Foundation Diploma in Art and Design

The standard entry requirements for this course are as follows:

One or a combination of the following accepted full level 3 qualifications:

• 1 A Level or equivalent
• Or equivalent Level 3/EU/International qualifications, such as International Baccalaureate Certificates – two at ‘Higher Level’ and one at ‘Standard Level’ - all Grade 4 or above.

And three GCSE passes at grade 4 or above (grade A*-C).

Entry to this course will also be determined by assessment of your portfolio.

APEL - Accreditation of Prior (Experiential) Learning

Exceptionally applicants who do not meet these course entry requirements may still be considered. The course team will consider each application that demonstrates additional strengths and alternative evidence. This might, for example, be demonstrated by:

*          Related academic or work experience

*          The quality of the personal statement

*          A strong academic or other professional reference

*          OR a combination of these factors.

Each application will be considered on its own merit but we cannot guarantee an offer in each case.

English Language Requirements

IELTS level 5.0 or above, with at least 4.5 in reading, writing, listening and speaking (please check our main English Language requirements webpage).

Applicants who require a Tier 4 General Student Visa must take IELTS Academic Test for UKVI which is approved by the UK government for your UK Visa and Immigration (UKVI) application. No other test can be accepted.

Achieving English and Maths GCSEs

Under existing funding regulations, if you are a UK or EU student who is under 19 and has been accepted onto one of our Foundation Diploma in Art and Design courses, but did not achieve a grade C/4 or above in GCSE English or maths, you will be given the opportunity to retake the exams as part of your course. This is Government Policy (post 16 Study Programme) and UAL are obliged to undertake this and ensure that GCSE teaching is provided and that students attend.  At present we are awaiting guidance on this requirement for EU students post Brexit. Please check this web page for updates.

When you enrol, you will need to provide evidence of your qualifications. We will automatically enrol you onto a compulsory GCSE study programme if you have not achieved a minimum of a grade C/4 in English or maths.

If this applies to you, it is important to note that attendance is mandatory and you will have to attend the sessions alongside your FAD course.

In addition those students who are taking the GCSE maths and English retake programme will ultimately be withdrawn from the Foundation Art and Design course as well if their attendance falls below the 85% level required, and this can happen at any point throughout the academic year. A separate attendance record is kept for these classes.

Here are a few key things to note:

We will keep a record of your attendance in accordance with the FE Agreed Absence and Attendance Policy. If you fail to turn up to your GCSE classes regularly and on time, your progress towards your Foundation Diploma could be affected.

• You must re-sit your GCSE English and/or maths exams as part of the study programme, but failure to achieve a grade C/4 or higher will not affect your achievements on your Foundation Diploma in Art and Design unless you fail to attend the retake programme.
• The exams do fall just out of term-time, but a weekly timetable will be distributed to enable you to plan your time accordingly.
• It is highly likely that a degree-level or post-graduate course at UAL or any other institution may require you to have a grade C/4 or higher in English and maths, so this is a good incentive to enable you to achieve the relevant grades.
• You will have the benefit of small, dedicated classes every week during term time with specialists within the field of education.

We select applicants according to their potential and current ability in the following criteria:

• Visualisation skills (e.g. drawing, photography, 3D works)
• Research and investigative skills
• Creative thinking and problem solving abilities
• The use of a range of materials and processes
• An interest in art, design or related subjects.

Include evidence that demonstrates your commitment to, and enthusiasm for, art and design as well as your potential to achieve the Foundation Diploma. Evidence may be in the form of ideas, notes, research, photographs or sketches, including work you've made outside of your school course work.

What happens next

Initial application check

We check your application to see if you meet the standard entry requirements for the course.  If you meet the entry requirements you will be invited to submit a digital portfolio through UAL’s online portfolio review system.

Digital Portfolio

You should upload 30 pages of your work for consideration against our entry criteria.  Please note that these can include photographs of worksheets or short videos of sketchbook pages and that you might lay out multiple works in one page as long as they are clearly visible (for example: presentation boards). You can also include links to blogs or other online sites.

Please read the following advice carefully:

Visualisation skills

• Include evidence in the form of drawings you've made from observation of the world around you such as landscapes, cityscapes, interiors, people and objects (Don't rely on drawings from photographs.)
• Do include experimental drawings, developmental designs, storyboards, technical design drawings, photographs, details of materials you have used.

Successful applicants demonstrate this through their sketchbook pages, worksheets, drawing, photography, textural or 3D work etc. and there is no prescribed way to submit the evidence.

Research and investigative skills

• Include evidence of the primary and secondary research sources which have informed the projects in your portfolio.  Your research should be annotated with critical analysis which demonstrates your engagement with the sources you have identified.
• This can be in the form of scanned pages, photographs or even a short video of a sketchbook, notebook or blog. It is important for us to see how research informs your practice as an artist or designer.
• It is also important for us to see where you gather your research from; site visits, gallery visits, books, magazines, visits to websites etc. if you aren’t able to do carry out this research in person.

Successful applicants demonstrate this in a variety of ways and there is no prescribed way to submit the evidence.

Creative thinking and problem-solving abilities

• Show us that you have considered a wide range of ideas for your projects. This could be shown in sketchbooks where initial ideas are recorded, selected and developed.
• We are particularly interested in the development of ideas and the process you have gone through, the problem you have identified and solved in order to arrive at a final outcome.
• Organise your work so that all stages of the development and decision-making processes are evident, including your reflections and evaluations.

Successful applicants demonstrate this through sketchbook pages, worksheets, drawing, photography, model making etc. and there is no prescribed way to submit the evidence.

The use of a range of materials and processes

• Where possible, show us that you have explored a range of methods. These could include drawing and collage techniques, model making, photography, printing techniques, fabric manipulation or any others.
• We do not expect your portfolio to contain all the above items. Your range of materials and method investigation will largely be determined by your current course of study.

Successful applicants demonstrate this through sketchbook pages, worksheets, drawing, photography, textural or 3D work etc. and there is no prescribed way to submit the evidence.

An interest in art, design or related subjects

• This will largely be covered by your personal statement but also Include evidence of your interest in culture and society and show how your interest informs your art and design work.
• This could take many forms such as an interest in politics, the media, history, religion, philosophy, music, theatre, cinema, literature or new technologies – how for instance is that interest reflected in your work.

Successful applicants can demonstrate this through their personal statement, in sketchbook pages and notebooks and there is no prescribed way to submit the evidence.

The only files that can be uploaded as part of the portfolio are:

• Images: bmp, gif, jpg, jpeg, png
• Audio: mp3, mp4, ogg, wav, wma
• Video: avi, mp4, mpg, mpeg, mkv, mov, wmv

Portfolio advice

Your portfolio should contain a range of visual material, including sketchbooks, research and photographs of 3D pieces or work of scale.

• Make sure you allow enough time to prepare your portfolio properly. A well-presented portfolio takes a lot of time to organise, so don't disadvantage yourself by leaving it to the last minute.
• Your portfolio can be organised chronologically or thematically, with sketchbooks linked to final outcomes. Arrange your work so that the admissions tutor can easily follow the way you've developed an idea from initial research to the finished piece (thematic).
• You should add small titles or captions to the bottom of images.
• Take clear photographs of your large, heavy and/or 3D work, include close-up images of details, and label with information about scale, materials and technical processes
• Time restraints mean we can't view films, videos or DVDs. Please present this work in the form of storyboards and/or stills.
• The quality of the work is more important than the quantity.
• Include photos your sketchbooks and reflective journals. We are particularly interested in seeing work or research that you have carried out in your own time.
• If you've studied design and technology subjects, don't forget to include this work too.

Having prepared your portfolio, check it against these recommendations. Please remember that a poorly prepared portfolio makes it difficult for the admissions tutors to judge your suitability for the course.

For more portfolio advice please visit: https://www.arts.ac.uk/study-at-ual/apply/portfolio-advice

Following the review of the portfolio we select a small number of applicants to move on to the next stage of the process.  These applicants will be invited to an online group interview.

Interview

Following the review of the portfolio we select a small number of applicants to move on to the next stage of the process which is an online group interview.  At the online group interview we will ask you to talk about one project so please be prepared for that.

How we notify you of the outcome of your application

You are likely to receive the final outcome of your application through the UAL portal before 1^st May 2021.

Please note that applications made to this course may be given an alternative pathway offer. This decision will be based on our assessment of your creative and potential interests.

Feedback

This course receives a high number of applications, and unfortunately we cannot provide feedback to everyone who is unsuccessful. We can only provide feedback after you have had an interview.

If you would like to request feedback – please email csm.ukeu@arts.ac.uk. We are only able to provide feedback to you directly, or to someone you have told us in writing can receive it on your behalf.

Each and every application is carefully considered by a member(s) of our academic team. With so many strong applicants to choose from, it is often a very difficult decision to make. If you are unsuccessful, you are welcome to apply to us again in the future.

Most students go on to study at degree level at Central Saint Martins or at other UAL colleges. Some go on to study at colleges nationally or internationally. Others choose postgraduate study or enter the world of work directly.

For details of the wide range of careers support provided for students, please visit our Careers support page.