BA (Hons) Applied Art (with Foundation Year)

What you will study

YEAR 1 (FOUNDATION YEAR)

The foundation year will introduce you to the key elements of art and design, including graphic design, animation, illustration, photography, and film, applied and fine art.  You will explore the creative thought process relating to various art and design disciplines, developing your ability to put ideas down on paper quickly.  There will be a range of practice assignments that will increase your recognition of strong ideas and original concepts.

MODULES

• Visual Investigation
• Materials and Methods
• Creative Processes
• Progression Project
• The Skills You Need
• Contextual Studies

YEAR 2 (LEVEL 4)

Introduces you to the breadth of materials and techniques within the Applied Arts, where you have the opportunity to work across all the material areas, experimenting with ceramics, metal and mixed media. 

MODULES

• Visual Communication 
• Context I 
• Material Introduction 
• Material Experimentation 
• Introduction to Exhibiting 
• Material Technique 

YEAR 3 (LEVEL 5)

Expands your making skills within your main material choice, developing a depth of knowledge and understanding about materials and craft skills and allowing you to advance your own creative style. The key professional skills of understanding market, publicity and costings are also developed through practical projects.

MODULES

• Critical Thinking
• Creative Futures: Making a Living
• Extended Practice (Applied Arts)
• Art Practice
• Practice in Context
• Specialist Study (Applied Arts)

YEAR 4 (LEVEL 6)

Allows you to realise your ideas in the direction of your choice, with students developing their own individual themes to produce collections, demonstrating high-quality making skills and innovative design solutions.

MODULES

• Dissertation
• Creative Futures: Professional Practice
• Negotiated Practice
• Applied Art Degree Project

The information listed in this section is an overview of the academic content of the programme that will take the form of either core or option modules. Modules are designated as core or option in accordance with professional body requirements and internal academic framework review, so may be subject to change.

Entry requirements & applying

Entry requirements for our foundation year are 48-72 UCAS tariff points but all applications are considered individually and we consider work experience, vocational training/qualifications, as well as motivation and potential to succeed.

The Applied Arts programme team welcomes applications from anyone who can demonstrate a commitment to the subject and the potential to complete their chosen programme successfully. This can be established by showing appropriate academic achievements or by demonstrating that they possess the knowledge and ability equivalent to the academic qualifications.

All candidates will either be individually interviewed or invited to an applicants’ day where they will have the opportunity to display a portfolio of their work. Experience may also be taken into consideration, particularly for those applicants who do not meet the academic requirements above, depending on the extent and depth of subject knowledge.

Students from overseas, who are unable to attend an interview are invited to send their portfolio of work digitally for consideration.

Teaching & Assessment

Assessment is predominantly through practical and design work such as maquettes, sketchbooks, samples, and finished objects. Work is presented to tutors, and verbal feedback is given instantly, followed by more expansive written feedback.

You'll be assessed for each module. Formative assessments are used to monitor progress and can take place at any time. These consist of a band grading, plus evaluative comments and a feedback tutorial if appropriate. Grading isn't finalised until the end of the year, when work is reviewed and moderated by an external examiner.

TEACHING AND LEARNING

The majority of the active teaching and learning is studio/workshop based and practical in nature supported with lectures, demonstrations, tutorials, seminars and critiques and talks by specialist guest speakers.

Wrexham University is committed to supporting our students to maximise their academic potential.

We offer workshops and support sessions in areas such as academic writing, effective note-making and preparing for assignments. Students can book appointments with academic skills tutors dedicated to helping deal with the practicalities of university work. Our student support section has more information on the help available.

Contact time is 14 hours per week for Level 4, 12 hours per week for Level 5, and 10 hours per week for Level 6. The workshop facilities are open and staffed 5 days a week and students have constant access to the workshops.

Career prospects

Our Careers and Employability service is there to help you make decisions and plan the next steps towards a bright future. From finding work or further study to working out your interests, skills and aspirations, they can provide you with the expert information, advice and guidance you need.

Designers who can respond creatively to applied art and design problems remain in high demand.

Our graduates have careers in a wide range of areas including education, restoration work, museums and retail. A proportion go on to work in or set up their own galleries.

This degree teaches you to be a highly skilled designer maker, utilising traditional craft skills to create objects for exhibition and sale. Alongside the practical skills you will learn, the course will develop your understanding of the core business skills needed as a professional maker, with opportunities to show your work at a variety of venues and sell to the public. 

A degree in Applied Art provides a variety of future opportunities for graduates. Jobs include, but are not limited to:

• Independent Maker 
• Creative Business owner 
• Silversmith 
• Jeweller 
• Ceramicist 
• Blacksmith 
• Gallery curator 
• Teacher 

There are also options for further study including our MA Professional Art Practitioner, MA Interdisciplinary Art Practice and PGCE courses. 

Fees & funding

You do not have to pay your tuition fees upfront.

The fees you pay and the support available will depend on a number of different factors. Full information can be found on our fees & finance pages. You will also find information about what your fees include in the fee FAQs.

All fees are subject to any changes in government policy, view our undergraduate fees.

Programme specification

You can see the full programme specification here.

Accommodation

If you’re looking for a place to stay while you study then take a look at our accommodation pages to get more information on your options, including our on-campus halls of residence Wrexham Village.

Subject to re-validation

As part of its continuous quality assurance and enhancement, the University reviews its courses on a regular basis to ensure that they reflect the needs of students and employers. Periodic review of the existing programmes is required every five years and major changes may be made to the programmes during the re-validation process. As soon as the programmes are re-validated the details of the course will be confirmed. The majority of courses that are still ‘subject to re-validation’ are approved by the validation process; however, this is not guaranteed and should the course not go ahead as planned, or be significantly amended, you will be informed by the university and assistance will be provided to those who have been offered a place to find a suitable alternative course either at Wrexham University or at another provider.