Communications and History

Communications and history is a degree that pairs the analytical and creative skills of media and communications study with the rigorous historical inquiry that history demands. Communications as a discipline examines how messages, media, and information systems work, how they shape public understanding, and how the industries that produce them are organised and have evolved. History develops the capacity to research, evaluate evidence, construct arguments, and understand how the past continues to influence the present.

Together they form a combination that is practically well-grounded and intellectually engaged, producing graduates who can write and communicate clearly and who understand the contexts in which communication takes place.

At Nottingham Trent University, this three-year full-time programme includes a sandwich placement year and a work placement, which are embedded in the degree's structure. NTU has strong links with the media and communications industries, and the placement experience gives you the opportunity to work in a professional communications, media, journalism, public relations, or heritage organisation, applying your academic knowledge in a real working context. Nottingham is a city with a lively media and cultural sector, and the university's location provides good access to the kinds of organisations where communications and history graduates tend to build careers.

You will study media analysis and theory, journalism, public relations, digital media and communications, and history across a range of periods and topics, developing research skills and the ability to construct and communicate complex arguments clearly. The placement and work experience elements give you professional context that complements the academic content and strengthens your graduate employability.

Graduates move into journalism, public relations, content creation, communications management, heritage and museum work, publishing, the civil service, education, and a range of other fields where the ability to research, analyse, and communicate effectively is valued.