Already acknowledged as the home of the continent’s second largest creative cluster, Manchester’s media sector is booming.  It’s a trend you’ll find replicated across the north west, where the creative and digital sector is made up of more than 20,000 companies and nearly 150,000 employees. What’s more, business is brisk – the sector saw an 88.5% growth in productivity between 2002 and 2007 (source NWDA).

And the future’s looking equally bright. Students at the 18 universities within an hour’s drive of Manchester can choose from nearly 300 media-related courses, and at any one time the area has 15,000 students studying computer science subjects (source: MIDAS).

The north west alone offers a choice of 14 different universities, each offering different specialisms: University of Bolton, University of Central Lancashire, University of Chester, University of Cumbria, Edge Hill University, Lancaster University, The University of Liverpool, Liverpool Hope University, Liverpool John Moores University, The University of Manchester, Manchester Metropolitan University, the Open University, University of Salford, and the Royal Northern College of Music.

The University of Salford has already committed to an on-site presence at MediaCityUK, and will occupy a new research and technology facility here from 2011.  An estimated 1,500 students will be based on the campus, creating some really exciting opportunities for research and joint-working.