Journalism

BTEC Diploma , Level 3
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Available at the following campuses:

A shot of the Quarry Hill Campus building and park on a summer day

Quarry Hill Campus

What Our Students Say

“I think it’s the fact of being able to progress your creativity and be able to work on very new ideas – so whether if you’re going to do like a music video, a documentary, a short film, those sort of like projects where you just get something new, something you haven’t even done before, um it helps to expand your mind into something completely different and work into something that’s not the same thing as you’ve done before.”

Scott, Creative Media

“You get so much experience, like you’re not just doing one side of journalism you’re doing all different things – so one day you’ll be doing some magazines and then the next you’ll be filming in the TV studio so it’s just great to get to experience all kinds of journalism so then you get to decide which part you want to go into.”

Alannah, Creative Media

“The course has helped me develop – I’ve been more social towards my team and other people. And it’s helped me develop my comms with more competitive gameplay. People in the course are very supportive of you and in the games they are helpful, give you comms and all that.”

Aaran, eSports

“Playing tournaments, for me, I think it helps me develop skills because mainly I don’t play tournament-based games, and in tournaments there’s very skilled players playing. So if I end up going against a really skilled player and lose, I can still learn from how they’ve played and try again. Support with everyone is great, we all get along, we’re all nice to each other and we all help whenever we can, and same with the tutors – they support us the best with how they are.”

Kai, eSports

“If you’re somebody who likes art we’ve got concept art courses here. Also if you like audio we’ve got a lesson about that. It branches off, things like other different careers you can do with this class. It’s not exam based so you don’t have to worry about revising a lot, it’s coursework based so you finish some of the product portfolio, hand it in throughout the course.”

Joseph, Games Development

Did you know!

  • Keep up to date with our Facebook @creativeartslcc, Twitter @CreativeArtsLCC, and Instagram @creativeartslcc.
  • We provide full-time arts education to over 1,000 students every year, from level 1 through to BA Honours degrees. If you are successful in gaining a place on one of our specialist courses, we will work with you to develop your creative skills and prepare you for the next big step – either to university, drama school, art college or the world of work.
  • On average Media professionals in Leeds earn £30,121.74 (Emsi).

Course Information

Introduction

Develop the skills you need to research, create and share stories across a range of media platforms. This course explores the world of journalism and digital content production, from writing articles and conducting interviews to producing podcasts, documentaries and broadcast programmes.

You will gain practical experience of the techniques, technology and creative processes used in modern journalism, while developing skills that can lead to careers across journalism, broadcasting, digital media, marketing and public relations.

Overview

Video Transcript

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CREATIVE ARTS, MEDIA PRODUCTION, LEEDS CITY COLLEGE TRANSCRIPT

INTERVIEWEE – SARAH ROBINSON – Creative Media Programme Manager (SPEAKING), SCOTT – TV & Film – School of Creative Arts, Alannah – Journalism – School of Creative Arts

Scenery – Students sat in a TV studio gallery operating the video and audio mixing equipment

Scenery – A tutor is lowering the lighting to be able to set it up correctly for use.

Scenery – A student is operating a TV camera in the studio.

Sarah Robinson – “I’m the programme manager for Level 3 creative media practice. So these are BTEC qualifications which means there are no exams, it’s purely based on the work you do in class, at home, practical based in short.”

Scenery – A group of students sat in the TV studio being filmed

Scenery – Two students in the TV studio operating cameras

Sarah Robinson – “We have 2 different specialisms, you can do television and film where you get to use this fantastic state of the art TV studio which we have as well as a wealth of other equipment we have things like DSLR cameras, tripods, booms we have all the equipment you need in order to be able to do fantastic filmin. You don’t need to buy any of your own equipment. We have all the equipment here to lend you.”

Scenery – Students in the TV gallery are operating the audio and video mixing equipment.

Scenery – A student using a computer to design a magazine

Sarah Robinson – “The Students come onto our course, they come straight from GCSE so it’s a very important part of their development the 2 years they spend with us. What we’re trying to do is not only develop those technical skills so that they are ready to move into industry or onto university when they finish with us or even and apprenticeship or traineeship but what were also trying to do is develop them as a people as well, so the way that we work particularly on television and film but also on journalism to an extent as well you work in crews. So you’re developing those team building skills, leadership skills as well, communication skills, all those kinds of skills which are really important once you get into industry.”

Scenery – A tutor is sat next to a student at a computer offering them guidance.

Scott – “I think it’s the fact of being able to progress your creativity and be able to work on very new ideas, so whether you are going to do a music video, documentary, or a short film. Them sort of projects where you just get something new, something you haven’t done before. It helps to expand your mind into something completely different and working to something that’s not the same things you have done before.”

Scenery – A wide shot of the empty TV studio

Scenery – A shot of the equipment in the TV gallery

Sarah Robinson – “We’re looking for learners who are passionate about coming into the media sector. You do have to have a passion for TV & Film or for Journalism if you want to come onto our courses and do really well. We have specialists within the posts, I am a former journalist myself and we have people who have made films themselves and edited, documentary makers, people like that to teach you, so they are people who understand the industry and what’s required.

Scenery – A tutor operating a camera in the theatre filming a music performance.

Alannah – “You get so much experience, you’re not just doing one side of journalism, you’re doing all different things. So one day you’ll be doing some magazines, the next you’ll be filming in the TV studio so it’s just great to get some experience in all kinds of journalism so then you get to decide what you go into.”

Sarah Robinson – “So if you think you are the kind of student who will thrive at Leeds City College then we really look forward to hearing from you. You can apply online via the website and if you have any further queries about the course then you can email me at sarah.robinson@leedscitycollege.ac.uk and I’ll be more than happy to help you with any queries you may have.”

Scenery – A student operating a camera with a teleprompter. End Slide – Leeds City College (School of Creative Arts) END

Who is this course for?

This course is for people who want to develop their creativity, communication and investigative skills. You will explore how stories are researched, developed and presented across different media, working on practical projects that include producing magazine content, recording podcasts, making documentaries and creating programmes in a professional TV studio.

Whether your interests lie in writing, presenting, photography, audio or video production, you will have the opportunity to explore different areas of journalism and find your strengths.

Benefits and skills

During the course, you will:

  • Develop research, interviewing and investigative journalism skills.
  • Write articles and digital content for magazines, news and websites.
  • Design professional magazine layouts using Adobe InDesign and Affinity.
  • Plan and produce podcasts, documentaries and factual programmes.
  • Gain practical experience of presenting and producing content in a TV studio.
  • Use industry-standard Adobe software to edit and develop your work.
  • Build a portfolio of creative work that demonstrates your skills and progression.

Entry requirements

5 GCSE grade 4 or above including English and maths

Available apprenticeships and progression options

Progression may include degree level study, an apprenticeship, or relevant employment.

Course details

Duration:

1 year Diploma

1 year Top-up Extended Diploma
Start Date: 06/09/2027
Fees (16-18): No fee
Study Type: Full time
Course Code: 73866-01
Fees (Adult): £2,730 plus exam fee of £152

Employment Statistics

  • Newspaper and Periodical Broadcast Journalists and Reporters

    Average Salary
    £15.35

  • Photographers, Audio-visual and Broadcasting Equipment Operators

    Average Salary
    £17.82

  • Newspaper, Periodical and Broadcast Editors

    Average Salary
    £36,787

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