Commercial Music BA Hons | University of Chester

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Course Summary

Develop your talent as a producer and performer through the practical and theoretical study of popular music. On this very practically based degree, you will also have the opportunity to develop extremely useful skills such as recording techniques, mixing, live sound engineering, songwriting and arranging – all essential for working in the music industry. Our course provides a unique opportunity for you to excel in performance and production while developing a critical mind and becoming an intelligent, multi-skilled musician.

Additional enhancements to the course include links with live music venues, musicians and professionals within the region, as well as events such as Creative Futures, where students gain invaluable insights into the industry from industry professionals, musicians and academics through the delivery of performances, masterclasses and workshops.

A group of music students performing on stage.

Music at the University of Chester

What You'll Study

In Year 1 (Level 4), students gain a foundation in the subject at undergraduate level study, focusing on fundamentals of performance, recording, computer music creation, popular music studies, music harmony, live PA systems for performance, and other key areas of study. You will use our industry-standard studio facilities, including the full-specification version of Audient’s flagship ASP-8024 Heritage Edition mixing desk, which includes the DLC section for direct Digital Audio Workstation control. There are lots of opportunities to perform at local live music venues from very early on in the course, as well as opportunities to use our excellently equipped dedicated live performance and rehearsal spaces on campus which are open late into the evenings and weekends.

The information listed in this section is an overview of the academic content of the course that will take the form of either core or option modules and should be used as a guide. We review the content of our courses regularly, making changes where necessary to improve your experience and graduate prospects. If during a review process, course content is significantly changed, we will contact you to notify you of these changes if you receive an offer from us.

Year 2 (Level 5) builds on the foundation of production and performance and broadens the learning to include additional areas of study, including songwriting and composition and the music industry. You will also have access to some of the world’s most highly regarded microphones, such as (amongst many others) the Neumann U47 FET, the Neumann U87 and the Coles 4038, and have opportunities to show off your performance skills in local, live city-centre music venues. You will have the opportunity to undertake a substantial practical, public-facing professional project for a substantial proportion of the year.

Year 3 (Level 6) is focused on the mastery of your specialism, critical thinking, and working in collaboration. This year is orientated around undertaking your very best work and there is lots of freedom and flexibility regarding the work you undertake to allow you to really focus on the areas you want to develop professionally. The focus at this level is your own artistry and career focus.

The Creative Industries, Media and Performance Foundation Year route encourages you to operate as a creative community, developing new skills while learning from each other. You will build knowledge of your chosen area alongside transferrable practical and academic skills to support future employment.

Students have access to a wide range of specialist facilities. For art, design and innovation students this includes painting and sculpture studios, 3-Dimensional design, printmaking workshops, sewing and fashion workshops and graphic design suites. The performing arts and media students are introduced to our television studios, music production studios, editing facilities, green screen, the ‘black box’ and the ‘white box’.

This course is delivered in three terms of ten weeks each. In each term, students typically study 40 credits comprising one overarching module which may cover a variety of topics. Students can expect to take part in lectures, workshops, studio sessions, other practical sessions and peer-led seminars.

Students should expect to spend approximately 30-34 hours per week on independent study, which might include tutorial time with staff, studio practice time, instrumental practice, using the University’s library, working with peers and preparing work for assessment.

Teaching will be delivered by experience academics and practitioners in the subject. This is likely to be supplemented by occasional guest lecturers and speakers.

There will be a broad range of assessment methods so that students are exposed to the different types of task they might encounter in the workplace. These are likely to include practical performances, portfolios of music production and creation work and presentations, amongst other methods of assessment. We continuously review the assessment methods used in order that they adequately prepare students for graduate level employment.

All teaching is delivered by experienced academics and practitioners, with the fundamental principles of the Chester Future Skills Curriculum at its core - building your subject competence, confidence, and key transferable skills to shape you into a world-ready Chester graduate.

Ali Reece x Joe Jennings Get Over It

This is a student single package release from our music programmes, available now on all platforms including several remixes by our students. The project was very successful, achieved a range of radio exposure, including playlisting, and was accompanied by a full national club promotion using a leading club promotions company in early 2022, which resulted in the package reaching No.7 on the Music Week Commercial Pop Club Chart, one of the UK's leading club charts.

Creative Campus, Kingsway Tours

Study at our Creative Campus, Kingsway, home to some outstanding art, design and performance-based courses for the University’s School for the Creative Industries. Scroll through our 360 tours to explore our state-of-the-art facilities.

Entry Requirements

104UCAS Points

UCAS	104 UCAS points
GCE A Level	104 UCAS points from GCE A Levels or equivalent. Typical offer - CCC/BCC
BTEC	BTEC Extended Diploma: DMM
T Level	Pass (C or above on the core)
Irish / Scottish Highers	Irish Highers - H3, H3, H3, H4, H4 Scottish Highers - BBBB
International Baccalaureate	28 points
Access requirements	Access to HE Diploma, to include 45 credits at level 3, 30 of which must be at Merit
OCR	OCR Cambridge Technical Extended Diploma - DMM
Extra Information / General Entry Requirements	Welsh Baccalaureate Advanced and A level General Studies will be recognised in our offer. We will also consider a combination of A Levels and BTECs/OCRs. We accept the UAL Level 3 Extended Diploma. Applicants will be required to attend an audition. ABRSM Grade 8 or equivalent on your instrument (or voice), and the ability to read music, would be preferred. Do not let this put you off applying; reading music is not essential and if you don't have grade 8 we will probably still offer you an audition. Candidates who do not meet the minimum entry requirements, or who have non-standard qualifications and relevant music experience, are encouraged to apply and will be considered if they can demonstrate appropriate ability through their audition.

Students from countries outside the UK are expected to have entry qualifications roughly equivalent to UK A Level for undergraduate study and British Bachelor's degree (or equivalent) for postgraduate study. To help you to interpret these equivalents, please click on your country of residence to see the corresponding entry qualifications, along with information about your local representatives, events, information and contacts.

We accept a wide range of qualifications and consider all applications individually on merit. We may also consider appropriate work experience.

English Language Requirements

IELTS Academic: Undergraduate: 6.0 (minimum 5.5 in each band)
Postgraduate: 6.5 (minimum 5.5 in each band)

For more information on our entry requirements, please visit International Entry Requirements.

Fees and Funding

£9,535per year for a full-time course (2025/26)

Our full-time undergraduate tuition fees for Home students entering University in 2025/26 are £9,535 a year, or £1,590 per 20-credit module for part-time study.

You can find more information about undergraduate fees on our Fees and Finance pages.

Students from the UK, Isle of Man, Guernsey, Jersey and the Republic of Ireland are treated as Home students for tuition fee purposes.

Students from countries in the European Economic Area and the EU will pay International Tuition Fees.

Students who have been granted Settled Status may be eligible for Home Fee Status and if eligible will be able to apply for Tuition Fee Loans and Maintenance Loans.

Students who have been granted Pre-settled Status may be eligible for Home Fee Status and if eligible will be able to apply for Tuition Fee Loans.

£14,450*per year for a full-time course (2025/26)

The tuition fees for international students studying Undergraduate programmes in 2025/26 are £14,450 per year for a full-time course. This fee is set for each year of study.

The University of Chester offers generous international and merit-based scholarships, providing a significant reduction to the published headline tuition fee. You will automatically be considered for these scholarships when your application is reviewed, and any award given will be stated on your offer letter.

For courses with a Foundation Year, the tuition fees for Year 1 are £10,750 and £14,200 for Years 2-4 in 2025/26.

For more information, go to our International Fees, Scholarship and Finance section.

Irish Nationals living in the UK or ROI are treated as Home students for Tuition Fee Purposes.

Your course will involve additional costs not covered by your tuition fees. This may include books, printing, photocopying, educational stationery and related materials.

Students often elect to purchase a laptop, where students choose to do so, the cost it likely to be around £800-£1000.

Additional costs are likely to be small and infrequent, but there may occasionally be optional trips and small specialist equipment such as headphones may need to be purchased.

If you are living away from home during your time at university, you will need to cover costs such as accommodation, food, travel and bills.

Who You'll Learn from

Jim Mason

Programme Leader for BA Music Production and Co-Programme Leader for BA Music Production & Performance

Dr Ruth Dockwray

Associate Professor

Associate Professor Ben Broughton

Head of Communications, Screen and Performance

Your Future Career

Careers service

The University has an award-winning Careers and Employability service which provides a variety of employability-enhancing experiences; through the curriculum, through employer contact, tailored group sessions, individual information, advice and guidance.

Careers and Employability aims to deliver a service which is inclusive, impartial, welcoming, informed and tailored to your personal goals and aspirations, to enable you to develop as an individual and contribute to the business and community in which you will live and work.

We are here to help you plan your future, make the most of your time at University and to enhance your employability. We provide access to part-time jobs, extra-curricular employability-enhancing workshops and offer practical one-to-one help with career planning, including help with CVs, applications and mock interviews. We also deliver group sessions on career planning within each course and we have a wide range of extensive information covering graduate jobs and postgraduate study.

Commercial Music BA (Hons)

Course Summary

Music at the University of Chester

What You'll Study

How You'll Learn

Ali Reece x Joe Jennings Get Over It

Creative Campus, Kingsway Tours

Fashion Design Industrial Workshop

TV Studio

Music Performance Studio

Music Recording Studio Control Room

Photo Studio

Music Rehearsal Studio

Music Production Suite

Animation Suite

Photography Darkroom

Workshop

Studio

Outdoor Ampitheatre

Common Room