As university courses go it may raise a few eyebrows, but Destiny McGowan has no doubt that hers was very useful. In July the 21-year-old graduated from Nottingham Trent University with a degree in content creation. As well as teaching how to best make videos and posts for Instagram, TikTok and YouTube, the course also focused on how to build audiences, engage with brands and monetise your content.
"I always wanted to be an entrepreneur, so for me the course was about the transferable skills that I believed I would gain," says Destiny, pointing to both the social media and business aspects she was taught. It's early on in her career, and Destiny refuses to disclose precisely what she is earning, but says she's already making money. In addition to posting about fashion on her own accounts, she makes videos for others, and has also been hired as a TikTok live selling host, presenting products for sale on camera.
She says the course gave her access to equipment, technology and industry contacts. "The incredible people I've met through panels that the university hosted would take someone five to 10 years to get to that place," she explains. Nottingham Trent says its content creation degree, which it launched in 2022, provides "hands-on experience".
Several universities in the UK now offer such courses. The University of Brighton says it teaches students how to create "content that cuts through the noise". Meanwhile in the US, Arizona State University say its similar qualification allows students to "turn your creativity into content that connects with audiences".
Yet you'd be paying a lot of money for this. The three-year degrees at Nottingham Trent and Brighton both currently cost £9,790 per year for UK students, while the standard annual fee at Arizona State is $14,724 (£11,000) for a resident of that state. More than £2m spent by government on influencers since July 2024 Knightenator, a UK-based, full-time content creator, isn't sure.
"I don't think I would have taken the course," she says. The 31-year-old, who doesn't reveal her real name, has been posting videos about gaming and travel on social media since 2015. She now has 65,000 followers on Twitch, and more than 100,000 on TikTok.
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