Journalism and Media undergraduate courses

The multimedia and creative industries are dynamic and fast-paced. Our staff are  experienced journalists or media professionals committed to help you take your first steps on your journey. Study at Derby and get ready for a world of excitement.

Why study Journalism and Media at the University of Derby?

• Fantastic facilities including three radio studios, a fully equipped television studio, video editing suites, Mac suites and a newsroom featuring the latest software
• Gain substantial practical experience of researching and producing powerful print, radio, TV and online stories on internships and projects with media organisations in the UK or overseas
• You’ll be taught by our experienced team which includes journalists, broadcasters, historians and political commentators
• We’re leading the way – we’re home to the UK’s original Football Journalism degree

Explore Journalism courses at Derby with alumnus Baasit Siddiqui

Join TV personality, Educator and Alumnus Baasit Siddiqui for an in-depth look at the Journalism courses we offer. Baasit is joined by Professor Katharine Cox, Head of School of Humanities and Journalism and Interim Head of School of Arts, to gain an insight into the choice of courses and joint honours options available. Baasit also catches up with Max, BA (Hons) Football Journalism student, to hear about the real-world experience and transferable skills Max has already gained on the course.

Explore a range of videos showcasing our Journalism degrees on this YouTube playlist.

Be inspired by our Employability Day

Each year we host an Employability Day for Journalism students. The day provides a unique opportunity for students to speak one-to-one with media and journalism professionals and ask any questions. Take a look at the video below for an overview of the 2025 event where Clare Tomlinson, Sky Sports presenter, shared her own experience of her career and provided advice and encouragement to students. Students also gained insight from Journalism graduates who shared their experiences of working as a professional within the media industry.

You can watch more videos to gain an overview of Journalism courses at the University of Derby on this YouTube playlist. 

Hosting the Association for Journalism Education UK Summer Conference 2025

More than 30 speakers presented their ideas, research and practice over a two-day conference held at the University of Derby's Markeaton Street site, a place of innovation and creativity and where our Journalism and Media courses are based. The Association for Journalism Education UK Summer Conference 2025 welcomed keynote speakers Franz Wild, editor of the Bureau of Investigative Journalism, and Tony Harcup, Emeritus Fellow at the University of Sheffield - along with a score of journalism educators and practitioners from the UK and beyond to discuss the theme of “celebrating journalism” and why journalism education matters in a rapidly changing world.

Dr Gurvinder Aujla-Sidhu, Associate Professor and Head of Discipline in Journalism, launched the conference with her session; ‘Podcast journalism and the role of women’ as part of one of the conference themes: ‘Embracing new technologies in journalistic practice’. Teaching staff from across our Journalism courses chaired and hosted sessions which discussed engaging post-millennials, the underrepresentation of women in sports journalism and many more themes.

Here's what Caroline Jones, Senior Lecturer in Journalism and Programme Leader for both BA (Hons) Journalism and BA (Hons) Media & Communication, had to say about how journalism may evolve but also endure in the face of a range of different economic, technological, political and social challenges and the importance of hosting the conference:

"There's no doubt that journalism and the wider media industry never stays still - it is constantly changing and adapting. The responsibility for us as media and journalism lecturers, then, is to make sure our teaching is constantly evolving to respond to the new opportunities and challenges facing our students - something we are very good at doing. 

Hosting this conference, therefore, not only gave us the chance to share the cutting-edge media and journalism research we are doing at the University of Derby but also to provide a space for journalists and lecturers from across the UK and abroad to talk about the most innovative ways to teach and talk about journalism and media - and to promote Derby as a centre of journalism and media excellence."

Career opportunities

Our Journalism and Media degrees are cutting-edge and will give you the skills that you need to succeed in an exciting career.

Career opportunities open to graduates include:

• journalism
• media
• commercial TV
• commercial and community radio
• PR
• corporate communication

“It’s the place to come if you want to be at a thriving university - and the city is good fun too”

“The Journalism facilities at the University of Derby are incredible, with industry standard television and radio studios and a newsroom. Staff have come straight out of the media into lecturing roles. They have all been fantastic throughout my Journalism degree and provided me with help and guidance along the way to help me realise my potential.

“One of the most rewarding things about the Journalism course is that you make something and have an end product at the end of your work to showcase to everyone. Whether that’s a feature for a newspaper, a radio documentary or a television news story, the end product is really satisfying.

“I really enjoyed my time at the University of Derby and I made the most out of it. It’s the place to come if you want to be at a thriving university - and the city is good fun too.”

Scott Groom, BA (Hons) Journalism