Our aim is to enable you to work independently as an artist, to generate and develop your own ideas and to undertake further study by progressing to year 1 of the BA Fine Art or the BA Fine Art and History of Art degree.
Studio Practice
You'll be allocated a studio space, which forms the focal point of your activities, and are assigned a Studio Practice tutor who will support and assess your progress. You take part in regular tutorials (one to one discussions) and studio seminars with staff and other Extension Degree students. You will also be introduced to a range of technical art practice areas to support your work.
Critical Studies
A Critical Studies module designed specifically for the needs of the programme runs throughout the year. You attend lectures and seminars that introduce you to key issues and debates relevant to the understanding of contemporary art and you have seminars based on tutor-led visits to museums and galleries. This helps you to understand the context within which the work that you make is seen and understood. The module also helps you to become familiar with the various modes of writing that are used to discuss contemporary art.
English language
If your first language is not English, the Extension year includes three hours a week of English for Academic Purposes in classes tailor-made for art students; in some cases, and depending on your English proficiency, you may not have to take these. If you need to attend the classes, at the end of the year you take an English Language examination (English for Academic Purposes), which you must pass to proceed to the next level of your degree.
Integration
As an Extension Degree student you'll be integrated into the BA in Fine Art programme through mixed level group presentations and discussions. They enable you to benefit from contact and shared activity with other students working across different levels.
Assessment
Studio Practice is continuously assessed through your participation in individual tutorials and group seminars and presentations of your work during the first two terms. In addition to this, in the summer term there is an assessment of Studio Practice through a formal presentation of your work in your studio space.
Critical Studies is assessed through submission of essays and collaborative presentations in the first two terms.
There are exams for English for Academic purposes in the summer term. The Portfolio of Art Writing is assessed through submission in the summer term.
If you complete all modules successfully, you proceed to the next level of your degree.
