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BA (Hons) - Fine Art

Art is more than a technical practice; it is a way of understanding and communicating lived experience. The BA (Hons) Fine Art programme at University of Cumbria is rooted in the belief that meaningful creative practice emerges from the social, cultural, and personal histories that shape us. We encourage you to draw upon your own experiences, identities, and communities as the foundation of your artistic development, creating work that is critically engaged, socially aware, and deeply authentic. Through dialogue, experimentation, and reflection, you will develop an individual artistic voice that connects personal narratives with wider cultural conversations.

This interdisciplinary Fine Art programme supports you in developing professional-level skills across a wide range of media, including drawing, painting, sculpture, printmaking, ceramics, photography, filmmaking, and digital practice. Whether working with traditional materials or emerging technologies, you will be encouraged to explore how your chosen media can communicate the lived realities, histories, and concerns of the communities and environments around you. The course fosters an inclusive and exploratory studio culture where experimentation, collaboration, and socially engaged practice are central to the creative ethos of the programme.

Our spacious studios offer dedicated spaces for your creativity, providing you with a blank canvas. Alongside a life drawing studio, we have fully equipped workshop spaces for 3D printing, ceramics, woodworking, metalworking, textiles, and printmaking. Our technicians are available for training and support in each workshop.

Our practicing artist tutors will support and inspire your studio practice, providing a deep understanding of Fine Art from historical, theoretical, and critical perspectives. You'll develop entrepreneurial skills and have opportunities to showcase your work locally and nationally, visit galleries, create your own space, and curate public exhibitions for valuable professional experience.

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Course Overview

Pursue your passion and bring your creative ideas to life with our BA (Hons) Fine Art degree. Based in bespoke studios and workshops, our course is designed to help you develop a confident, independent art practice grounded in both technical skill and critical understanding.

Through a curriculum that weaves together practical work with modules in art history, critical theory and professional practice, you’ll be encouraged to challenge conventions, reflect on lived experiences and create culturally relevant work that speaks to today’s society.

Our socially engaged approach to art is supported by tutor-led workshops, one-to-one tutorials, group discussions and lectures, all designed to foster experimentation, dialogue and reflection. You'll also benefit from detailed feedback to help you grow as an artist throughout your studies.

In addition to developing your artistic voice, you’ll gain valuable business and entrepreneurial skills, essential for thriving in the creative industries. You'll graduate equipped with the practical tools and critical thinking necessary to navigate the contemporary art world with confidence.

Lecturers maintain strong connections with regional, national and international arts organisations, offering exciting opportunities for networking and professional exposure. You'll also be inspired by a dynamic programme of guest speakers, including contemporary artists, curators and creative professionals who bring fresh perspectives and insights into your studio practice.

Whether you're aiming to exhibit your work, progress to further study or pursue a role within the wider creative economy, our course provides a platform to launch your artistic career.

On this course you will...

Study inter-disciplinary skills, learning ALL the techniques you need to become a brilliant artist. Including sculpture drawing, painting & printmaking, photography, filmmaking, and even performance.
Be assigned a generous studio space on campus with access to specialist resources and equipment.
Take part in Student Exhibitions from day one: Year 0 Exhibition, First Year Drawing Exhibition, Three Minute Film Festival, Seconds Out and a Final Year Degree Show.
Explore external exhibitions and artistic spaces. Our students run exhibitions across the city, arrange events and run workshops, contributing to the creative and cultural life of Carlisle.

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Carlisle - Brampton Road All

Key Details

Recruiting toUK / RoI / Settled in UK
EU / EEA / International
Course LocationCarlisle - Brampton Road
Institute Institute of Education, Arts and Society
UCAS CodeW100
Mode of DeliveryFace to face
Course DurationFull-time: 3 Years
Study Options Integrated Foundation Year
Course Start PointSeptember
AwardBA (Hons)
More informationProgramme Specification
Prospectus
Open DaysCarlisle - Brampton Road
All

Minimum entry requirements

104-112

UCAS Tariff points

UK Tuition fees

£9,535

Entry in academic year 2025/26

£9,790

Entry in academic year 2026/27

International Tuition fees

£14,900

Entry in academic year 2025/26

£16,000

Entry in academic year 2026/27

Tuition Fees Policy

What our students say

One of the things I really appreciated about the Fine Art course was the large number of artist talks that were delivered to us. We were regularly given talks by artists and other professionals, where they shared their journeys and how they achieved their current positions.

Sophie Steadman, BA (Hons) Fine Art

Sophie graduated in 2023, after rediscovering her love for the arts.

Sophie Steadman
One of the main reasons I chose University of Cumbria is that it has a friendly, community feel, that you often don’t get from other universities.

Sophie Steadman, Fine Art

Sophie is a current student on Fine Art and talks about her experience on the course.

Read Sophie's story

Course Structure

What you will learn

You will develop an awareness of contemporary fine art practices and hone your ability to make, critique and discuss your work and that of others. Our close-knit and supportive community will inspire your creativity and shape your individual practice.

Year one

In your first year you will focus on the development of your skills across all Fine Art disciplines with practical work playing an important role in informing art theory, as well as critical and historic perspectives.

Materials and Methods
An introduction to the tools and skills needed to make art work(s).
Cultural Contexts
Introduction to the cultural, historical, and social contexts in which creative work from a range of disciplines will be discussed, examined, and analysed.
Application
Develop a personal Fine Art practice in response to the module brief(s), by means of studio practice & contextual research.
Collaborative Practice
Work with other students to explore and practise the skills involved in creative collaboration.
Collaborative Brief

Year two

In your second year, you will develop your skills and address professional fine art practice and current issues. Plus, you will curate and organise a public exhibition of your work, gaining essential professional experience.

Enquiry 1
Learn to direct your own work and develop an awareness of your activity in practical, intellectual, and critical terms as part of the overall process of art-making.
Intersections
Explore Postmodern and Contemporary issues in Fine Art.
Enquiry 2
Develop independent working strategies underpinned by reflective, critical, and theoretical practice.
The Professional Self
Develop the necessary practical skills to present yourself and your work professionally and positively.

Year three

Your final year centres around a curated degree show, where you put your artistic and professional practice skills to the test.

Practice 1
Hone your strategies of research in making and thinking.
Independent Research Paper
Practice 2
Carry out a self-designed, in-depth, and investigative personal project. The culmination of this module will be the public Degree Show for all final year students.

Teaching & Assessment

How you will learn

Throughout your degree, you will learn through a variety of techniques that foster practical skills and theoretical knowledge. For example, lectures and seminars will take place to encourage discussion and theoretical thinking; while workshops are intended to be a place for experimentation, where you will learn new skills and put them into practice.

How you will be assessed

Assessment in Fine Art does not necessarily signal an end-point for a project. The assessment process, including self-assessment feedback, feedback tutorials, crits, and referral projects, are an opportunity for you to reflect, consider, and learn from your experience in order to continually develop your skills, awareness & practice.

Whilst assessment also functions to, eventually, provide an overall measurement of achievement in the form of the degree classification itself, it is, perhaps more importantly, part of the overall dynamic and continuum of the educational experience as a whole.

As a Fine Art student, you have the opportunity to learn during the assessment process, as you are invited to take part in the assessment process itself.

The presentation of a critical, self-assessment statement, and your presence at the assessment event, are important aspects of Fine Art’s learning and teaching dynamic. The expectation is that you will be in a position to compare your own self-assessment, with that provided by staff in feedback, as a means to reflect upon and to consider the development of your critical awareness with respect to your developing practice.

The experience should be viewed as an opportunity to ‘test reality’, in identifying common criteria used by us all on which to base our critical judgments of our work.

Summative and Formative Assessment

Assessment criteria have been established for each module in order to examine your understanding of the work that you have been set. These criteria are closely linked to the aims, objectives, and learning outcomes established at each stage in your course, and are published within the module briefs or descriptors.

More specifically, assessment seeks to measure your performance on projects, assignments, essays, and practice, and your developing ability to accept, gather, and process information, using it in an informed, relevant and critical manner.

For practical modules, assessment typically involves a viva voce examination during which members of staff will discuss your presented work with you. Members of the course team are involved in assessment procedures at all stages of the programme, and are also members of the Programme Examinations Board which considers the marking and progression of all students on the course.

Self-Assessment

Throughout the Fine Art course you will be invited to make self-assessment statements, typically at the conclusion of a module. This exercise provides tutors with the opportunity to monitor your awareness of the assessment criteria, and offers an insight into your own critical faculties. It is a valuable opportunity for you to explore your judgment relative to the criteria and assessment philosophy of the course.

Overview

104-112 UCAS Tariff Points, You can find out more about the tariff and qualification options from the  UCAS tariff table. Offers are tailored to the individual applicant and their circumstances and can be across the tariff range. Applicants who meet our contextual information criteria will be offered at the bottom of the range.

Qualifications

Entry Requirements

A-levels: BCC-BBC

T-levels: P (C+) – M. All subjects are accepted for entry to this course

Access to HE: 15 Credits at Distinction & 30 at Merit

CACHE Technical Level 3 and Level 3 Extended Diploma: C-B

OCR Cambridge Technical & Edexcel/Pearson BTEC Level 3 (National) Extended Diploma: MMM - DMM

Scottish Highers: BBBC - BBBA

Irish LC Highers: B1, B2x3 – B1x3, B2

Alternative routes: If you don't think you'll meet the criteria for direct application to this course, check out our integrated foundation year

Fair Admissions

When you apply, our Admissions specialists will review your whole application. We are looking for your potential to succeed so will assess your qualifications, any relevant work experience, your personal statement, and references.

When we review your portfolio, we are assessing your ability to benefit from the course you have applied for. Any offers are based on your whole application and the review of your portfolio of work.

Where you have received a conditional offer subject to achieving particular grades/UCAS tariff scores, and do not quite meet these scores, please try not to worry, where vacancies exist our Admissions specialists will review your whole application again and take account of any mitigating circumstances and reassess your suitability for the course.

Selection Criteria

As part of the application and selection process, we are looking for your commitment to this programme. In your personal statement, you should demonstrate your motivation for choosing this course and reflect upon any experience you have gained.

All places are offered subject to successful interview and portfolio. You should present a cohesive portfolio containing a broad range of work and be able to explain at interview what has led you to apply for Fine Art and the attributes you would bring to it.

We are looking for applicants who have an interest in fine art as an arena where ideas about the world can be made manifest through traditional and non-traditional means. We are keen to encourage those of an inquisitive nature who already have some skills (perhaps drawing initially), and are generally prepared to work hard and achieve and develop practical and conceptual skills using a variety of media in order to present and convey their ideas effectively.

Contextual Admissions

Going to higher education can transform a person’s life. We use contextual admissions to make sure that we are accessible to everyone who has the potential to succeed. Qualifications and grades are important, but they are considered alongside other information that helps universities to identify potential and widen access to university level study. For some individuals, the disadvantages they have experienced in their life mean that they have not been able to demonstrate their full academic potential. Where a person lives and their personal circumstances can all affect their educational attainment.

We take this context into account and look for an applicant’s potential when making admission decisions. The University of Cumbria will make offers at the bottom of any UCAS Tariff range to applicants that live in postal code regions with the lowest participation in Higher Education (Polar 4 quintile 1 – you can check your postcode here), applicants that are estranged from their parents, are care leavers or have caring responsibilities or are in receipt of or received free school meals during their secondary education. Attendance at our Masterclasses and Summer Schools will also allow applicants to receive an offer lower within the tariff range. (T&Cs apply).

Contact ugadmissions@cumbria.ac.uk for more information.

Returning to Education

If you are over 21 and returning to study after being in relevant employment for a minimum of 3 years and do not meet the published entry requirements for Year 1 of our degree courses, please do not assume you are not qualified to join us. Our experienced Admissions and Academic staff will review your prior qualifications and professional experience to support your application.

Language requirements

Please follow the link to check language requirements for this programme here.

Fees & Funding

Tuition Fees

UK Tuition fees

£9,535
Entry in academic year 2025/26

£9,790
Entry in academic year 2026/27

International Tuition fees

£14,900
Entry in academic year 2025/26

£16,000
Entry in academic year 2026/27

The figures above don't include accommodation and living costs.

Tuition fees are set annually and are subject to review each year. The University may therefore raise tuition fees in the second or subsequent years of a course, in line with inflation and/or the maximum permitted by law or Government policy. Students will be notified of any changes as soon as possible.

International Finance

At the University of Cumbria, we offer affordable tuition fees for international and EU students looking to study at one of our main four campuses. No matter your choice of course or career path, our International Team is here to support you.

More Information

We have a wide range of scholarships, bursaries, grants and funds available to support you throughout your studies with us. This includes the Cumbria Bursary - a non-repayable bursary designed to support first year students with a household income of less than £25,000..

Student Finance

Additional Costs

There will be some additional costs. For example all students will need to purchase stationery and may wish to purchase some text books. Extra costs may also be applicable to cover field trips, membership fees etc. although such features are usually options within the course.

Books are reviewed annually and are therefore subject to change, course welcome information will provide you with an indicative list for the year.

Books and Journals

Most core text books are available via the University's library, however students may wish to buy copies of any texts used to support your learning on your course. This could cost between £50 - £100 per year.

Stationery

Students should budget for stationery and consumables for your own personal use. This should include notebooks, pens and pencils for taking notes in class and/or in the field. Students should also budget for the purchase of USB pen drives, as well as occasional printing and photocopying costs incurred in the preparation or submission of coursework. Whilst you will choose how much you need, expect to pay around £30 - £40 per year for these items.

Student's showcasing work

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Location
Carlisle - Brampton Road Campus
Located just outside the city, right on top of Hadrian's Wall, the Brampton Road campus is full of history, buzzing with excitement, creativity, and a sense of endless possibility. The home of creators, entertainers, rule breakers, and change-markers.
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BA (Hons) - Fine Art