University Name:
See all universitiesBirmingham City University
UCAS Code: B25
Location: Birmingham, West Midlands Show on Map
Site: Sites across city; partner colleges
A modern university; a member of the million+ group of universities.
Student Population
| Total Students: | 25,280 |
| Undergraduates: | 82% |
| Postgraduates: | 16% |
| FE Students: | 2% |
Undergraduates
| Total undergraduates: | 20,610 |
| Male: | 40% |
| Female: | 60% |
| Full Time: | 74% |
| Mature on Entry: | 39% |
| UK Students: | 93% |
| State school entry: | 97% |
Teaching Staff
2935 (full- and part-time)
Broad study areas
Accountancy & finance; art, design & visual communication; business & management; computing, IT & software engineering; criminal justice & law; education & teacher training; engineering; English; health & social care; jewellery; marketing & PR; media, multimedia & new media; music; nursing & midwifery; property, construction & planning; social sciences. You can look up the Birmingham Conservatoire separately.
Freshers
| Admission Information: | AS-levels accepted in combination with 2+ A-levels or equivalent on most degree courses. UCAS tariff used. |
| Points on Entry (Mean): | 254 |
| Drop Out Rate: | 10% |
| Accommodation: | Most first years houses; all from outside Birmingham |
Institution
| Founded: | 1971 as Birmingham Poly, from colleges of art, commerce, education, music and PE. University status in 1992 as UCE Birmingham; changed name 2007. |
| Site: | Split across eight sites: City North is main site at Perry Barr, 3 miles north of city centre (SU, business, education, law, humanities, development & society); Millennium Point, in city centre (technology innovation centre, acting); Edgbaston, south of city centre (midwifery & nursing); Conservatoire in the city centre. Also Birmingham Institute of Art & Design on four sites: at Gosta Green, close to city centre (art & design, digital media), Bourneville, in the Bourneville Village Trust (visual arts), Margaret Street, a Venetian Gothic building in city centre (art); and Vittoria Street in city’s jewellery quarter (jewellery department). |
| How to get there: | Birmingham is at the centre of England’s rail, coach and road networks: mainline stations (New Street and Birmingham Snow Hill); coaches connect directly from 500 destinations; many motorway links; Birmingham International Airport close by. An extensive bus and train network ensures easy access to all sites from Birmingham city centre. |
Student services & facilities
| Student advice & services: | SU student advice service; student services: chaplaincy (3 full-time RC and Anglican, 2 part-time Orthodox and Progressive Jewish). Counsellors, doctors, nurses, disability service, mental health advice, personal assistance scheme, student finance advisers, jobshop, international advice service. |
| Amenities: | General shop, cashpoints, insurance broker, 2 nurseries, hairdresser, cafés, restaurants. |
| Accommodation: | Most first-year students in university halls. Approx 2440 places in halls, £80.50–£128 per week, self-catering. Many students live in privately-owned accommodation from second year: £70+ pw self-catering. |
Study opportunities & careers
| Library & information services: | Main library contains 950,000 books, 9000 journals (print and electronic), course books on reference; also seven specialist libraries and digital library. Extensive information on other media eg CD-Rom, slides, video and DVD. Specialist collections: Rare books collection; collection of children’s books; large collection of sheet music. Information provision, £63 pa spent for each student (FTE). IT service converged with library (access 13+ hours/day). Network/internet points for workstations and loan laptops; wireless access points in recreation areas and halls of residence; open-access facilities within faculties. IT support from technician in library opening hours; faculty librarians give induction for new students; electronic information workshops throughout the year. |
| Other learning resources: | University’s virtual learning environment (Moodle) allows 24-hour access to eg lecture notes, background information, video lectures, journals, discussion forums. |
| Study abroad: | Formal exchange links with partner institutions in Europe and North America. |
| Careers: | Information and advice, employer contact, recruiter’s events, vacancies and job shop. Mentoring and work experience schemes for ethnic minority students. |
Money
| Living expenses budget: | Minimum budget of £6000−£7000 pa (excluding tuition fees) recommended by university. |
| Term-time work: | University guideline of 15 hours/week for full-time students. Some part-time work on campus and course related work. |
| Financial help: | 370 scholarships of £3000 in Year 1 open to students whose family income is up to £16.2k pa. Also government funds for students in need; and other funds may be available, depending on individual circumstances. |
| University tuition fees: | Home students pay £7500 pa for most classroom-based first degree courses, £8200 pa (for law and those involving studio or lab-based work) or £9000 pa (jewellery, music, acting, teacher training); fees for a year out are £1500. International students pay £9600 pa (classroom-based), £11,050 (lab-based), £12,60–£13,750 pa for music and acting courses. |
Courses
Awarding body:
Birmingham City University
Main undergraduate awards:
BA, BSc, BEng, BMus, LLB.
Length of courses:
3 years; others 4 years
Main subjects offered:
- Accountancy
- Acoustic Engineering
- Acting
- Advertising
- Animation
- Architectural Technology
- Architecture
- Art
- Art History
- Audio
- Automotive Engineering
- Broadcasting
- Building Surveying
- Business Economics
- Business Studies
- Ceramics
- Childhood Studies
- Communication Engineering
- Community Arts
- Computer Science
- Computer Technology
- Computing
- Construction
- Creative/Performance Writing
- Criminal Justice
- Criminology
- Cultural Studies
- Drama
- E-business
- Economics
- Education
- Electronic Engineering
- Electronics
- Embroidery
- Engineering (General)
- English
- Fashion
- Finance
- Furniture Design
- Geography
- Glass
- Graphic Design
- Health
- Housing Management
- Human Resource Management
- Illustration
- Industrial Design
- Information Studies
- Information Systems
- Information Technology
- Interactive Games Production
- Interactive Multimedia
- Interior Design
- International Business
- Internet Technology
- Jazz
- Jewellery
- Journalism
- Landscape Architecture
- Landscape Studies
- Law
- Management
- Manufacturing Engineering
- Marketing
- Mechanical Engineering
- Media Studies
- Media Technology
- Midwifery
- Motor Sport Engineering
- Multimedia
- Music
- Music Technology
- Nursing
- Photography
- Policing
- Politics
- Printmaking
- Product Design
- Psychology
- Public Relations
- Quantity Surveying
- Radiography
- Retail Management
- Silversmithing
- Social Policy
- Social Science
- Social Studies
- Social Work
- Sociology
- Software Engineering
- Speech Therapy
- Surveying
- Teacher Training
- Telecommunications Engineering
- Textiles
- Theatre Design
- Three-Dimensional Design
- Town/Country Planning
- TV Studies
- Video
- Visual Arts
Student view
George Campbell, Tiger TV Assistant Manager SU TV Station (Year 2, BSc Television Technology & Production)
Living
What’s it like as a place to live? It is an OK place to live. I have a couple of student bars nearby and two superstores down the road. I live close to the university and the union which is helpful.
How’s the student accommodation? Uni accommodation was good last year. I lived in Hamstead which was catered. It was good for the money and because it was catered, it was very social and I met a lot of people.
What’s the student population like? Student population is very wide. Loads of international and mature students as well as undergraduates.
How do students and locals get on? There are a couple of places locally like some pubs and areas but it isn’t too bad and students know about them. It is a highly student populated area and the locals seem to be used to it and are generally fine.
Studying
What’s it like as a place to study? The facilities are good and the courses are wide. Some of the courses are newer like some specialist art and design courses. You always get one day off in the week!
What are the teaching staff like? My tutor has worked in the industry that I am studying so he knows what he is talking about. He is a regional chair of an industry Union and has many contacts which he bases information on.
Socialising
What are student societies like? The union is always working on this and they do get a good turn out. There have been loads of new societies made this year; the climbing society is successful in recruiting new people and setting up meetings.
What’s a typical night out? ‘Toons’ in the SU bar on a Friday night.
And how much does it cost? It is £2 to get in so it is very cheap compared to going somewhere in town.
How can you get home safely? I, like most other students in the area, live across the road so it isn’t too bad. Although I still make sure that I am walking home with someone else.
Money
Is it an expensive place to live? Rent isn’t too bad but at the beginning of the first term I had to buy a bus pass to get into uni in town so that is an extra expense on top. Most people I know are skint but we generally sort out our money spending by the second term.
Average price of a pint? £1.50.
And the price of a takeaway? £6.
What’s the part-time work situation? The university have a Job Shop where you can go and seek help on getting a job. We have two superstores and one shopping centre close by as well as a city centre so jobs aren’t too hard to find. However most of the time employers are looking for Christmas staff. Jobs tend to pay above the minimum wage as far as I know.
Summary
What’s the best feature about the place? The fact that it is a student area. My friends are just a short walk away and you feel a lot safer that everyone close by is in the same boat.
And the worst? It’s bad that the main campus is far away from town. If you want to get into town you have to use a bus or a taxi. It would be better if we were closer to the city centre so we could have more nights out/trips without using public transport.
And to sum it all up? An opportunity to meet new people, experience new things not to be missed. It’s your last chance to be irresponsible and young before you have to start working!
Past Students
Alfred Bestall (creator of Rupert Bear), Kathy Cook (Olympic athlete), Betty Jackson (fashion designer), Zoë Ball (radio presenter), Kirsten O’Brian (children’s TV), Nigel Mansell (ex-F1 driver), Frank Skinner (comedian).
More info?
Contact SU President, tel 0121 331 6811 or visit website on www.birminghamcitysu.com.
Open days
16th June 2012
Open day for all courses except those run by the Birmingham Conservatoire and Birmingham School of Acting. Register online.
18th August 2012
Open day for all courses except those run by the Birmingham Conservatoire and Birmingham School of Acting. Register online.
5-6th October 2012
Open day for all courses except those run by the Birmingham Conservatoire and Birmingham School of Acting. Register online.
Contact
Address:
Birmingham City University
Franchise Street
Perry Barr
Birmingham
B42 2SU
Tel:
0121 331 5595
Email:
Website:
Student enquiries:
Choices, tel 0121 331 5595
Application:
UCAS (direct for some courses)
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