Design for Stage and Screen (Design for Theatre and Live Performance)
UCAS Code: W460
Bachelor of Arts (with Honours) - BA (Hons)
Entry requirements
A level
112 UCAS Tariff points from three A-Levels or equivalent qualifications.
Pass your Access course with 60 credits overall with a minimum of 45 credits at level 3
GCSE/National 4/National 5
GCSE English grade C/4 or equivalent GCSE Maths grade C/4 or GCSE Science grade C/4 or equivalent
112 UCAS Tariff points from your BTEC level 3 National Diploma and one A-Level or equivalent qualification.
112 UCAS Tariff points from your BTEC level 3 National Extended Certificate and two A-levels or equivalent qualifications
Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)
UCAS Tariff
You may also need to…
Attend an interview
Present a portfolio
About this course
Explore all aspects of contemporary design practice for theatre and the live performance, including set and costume design; construction; digital technologies and design; lighting design and audio visual; site-specific design; puppetry; heritage installation; and design for community and education. The course is facilitated by the highly skilled team of staff and technicians who have years of professional and academic knowledge.
**Key features**
- This course is a member of the Performance Design Education Collective (PDEC), and the Society of British Theatre Designers (SBTD). Through these, we are also a member of the International Organisation of Scenographers, Theatre Architects and Technicians (OISTAT).
- As a dedicated art and design school, our facilities promote collaboration and innovation. You’ll be working alongside artists, designers, photographers, illustrators, animators, and filmmakers.
- All first-year students within the School of Art & Design will work together on a joint project.
- Study in dedicated facilities, including a studio theatre, construction and paint workshops, and large teaching spaces.
- Work on live projects with industry such as The Royal National Theatre, Birmingham Opera Company, The National Trust and Nottingham Playhouse.
- Go on study visits for inspiration, research and experience, including live performances, museums and heritage and educational organisations.
- Enter competitions set by organisations such as The Royal National Theatre’s Connections festival, and the Linbury Prize.
- Showcase your work at our Student Showcase, with the opportunity to be selected to exhibit at other graduate events.
- Opportunity to apply for a European or international exchange to one of our partner institutions, such as Ryerson University in Canada.
- We're ranked 12th best University for Art and Design in the UK. (The Complete University Guide 2021).
- 100% of our undergraduate Theatre Design students are satisfied with the quality of this course (National Student Survey 2020).
**Assessment**
Assessment is 100% through coursework. You’ll receive feedback throughout each module and will be awarded a grade.
**Employability**
This course has an excellent graduate employment rate, with 93% of graduates in employment or further study within six months (DLHE survey 2016/17).
Graduates find employment in a broad range of areas: theatre design and design for performance; set, props and costume; events and festival designers and managers; teaching, educational and community arts work; film and television and digital media. Recent employers include the Royal Shakespeare Company, BBC, Sydney Opera House, Nottingham Playhouse and Birmingham Opera Company, The Donmar.
Modules
[Year One]
Both these modules run for the whole year.
Introduction to Theatre Design (100 credit points)
This module will teach you about the key principles, skills, practices and thinking which informs contemporary theatre design practice. You’ll be taught how to create design models, storyboards and sets and props. You’ll also learn about wardrobe, scenic art and projection techniques which will support your own research project and reflective writing.
Contextual Studies 1 (20 credit points)
This module will engage you with theatre history, theory, philosophy, culture, and contemporary practice. It will help you to develop confidence in reflective and evaluative writing.
[Year Two]
Both these modules run for the whole year.
Theatre Design Explorations (100 credit points)
This module will help you to consider your own specialism within theatre design. Select projects and approaches which enable you to further develop your practical understanding of the relationship between design, craft and performance and a clear understanding of the requirements and possibilities of different audiences, spaces and contexts.
Contextual Studies 2 (20 credit points)
This module enables you to build on the skills you gained in Year One, developing your knowledge and understanding of live performance contexts, and of the wider historical, arts, cultural, and political contexts for your work.
[Final Year]
Theatre Design Exposition (120 credit points)
Advance your practice in theatre design to a professional level. You’ll complete at least three projects, which will normally include:
• a realised design for performance – working with one of our associate companies such as Lakeside Arts, Nottingham College, Mish Mash Productions, and the National Trust
• a speculative design project – working with associate institutions such as, Nottingham Playhouse, and Birmingham Opera Company
• an independent design project for audience, working with a client
• a devised performance project for an audience
• a major research project, combining the skills you’ve developed in Years One and Two.
The Uni
City Campus
School of Art and Design
What students say
We've crunched the numbers to see if overall student satisfaction here is high, medium or low compared to students studying this subject(s) at other universities.
How do students rate their degree experience?
The stats below relate to the general subject area/s at this university, not this specific course. We show this where there isn’t enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.
Drama
Teaching and learning
Assessment and feedback
Resources and organisation
Student voice
Who studies this subject and how do they get on?
Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)
After graduation
The stats in this section relate to the general subject area/s at this university – not this specific course. We show this where there isn't enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.
Drama
What are graduates doing after six months?
This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.
Top job areas of graduates
What about your long term prospects?
Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.
Performing arts
The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.
£14k
£22k
£22k
Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.
Explore these similar courses...
Same University
Nearby UniversityNearby University
Lower entry requirementsHigher entry requirementsThis is what the university has told Ucas about the criteria they expect applicants to satisfy; some may be compulsory, others may be preferable.
Have a question about this info? Learn more here
This is the percentage of applicants to this course who received an offer last year, through Ucas.
Have a question about this info? Learn more here
This is what the university has told Ucas about the course. Use it to get a quick idea about what makes it unique compared to similar courses, elsewhere.
Have a question about this info? Learn more here
Course location and department:
This is what the university has told Ucas about the course. Use it to get a quick idea about what makes it unique compared to similar courses, elsewhere.
Have a question about this info? Learn more here
Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF):
We've received this information from the Department for Education, via Ucas. This is how the university as a whole has been rated for its quality of teaching: gold silver or bronze. Note, not all universities have taken part in the TEF.
Have a question about this info? Learn more here
This information comes from the National Student Survey, an annual student survey of final-year students. You can use this to see how satisfied students studying this subject area at this university, are (not the individual course).
This is the percentage of final-year students at this university who were "definitely" or "mostly" satisfied with their course. We've analysed this figure against other universities so you can see whether this is high, medium or low.
Have a question about this info? Learn more here
This information is from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA).
You can use this to get an idea of who you might share a lecture with and how they progressed in this subject, here. It's also worth comparing typical A-level subjects and grades students achieved with the current course entry requirements; similarities or differences here could indicate how flexible (or not) a university might be.
Have a question about this info? Learn more here
Post-six month graduation stats:
This is from the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education Survey, based on responses from graduates who studied the same subject area here.
It offers a snapshot of what grads went on to do six months later, what they were earning on average, and whether they felt their degree helped them obtain a 'graduate role'. We calculate a mean rating to indicate if this is high, medium or low compared to other universities.
Have a question about this info? Learn more here
Graduate field commentary:
The Higher Education Careers Services Unit have provided some further context for all graduates in this subject area, including details that numbers alone might not show
Have a question about this info? Learn more here
The Longitudinal Educational Outcomes dataset combines HRMC earnings data with student records from the Higher Education Statistics Agency.
While there are lots of factors at play when it comes to your future earnings, use this as a rough timeline of what graduates in this subject area were earning on average one, three and five years later. Can you see a steady increase in salary, or did grads need some experience under their belt before seeing a nice bump up in their pay packet?
Have a question about this info? Learn more here
