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Key Information Need (KIN) - University for the Creative Arts
Type of institution
Higher Education Institution (HEI)
Main campus
Canterbury, Epsom, Fareham, Rochester (England)
Admission intakes
September & January
International students
28%
No. of students per staff
18.2
UKVI status
Student sponsor
UKVI compliance
Track record
Graduate route
Eligible
About University for the Creative Arts
University for the Creative Arts (UCA) is a specialised public professional university for arts and design. It is one of the largest specialist creative arts universities in Europe and second largest provider of creative arts education in the UK.
The University offers pre-degree & foundation Studies, International Pathway, Undergraduate, Postgraduate Taught and Postgraduate Research courses in a wide range of subject areas including Advertising, Animation, Architecture, Business & Management, Communication & Media, Computer Arts, Crafts, Fashion, Film, Fine Art & Digital Art, Games, Graphic Design, Illustration, Interior Design, Marketing, Music, Performing Arts, Photography, Product Design, TV and Textiles.
UCA has four campuses in Canterbury, Epsom, Farnham, and Rochester, as well as teaching bases at other institutions such as the Royal School and Needlework and The Maidstone Studios of the South East of England.
Website
www.uca.ac.ukWhy choose to study at University for the Creative Arts
Students choose to study at University for the Creative Arts for its innovative and creative educational track records over 160 years. Find some of the top reasons for choosing University for the Creative Arts below –
Rankings & ratings
Top 10 UK
Universities in South East of England
Modern University of the Year
- No. 32 in The Guardian,The best UK universities 2022 – rankings
- No. 69 in the UK in The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2022
- Top 10 UK Universities in South East of Englandaccording to The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2022
- No. 1 for teaching quality of Business and Management courses (The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide, 2022)
- No. 1 for teaching quality of Communications & Mediacourses (The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide, 2022)
- No. 3 for teaching quality of Architecturecourses (The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide, 2022)
- No. 5 for Journalism, Publishing and PR course (The Guardian’s Top 10 subject league tables, 2022)
- No. 7 for Architecturecourse (The Guardian’s Top 10 subject league tables, 2022)
- No. 8 for Business Management & Marketing course (The Guardian’s Top 10 subject league tables, 2022)
- 20 in the UK & 151 in the World for Art & Design courses (QS World University Rankings by Subject, 2022)
- Named ‘Modern University of the Year’ by the 2019 Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide
- Top specialist art and design University for world-leading Research Outputs in REF 2021
Graduate prospects
No.1
specialist creative university for employability
- 63% of graduates are in job or further studies after 15 months of graduation (The Guardian, The best UK universities 2022 – rankings)
- The UK’s No.1 specialist creative university for employability in the most recent Destinations of Leavers in Higher Education ( DLHE ) 2018. 96.9% of UCA graduates are either in employment or further study within six months of graduation
Facilities & resources
- Large, accessible machine workshop equipped with a mixture of hand tools and machinery including CNC routing and milling machine
- Print Bureau with multiple options on finishing and papers, offering self-service and bespoke printing to professional standards
- Sculpture studios equipped with resins, kilns and facilities for moulding, casting, welding and plasma cutting
- Painting Studio, where you will learn to construct frames and stretchers, as well as using traditional painting techniques and materials
- Printmaking studios for screen-printing, litho, offset, lino cutting, and etching
- Six fully-equipped digital media suites with the latest Macs and PCs running up-to-date software
- Colour and black and white darkrooms for developing film, cyanotype and the use of industry-standard film processors
- Photographic studio, where you will be able to book photoshoots and document your portfolio of work
- Animation suite installed with specialist software, high-end drawing tablets and scanners
- A range of flexible teaching and learning environments with video conferencing and interactive AV resources to support creative arts business
- A 250-seater auditorium with conference standard facilities
- Extensive fashion studios with sewing facilities
- Five fully equipped photographic studios
- Woodwork and plaster studios
- Multiple film soundstages with industry-standard lighting facilities
- Dedicated Games Art IT studios with specialist hardware and software. VR and Game testing areas compliment the incubator space to help test and nurture game development
- Film & Media Centre featuring a live performance room, control room for sound mixing, dubbing theatre, rehearsal studios and film soundstage with industry-standard Arri film lighting rigs. Also located in the is building is a 250 seat Lecture and film screening theatre with 4K digital projection and online streaming capabilities
- Equipment to support hand and mechanical processes for working ceramic, glass, wood, metal, plastics and jewellery, and a foundry for casting bronze and aluminium
- Newly established jewellery workshop, containing 36 jewellers’ cut out workstations, and equipped with video recording demonstration bench
- Digital and traditional looms for woven textiles and associated dye facilities
- Three-camera digital television studio, networked to broadcast newsroom and using industry-leading autocue software
- The Gerber suite, a unique Computer-Aided Manufacturing (CAM) facility for fashion including the latest 3D Gerber Accumark software
- Computer-Aided Design (CAD) facilities for portfolio development, including a Digital Fabrication Lab with laser cutters and 3D printing facilities
- Theatre course workshops with prop making equipment, professional sewing machines and a costume department
- A dedicated makeup and hair design salon
Student support
- Free confidential counselling across the campuses in Surrey and Kent, with fully trained staff
- Report+Supportonline platform to report discrimination, misconduct, harassment, or assault
- Campus Buddy - for the first term of your first year to help you settle in
- Peer Assisted Learning (PAL) for specific support with learning& Peer Mentoring programme for more general learning support
- Learning Development Tutors to assist with time management, presenting skills, improving writing and critical thinking skills
- Liaison Librarians, who are on hand to help you get the best from your library
- MyWellbeing appto help with well-being& Specialist Advisers for stress management and relaxation, healthy eating, alcohol and drugs awareness, sexual health, personal safety
- Specialist support services to help international students, those who are young carers or are care leavers and to who have disabilities, medical conditions and specific learning differences
- Information, advice and guidance on a wide range of practical and personal issues including problems at home, issues in private rented accommodation, problems with other students or housemates, Immigration, work and budgeting and money management
- With the help of the UCA Students’ Union (UCASU) , you’ll have a world-class student experience, develop new skills, meet new people and have a lot of fun during your time at UCA
Unique features
4 in 1,
one University 4 campuses
100% creative
specialist University
- 2nd largest provider of creative arts education in the UK
- 4 in 1, one University 4 campuses – each campus is designed for specialist subject areas and equipped with full facilities and resources for subjects taught
- 100% creative specialist University, creativity is the beating heart of The University for the Creative Arts – at UCA you can immerse yourself in a unique study community that's completely dedicated to the arts, technology and the business of the creative industries
- Providing creative education for 160 years
- UCA Business School for the Creative Industries is the first of its kind in the UK
- Teaching and work placement arrangements with Maidstone Studios, the UK’s largest regional independent TV broadcast facility, providing the most exciting creative television space currently available
- Teaching arrangements with Royal School of Needlework, the international centre of excellence for the art of hand embroidery
Accommodation
- Canterbury: Purpose-built on-campus hall of residence - Ian Dury Housefeatures nine flats, each flat has six en-suite single bedrooms, with a shared kitchen and communal dining area
- Canterbury: Riverside Student Quarter, 20 minutes’ walk from campus, a complex of student and private residential accommodation – is completely new, with incredible social areas and even on-site fitness facilities
- Epsom: There are four different accommodation blocks available - Bradford House, Wilberforce Court, Crossways House and Worple Road – located either next to campus or a ten-minute walk away
- Farnham: University Walk located on Farnham campus next to our Film & Media Centre and library, comprises five buildings and each is identifiable by its coloured feature window - Austen House is purple, Watts House is red, Swift House is yellow, Cobbett House is orange and Godfrey House is green
- Farnham: The Student Village at UCA Farnham features purpose-built houses and flats just a minute's walk from campus
- Rochester: With views of the river Doust Way halls of residence is just a five-minute walk to campus. Flats are mainly comprised of six en-suite bedrooms, each with a shared kitchen and communal area.
Clubs & societies
- At UCA, there are a huge number of Clubs & Societies available to join, including sports, games, writing and many more. If you can't see what you're after, then you can start something new!
- UCA also have a number of Sports Clubs available to join, including football, netball, and our hugely successful Hellcats Cheerleaders!
Location highlights
Canterbury and Rochester campus, Kent
- Has 3 universities and around 40,000 students, over 22% are full time students while the national average is only 7%, the ratio of students to general residents is the highest in the country
- Kent is known as 'The Garden of England'
- It takes just 10 minutes to walk the whole stretch of Canterbury’s bustling high street (according to Google Maps)
- UNESCO has granted world heritage status to part of the city, including St Martin’s Church, St Augustine’s Abbey and the Cathedral
- Canterbury is home to Kent County Cricket at The Spitfire Ground, St Lawrence
- The distance between London and Canterbury is 55 miles. London is less than an hour from Canterbury by high-speed train
- Canterbury is well-known in the World through ‘The Canterbury Tales’ of author Geoffrey Chaucer
Epsom and Farnham campus, Surrey
- The University of Surrey (campus in Guildford), University of London's Royal Holloway(campus in Egham), and the University for the Creative Arts has campuses Surrey (campuses in Epsom and Farnham)
- Surrey regularly ranks highly as one of the happiest places to live. In 2019, 4 boroughs in Surrey were amongst the top 10 happiest places to live in the UK
- Home to Hampton Court Palace where England’s notorious King Henry VIII and his 6 wives lived
- UNESCO World Heritage site with a renowned botanic collection in the 250-year-old Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew, a gorgeous 330-acre landscape
- Thorpe Park, one of Britain's major theme parks set on an islandwhere you can experience mind-blowing rides
- The Sculpture Park, a magical spot hidden away in a hillside forest in Farnham and showcases over 600 sculptures crafted by 200 well-known sculptors
- The distance between London and Surrey is 20 miles. The train from London Victoria to Box Hill &Westhumble takes 53 min including transfers and departs every 30 minutes
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Q Why UCA Business & management courses are unique and different from courses at other UK University Business Schools?
A As UCA is a signatory to the United Nations' Principles for Responsible Management Education (PRME), your learning will focus on the UN PRME’s six key principles– purpose, values, method, research, partnership and dialogue – and emphasise ethics, inclusivity and sustainability in business.
The UCA Business School for the Creative Industries offers undergraduate and postgraduate business and management degrees that are specifically tailored to creative sectors - from fashion and music to events and luxury.
UCA Business management courses prepare student for career in some unique sectors including:
- Retail management
- Fashion buying and merchandising
- Fashion trends and forecasting
- Music management
- Record label management
- Luxury buying
- Events management
- Account management
- Venue management
- Publishing
Q How many academic schools and research centres UCA has and what are those?
A UCA has 6 academic schools & 7 research centres and clusters.
Academic schools
- School of Architecture
- Business School for the Creative Industries
- School of Crafts & Design
- School of Fashion & Textiles
- School of Fine Art, Photography & Visual Communication
- School of Film, Media & Performing Art
Research centres& clusters
- Animation Research Centre
- Crafts Study Centre (CSC)
- International Textile Research Centre
- The Centre for Sustainable Design
- Audio Research Cluster
- Cluster for Cinema/Affect/Place
- Conflict and the Creative Arts Research Centre
Q Who are the notable alumni of University for the Creative Arts?
A Some of the most famous and influential people in the creative industry passed through UCA and its founder colleges before they started their careers.Oscar-winning film makers and animators, world-renowned fashion designers, television presenters and Turner-Prize nominees are just some of UCA's high-profile graduates who have enriched the world with their creative talents. Notable alumni from the university include:
- Dame Zandra Rhodes RDI- Fashion designer & UCA’s Chancellor Emerita.Rhodes designed garments for Diana, Princess of Wales and numerous celebrities such as rock stars Freddie Mercury and Marc Bolan.In 2003 Rhodes founded the Fashion and Textile Museum in London
- MichaëlDudok de Wit - a Dutch animator, director and illustrator based in London. He won an Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film for Father and Daughter (2000) and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Animated Feature for The Red Turtle (2016)
- Chris Shepherd - a double BAFTA nominated television/film writer and director.He is mainly known for combining live action with animation
- Gareth Edwards- Visual effects artist, screenwriter, film director, cinematographer, production designer, film producer. He has directed famous films including Factory Farmed, Monsters, Godzilla, Rogue One and played cameo role of ‘Resistance Trench Soldier’ in Star Wars: The Last Jedi
- William McGregor- Award winning Film & TV Director. He is famous for student film Who’s Afraid of the Water Sprite, feature film Gwen & TV drama and series including Misfits, Poldark, One of us, His Dark Materials etc.
- Stephen Webster MBE- a British jewellery designer best known as founder of his eponymous jewellery brand
- Tracey Emin CBE RA- Turner Prize Nominated English Artist, known for her autobiographical and confessional artwork. Tracey Emin is now a Royal Academician
- Arnold Schwartzman OBE RDI- a British designer, author and film director known for his documentaries. In 1982, he won the Oscar for Best Documentary Feature, for his most famous work, Genocide. His other films are Liberation (1994) and Echoes That Remain (1991). He has designed advertisements for the Oscars for several years
- Karen Millen OBE- a British online women's clothing retailer specialising in tailoring, coats and evening wear. Formerly a high street chain with stores throughout the United Kingdom, United States, Indonesia, Austria, Denmark, Russia, the Republic of Ireland and many other European countries, since 2019 it is has been an online-only brand of Boohoo plc.
