British Council USA will run a digital campaign featuring student profiles to promote undergraduate and postgraduate film and media studies courses in the UK. Each participating university will have one student profile featuring either a current American student or recent alumni who have graduated within the last five years who have studied on a film and media course.

The profiles will be hosted on a landing page on the British Council USA’s website (https://www.britishcouncil.us/). The profiles will be promoted through boosted social media posts on Facebook and Instagram, e- newsletters to British Council USA’s counselor and student databases between October – December 2017 and advertisements on Spindle Magazine’s website (http://spindlemagazine.com/).

Participating universities will also have the opportunity to have their materials displayed at the British Council USA’s #5FilmsForFreedom events in Washington, DC, New York, Los Angeles and Orlando in October – November 2017.

Please note: A maximum of 10 universities may participate in the campaign. 5 undergraduate and 5 postgraduate student profile slots are available on a first-come, first-served basis.

Background

The UK and the US are global leaders in the Creative Industries. In the UK, the creative economy is growing three times faster than any other sector and in the US, the creative industries create more than 1 million jobs and generate over $433.5 billion for the US economy. In the US, Film & TV and Design & Fashion make up the vast majority of economic activity in the creative industry sectors, with Film & TV far outpacing other sectors with regards to number of companies and size of the industry, making Film & TV an attractive sector for US students to pursue (British Council and Nordicity, Top Creative Cities in North America: a summary report, 2015).

Creative arts and design is one of the top three subject areas for undergraduate and postgraduate taught US students who choose to study in the UK. Media studies ranks in the top 25 primary subjects among postgraduate taught and top 15 primary subjects among undergraduate US students in the UK (HESA Student record 2002/03 - 2015/16).

This campaign aims to grow the number of applications from the US to the UK for undergraduate and postgraduate film and media studies courses and strengthen the online brand profile of UK institutions among prospective US students and counselors.

About the student profiles

Each participating university will nominate either a current student or recent alumni (must have graduated within last five years) who are American undergraduate or postgraduate students on a film or media studies course who will be featured in a student profile on the British Council USA website (https://www.britishcouncil.us/).

The student profiles will include:

•Written interview questions answered by the student about topics including why they chose the UK and their particular university and course, what they enjoy most about their university and course, the most valuable thing they’ve learned during their course, and what they hope to do after they graduate or are working on currently.

•High-resolution photos to accompany the interview: One primary photo must be of the student. Up to (4) other photos may include: photos of the campus, stills from student films, photos that promote the film and media studies courses such as photos of the classrooms and facilities, student projects, etc. The university will be responsible for providing photos to accompany the interview. Photos must be in image ratio 16:9, 630 x 354px. A caption and copyright or photo credit information must be included with each photo.

•(1) video such as a student’s photo reel or a short video created as part of a student project at university may also be included in the student profile at the university’s discretion.

Please note: the British Council will select suitable content for the profiles based on the content submitted by the universities, and in line with media trends and interests. Not all submitted content will be featured in the profiles. Profiles will be submitted to the university for approval before publication.

About #5FilmsForFreedom events

In October – November 2017, the British Council will hold screenings of the 2017 #5FilmsForFreedom short films followed by panel discussions and receptions in DC, New York City, Los Angeles and Orlando. #5FilmsForFreedom is a partnership between the British Film Institute and the British Council to promote equality and diversity by encouraging people around the world to watch five short films from BFI Flare: London LGBT Film Festival.

Universities that are participating in the film and media studies campaign will be invited to send materials advertising their film and media courses which will be displayed at a Study UK table at each film screening. We will also produce a handout featuring the student profiles that will be distributed at the Study UK table.

Promotion

The student profiles will be promoted via:

•(1) e-newsletter per university featuring bespoke university content to the USA counselor database of 4,255 independent and school counselors. The e-newsletters will highlight the university’s student profile and can also include content about the university’s undergraduate and postgraduate courses, resources for counselors and students and upcoming US visits. E-newsletter content will be provided by the university.

•(1) feature per university in British Council USA’s Study UK monthly e-newsletter that is distributed to over 5,000 prospective students in the US. Each university’s student profile will be highlighted in one of the Study UK monthly e-newsletters.

•(1) boosted Facebook post and (1) boosted Instagram post highlighting each universities’ student profile. The boosted posts will target prospective undergraduate and graduate students interested in film and media studies in DC, New York City, Los Angeles and Orlando during October – December 2017.

•Advertisements on Spindle Magazine’s website (http://spindlemagazine.com/), an online lifestyle guide for fashion, music and the arts featuring up-and-coming artists with 50% American readership. Spindle Magazine has a track record of supporting students’ work from UK university courses. Advertisements will drive traffic to the British Council USA landing page that hosts the student profiles.

•Handout with information about student profiles that will be distributed at the British Council’s #5FilmsForFreedom events in DC, New York, Los Angeles & Orlando. Participating universities may also send materials to be displayed at a Study UK table at these events.

Participation fee

The British Council will charge a £1,500* participation fee per student profile plus wraparound campaign. The fee will cover overall media management and editing, distribution and promotion and a report at the end of the campaign.

*Not including VAT

Benefit to UK institutions

•Creation of student feature that will live on the British Council USA website under the Study in the UK section

•Increased online brand visibility among prospective US students and US college counseling sector

Responsibilities of participating universities

Participating UK universities are encouraged to provide the below:

•Nominate a current undergraduate or postgraduate American student on a film or media studies course to represent the university in the student profile. The university will be responsible for liaising between the student and British Council USA to ensure the timely completion of the written interview questions.

•High-resolution photos to accompany the student profile.

•Content for the university’s bespoke e-newsletter to counselors with information about undergraduate and postgraduate courses, resources for counselors and students and upcoming US visits.

•Promotional materials on the university’s film and media courses to be distributed at the British Council USA’s #5FilmsForFreedom events in October and November 2017.

Timeline

31 August - Deadline for applications

1 – 30 September - Student profile and wraparound media creation

October – December - Student profiles launched and wraparound digital campaign

Cancellation policy:

Cancellation fees will be charged for withdrawal from this event, as of the date of receipt of notice of withdrawal:

At 50 per cent of the full cost for withdrawals received on or after Friday, 1 September 2017

At 100 per cent of the full cost for withdrawals received on or after Friday, 15 September 2017

Notice of withdrawal must be supplied in writing, via email to Jenna Hartsell.

Registration

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/R6G9Y3B