornwall County Council.