Esports

Esports In Context

What is esports and why is it important? On this module, students will develop an introductory understanding of esports in relation to its history, key concepts and ideas, its culture, and current pressing topics/issues. From here, students will begin to speculate on esports’ future to consider where the next big development could come from to further revolutionise the industry. Students will also be introduced to the discipline of academic writing, including an introduction to research and Harvard referencing.

Module code: ESPO40014

Live Broadcast Technology

What puts esports broadcasts at the forefront of the industry? What can esports learn from other sectors? These are the questions on the lips of the broadcast crews creating award winning live content to cover the most popular esports games across the globe. In this module, students use dedicated facilities such as our Esports Hub – an interactive broadcast studio packed with industry standard equipment – to work as part of a broadcast team creating broadcasts that would fit in among industry output.

Module code: ESPO40015

Digital Media Platforms

Esports thrives on the media platforms that make up the digital ecosystem. Dive into the research that directs platforms to govern users in the ways they do, and the ways to make the most of the algorithms they operate upon. Understand the importance of platform responsibility in a budding industry and how it all ties together to propel your presence in esports to the front of the digital landscape.

Module code: ESPO40017

Contemporary Marketing Applications

How do consumers decide what event to attend, which product to buy or media to consume? Marketing is a key part of not only esports, but everyday life. In our Contemporary Marketing Applications module students learn the most effective ways of marketing to the newly formed, highly critical audiences that dominate the digital landscape. Covering the history of marketing, basic implementations and analysing the forefront of emerging contemporary approaches, students will not only discover how to reach their audience, but how to innovate and create lasting impact while doing so.

Module code: ESPO40018

Multidisciplinary Teamwork

Barely any parts of the esports sector (or any adjacent industry) exist with people working in isolation. In this practical application focussed module, students will develop their understanding of how to effectively work within various team dynamics and redefine their abilities to overcome obstacles as a group. Students will then reflect upon and apply current working theories to their groups’ performance, to prepare for the integration into the inevitable teamwork in and industry setting.

Module code: ESPO40016

Operations Management

This module offers you a comprehensive understanding of operations management models, theories, principles, and practices with the ability to analyse and apply the appropriate tools and techniques to solve operations challenges and achieve continuous improvement. The module also includes a thorough review of operations strategy and equips students with the skills to manage future trends in manufacturing and services sectors. This professional knowledge and competence are one of the most sought-after assets in the industry.

Module code: BUSM50014

Digital Marketing Strategy

Effective planning and strategies are key to success in marketing. In this module, you will explore the role of digital technology in business and how to develop and implement impactful digital marketing strategies to achieve the ambition and growth of organisations.

Module code: DSMM50001

Event Development Workflows

Compounding on your knowledge gained so far, you’ll familiarise yourself with industry workflows to execute an event production aligned with a brief guided by industry figures. This module will have a strong emphasis on team collaboration in a workshop environment, allowing for persistent personal reflection for self-development in one or more areas of specialised roles. You and your event team will work through each stage of the pre-production process using project management models, broadcasting knowhow and marketing application.

Module code: ESPO50020

Advanced Strategies In Esports Coaching And Management

The "Advanced Strategies in Esports Coaching and Management" module offers an in-depth exploration of the intricate and dynamic world of coaching professional Esports teams. This module goes beyond foundational coaching techniques, delving into sophisticated strategies, advanced analytics, and holistic team management within the competitive gaming industry. Students will gain a comprehensive understanding of evolving game dynamics across various Esports titles, enabling them to analyse complex gameplay elements, devise innovative strategies, and make real-time decisions in high-pressure competitive scenarios.

Module code: ESPO50018

Community Management

Community managers are often the front face of most esports organisations, teams, publishers and even brands. It’s vital that we understand the challenges faced by community managers working in esports and beyond and how they can capture the potential value their communities hold. At any point these communities can be engulfed by discourse, so avoiding any potential crisis situations that might endanger them is key to the role. You will consider what a community is and why their engagement is crucial to the success of the stakeholder and develop an innovative response to an hypothetical emerging crisis.

Module code: ESPO50015

Managing In A Digital World

How do organisations in the digital world communicate and develop? Explore how businesses have transformed through technological advances to thrive in a digital landscape, and how Esports organisations have developed themselves into leading global brands in this context.

Module code: ESPO50016

Arena Production

This module explores the complexities of a production studio in a multi-million, industry standard broadcast arena. This module will provide the opportunity for students to develop within the professional pre-production to post-production workflow, building upon knowledge and fundamentals from your previous year of study to utilising more advanced equipment, such as Video Wall Technology, EVS Replay Workflows, content sharing platforms, Dante Audio Technology and the SMPTE 2110 Broadcast Environment.

Module code: ESPO50019

Digital Content Creation

Digital content creation is becoming ultra-valuable in a world where content is key. In this module, you will develop skills to help you create, plan and schedule effective digital marketing content, including writing techniques for different media formats such as blogging, digital storytelling and podcasting.

Module code: DSMM40001

Business Law And Commercial Awareness

Module code: LAWS51943

Esports Policy In Action

The governing bodies and regulatory authorities who lay down the laws in esports are many and varied, but who are they, and what do they really do? Identify areas of research to inform ourselves about traditional governance methods in sport to ensure stakeholders in professional esports are fully protected, and justify how approaches should be changed to appropriately cater for the unique needs surrounding esports. How is the government treating our sector, and what could they be doing more or less of to assist us in innovating and driving forward?

Module code: ESPO50021

Sustainable Business Development

How would you like to develop the commercial knowledge, vision, management and leadership skills to establish innovative strategies, programmes, and relationships to enhance business growth and revenue in a sustainable way?An understanding of sustainability, business ethics and corporate social responsibility (CSR) is increasingly attracting the attention of graduate employers.This module equips you with the knowledge and skills to apply these concepts to everyday business management practice. You examine case studies from a wide range of sectors to explore why and how organisations embrace sustainable approaches to managing their business and understand the sustainability challenges and benefits businesses face at the international and national levels. You gain the capacity to analyse and interpret the connections between global sustainability frameworks and the local action of commercial enterprises to fulfil sustainability objectives.

Module code: BMAS50004

Emerging Media & Technologies

The decision makers in Esports are always looking for the ‘next big thing’ to captivate their audiences, bring a new technique to their team or revolutionise their workflow. Finding it before your competitors will give you a big edge in the battle for growth in a well-populated space and help you stand out amongst the crowd. In this forward focussed module, you will analyse esports and adjacent industries to identify disruptive and emergent techniques, technologies, ideas and concepts that could be the key to success and how to appropriately respond to those found by competitors. Students will judge how effective they are, discuss how they could produce their own content featuring one of these concepts, or even propose some entirely new ideas to drive innovation in the esports industry forward.

Module code: ESPO60015

Final Year Project

As a capstone to the course, students will conduct a major project, driven by inquiry to innovate in a chosen esports area. Students will be given a strong degree of autonomy over their project topic and the format they wish to conduct it. Some students may choose to conduct a research project and write a dissertation, while others may seek to conduct an esports production or creative work (with an associated written exegesis explaining the work). Students are assessed individually and should have an individual goal they are seeking to achieve through their work, but can collaborate with other students on a broader, overarching project.

Module code: ESPO60014

Corporate Social Responsibility

With high profile scandals from publishers such as Riot Games and Blizzard Entertainment, social responsibility is becoming a pressing issue for esports. This module will look at key areas such as: equality diversity and inclusion, sustainability, working conditions, consumer protection, ethical marketing and business and reputation management. As potential employees in this sector, it is vital that students of esports understand how and why social responsibility is important to the future sustainability of the sector. By the end of this module, students will be able to identify improvements, to innovate the approach to social responsibility for esports.

Module code: ESPO60017

Analytics For Industry

Data drives decisions. Learn how Esports and adjacent industries identify and use key performance metrics within data, and the key principles of analysis that contribute to an employable skillset. Develop your understanding in data collection, big data development, statistical analysis, presenting findings and how these all contribute to decision making in your desired discipline.

Module code: ESPO60018

Global Esports

The esports industry has seen substantial growth globally over the past decade, however this growth has not always been even. With many different industry and cultural practices developing across different platforms, games and regions, it has become crucial to critically frame this emerging ecosystem globally. This module gives critical focus to esports issues both at global and local levels, with attention to inclusivity, governance, and cultures.

Module code: ESPO60016