Is the Diploma in Publishing Studies focused on trade publishing or academic publishing?

Both. Trade publishing (fiction and non-fiction for the consumer market) sits alongside academic, professional and illustrated publishing in the case-study module. Students can lean into a sector through their final portfolio project — many do.

Will the Diploma in Publishing Studies help me get an entry-level role in a London publisher?

It improves your competitiveness substantially. UK publishing is a tight entry-level market — the Diploma gives you the vocabulary, the working understanding of process, and the portfolio piece editors look for. It does not guarantee a role; experience (an internship, a bookshop job, an indie-press contribution) alongside the Diploma is what tips applications over.

Does the Diploma in Publishing Studies cover digital publishing and audio?

Yes. The contemporary publishing economy module covers e-book and audio production, direct-to-consumer publishing, subscription models and the impact of audio on backlist economics. Audio rights are covered in the rights workshop.

Can I take the Diploma in Publishing Studies fully online?

Yes. The online route delivers live classes over video with industry-guest masterclasses included. The end-of-course portfolio project is presented to the industry panel via video. Distance-learning students set their own pace within structured deadlines.

Will the Diploma in Publishing Studies prepare me to run my own indie press?

Partly. The Diploma gives you the working understanding of process, contracts, marketing and sales channels — the foundations of indie publishing. Running an indie press also requires entrepreneurial skill, capital and risk tolerance that are outside the Diploma's scope; students serious about indie publishing typically pair the Diploma with a small-business or marketing qualification.

Diploma in Publishing Studies in London | LSJHML | Harold International College of London

Course Overview

The Diploma in Publishing Studies at the London School of Journalism, Humanities & Modern Languages (LSJHML) is a nine-to-twelve-month UK qualification covering the working publishing industry — trade, academic, professional and digital. The course is built around the publishing value chain (commissioning, editorial, design, production, sales, marketing, rights) and is taught by working publishing professionals from London's trade and academic-press scene.

This is a Diploma for people who want to work in publishing, not study it as a literary discipline. You leave with a working understanding of how a book moves from a one-paragraph pitch to a printed object on a shelf — including how that economics actually works in the contemporary UK and international market.

Key Features

End-to-end publishing-process module — commissioning, contracts, editorial, design, production, sales, marketing, rights.
Sector-specific case studies across trade fiction, trade non-fiction, academic press, children's publishing, illustrated/cookery, professional reference and digital-first publishing.
Rights and contracts workshop — author contracts, subsidiary rights, translation rights, e-book and audio rights, common contractual pitfalls.
Marketing and publicity module — campaign design, retailer relationships, festival presence, social-media strategy, the contemporary review ecosystem.
Industry-led guest sessions from working commissioning editors, marketing leads and rights managers at UK trade and academic publishers.
End-of-course portfolio — a complete imaginary book project, commissioned to launched, presented to a panel of industry guests.

What You Will Learn

The Diploma in Publishing Studies is structured around the working roles inside a publisher and the questions each role asks. You finish able to read a publisher's catalogue critically, structure a commissioning proposal, design a marketing plan and explain to an author why their book needs the design it ended up with.

The publishing value chain — who does what, in what order, and to what end.
Commissioning and acquisitions — the proposal, the comp titles, the P&L, the launch list.
Editorial — structural and line editing, copy-editing, proofreading, the editor-author relationship.
Design and production — typography, cover design, paper and binding, print specification.
Rights — primary, subsidiary, foreign, audio, film, the working of book fairs (Frankfurt, London, Bologna).
Marketing and publicity — campaign design, retailer relationships, social-media strategy, awards.
Sales — UK trade, export, library and academic sales channels.
The contemporary publishing economy — digital, audio, direct-to-consumer, indie presses, the changing role of agents.

Who This Diploma Is For

Recent graduates targeting entry-level publishing roles in a competitive industry where structured training is uncommon.
Career-changers from journalism, bookselling, marketing or teaching moving toward publishing.
Bloggers, podcasters and indie publishers wanting professional grounding for their existing practice.
International students looking for a UK qualification taught in the heart of the London publishing industry.

Career Pathways

UK publishing is concentrated in London and recruits competitively for a small number of entry-level roles each year. The Diploma in Publishing Studies is structured to make graduates competitive for those roles and to give them the working vocabulary editors recruit against. Typical first roles include:

Editorial Assistant (trade fiction, trade non-fiction, academic press)
Publicity Assistant (trade publisher, indie press)
Marketing Coordinator (publisher in-house team)
Rights Assistant (rights department, literary agency)
Production Assistant (in-house production team or production-services agency)
Bookseller (specialist or independent bookseller, often as a route into publishing)

The Diploma articulates into the Advanced Diploma in Publishing Studies and the BA Publishing Studies at LSJHML for students continuing.

Entry Requirements

Completion of secondary school (A-Levels, BTEC, or international equivalent).
IELTS 5.5 overall (no band below 5.0) for non-native English speakers.
Personal statement.
Mature applicants (21+) may apply with two years of relevant work experience.

Why Study at LSJHML

The London School of Journalism, Humanities & Modern Languages is a specialist higher-education provider based in central London. Our programmes are designed in dialogue with working professionals — journalists, translators, civil servants, academics, broadcasters, editors, publishers and policy researchers — so what you learn in seminar on Monday is what your future employer is using on Tuesday. We deliberately keep cohorts small, give every student named tutor support, and treat employability as a structural part of every programme rather than an optional add-on.

London is the work — politics, courts, capital markets, theatre, broadcasting, publishing, public service, the global press. Your studies are taught in the same square mile where the stories you read about happen. Whether you join us on-campus, online or by distance learning, the city is your classroom and our industry network is your launchpad.