Subjects taught at the school include communications, the creative industries, event management, interactive media, journalism, photography, popular music, public relations, radio, and television.
The school was formerly known as the Department of Media and Communication, and was part of the Birmingham Institute of Art and Design (BIAD) until a re-organisation of the university's faculties in mid-2008.
Until August 2013, the school was based on the first, second, third and fourth floors of the Baker Building at the university's City North Campus in Birmingham's Perry Barr area.
In 2009, the school's introduction of master's degrees focusing on multimedia and entrepreneurial skills for journalists and photographers was cited by the Poynter Institute as a demonstration of how the university was "leading the way in 21st-century journalism education".
[1] A postgraduate degree in social media was criticised in the popular press, though staff at the school argued its relevance and scholarliness.