Learn to create unforgettable experiences and shape the events industry’s future – from music, sports and business events to fundraisers and luxury weddings.
Prepare for the degree with an extra foundation year at the start.
Study all aspects of events management
Creatively design and deliver different types of events.
Develop skills in leadership, people and project management.
Collaborate with venues, entertainment, caterers and authorities.
Gain industry accredited qualifications in Licensing (BIIAB) and Health and Safety (IOSH).

On this course, you’ll learn about events design, technology, marketing, operations, safety and successful business management. You’ll design a range of events – from festivals and concerts to fashion shows, brand launches, sports and esports, conferences, exhibitions and luxury weddings. By collaborating with events professionals, you’ll gain valuable skills to help you develop your career.

Work placements

At every level of the course, you’ll put knowledge into practice through live projects and professional work opportunities. You can access placements, volunteering opportunities and work experience through our relationships with industry professionals and leading events management companies, such as Festival Republic. 

You’ll have the opportunity to undertake a year-long work placement in between your second and third years. This gives you industry experience to prepare you for your future career – and allows you to graduate with an Applied Professional Diploma to add to your CV. For example, in the past, students have undertaken placements with Olympia London, Walt Disney Florida, Mini UK, Ashfield Meetings and Events, Hotvox, Coombe Abbey, Warner Bros UK, Mandarin Oriental Hotel, Emu Events, TRO Experiential Marketing Agency, Visit Britain and Porsche UK.

Live projects

Live projects are embedded within every level of your course – culminating in the final year where you’ll design, plan, market and deliver an event. This could be for a charity or a business client, using all of the skills, knowledge and experience you’ve gained on the course. 

Plus our links with local and national event organisers mean you’ll be able to undertake work experience in a variety of settings. Previous work experience has been offered by Glastonbury Festival, BMW, Welcome to Yorkshire, O2 Academy Sheffield, Tramlines Festival, The Great North Run, Leeds and Reading festivals, Cancer Research UK, Sheffield United, Festival Republic, Boomtown and Detonate Festivals, English Heritage, and Global Brands UK. 

 Networking opportunities

Our links with industry mean you’ll be able to engage with a wide range of guest speakers from across the events industry. Guest speakers have included Martin Green of the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, Hull City of Culture 2017 and London 2012 organising committee (LOCOG), Simon Graveling of Athens 2004, London 2012 and Sochi 2014, Arther Forbes-Whitmore from Ticketmaster, Lucy Kinsella from Festival Republic, Simon Read (Event Producer) from Ashfield Meetings and Events and Jon Hughes from KPMG.

You’ll also benefit from our membership with the Association of Events Management Educators and National Outdoor Events Association. Since 2002 we’ve developed an impressive track record of forming tomorrow’s leaders in Events Management – with successful alumni working across the globe. Our graduates regularly return to share their career stories and events expertise.

All our courses are designed around a set of key principles based on engaging you with the world, collaborating with others, challenging you to think in new ways, and providing you with a supportive environment in which you can thrive.

The course is suitable if you don't meet the entry requirements for our BSc (Hons) Events Management course, or you want extra preparation before starting degree-level study. You share the first year with other Sheffield Business School foundation year students, then move on to the degree.

Our award-winning lecturers have years of professional experience in different sectors of the events industry. They’re actively involved in applied and impactful research. So you’ll be able to understand the latest trends in events management and apply your knowledge to the design and delivery of live events – all making you stand out to employers.

You can learn more about our students’ work and experiences on our Instagram account.

You learn through

• lectures, seminars and workshops
• planning and producing your own live event
• live projects with external organisations
• industry guest speakers, field trips and site visits
• attending or volunteering at live events and festivals
• independent study and group work

 

You’ll develop an in-depth knowledge of the events industry – experiencing design, safe events operations and the latest trends and issues in events management. You’ll gain strong foundations in core business management skills – such as marketing, talent management and finance. With these you’ll develop into a career-ready and well-rounded events professional. 

 

We believe you learn best when you engage with the industry and sector first-hand. You’ll gain a rich and well-developed understanding of the complexities, challenges and rewards of operating in the global events industry. This will culminate with your own live event where you showcase the knowledge and skills gained throughout your course.

 

The course also includes two externally accredited (industry recognised) qualifications to add to your CV – the BIIAB Level 2 Award for Personal Licence Holders and the IOSH Managing Events Safely award. Both enhance your career options (and are included for free).

 

You will be supported in your learning journey towards highly skilled, graduate level employment through

 

In the foundation year, you'll study wider business topics, while specialising in your chosen subject area. You'll learn useful skills such as academic writing, work in diverse teams and learn to utilise a wide variety of data sources. In doing so, you'll fully prepare yourself for undergraduate study.

The business event industry is forecast to grow by 43% and be worth £27.6 billion by 2026 (BVEP, 2021). 

Our graduates have successful events careers in many sectors – including event agencies, food and drinks companies, law firms, telecommunications companies, technology providers, marketing agencies, healthcare providers, travel companies, education institutions, museums, galleries and hotels.

This course prepares you for a career in

 

• events agencies
• outdoor and sport events management
• wedding and luxury events management
• business event management, exhibitions and conferences
• fundraising events
• venue finding and management
• festivals and music events 
• events client management
• event project management
• experience design 
• experiential marketing 

Previous graduates of this course have gone on to work for

 

• Ashfield Event Experiences
• Banks Sadler
• Chatsworth House
• Google
• Hilton Hotels
• LEGO
• Olympia London
• Red Bull
• The Olympics Games
• The Science Museum, London
• Top Banana Events
• Walt Disney World
• Warner Bros
• Wowcher

 

We're proud to welcome back many of our award-winning alumni every year, to give you their insights into working in our exciting industry. 

Two of our graduates recently achieved the prestigious C&IT A-List 2021 Top 35 UK Agency Planner under 35.

 

UCAS points

• 64

This must include at least 32 points from one A level or equivalent BTEC National qualifications exluding general studies For example:

• CC at A Level
• MPP in BTEC Extended Diploma.
• A combination of qualifications, which may include AS levels and EPQ.

You can find information on making sense of UCAS tariff points here and use the UCAS tariff calculator to work out your points.

GCSE

• English Language at grade C or 4 or equivalent
• Maths at grade D or 3 or equivalent

• Access – an Access to HE Diploma with at least 45 credits at level 3 and 15 credits at level 2. At least 15 level 3 credits must be at merit grade or above, from a QAA-recognised Access to HE course, or an equivalent Access to HE certificate.

If English is not your first language, you will need an IELTS score of 6.0 with a minimum of 5.5 in all skills, or equivalent. If your English language skill is currently below IELTS 6.0 we recommend you consider a Sheffield Hallam University Pre-sessional English course which will enable you to achieve an equivalent English score.

We welcome applications from people of any age. We may be flexible in our normal offer if you can show a commitment to succeed and have the relevant skills and experience. This must show that you will benefit from and finish the course successfully.

Please note the University will only admit students who are aged 18 or over at the point of enrolment.

Important notice:

The structure of this course is periodically reviewed and enhanced to provide the best possible learning experience for our students and ensure ongoing compliance with any professional, statutory and regulatory body standards. Module structure, content, delivery and assessment may change, but we expect the focus of the course and the learning outcomes to remain as described above. Following any changes, updated module information will be published on this page.

You will be able to complete a placement year as part of this course. See the modules table below for further information.

 

Year 1 Compulsory modules
Module	Credits	Assessment
Going Global	20	Coursework
People, Decisions And Behaviours	40	Coursework
Preparing For Success	20	Coursework
Sustainable Innovation	40	Coursework

 

Year 2 Compulsory modules
Module	Credits	Assessment
Applied Academic Skills	20	Coursework
Creating And Marketing Experiences	40	Coursework Practical
Events And Festival Industry And Concepts	40	Coursework Practical
Finance And Data Interpretation	20	Coursework

 

 

Year 3 Compulsory modules
Module	Credits	Assessment
Conference, Exhibition And Business Events	20	Practical
Event Operations And Safety Management	40	Coursework Practical

 

Year 4 Optional modules
Module	Credits	Assessment
Placement Year

 

Final Year Compulsory modules
Module	Credits	Assessment
Hot Topics In Events, Festivals, And Esports	20	Coursework
Live Event Experience	40	Coursework
Managing Outdoor, Sporting, Cultural And Creative Events	40	Coursework Practical

 

Elective modules
Module	Credits	Assessment
Foreign Language (French, Spanish, Italian)	20	Coursework Practical
Strategic Experience Design	20	Coursework