Events and Experience Management with Placement Year

Events and experience management is a discipline that addresses the planning, delivery and marketing of experiences designed for audiences of every size and character, from intimate corporate gatherings to large-scale music festivals, sporting competitions, arts events and trade shows. The events industry is a significant and growing part of the creative economy, requiring practitioners who combine creative vision with precise logistical planning, financial management, risk assessment and the interpersonal skills needed to coordinate multiple suppliers, clients and teams under time pressure.

At York St John University this programme includes a foundation year and a placement year, making the full programme four years full time, and also includes a year abroad. These structural features give you substantial opportunity to develop both academic knowledge and professional skills across a range of settings. The placement year gives you direct professional experience in the events industry, applying your learning in real event environments and building the professional network that serves you well in what is a relationship-driven industry.

The year abroad extends your understanding of how events are managed in different cultural and commercial contexts.

You will develop practical and professional skills in event planning and project management, marketing and audience development, financial management, health and safety, and the digital tools used to communicate and deliver events. Alongside this practical development you will engage with the academic theory of experience management, consumer psychology and the organisational contexts within which events take place.

Graduates from events and experience management programmes move into roles as event coordinators, project managers, venue managers, corporate hospitality specialists, festival managers, conference producers and sports event managers across a wide range of organisations including agencies, venues, charities, sports clubs and large corporations. Postgraduate study in events management, marketing or business administration is also a route taken by graduates seeking senior roles.