Along with the media classes, you will improve your English and Maths skills which will make you more employable and improve the quality of your media work. GCSE Maths and English resit classes may be part of your timetable depending on your GCSE entry grades. You will also attend group tutorials and 1-1 tutorials to support your study as well as enrichment activities such as watching films, meeting guest lecturers from the industry and making visits to film and television studios.
The qualification has been designed for students who have an interest in media, often a specific discipline such as games design, who wish to explore and extend this interest via a full-time, immersive learning experience. Many students will have identified a specific career in the creative industries that they wish to progress to (eg games designer, app designer, broadcast technician, cameraman, director etc), using this qualification as a starting point.
The units focus on the skills, knowledge and understanding that support all creative media production and technology activity. The units have been designed to allow colleges to deliver them in a way that meets the specific needs of their students, taking into account factors including college resources, relationships with local creative employers and responding to the fast-paced nature of the creative industries.
The course has a wide range of equipment including the Creative Media Suite including a projection room, a PC suite, a Mac suite and seven editing rooms equipped with Mac computers running Adobe Creative Suite and modelling software. We have an extensive resource of camera, sound and lighting equipment. The Colchester campus also includes a well-equipped television studio with green-screen facility and a soundproof audio studio with technical support available.
There is a growing range of careers in the interactive media sector including work within film and television production, advertising, computer games design, landscape and architecture virtualisation, web design, Social Media and Digital marketing. Successful students are eligible to apply to the Level 3 Interactive Media and Games study programme or an apprenticeship.
All students aged 16-18 on the first day of their course will have their course fully-funded by the government.
Costs of studying
If you are/will be aged 16, 17 or 18 on the 31st August in the calendar year when you begin a programme of study, you DO NOT pay tuition fees, College registration fees or examination/board registration fees. However, there are some courses which have additional costs which could include:
For students with an identified low household income, there may be financial support available. Bursary awards can help with your course related costs such as travel, books and equipment and much more.
If you are aged 19 and over, in certain circumstances you may be eligible for a fee waiver and therefore you will not have to pay for this course.
Eligibility for a fee waiver will depend your age at the start of the course, your previous qualifications, your employment status and whether you claim certain benefits.
If you do not meet the criteria for a fee waiver, you may be eligible for some assistance from the College’s Bursary Funds, depending on the household financial circumstances.
If you do not meet the criteria for a fee waiver, and are not eligible for assistance from the Bursary Fund, you will have to pay for this course.
Published course fees for this course are located further down this course information page.
The information in this section applies to this course, and may not apply to other courses with different funding criteria.
You will not pay tuition fees if you are: |
aged 19-24 on the 31st August 2023 and have an active Education, Health and Care Plan |
aged 19 – 23, and already have a level 2 qualification in another subject (or 5 GCSEs grades 9-4) and are unemployed and in receipt of benefits |
aged over 24, unemployed and in receipt of benefits |
aged 19-23, already have a level 2 qualification in another subject (or 5 GCSEs grades 9-4) and are employed with a gross annual salary under £20,319 per annum |
aged over 24 and are employed with a gross annual salary under £20,319 per annum |
If you are aged 19-23 and do not already have a level 2 qualification in any other subject or 5 GCSEs grades 9 – 4, you will not qualify for any government funding and will pay a considerably higher amount than the published course fee shown on this page.
You will pay the published fee shown on this page (this fee is co-funded, which means the remainder of the fee is paid by the government) if you are: |
aged 19-23, already have a level 2 qualification in another subject (or 5 GCSEs grades 9-4) and are unemployed but do not claim a benefit |
aged 19-23, already have a level 2 qualification in another subject (or 5 GCSEs grades 9-4) and earn over £20,319 per annum |
aged over 24 and are unemployed but do not claim a benefit |
aged over 24 and are employed with a gross annual salary over £20,319 per annum |
In certain circumstances, the College’s discretionary bursary fund maybe able to assist with a contribution towards tuition fees. Eligibility to the fund depends on the household’s financial circumstances. Further information regarding the discretionary bursary fund can be found further down this page.
Please note that if you have to pay the full-cost fee, you are unable to access any financial assistance from the College Bursary Fund.
If you are aged 19 at the start of the course, unemployed and not in receipt of benefits, or employed and earning over £20,319, you may be eligible for assistance with your tuition fees from the College Bursary fund.
Bursary funds are targeted at households with a net income of under £25,000.
If you are assessed as being eligible for a bursary award to assist with your tuition fees, the award will not exceed 75% of the fee payable and you will be responsible for paying the balance of the fee.
Students of all ages can apply for assistance from the bursary fund for other course related costs, such as transport, meals, books and equipment.
The bursary fund cannot assist with any general living costs nor can it be used as an attendance incentive.
Applications to the fund are not normally considered if the household income exceeds £25,000 but may be considered in some instances if the household is experiencing severe financial hardship.
When can I apply?
For courses starting in September 2023, applications should be made by 1st November 2023. If you find yourself in financial hardship after this date it is important that you still contact Student Services. Applications received after 1st November will be considered on a pro-rata basis subject to need and the availability of funds.
Full details of the bursary funds can be found here:
Payment should be made in full at the time of enrolment. Acceptable payment methods include Debit Card and Credit Card (excluding American Express). Please note that we are no longer able to accept cash or cheque payments.
Can I pay in instalments?
Yes, you can spread the cost of fees. Any student of the College who pays his/her own programme costs is entitled to do so on a monthly payment plan basis, providing the total course fees exceed £200 and the student is aged 19 years, or over, on 31st August in the current academic year.
Where total course fees exceed £200 you (or your employer, if they are paying your course fees) can choose to pay your fees in instalments through a monthly payment plan and 40% of the fee or £500 (whichever is lower) will be payable at enrolment.
The balance must be paid within 6 months or by the end date if the course is less than 6 months in duration.
The monthly instalment payments will also be set up at the point of enrolment, or if you are enrolling using our online enrolment process, a member of our Finance team will contact you to set up the instalment plan after you have submitted your online enrolment.
In order to pay through monthly instalments, students must sign the Colchester Institute Instalment Payment Plan terms and conditions!
If a student fails to sign up to an instalment plan at enrolment all fees will become due for payment within 30 days.
Failure to fulfil any terms and conditions of an instalment agreement will result in you becoming immediately liable for the full outstanding balance and you may not be entitled to pay any future fees by instalments.
Please download and save the form below, then fill it in and sign it. These forms can either be emailed to registry@colchester.ac.uk prior to enrolment, or if you are completing an online enrolment you can upload these documents during the enrolment process.
Further Education Fee Instalment Student Terms and Conditions
Employers who are funding a student’s fees must complete and sign an authorisation form which must be submitted either prior to or at enrolment together with an advance payment of 40% of the course fee or £500, whichever is lower. This can be paid via the online store prior to or at the point of Enrolment.
If the advance payment is not made prior to or at Enrolment the student will not be eligible to attend college.
Further Education Employer Authorisation Form, Instalment Plan, Terms and Conditions
****Applications for courses starting in September 2023 are now closed****
Advice sessions for courses starting in September 2023 have now finished.
Whilst term has started, there may still be places remaining on some of our course areas, however many of our courses are now full, and there is no guarantee of a space on any course.
Please email admissions@colchester.ac.uk with your full name and contact details, including telephone number, subject area(s) of interest and GCSE grades, so that we can arrange for someone to contact you and discuss your options.
The application window for full-time courses and joint apprenticeship applications starting in September 2024 opens on Monday 2nd October at 12pm.
Before submitting your online application, make sure you have got an email address which you will check frequently and which is professional and appropriate for this purpose, and use this when you create your account. Submit the application as early as possible and remember to make a note of your USERNAME and PASSWORD details! You will need these later.
We have prepared a step-by-step video guide below – please view this video which will guide you through the application process.
If you have chosen the study programme you would like to apply for then you are almost there. We recommend that you read our handy application tips, watch our video and then make your application.
You can only apply for one full-time programme and one apprenticeship. You can do this together within the same application form, in what is known as a joint application.
Remember, you cannot study more than one core subject. For example, you would not be able to study two full-time programmes in different subjects simultaneously. You would take Plumbing or Music, not Plumbing and Music.
Your subject will be your primary qualification and forms the bulk of your programme of study.
Application Dos
Application Don’ts
Just call us on 01206 712777
Level | Level 2 |
---|---|
Location | Braintree |
Duration | One Year |
Study Mode | Full-Time |
Campus / Adult Skills Centre | Braintree Campus |
Start Date | September 2023 |
Fee(s) | 16-18 year olds: Free 19+: £2,500 |
All fees, prices and funding information shown on this page are for courses starting in the 2023-24 academic year unless stated otherwise, and are correct at the time of entering/printing information, however these may be subject to change due to factors outside of our control. The College cannot accept legal or financial liability as a result of any such changes.
Courses fees are generally not confirmed for September until June / July due to the above factors.
The course information describes programmes offered by Colchester Institute. The College takes all reasonable steps to provide courses as described, but cannot guarantee provision. The information is for guidance and does not form any part of a contract.
The College reserves the right to update and amend information as and when necessary. Colchester Institute will do its best to provide the courses shown, but may have to modify or withdraw a course depending on customer demand and other factors.