Complete UCW’s highly regarded music degree pathway and gain full Honours with this exciting Top-up. The programme focuses on current trends and career development in the music industry, which is worth more than £4 billion annually in the UK alone. Students on this course produce a professional portfolio of work to demonstrate their ability to work in various roles within the industry, or in related positions in the wider creative sectors. Studies in marketing and promotion also make it ideal for those who are looking to launch and sustain a freelance music career.
The course’s inbuilt flexibility will allow you to explore your own specialisms in areas including performance, composition, live sound and event management, alongside gaining fundamental business knowhow to maximise your employment or self-employment opportunities. The undertaking of a substantial research project on a music-related topic of interest also prepares students for postgraduate study.
Honours Top-ups are Level 6 qualifications which enable the conversion of a Foundation Degree or equivalent into a full Bachelor’s Degree. They are popular with students because earning an extra qualification for a relatively short period of study makes sense in today’s competitive jobs market. They do not need to be completed immediately after achieving prior qualifications, and they are standalone, so the result of an Honours Top-up is not affected by, for example, the proceeding Foundation Degree.
Students on the BA (Hons) Top-up in Professional Music Performance and Production at UCW are based at our recently-refurbished Loxton Campus. Taking advantage of our top-of-the-range equipment, you’ll receive accredited training in Ableton Live and Logic X and produce high quality audio products of either your own music or for visiting musicians. We regularly work with talented musicians who know they can rely on UCW Top-up students to help them make demos, EPs and full albums. Being part of this community of musicians also extends to performance opportunities at a range of venues and festivals. The Loxton Campus also has ample rehearsal and performance spaces, and we put on a programme of our own shows throughout the year.
The taught elements of this degree are also complemented by regular one-to-one and group skills workshops. So you can improve your instrument and equipment skills with our lecturers and experienced visiting experts – all at no extra cost. Lectures and seminars are also enhanced by varied and inspiring talks by visiting music industry professionals, including award-wining musicians and producers and renowned session musicians.
Students on this course are also invited to attend optional studio visits and residential trips at an additional expense. In recent years our students have recorded at the legendary Abbey Road Studios, Monnow Valley Studio, Rockfield Studios, Modern World Studios and Sawmills Studio.
We’d be happy to arrange a bespoke visit of our facilities. You can also meet the team and find out more about everything else going on at UCW by attending our next Open Day. Please contact either the course leader Lee Sullivan or UCW’s HEART team for more information.
Students who pass this course will be awarded an Honours Top-up Degree from Bath Spa University. The agreement between Bath Spa University and UCW is reviewed on an ongoing basis to ensure academic standards are maintained.
2020 entry full-time tuition fees: £8,250 per year.
2020 entry part-time tuition fees: £4,125 per year.
2021 entry full-time tuition fees: £8,500 per year.
2021 entry part-time tuition fees: £4,250 per year.
This covers all of the teaching and assessment elements that are required for you to complete the course.
It also includes:
- The use of UCW recording equipment and specialist software.
- Attendance at guest lectures at UCW.
- Additional instrument and equipment tuition, provided on an ongoing basis at UCW’s discretion.
- Annual £10 printing and photocopying allowance for full-time students and £5 for part-time students.
- The use of UCW computer equipment at any of our campuses and access to Microsoft Office365 while you are enrolled with UCW.
- The loans of books from our libraries.
- Access to all of the UCW student support and careers services.
It does not include:
- Optional studio visits at an approximate cost of £50 each.
- Optional UK residential visits at an approximate cost of £75 per night.
- Extra printing and photocopying above the £10/£5 limit.
- The cost of books that you may wish to purchase.
- Transport between our campuses, and to/from your partner university and any work placements. We encourage students to take advantage of termly bus passes to reduce transport costs.
- Accommodation and other living costs.
UCW publishes its Tuition Fees Policy on the Wider Information Set page of this website.
You may also be eligible for additional financial support, depending on your circumstances.
All of the modules on this course are compulsory and worth 40 credits each. Successful completion of all of the modules will lead to the award of the Level 6 Honours Top-up Degree.
Professional development – produce a portfolio of work-based content that evidences the development of advanced specialist skills.
Research project – undertake in-depth primary research to produce a dissertation on a music-related top of interest.
Specialist skills – create a show reel of performances, an album of original recordings, a collection of compositions, or sound design work for film, TV or video games.
This course is taught via a combination of lectures, seminars, skills practice and studio practicals. When not in lecturers and seminars, students are expected to continue learning through independent self-study. This involves reading relevant literature, working on individual and group projects, and undertaking research in preparation for coursework and exams.
This course has an average of 12 hours of scheduled teaching per week.
At UCW, we also understand that some students benefit from more contact time with lecturers than is the norm at a traditional university, so we do all we can to make sure academic staff are available for their students when they are needed.
Assessment is via a combination of practical exams and coursework. The assessment breakdown is 20% practical exams and 80% coursework. There are no written exams on this course.
Please click on the Course Handbook button to find out more.
Graduates from this programme may have the opportunity to:
- Pursue a professional career in music across disciplines including live performance, studio production, live sound, songwriting, composition, and event management
- Gain employment in the wider music industry, including music publishing, music management, event management and music promotion
- Apply to progress to postgraduate study, such as the Master’s Degrees in Music Performance or Sound Production at Bath Spa University.
A related Foundation Degree with an average grade profile of 50% or above, or a Higher National Diploma at Merit, or equivalent.
Applicants are also required to submit a portfolio of creative work and attend an interview.
