Study our brand-new curriculum, which has been updated to keep pace with the industry. There are new modules in e-sports, commentary and punditry, data analysis, and more.
Choose many of your modules (from the second year onwards) and focus on an area of football journalism that interests you – such as writing, podcasting, radio, TV, social media, or communications.
Learn from tutors that are experienced and well connected, having worked for organisations like the Premier League, West Bromwich Albion, Wembley Stadium, the BBC, and The Guardian.
Build your experience with the opportunity to work for clubs and other organisations within the game while you study – we’ll use our contacts to help you get your foot in the door.
A high proportion of our students quickly find work in the industry.
Football Journalism students visiting Premier League Productions at Stockley Park
A football degree for 2023 and beyond
Thanks to multi-billion-pound television deals, 90% of people in the UK owning a smartphone, and the explosion of social media, the desire for football content has never been greater. On this degree, we’ll teach you how to service that need.
We recognise this is an extremely fast-moving field, so we are always improving and evolving our course to reflect the industry. With this in mind, we have an updated curriculum for 2023, with new and improved modules on e-sports, video journalism, social media, feature writing, commentary and punditry, data analysis and visualisation, the societal impact of journalism, and more.
This is in response to changes in the industry. Football clubs are now taking control of their own narrative and looking for well-qualified media professionals who can help them build their audiences and communicate directly with fans. Journalists are also building their own brands, audiences and content. The traditional forms of media are still extremely relevant, but they have had to shift their offering to reflect their audience.
Our aim is to help you develop the skills that all these employers will look for when hiring, as well as to show you how to manage your own content and brand. We want to ensure the broadest range of job pathways are open to you.
Play to your strengths
As the definition of journalism has broadened, so too has our degree. It’s extremely varied, with plenty of optional modules in years two and three, so you can tailor your degree to your own talents and interests.
We’ll cover traditional skills like interviewing, newswriting and media law, as well as those required by the industry today, such as video, social media management, podcasting, and data analysis.
As well as producing content, you’ll also be asked to analyse the work of current journalists to understand what best practice looks like. You will also learn more generally about communication, media, and societal issues in journalism.
It’s been amazing to see the effort and care the course has put into getting more women in the football industry, and I’ve felt so supported during my time here. The course has been so encouraging in helping me develop my interests and apply them to the real world, but has also opened me up to other types of journalism in an industry that’s always changing.
Our tutors are well-connected in the industry. They can put you in touch with football clubs and media organisations, so you can start to gain valuable work experience.
Recently for example, we arranged for groups of students to cover the 2022 Women’s Euros and the 2022 Commonwealth Games. We also have around 80 students currently working for individual clubs, such as Wolverhampton Wanderers, Birmingham City, Derby County, Nottingham Forest, Burton Albion, Walsall and Mansfield.
You’ll cover all aspects of the news cycle from previewing matches to live reporting and post-match analysis, along with press conferences, interviews and sports features. To see what our students get up to, take a look at the Derby Uni Footy Journos website and TikTok page.
By the end of the course – provided you’ve made the most of these opportunities – you should have an impressive editorial portfolio to show prospective employers.
My experience body doubling for international footballers, doing the majority of their skills for campaigns such as a global Pepsi commercial, alongside my football journalism degree, has built up a great skill set for working in the media production industry which will hopefully help me progress my career behind the camera as well as in front of it.
Lucy Copeland
BA (Hons) Football Journalism
Be inspired by guest speakers
You’ll gain fascinating insights into the profession thanks to our programme of guest lectures by sports journalists, broadcasters and football industry insiders. In recent years these have included:
Commentator Martin Tyler
Manager Martin O'Neill
Player, coach and broadcaster, Kelly Smith
Player Max Bird
TV broadcaster, sports commentator and actor, Arlo White
Journalist Henry Winter
Commentator and presenter Jacqui Oatley
Journalist Darren Lewis
Dharmesh Sheth from Sky Sports News
Broadcaster Nicole Holliday
Content Creator for Goal, Yani Ourabah
Football Finance expert Kieran Maguire
George and Ali from The Not The Top 20 podcast
Ted Lasso star, sports presenter and commentator Arlo White has been awarded Honorary Doctor of the University
We caught up with the Honorary graduate who has supported students through mentoring and being a guest speaker.
Take a look at what happened at an Offer Holder Event exclusively for Applicants of BA (Hons) Football Journalism at the University of Derby and gain an insight into this course from student Ella. The event took place at Derby County Football Club with a panel of speakers including manager Paul Warne, former player and club captain Curtis Davies, lead presenter and commentator for RamsTV, Owen Bradley, and Programme Leader for BA (Hons) Football Journalism, Chris Hall.
You'll predominantly be based at our Markeaton Street and Kedleston Road sites, which have everything a journalist needs. Our facilities include three radio studios, a fully equipped television studio, video editing suites, Mac suites and a newsroom featuring the latest software, including Adobe Creative Suite.
Our radio studios have recently been refurbished and fitted with Calrec technology — a leading range of broadcast audio mixing consoles and equipment. All large media companies are now migrating to this technology, so we're ahead of the game.
All of this means you’ll be confident using industry-standard technology, giving you an advantage when you're looking for a job.
Study abroad
We can offer opportunities for you to spend time in another country, including studying at our partner universities or working on a placement or internship.
For a more general journalism degree, you can also study our BA (Hons) Journalism.
How Molly is chasing her football dream
Molly Jennens always wanted to be the next Gary Lineker. Now, she’s studying Football Journalism and, who knows, maybe one day she’ll be presenting Match of the Day alongside him.
Please note that our modules are subject to change - we review the content of our courses regularly, making changes where necessary to improve your experience and graduate prospects.
Undergraduate Open Days
The best way to find out if studying at Derby is right for you is to experience an Open Day. Get a feel for the city and campus, tour our first-class facilities and see where you could be living.
You will learn in a variety of ways – for example through:
Lectures and seminars, including guest lectures from industry experts
Practice-based workshops
Trips to clubs, matches and tournaments
News days
Group work
Independent study.
Assessment
Our assessments are focused on teaching you how to be a journalist. There are no exams and you’ll be assessed mainly on the content you produce, which might be social media content, podcasts, videos, features, and news articles. For some modules, you will need to complete more academic assessments, including essays, case study reports and presentations.
Who you will meet
Chris Hall is the Programme Leader and supports West Bromwich Albion. He worked in the communications team for his beloved club for eight years, managing their social media and broadcast products. Chris then spent five years at The FA running Wembley Stadium’s digital team. His career highlight was organising all the on-field activity for Sir Alex Ferguson’s final game as a manager.
Peter Lansley is a senior lecturer, Guardian football writer, and FA coach mentor. He’s had 20 years’ experience writing for broadsheets, 13 of which were as The Time’s Midlands and Women's football correspondent. Pete has reported from 20 major tournaments but says the pinnacle was reporting on the Lionesses winning the 2022 Women's Euros with Derby students. He supports Wolves.
Neil Roberts is an Everton fan and has spent 25 years in journalism (newspaper and TV). While working for ITV News, he interviewed many sports people including David Beckham, Johnny Wilkinson, Joe Calzaghe and Sir Bradley Wiggins. Neil was also involved in the re-brand of the Premier League in 2016, as executive producer of their global TV channel.
Niall Hickman has worked as a sports journalist for ITV, Sky Sports, the Daily Mail and the Daily Express. His career highlights include covering World Cups, Olympic Games, Ryder Cups, and world championship boxing. He supports Wolves as well as non-league side, Stourbridge FC.
Neil Manship is a senior lecturer and Derby County fan. He began his career as sports reporter at the Derby Telegraph and then moved into radio and TV, working as a reporter, producer and presenter for the BBC. This included 13 years as a lead producer and manager for BBC Look North. He’s most proud of producing ‘Programme of the Year’ in The BBC Nations and Regions Awards.
Caroline Jones is a lecturer and Derby graduate who follows Burton Albion. She gained over 10 years’ experience in the online media and newspaper industry before becoming a lecturer, working for Liverpool Echo and Derby Telegraph. Her expertise includes content management, live blogging, SEO and social media.
Dr Beth Wood is a lecturer who spent five years working as a broadcast journalist before switching to teaching and research, initially working in colleges and schools. For her PhD, Beth explored how Gen Z are accessing and engaging with the news and the reasoning behind this.
Personal academic tutoring
Your personal academic tutor will work with you to help you get the most out of your time at university. Having someone to talk to about your academic progress, your university experience and your professional aspirations is hugely valuable. We want you to feel challenged in your studies, stretched but confident to achieve your academic and professional goals.
Chris has joined Derby University as a lecturer in Journalism with a particular focus on sports journalism. Chris has over 14 years of experience in football, sports and entertainment having worked for a Premier League club, a football governing body and a national stadium.
At the University of Derby, we aim to attract the very best students to join us and to support their progression to university to ensure they reach their full potential and achieve their ambitions. We believe the very best students come from all backgrounds and we want to build a community that reflects our society.
What is a contextual offer?
Contextual offers are used by universities and colleges to take account of a student’s individual circumstances. Employing contextual offers at the University Derby will allow our admissions team to identify applicants with the greatest potential to succeed in higher education and be an exceptional Derby student. This makes the application process fairer and builds confidence in students about their ability to be part of our academic community.
We will use the information in an application form and may either reduce grade requirements or give extra consideration when deciding whether to give a contextual offer. We will also support these students through information, advice and guidance, outreach activities and on-campus visits before and during the application process.
What is the criteria?
Typical criteria may include one or more of the following:
Students who are care experienced
Students who are estranged from their families
Students who are refugees or asylum seekers
Students whose parents/carers are in the UK armed forces
*Please note students need to declare they meet one of these criteria on their application.
GCSE Maths and English Grade 4/Grade C (or above) or equivalent qualification
Access to HE
Pass Access to HE Diploma with 60 credits: 45 at Level 3 with a minimum of Distinction: 15, Merit: 24, Pass: 6
Offers will be made initially based on your application, including predicted grades and/or grades you have already achieved. You may be given the opportunity, within your offer letter, to submit a portfolio. If you submit a strong portfolio we will make you an unconditional offer, to reflect the quality of your work and your potential.
At the University of Derby, we aim to attract the very best students to join us and to support their progression to university to ensure they reach their full potential and achieve their ambitions. We believe the very best students come from all backgrounds and we want to build a community that reflects our society.
What is a contextual offer?
Contextual offers are used by universities and colleges to take account of a student’s individual circumstances. Employing contextual offers at the University Derby will allow our admissions team to identify applicants with the greatest potential to succeed in higher education and be an exceptional Derby student. This makes the application process fairer and builds confidence in students about their ability to be part of our academic community.
We will use the information in an application form and may either reduce grade requirements or give extra consideration when deciding whether to give a contextual offer. We will also support these students through information, advice and guidance, outreach activities and on-campus visits before and during the application process.
What is the criteria?
Typical criteria may include one or more of the following:
Students who are care experienced
Students who are estranged from their families
Students who are refugees or asylum seekers
Students whose parents/carers are in the UK armed forces
*Please note students need to declare they meet one of these criteria on their application.
GCSE Maths and English Grade 4/Grade C (or above) or equivalent qualification
Access to HE
Pass Access to HE Diploma with 60 credits: 45 at Level 3 with a minimum of Distinction: 30, Merit: 15, Pass: 0
Offers will be made initially based on your application, including predicted grades and/or grades you have already achieved. You may be given the opportunity, within your offer letter, to submit a portfolio. If you submit a strong portfolio we will make you an unconditional offer, to reflect the quality of your work and your potential.
We're committed to providing you with an outstanding learning experience. Our expert teaching, excellent facilities and great employability prepare you for your future career. As part of our commitment to you we aim to keep any additional study costs to a minimum. However, there are occasions where students may incur some additional costs.
Included in your fees
Access to the Equipment Centre which stocks a huge range of cameras, audio equipment, and accessories which are available for booking by students at no cost
Mandatory trips to media companies or other interesting organisations. Previous trips have included visiting BBC Radio Derby, the Derby Telegraph, the Nottingham Post and BBC News and Sport at Salford
Mandatory costs not included in your fees
Some equipment including storage drives (about £10) and external storage drives (£50 - £100) for use with cameras
Optional costs not included in your fees
It is useful but not essential to have a smartphone (£50 - £750)
Some students choose to buy accessories for the phone such as external microphones (approx. £10 - £15) and tripods (£5 - £25)
Some students also find it useful to purchase their own laptop for use in the field but this is not required (from £150)
It is also possible that you will want to travel to cover particular news stories - as this is not required by the course, the cost is not covered in your fees
Our undergraduate and postgraduate course pages will show the intakes that are available and open to applications. It's best to apply early so you can secure your place and beat the rush.
Once we have received your application and supporting documents (such as qualifications or references), we will review it and contact you within 4 weeks to let you know if you have been successful or not.
Our aim is to support all students to have the best possible opportunities to succeed and so our application and enrolment deadlines are in place to ensure you stand the best chance of doing so.
Joining the programme later may harm your chances of success on your course. It is therefore vital that you take note of the dates and ensure you submit your completed application and subsequent enrolment in time.
Undergraduate and postgraduate taught deadlines
Please note some courses may have an earlier induction, teaching and enrolment deadline date.
If your course operates a gathered field or pooled admissions process there may be an earlier application date. Please check your individual course page for further details.
If you are in Year 13 and applying for a full-time undergraduate course (including our joint honours courses), we recommend that you apply through UCAS.
If you are applying to study part-time, or already have your qualifications, or wish to join at Year 2 or 3, you should apply directly to the University.
By the end of this football journalism degree, you should have plenty of professional experience and contacts to get your career off to a flying start.
The course develops the broad range of knowledge and skills you need to become a football journalist today, but it also prepares you for other careers in journalism, PR and marketing, advertising, corporate communications, law and public administration or politics.
Our football journalism graduates are now working for clubs and organisations like Manchester City, TalkSPORT, AFTV (Arsenal Football TV), Brentford FC, Nottingham Forest Women FC, Blackburn Rovers LFC, Football Manager, Birmingham City FC, Bet365, Reach plc and Reuters. They work in a great variety of roles, including as club journalists, commentators, social media managers, communications officers, and community liaison officers.
Ensuring you’re ‘work-ready’
Our Careers and Employment Service will provide you with support from day one of your course to ensure you leave Derby as a ‘work-ready’ graduate - industry aware, motivated and enterprising. Throughout your studies, you’ll also benefit from our Personal Development Planning (PDP) scheme which enables you to reflect on your learning and develop your career ambitions. The support continues once you’ve completed your course too: you are entitled to further help and guidance from the Careers and Employment Service for up to three years after leaving the University.
Contact us
If you need any more information from us, eg on courses, accommodation, applying, car parking, fees or funding, please contact us and we will do everything we can to help you.
Like most universities, we operate extended teaching hours at the University of Derby, so contact time with your lecturers and tutors could be anytime between 9am and 9pm. Your timetable will usually be available on the website 24 hours after enrolment on to your course.
Course updates
The information provided on this page is correct at the time of publication but course content, costs and other individual course details do change from time to time and are updated as often as possible, so please do check these pages again when making your final decision to apply for a course. Any updated course details will also be confirmed to you at application, enrolment and in your offer letter.
If you are thinking about transferring onto this course (into the second year for example), you should contact the programme leader for the relevant course information as modules may vary from those shown on this page.
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