BA Arts with Community
Please note, this programme is subject to validation.
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Overview
BA Arts with Community is a three-year programme for artists who want to explore performing and/or production arts in community contexts. Whether you are a performer, writer, musician, dancer, storyteller, production artist or filmmaker, this programme will encourage you to develop your own artform, facilitation practice and voice, as a socially engaged practitioner.
It is ideal for self-determined learners who are motivated by the positive impact that that the arts can have. Students will investigate the performing and/or production arts creatively, collaboratively, and ethically, with a range of people and settings, all underpinned by practice, theory and research.
We will continue to update this page as more information becomes available. In the meantime if you would like to know more about studying this programme, please email our Recruitment & Admissions Team: hello@rcs.ac.uk
The important details
UK Applicant Deadline:
29 January 2025
International (including EU) Applicant Deadline:
29 January 2025
Institution Code:
R58
Programme Code:
205F
Audition Fee:
TBC
Application Fee:
£28.50
Welcome to BA Arts with Community
Watch our Head of Fair Access and BA Arts with Community Programme Leader, Jesse Paul, introduce this new degree programme.
You’ll find out more about who the programme is for and what you might be doing as a student on the course.
Programme Content
- Overview
- Learning to be a Community Artist
- Explore, Evolve and Express
- Storytelling
- A Playful Practice
BA Arts with Community is a practical course underpinned by theory and full of playful experimentation. Over 3 years, you will broaden and deepen your understanding of what it is to become a community-arts focused practitioner.
You will evolve as a community artist who is imaginative, creative, reflective and who can make change. As a self-determined learner, you will be able to understand people, communicate effectively, and problem-solve. You will learn to design creative projects ethically and sensitively with and for a range of people. By Year 3, you will expand your leadership and (creative) autonomy, enabling you to make work in a range of contexts and settings.
Throughout the course, you will gain experience by experimenting in a safe and structured environment. You will explore and evolve ideas, learn to express your opinions and test theories practically.
Over the 3 years, you will have opportunities to engage with communities, community artists and cultural organisations, developing your own practice playfully, creatively and critically resulting in a developed safer praxis.
Storytelling is how we communicate – storytelling is your own unique voice. It underpins the way we share our experience in the every-day world – through conversation, text, social media, books, art, music and performance, and so it is a core component of the course. With us, you will develop your own artistic voice through exploring the fundamentals of creative, written, visual, spoken, and performed expression in a range of contexts.
Our curriculum is playful, interdisciplinary and collaborative in its design. You will have opportunities to follow your own interests within the safe structure of the course.
Taster Sessions
The BA Arts with Community team is happy to bring you a small series of free taster sessions. These sessions will give you more information about the course, facilitate discussion about what community engagement entails and will allow you to ask us questions about our new programme. Once you have submitted the form, using the link below, our recruitment team will be in touch with more information about the sessions.
Available Sessions
- Wednesday 23 October 2024 (In-Person) — 5.30pm – 7.30pm
- Wednesday 30 October (Online) — 5.30pm – 7pm
- Wednesday 13 November 2024 (In-Person) — 5.30pm – 7.30pm
- Thursday 21 November (Online) — 5.30pm – 7pm
- Thursday 5 December (In-Person Follow Up Session) — 5.30pm – 7pm
- Tuesday 7 January (Online Follow Up Session) — 5.30 – 7pm
How to Apply
Apply via UCAS Conservatoires
Applications are made through UCAS Conservatoires website. The UCAS Conservatoires application system is separate from the main UCAS undergraduate application system. You can read our guidance about using UCAS Conservatoires on our dedicated How to Apply page.
Applicants will also be required to create an Acceptd account when they apply, which will be used for scheduling interviews. More information about this process will be available soon.
We do not offer deferred entry. If you wish to commence in 2026, you must apply next year.
The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland institution code is R58. You will also require the following programme code to apply: 205F
The closing date for all on-time BA Arts with Community applications is 29 January 2025. If you submit your application after this date, we cannot guarantee that your application will be reviewed by the audition panel. If you do want to submit a late application, you must contact admissions@rcs.ac.uk in the first instance to check we are accepting late applications
Application/Audition fees
There is a UCAS Conservatoires application fee of £28.50. In addition to the application fee, each conservatoire charges an audition/interview assessment administration fee. The interview assessment administration fee is £55 for this programme. Fees are not refundable. The fees are paid via the UCAS Conservatoires website and not directly to RCS.
We recognise that auditioning and interviewing for conservatoires, drama and ballet schools can be costly. The audition assessment administration fee charge allows us to offer a thorough and positive experience to all applicants and we encourage you to get in touch to ask the panel questions and find out more about the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland to see if it is the best place for you.
We are committed to ensuring fair access to a conservatoire education for students who have the talent and potential to benefit from it, regardless of their background. In support of this, audition fee waivers are offered to applicants whose financial hardship may be a barrier to auditioning. Please see the audition fee waiver document for more information
Portfolio/Interview Information
Applicants who apply on time will be asked to:
- Submit a written piece on why community arts are important to you. We will provide you with guidelines three weeks before your interview date.
- Attend an interview at RCS. At the interview we will find out more about you, your interest in community arts and your artform practice/experience.
- Participate in a group workshop at RCS to help us learn more about how you work with others.
References
It is your responsibility to ask two separate referees to write references and ensure that these are sent to RCS.
The references must be written by two different people and we will not accept references from family, other relatives or close friends. You can submit your UCAS Conservatoires application form and send your references at a later date, but they must be received prior to your audition date.
UCAS Conservatoires provides reference forms for you to download and send to your referees for completion.
Policy
We have a number of policies and statements which you should read when applying to study at the Royal Conservatoire.
Please select the links below to read each policy.
Entry Requirements
Academic Requirements
- Scottish Higher: 3 passes (grade C or above) –
- A Levels: 2 A Levels (grade C or above)
- International Baccalaureate: minimum score of 24 with 3 subjects at Higher Level)
- Recognised equivalences
Non-standard entry is considered on a case-by-case basis.
English Language Requirements
The language of study at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland (RCS) is English. All applicants whose first language is not English will be required to provide evidence that their English language level meets the entrance requirements.
The required IELTS level for this programme is 7.5 overall, with a 7.5 speaking score and a minimum score of 5.5 in each component. Full details of all the English tests we can accept can be found on our English Language Requirements page.
Fees & Funding
Tuition fees
- Scotland: £1,820 (for most full-time, Scottish-domiciled undergraduate students, this will be paid by SAAS. More information is available on our Fees & Funding pages)
- RUK: £9,250
- International (including EU): £27,968
Please note these fees are subject to change.
Funding & Scholarships
You can find out about the funding and scholarships available for studying at RCS by visiting our dedicated page:
Cost of Living & Programme Costs
In addition to tuition fees, it is estimated that you will need between £11,200 and £15,300 per year to live in Glasgow, plus programme costs. Much will depend on your lifestyle and whether your course runs for three or four terms.
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Why RCS?
We are the only place in Europe where you can study all of the performing arts on the one campus. There is a distinctive creative energy at RCS and you’ll be made to feel part of our inclusive and diverse environment from the very beginning of your studies.
Our graduates are resourceful, highly employable and members of a dynamic community of artists who make a significant impact across the globe.
At RCS, students develop not just their art but their power to use it.
World Top Ten
We were voted one of the world’s Top Ten destinations to study the performing arts (QS Rankings) in 2024, the eighth time we have been placed in the top ten since the ranking was established in 2016.
Perform & Collaborate
Our curriculum is built around performance and collaboration and we hold professional partnerships with all of Scotland’s National Companies. Join forces across artforms and be part of the 500+ performances we give each year.
Outstanding Alumni
Our graduates are employed across the world and we take pride in the impact they have on their art forms. We’ll equip you with the skills to thrive as a professional and join their ranks.
Learn from the Best
More than 1,000 lecturers, tutors, artists, technicians, co-ordinators and support staff work at RCS across all our art forms. Study with some of the finest educators and performing and production artists in the UK.
A Campus Built for You
Our facilities are world-class. From rehearsal rooms and recording studios to our five professional performance venues, we have a campus to showcase and develop emerging artists to the highest standards.