Fine Art (BA)

Got a question?

Please contact our enquiries team if you're not sure that you have the right experience or qualifications to get onto this course.

Email: enquiries@southampton.ac.uk
Tel: +44(0)23 8059 5000

You’ll study 6 studio practice modules - one per semester – which form the heart of the course. You'll also study 6 modules that frame the context for your developing practice in terms of history, theory and professional application.

Year 1 overview

This year you’ll:

• experiment with methods and materials

• build up your research and critical reflection skills

• understand how contemporary practice relates to its history and to the wider world

At the end of the year, you’ll be guided to choose the right studio space for your practice in year 2.

Year 2 overview

You'll deepen your practice by:

• engaging in further experimentation and challenging your thinking

• specialising or working across media, as your creative ‘voice’ develops

You’ll choose 1 module from a list of theoretical and career-focused topics to individually tailor your programme of study:

• Business Skills for the Creative Industries

• Creative Futures - exploring democratic forms of innovation, including collaborative and environmental practices, activism, social innovation and economic sustainability

• Creative Writing

• Image and Branding

• Visual Culture - the role of images in the construction of identity and the ways in which we understand the world around us

• Framing your Practice - analyse and reflect on the relationship between your work and other relevant creative and cultural outputs

You’ll expand your experience by choosing one of these options: 

• refine your focus, develop creative awareness and independence, and elevate your ambition with a studio practice module

• spend a semester at a partner university in Europe or further afield

Year 3 overview

Your final modules prepare you for professional practice and employment. You'll explore:

• experimentation within an increasingly defined practice that's starting to yield ambitious, professionally organised and audience-oriented outcomes

• professional engagement practices

• critical reflection of your work

You'll bring together your practical learning in a single, self-directed, fully-resolved exhibition as your final major project.

Want more detail? See all the modules in the course.

The learning activities for this course include the following:

• lectures
• classes and tutorials

Course time

How you'll spend your course time:

Course leader

John Gillett is the course leader.

As a graduate of our fine art degree, you’ll have proven yourself to be a self-motivated, flexible, and highly creative individual. Our graduates have succeeded in a diverse range of fields, including:

• fine art

• film

• music

• TV

• publishing

• museums

• galleries

• teaching

• art therapy

Careers services at Southampton

We are a top 20 UK university for employability (QS Graduate Employability Rankings 2022). Our Careers and Employability Service will support you throughout your time as a student and for up to 5 years after graduation. This support includes:

• work experience schemes

• CV and interview skills and workshops

• networking events

• careers fairs attended by top employers

• a wealth of volunteering opportunities

• study abroad and summer school opportunities

We have a vibrant entrepreneurship culture and our dedicated start-up supporter, Futureworlds, is open to every student.

Tuition fees

Fees for a year's study:

• UK students pay £9,250.
• EU and international students pay £20,340.

What your fees pay for

Your tuition fees pay for the full cost of tuition and all examinations.

Find out how to:

• pay your tuition fees

• calculate your student finances

Accommodation and living costs, such as travel and food, are not included in your tuition fees. Explore:

• accommodation costs

• living costs

• budgeting advice

Bursaries, scholarships and other funding

If you're a UK or EU student and your household income is under £25,000 a year, you may be able to get a University of Southampton bursary to help with your living costs. Find out about bursaries and other funding we offer at Southampton.

If you're a care leaver or estranged from your parents, you may be able to get a specific bursary.

Get in touch for advice about student money matters.

Scholarships and grants

You may be able to get a scholarship or grant to help fund your studies.

We award scholarships and grants for travel, academic excellence, or to students from under-represented backgrounds.

Support during your course

The Student Services Centre offers support and advice on money to students. You may be able to access our Student Support fund and other sources of financial support during your course.

Funding for EU and international students

Find out about funding you could get as an international student.

When you apply use:

• UCAS course code: W190
• UCAS institution code: S27

Apply for 2023 entry

What happens after you apply?

We will assess your application on the strength of your:

• predicted grades
• academic achievements
• personal statement
• academic reference

Applicants will receive an invitation to submit their portfolio whilst their academic qualifications are being reviewed. Download our portfolio advice for fine art (PDF, 150.10 KB).

We'll aim to process your application within 2 to 6 weeks, but this will depend on when it is submitted. Applications submitted in January, particularly near to the UCAS equal consideration deadline, might take substantially longer to be processed due to the high volume received at that time.

Equality and diversity

We treat and select everyone in line with our Equality and Diversity Statement.

Got a question?

Please contact our enquiries team if you're not sure that you have the right experience or qualifications to get onto this course.

Email: enquiries@southampton.ac.uk
Tel: +44(0)23 8059 5000