Level: Further Education (Level 3/4)
Study Mode: Full-time
Duration: 1 year
Minimum Age: 18 years
Entry Requirements:

Minimum age 18 / Portfolio of Work & Interview / 1 A Level or AVCE orNational Diploma or equivalent

Hereford College of Arts has an enviable reputation as a specialist Arts College for the delivery of a wide range of courses in the creative arts field. The Foundation Diploma in Art and Design course which is now validated by the University of the Arts London, was established in the early 1960’s and has an excellent record and strong tradition of preparing students for undergraduate degree study and future careers in the creative arts. Undertaking a one year foundation diploma course at Hereford will be a challenging but very rewarding experience and will help you make your mind up about which specialist direction you might wish to take in the future. The course will enable you to make the transition from school, college or other background into a potentially wide range of employment in the creative arts industries via advanced study at Higher Education level.

The Foundation Diploma in Art and Design is designed to enable you to learn through discovery and exploration; this is primarily achieved through your engagement with studio based projects including workshop based activities, studio teaching and study visits. The course is very intensive, creative and dedicated to the development of individual knowledge and understanding within the context of personal exploration and experimentation. The central aim of the course is about developing really strong visual communication skills and critical approaches to practice using relevant media, processes and materials in the realisation of creative ideas. It will help you develop the ability to research, analyse and evaluate relevant information and ideas in order to develop creative solutions and to present these ideas in a considered and comprehensive portfolio as part of unique and personalised body of work.

We look for students who are highly motivated, creative problem solvers and passionate about creating their own work; people who are prepared to challenge expected norms, take risks, be innovative and inventive, explore ideas and have fun doing so. This is a course about developing the creative individual and their ability to use evaluative and reflective skills in order to take responsibility for personal learning, development and decision making.

The course is divided into 3 parts, each part made up of a series of units which include projects designed to test your creative responses to a wide range of project briefs.

Part One
(Unit 1: Research Methods, Unit 2: Ideas Development, Unit 3: Materials and Methods, Unit 4: Evaluation and Reflection.)
In Part One, you will be introduced to fundamental issues regarding the range of disciplines that make up contemporary art, design and media practices. This stage of the course which is diagnostic in approach is designed to help you learn through discovery and exploration about different ways of researching, evaluating and generating ideas using a variety of media and processes. It is underpinned by a series of personal tutorials designed to support the development of an independent work ethic and informed thinking about potential course choices at undergraduate level.

Part Two
(Unit 5: Research, Ideas and Methods, Unit 6: Preparation for Progression)
Part Two of the course gives you the opportunity to start to integrate your research ideas and creative approach to the generation of ideas within a chosen subject or discipline. At this stage of the course you will further refine your thinking about specialist study at degree level underpinned by the preparation and production of an appropriate portfolio of work and personal statement. You will receive expert advice about the preparation of your portfolio and UCAS application from your group tutor.

Part Three
(Unit 7: Project Proposal and Realisation)
Part Three is the final stage of the course in which you initiate your own research and take responsibility for your own learning by proposing and undertaking a project which reflects your skills, abilities, ambition and chosen area for future study. The realisation of your project at this ultimate stage of the course should demonstrate evidence of your ability to integrate planning, research, project management, ideas generation, evaluation and reflection as part of your repertoire of creative skills. This last unit increases to level 4 (degree level) graded at Pass, Merit or Distinction, and determines the final overall grade awarded for the Foundation Diploma in Art and Design.

Assessment
Assessment is an integral part of the learning process and throughout the course you will receive continous feedback about the development of your work via formative and summative methods of assessment. Individual and group critiques as well as feedback at individual tutorials are the preferred methods used at Hereford for Tutors to provide you with comprehensive advice about your work.

The Foundation Diploma in Art and Design course at Hereford College of Arts provides an excellent grounding and introduction for those students who wish to pursue a career in the creative arts industries; including for example a career in Fine Art, Design, Film, Photography, Fashion, Textiles and Art and Design Education, to name but a few. The majority of our students who study on the course are successful in gaining entry to a wide range of reputable degree courses throughout the UK including undergraduate study here at the College.

Any student successfully completing this course and is recommended for a full-time degree course at Hereford College of Arts by their tutor, and is offered a place will be guaranteed a generous bursary in their first year of study with a further financial benefits in each subsequent year. This bursary is not means-tested and does not affect a student’s eligibility for applying for maintenance grants or loans. Click here for more details

We are pleased that so many of our students become very successful and go on to make significant contributions to the creative arts field. If you are keen to be part of this creative community working alongside talented and highly motivated individuals and with an ambition to succeed…..your steps to success could begin here at Hereford!

Many graduates progress to employment across the broad spectrum of film and digital media, photography, design, crafts, illustration, fine art, fashion, textiles, ceramics, print, graphic design and 3D design.