IF you have a natural talent for the arts, or a love and interest in dance, drawing, photography, writing, drama, filming and design, chances are you have been told that you could not make a career out of it. This couldn’t be further from the truth.

Careers in arts do exist, and can indeed be very rewarding financially. From producers and creative directors, to marketers and teachers, creative skills have never been in as much demand as they are now in the digital age.

Need convincing? What about shopping online? A web designer created the website; a graphic designer created the cool visuals; a photographer photographed the product and the holiday scenes that made you fall in love with that piece of clothing; a content writer wrote the description and the adverts; actors and models were filmed by a videographer for the advert; a fashion designer created the clothes; a fabric designer created the beautiful pattern on the fabric.

That sofa in your house? A furniture designer created the design; a fabric designer created the pattern; a set designer created the homey feel that made you think about how it would look in your home; a photographer shot the image that went on the catalogue and the website; and a graphic designer created the catalogue and the social media post that made you walk into the store.

We are surrounded by creative people and creative skills. The way we consume media, information and products today has, in most cases, been primed, edited, written, enhanced or produced by a creative in some shape or form. And that is before we even talk about things you do for entertainment.

Your favourite TV programme? An actor acted the part following the guidance of a director; a choreographer created the fight scenes; a producer and videographer recorded it all; an animator created the special effects; a set designer created the location; a costume designer researched and created the period clothes; a scriptwriter created the story. A whole industry worked behind the scenes to make that TV programme possible - most of them creatives.

Careers in the creative industry exist, and are within your reach. You don’t have to deny your talent or your passion. Here, at the University of Cumbria, we focus on making it possible. Our Institute of the Arts has been a hub for the creative community since the 1950s, with historical links going back to 1822, and we offer undergraduate and postgraduate courses in an array of artistic disciplines, with a focus on getting you fully prepared and connected for a career in the arts.

A Creative Hub in Carlisle

Our campus facilities are equipped to suit, with the latest equipment, software and hardware, as well as workshops, dark rooms, bespoke studios, and permanent work stations in professional settings. We also work with industry experts, influencers and employers, to create a programme of events that enhances our students’ learning and career opportunities.

Studying at our Institute of the Arts in Carlisle, you will also be surrounded by more than 1,000 other likeminded creatives - the perfect environment to make friends and share aspirations. And our previous students have gone on to become Turner Prize winners, Oscar winners, Pixar animators, Disney designers and Bollywood producers as well as professional artists and owners of businesses that support the art industry. 

If you want to work in the creative industry – we’ve got you.

Media Arts

The Institute of the Arts, at the University of Cumbria, offers BA Hons degrees in Film & Television, Games Design, and Wildlife Media, taught by academic experts with a wealth of industry experience.

Our courses have a practical focus and around 75 per cent of your time with us will be spent on practical projects, including field trips and internships in active, real-life productions. We also take part in national and local events, including Games Expo in Brighton. This is aimed at giving our students the opportunity to make great industry connections and, in fact, we have had students hired by directors and production companies as a result of their internship projects.

Media Arts students also benefit from enviable facilities, and visits from TV practitioners, filmmakers and designers. 

Ignite your passion and build long-lasting industry connections. Study Media Arts at the University of Cumbria. 

Art & Design

From Fine Art, Illustration and Photography, to Graphic Design and Games Development, we offer art and design courses at undergraduate and postgraduate level.

Our courses are taught by industry experts using the latest equipment, software and hardware. Our campus benefits from bespoke studios and workstations. For budding photographers, our dark room even offers colour processing as well as extensive analogue film camera facilities.

Every year our students are visited by national and international industry influencers, and have the opportunity to embark on an international research trip. In 2018/19 it was Lisbon, in 2019/20 it will be Berlin.

Love to draw, snap away, sketch and design – we’ve got you.

Humanities, English Literature and Creative Writing

The landscape in the North of England has inspired and produced some of Britain’s literary greats, so studying at our campuses in Carlisle and Ambleside - the latter set in the stunning rolling heels of the Lake District, a UNESCO World Heritage Site - should most definitely get your creative flow on track.

From Creative Writing and English Literature, to Art & Cultural Leadership, History & Heritage, and Teaching Foreign Languages, our courses are taught by experienced professionals that maintain their own practice, often with links in industry.

Our students also benefit from a calendar of events and visiting academics and writers, who share industry knowledge and offer networking opportunities.

Performing Arts

Home to two theatres, with the main theatre seating around 200 people, and three further dance studios, our Institute of the Arts offers BA Hons degrees in Acting, Dance, Musical Theatre, and Performing Arts. 

Stanwix Theatre is at the heart of our student performances, as well as visiting professional productions throughout the year. Visiting theatre companies, this year, have included Hull Truck, Compass, Trestle, Théâtre Sans Frontières, and Quondam. Comedy highlights include Eddie Izzard, Ardale O'Hanlon, Al Murray, John Hegleyand, and Neil Innes. The Limbik Theatre Company brought their award-winning shows, ‘The Harbour’, and ‘The Messenger’, and Immersion Theatre (co-founded and directed by James Tobias, a graduate from our Performing Arts course) is also regular visitor. 

Our students benefit from theatre research trips; visiting directors and choreographers from leading national performances working with students every semester; enviable studio facilities for rehearsing, practising and project activities as well as lectures; and most importantly, our end of course ‘Show Stopper’, when we host two auditioning events in London and Manchester, and invite talent management agencies as well as theatre and dance companies to preview the talent graduating from our Institute of the Arts. 

Turn your passion into a career. Study Performing Arts at the University of Cumbria.

Whatever you are into, whatever you want to be, whatever you want to achieve, we’ve got you. Places still available for 2019/20. Call our Clearing Hotline for more information on +44 (0)3722 912 992

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