Art and Design at university; for past, present, and future students and parents

[PhotoDad]

I've been on a wonderful thread about applications for art/design applications for the coming academic year, and I thought it might be useful to have a more general place for people at different stages of the process to share advice and hints. The normal MN advice about universities is often not applicable to these subjects!

I'll keep this short because I personally don't like huge posts that appear at the top of each page, but I'll add some starting thoughts below. I know that there's a huge range of experience here and a lot of support, so please do ask questions, or share triumphs and disasters.

The original thread is here:
https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/higher_education/4626697-2023-uni-applications-for-those-pursuing-art-and-creative-routes

@ArtGarfield oh thanks this is very helpful. Working Men’s pretty local for us too. I see so Morley is level 4 - so this could be equal to an A level? Am I right? UAL doesn’t sound a good fit for my dd.

@CowCowSheep yes too far, so mentally ruled it out, barely London! Even the Morley and UAL courses are a bit of a mission. There was a girl in the year above her at school who started at Kingston on the art foundation but dropped out because it was just too much of a journey (she wasn’t sold on the course either).

@Thedogswhiskers level 3 is equal to A levels.

@Thedogswhiskers
GCSE passed below grade 4 are level 1

GCSE passed at grade 4 or above are level 2

A levels are level 3. The level 3 art foundation has UCAS points attached to it.

the first year of a degree is level 4 study. The level 4 art foundation doesn’t have ucas points-I think. I’m still learning!

And this is for the academic year September 2026, DD is actually looking for the following year. Who knows what will happen by then. Ravensbourne don’t seem to have an art foundation anymore, was September 2025 the last?

Oh I see, thanks. Also looking to start 2027. So level 3 at Morley you have to be 19 otherwise it looks like it’s online or extended course. Or level 2

Could someone clarify, at Morley, which art foundation level is it for students who have just done their A levels and are u19?

The Morley art foundation course for students who have just done their A levels and are 18 is at Chelsea campus, Hortensia Road, level 4.

I think that’s the course @mondaytosunday daughter took.
And somehow it still counts as further education so it’s free tuition fees ( to home students that qualify as their third year of further Ed.)

@ArtGarfield thank you. Have booked the open day so hopefully all will be revealed!

@Thedogswhiskers the one on 26 March?

WMC have an open day earlier that week too.

@ArtGarfield yes doing that one too

DD just got an offer for UAL for her top choice! I'm so very pleased for her and really proud.

Well done to her!

Costume at Wimbledon? Well done mini @UnimaginableWindBird Does this mean a move to London? How exciting.

Yes, costume at Wimbledon. She's booked into the offer holder day at AUB next month, and she didn't go to an open day there because it's a pain to get to, so she'll have a look there and then decide which course she prefers.

DD looked at AUB and the course was good but she's at Manchester Met (not costume) because of the employment opportunities were greater there. She's currently doing a year in industry and loving it (and being paid a reasonable salary for an intern year) and getting really valuable experience which we hope will give her a head start when applying for graduate jobs.
Her other reason for deciding Man Met was that she felt AUB was too small.

AUB is huge compared to Wimbledon! Actually, I'm pretty sure DD's secondary school was considerably bigger than Wimbledon

Costume is pretty niche, and from what I can tell, Wimbledon and AUB are the ones with the best reputations and graduate success, so it will be one of those.

Did she look at Central School of Speech and Drama Costume course @UnimaginableWindBird ?

Can I join in? DC at HCA in their first year, having done Foundation there last year. We discovered that the most unexpected places do some of the best courses. HCA was never on our radar and it’s turned out to be a fabulous college, course and accommodation.

@UnimaginableWindBird I didn't realise Wimbledon was small 😊Nice area to live in.

@ArtGarfield I think she probably should have considered it, but I think she wanted an art college with a strong support for theatre rather than a theatre color with strong support for art.

@Philandbill the college at Wimbledon is teeny, with only 850 students in total. And they mostly seem to live in Tooting rather than Wimbledon - the closest halls of residence are 45 minutes away.

Hereford? My DC did diploma there. Amazing college.

DC in London for degree now, drawn by big city life, having grown up in small town. Absolutely loves it though.

Hereford College of Art? Is it really good then? Is it mostly local people who attend? Interesting that it’s affiliated with a Welsh university. I’d have expected Worcester Uni .

Yes, I understand about being in a theatre college or an art college. Looking at the course though, it does look comprehensive-my DD isn’t interested in a degree-not now- but for the future, that is worth knowing about.

Wimbledon has far fewer students in its College, than the whole of the UAL art foundation course at the Pre-degree school. I’m not sure why that’s blown my mind. But I don’t think it would be a bad experience living in Tooting, so close to Clapham and the centre of London, but going to Wimbledon everyday for some fresh air!

I think Tooting with Wimbledon for fresh air sounds pretty nice. We live in York, so London is relatively easy to get to, and my dad lives in London a couple of minutes' walk from a Thameslink station so the locations are actually pretty convenient.

Bournemouth, on the other hand, is not easy to get to from York, which is the main strike against it.

Yes it is Hereford. We found most Foundation students were local, but a few live in halls each year (as did my DC - we are definitely not local), and a few Foundation international students who have gone on to do the blacksmithing degree (which has an amazing reputation). Now in first year there are students from all over the place. They can live in halls for all three years which is a bonus for us (not too expensive, good location, good facilities), and the college itself is lovely - varied and a good vibe.

DD has received an unconditional offer for Illustration at Brighton which is her top (aspirational) choice so is over the moon. 2 other conditional offers, 1 rejection & still waiting for UAL (obviously don't have to wait for that one now!) Good thing her older sibling graduates this summer since Brighton halls is over £200 pw.