Culture, Policy and Management  MA

This module defines and engages the meanings, practices, and interrelation of culture to cultural policy, management, and work. It focuses on culture, the state, capital, and labour; identifies key texts that are central to current debates; and introduces students to analytical and critical skills that are fundamental to working in the cultural sector. The contemporary context is set within a historical overview of the development of cultural theory and policy practice.

The module aims to develop managers who will perform competently, if not competitively, in a changing environment. Given the risks that they face, crucial issues for anyone managing a cultural organisation today include sustainability, the ability to foster solid management systems and ensure the delivery of high quality and successful cultural product. These affect all aspects of the organization and its management. Strategic management requires that these are addressed through new forms of decision making, effective planning and ways of working.

Cultural Managers are increasingly required to evaluate and justify the work that they do through the use of sophisticated research strategies. This module will equip students with a range of methodologies with which to carry out research and reflect on their own and others' practice. It will enable them to critique the claims made for the work of culture, and to design robust and effective research strategies. This module fulfils the University's commitment to provide opportunities for students to develop research skills, aptitudes and abilities.

This module introduces you to the knowledge and skills needed to consider the function of marketing in a creative and cultural organisation from a strategic perspective. In this module we explore the factors that influence arts/cultural consumption in its diverse forms and examine appropriate ways in which cultural and creative organisations market themselves effectively and productively.

This module defines and engages the meanings, practices, and interrelations of globalisation with cultural policy, management, and work. In other words, it focuses on culture, the state, capital, and labour; identifies key texts that are central to current debates; and introduces students to analytical and critical skills that are fundamental to working in the cultural sector. The module explains globalisation's success and power and accounts for its use of state resources. It also offers tools for analysing globalisation as a site of culture and examines culture as a crucial component of it.

This module considers the place of work in our lives; examines how it has changed and is changing; and asks what we think its role should be. It examines contemporary cultures of work through different perspectives. It considers the emergence of various techniques in the management of people, including the development of the twin traditions of human resources and 'scientific management'. The module considers the way geographies and technologies of work are changing; the uses and abuses of emotion; and the relationship between work and personal identity. Drawing on practice and theory, guest speakers and the study of a wide range of literature, it provides a thorough grounding in understanding key techniques used in modern working life, and the issues facing both the cultural sector and contemporary cultures of work.

Digital media are fundamentally re-scripting the relationship between cultural institutions and their users. Notions of producer and consumer, authorship and authenticity are being re-evaluated and explored in ways that are creative, experimental and infinite. This not only opens up new avenues of opportunity for audience development, but simultaneously calls into question the many practices of cultural consumption. This module explores the claims being made for so-called 'new' media in culture. Are they representative of a shift toward more democratic and participatory engagement? What happens to the when and where of this engagement? How is policy changing in order to reflect this paradigm shift? What are the implications for cultural managers?

No previous manifestation of cultural policy, particularly UK cultural policy, has been so resolute about the importance of outcomes and accountability. Funders in both the private and public sectors now look for what difference - or impact - projects and organisations are making, and they expect evaluations to evidence effective project delivery. However, 'evidence' will also be called upon to play a role of justification and persuasion in the development of policy/programmes; which often explains the political use of evaluation results (by players from all sides) for advocacy purposes. This module critically examines the context within which impact and evaluation develop and explores the design of evaluation and impact assessments and any relevant methodological issues.

This module critically examines the context within which impact, evaluation and monitoring form different perspectives. The module also explores the design and specification of impact assessments and evaluation and any relevant methodological issues as well as the constructive use of the results of evaluation.

This module considers the full range of revenue sources available and explores effective approaches to making the case for support in different funding contexts. Students are encouraged to analyse different constituencies, and to develop a typology of communication approaches, including strategies directed at local, national and international government funds, trusts and foundations, the business sector and wider influential stakeholders.

Government has changed radically in line with social changes of the last 40 years. Specifically, governments have constructed a highly interventionist relationship with the cultural sector. Practitioners in the cultural sector need to understand the political economy within which the cultural sector functions, not least if they are to operate strategically and effectively. This module explores the rationale behind government funding to the cultural sector, the implementation of policies - through the workings of central and regional government agencies and local government - and their shaping of cultural provision.

This module defines and engages the meanings, practices, and interrelations of Hollywood with cultural policy, management, and work. In other words, it focuses on culture, the state, capital, and labour; identifies key texts that are central to current debates; and introduces students to analytical and critical skills that are fundamental to working in the cultural sector. The contemporary context is set within an historical overview of the development of Hollywood. It explains Hollywood's success and power and accounts for its use of state resources. It also offers tools for analysing it as a site of work and looks at counter-strategies to its hegemony.

The Professional Placement module gives students the opportunity to work in the cultural sector in order to practice skills acquired earlier in the programme. With guidance from the module leader, each student draws up their objectives for the placement and identifies potential placement hosts. This helps the student find an appropriate host organisation which fulfils their aims. Students carry out a programme of work supervised by a host at the organisation. The placement lasts for 6 weeks, between April and June. The majority of work placements are based in London and embrace all cultural forms.

This module gives you the opportunity to work alongside professionals in the cultural sector in order to practice competences acquired earlier in the programme. The module comprises of two parts: part one is the preparation for the placement; part two is the placement itself.

The placement lasts for 8 weeks, between March and June, is mainly based in London and embraces all cultural forms.

This module considers how politics, policy and practices have worked together to shape Public culture. The concept of 'public culture' refers to a government-funded cultural sector, but also to urban space, corporate-funded mass media and general 'shared meanings' in cultural circulation. We will discuss how exclusions have been made in these domains on a variety of grounds in overt and covert ways. We will analyse challenges to such exclusions through a range of actions: from alternative cultural constructions to educational outreach programmes. We consider the strategies and impact of such initiatives in depth, alongside the changing boundaries of 'public culture' itself, and the contemporary cultural moment.

All arts managers need the capacity to understand the financial management of their organisations, to inform business planning and improve their capacity to deliver effectively. In a climate in which cultural organisations increasingly depend on income from a number of sources, including self-generated income, they also need to be able to draw on entrepreneurial skills.

This module provides a focus on development issues and communication studies. It provides a theoretical framework on the role of communication for and in development. It also introduces students to specific themes and case studies to assess development programmes in different countries. It considers conceptual frameworks for understanding and critically assessing the role of communication for and in development projects; development within the context of globalization; and critically assesses development programmes introduced in different regions.

The module introduces a range of theoretically and historically informed analysis on the construction, communication and transformation of urban places. This will be done by considering the different ways in which places have been regulated, used, claimed and transformed by different social groups, and by exploring the possible impact that this might have on the identity of places.

This module examines aspects of popular music in relation to the societies in which, and for which, it was created, as well as probing social responses to popular music. You will investigate the many complex relationships between popular music and society and the ways in which the two are inextricably linked, departing from the premise that understanding the social context is an integral part of understanding the phenomenon of popular music.

This module is focused on a critical assessment of controversies and debates about the relationship between rights, multiculturalism and citizenship in contemporary societies. It explores the development of ideas about multiculturalism and the consequences of policies that address issues of cultural diversity and considers the implications of multiculturalism for political and policy agendas. Drawing on conceptual debates and developments in specific societies we explore the different meanings attached to the notion of multiculturalism. Finally, the module reflects on the kinds of agendas that need to be developed in order to deal with the dilemmas raised by multiculturalism as a social and political issue.