BA (Hons) Photography (Top-up)

Key Details

Available at:
Rhos-on-Sea
Study Mode:
Part-time, Full-time
Course Length:
Full-time:1 year, 2 days per week OR Part-time: 2 years, 1 day per week
Monday & Friday, 9am-5pm
UCAS Codes:
WW65

BA (Hons) Photography (Top-up)

University-level Courses

Full Time

There are two ways to apply to study for a full-time higher education course - either through UCAS or directly to the college.

Applying through UCAS:
You cannot apply for this course through UCAS.

Applying to College:
If you only want to study at the college, or if you already have the qualifications/experience to meet the requirements for your course, you should apply directly to the campus of your choice.

The application system is currently closed.

Part Time

If you are applying to study part-time you can apply directly to the campus of your choice.

The application system is currently closed.

Course Description

Are you looking for the opportunity to develop your photography skills and become part of a professional world? Would you like to understand more about how the industry works?

If so, then this is the course for you.

On this course, you will learn about the concepts of visual language; undertake serious research and meaningful photographic work, and share your images. We will help you develop the confidence to exhibit and publish your work, and to express your ideas with clarity, skill and knowledge.

If you have already completed the FdA in Photograph (or equivalent), then this course gives you the opportunity to progress onto Level 6 and gain a full honours degree.

You can also join the course if you have a suitable level 5 qualification in Photography or lens-based media that meets advanced prior learning requirements.

Entry Criteria

Academic requirements:

Entry onto level 6 will be direct for those students progressing from the GLLM FdA Photography Foundation Degree to the GLLM Bachelor of Arts Degree (Hons) after successful completion of the foundation degree. Applicants have to satisfy the requirement that they have successfully studied the equivalent of 120 credits at HE level 4 and 120 credits at HE level 5.
Where students take a break from their studies following completion of their Foundation Degree, applications for direct entry should be made via the Credit Transfer process.
Entry onto level 6 for students who not have the above requirements or are applying to level 6 from another institution will be considered on an individual basis in line with GLLM credit transfer policy, based on previous successful study of 120 credits per level in a compatible qualification (within the time frame outlined in the policy). Or by supporting their application with the submission of a portfolio for accreditation of prior learning (APL/APEL/RPEL), in accordance with GLLM regulations and policy.
All places are subject to a satisfactory interview with portfolio.

Selection and interview procedures

Each student will be invited to attend an interview, based upon meeting the selection criteria as per Grŵp admissions guidance. Applicants will need to submit proof of qualifications with original certificates along with a portfolio, and any proof to meet additional entry requirements as outline above.

Language requirements

GCSE in Welsh or English as first language, grade C/4 or above
Any degrees, diplomas or certificates eligible should have been taught and assessed in Welsh or English, or
For overseas applicants, for entry onto Levels 5 or above, English fluency to IELTS 6.0 or higher (with no element less than 5.5)

All places are subject to satisfactory interview.

If your qualifications do not meet the entry requirements listed above, we would still encourage you to apply for the course you're interested in, as many of our courses will consider learners based on their previous work and skills experience rather than their qualifications.

Delivery

The course is delivered through a blend of the following:

Seminars
Critiques
Tutorials
Interactive Lectures
Web based learning
Individual and group activities
Group Studio Critiques
Independent study
Visiting speakers and lecturers
Visits to national and international exhibitions

You will work in purpose-built facilities, supervised by highly qualified tutors, many of whom are practitioners.

Throughout the course, your Personal Tutor will review your progress, help plan future assignment choices and discuss your portfolio development.

Timetable

Full-time:1 year, 2 days per week (typically 9.00 am – 5.00 pm)
Part-time: 2 years, 1 day per week (typically 9.00 am – 5.00 pm)

Fees

Visit our course fees page for information on full and part-time degree course fees.

Financial Support

Visit our financial support page for information on the range of support available.

Additional Costs

Degree Students would be encouraged to have their own Photography and digital development equipment to support their personal development at this level such as that which is available in the department. The department has a store of photographic equipment that includes digital and analogue cameras both medium format and large format. The studio is supported with portable lighting kits. Equipment can be booked on a fortnightly loan system and longer-term agreements can apply if needed.

Additional costs can include opportunities to participate in study visits and students should budget approximately £250 for this. This figure is given as guidance only, and further cost can be incurred depending on opportunities.

More detailed information on other costs associated with your course and work placements/work experience (if applicable) will be outlined in the programme validation document and explained to you at your interview.

Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol Incentive Scholarship 2022-2023

Coleg Llandrillo, Rhos-on-Sea: For more information on the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol's Scholarships, or for assistance in completing the application, please contact Grŵp Llandrillo Menai's Branch Officers on colegcymraeg@glllm.ac.uk.

Start date

September

Contact:

For specific course enquiries, please contact:

Tim Williams (Programme Leader): willia2t@gllm.ac.uk

Diane Roberts (Administration): robert18d@gllm.ac.uk

For general enquiries about our degrees, please contact: degrees@gllm.ac.uk

Assessment

Assessment is 100% coursework, which includes

Individual presentations
Digital research document/ blog
Evaluation
A Photography Installation
Case studies
Dissertation
Exhibition

Feedback

Where relevant, assessments will be marked and returned to students with constructive and developmental feedback. Effective feedback combines information which enables students to understand the strengths and limitations of their past performance, and information which enables them to recognise how future performance can be improved. Students will be provided with feedback in a timely manner and this feedback will justify how the grade has been awarded. Students will have the opportunity to reflect on the feedback given and identify their strengths, things they found challenging and areas for development that they will feed forward to their next assessment. Feedback will include linking evidence to assessment criteria to demonstrate how the student will have met the learning outcomes.

Progression

Completion of this course will provide a range of options in education and employment. You will have developed the skills required for employment or self-employment within a range of creative industries, including photographic art as well as design and publishing. The diversity of the course including employability skills and the links learners develop with local organisations/ employers ensures all graduates are well rounded and prepared for the modern workplace with a critical understanding of photography and other media forms.

In education, you will have the opportunity to progress onto higher-level research, a PGCE, MA or PHD level study.

There are a number of career paths and industries open to graduates in Photography including;

Freelance photography including medical, culinary, fashion or editorial
Publishing
Journalism
Public relations
Working with local or national arts organisations
Museum curator
Art Director
Arts administrators
Teaching/ lecturing
Photographic assistant / technician
Studio and gallery assistant
Picture editor
Web designer
videographer
Film

Campus Information Rhos-on-Sea

For every 10 credits, students should engage with around 100 notional hours of learning. This will be approximately 30% direct learning contact, and 70% independent student learning.

Level 6

Contextualising Practice (20 credits, compulsory)
This module will enable learners to reflect on their level 5 achievements to identify a specialist pathway to realise new work. The focus will be on development that is appropriate to outcomes in distributional contexts. The key contexts are books, exhibition, mixed or multi-media considerations, and web-based platforms. The module would generally require that the learner demonstrates ability across a broad digital skill-set. Learners keen to use specialist analogue processes would be required to facilitate the transfer of their work to a digital domain.

A research proposal leads towards supported technical development in a key area or a combination of key areas. Typically, these might be analogue or digital arenas with output to print, bookmaking, projection, installation, moving image and web design, or any other proposed outcome agreed with the module leader. Experimentation and process will lead to a portfolio of images presented in a skeletal context such as fine print, book dummy, latent web pages, short moving image product or other agreed context.

Key considerations are audience awareness, context of distribution and reception of work.

The learner will qualify projects as meaningful outcomes by demonstrating that contextual frameworks are considered elements of their own practice. (Presentation 20%, Written evaluation 30%, Portfolio 50%)

Final Major Project (40 credits, compulsory)
The photography final major project is a key component of final assessment and it is the opportunity for learners to demonstrate their creative, technical and production skills that are informed through critical understanding, the application of theory and a realisation of practice.

The context for the final major project will be the end of year show, which will be held onsite or at an offsite venue determined through negotiation and agreement in semester 1. As a group, learners can choose an overarching rationale for the event and to consider this as an element of the contextual framework for their practice – or, they can choose to see their contribution as independent of external associations and reliant only on the allocation of space to each learner.

Each learner will address the unique interests of their practice through independent study and a tutor supported pathway. There will be an emphasis on critical theory and practice that is interrogated through historical and/or contemporary contexts that informs critical evaluation of practice in the context of a final show.

The notion of ‘a show’ will be explored broadly to include a variety of possibilities including the use of digital space. (Written evaluation 10%, Exhibition 80%, Planning document 10%)

Research Pathways (20 credits, compulsory)
This module enables learners to consider specific research methodologies that will support their academic interest and help inform a critical framework for their own practice. The evaluation of work from L5 is an opportunity to consider new lines of enquiry or to consider the development of existing themes for research that is appropriate to L6.

Learners will be required to keep a professional online blog that reviews and evaluates research experiences throughout the year, and reflects the development of a relationship between research and practice over time. This will include information gathered from visits to galleries, festivals, conferences and exhibitions, direct contact with industry and relevant research experiences. There is an emphasis placed upon developing a digital visual language and a resource that supports the dissertation as a shared platform that invites dialogue between peers and the teaching team. (Written evaluation 20%, Digital research document 80%)

Dissertation (40 credits, compulsory)
This module develops the interface between research and practice explored in the first phase of the course. Students are required to carry out detailed research alongside critical enquiry to enable them to reflect on their own practice and to position this practice in relation to broader historical and contextual concerns.

The module allows students to undertake a major research project which is linked to their photographic practice. The research work carried out for this module will enable students to produce and present a focused body of work that synthesises their critical evaluation and contextual understanding and consider the relationship between this and their own practical work. (Presentation 20%, Dissertation 60%, Preparatory essay and literature review 20%)