Program Overview

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BA (Hons) Photography (with integrated foundation year)

Capture the world in its many facets and faces. Create and seize unique moments in time. Explore your creative passion and bring it to life.

Course Overview

Our foundation course in photography will give you a strong grounding to experience life through the camera lens to advance your studies to degree level. You’ll learn all the essential photography basics - how to use a variety of cameras, both digital and film, how to make creative images, work in a studio and on location, and how to print your photos to a high standard.

In addition, on this photography course you’ll explore historical and contemporary photographers and images to encourage you to develop your own style and flourish as a photographer ready for year one of the degree course.

Former students have gone into a range of photographic careers, become freelance photographers, curators and editors and some have secured solo exhibitions in art galleries just months after graduating.

On this course you will...

• Develop your photographic and editing skills while experimenting during workshops and outdoor activities.
• Work with students across the creative arts, collaborating on projects and exploring new mediums.
• Be taught by industry experts with experience working freelance and within creative organisations.
• Have the opportunity to exhibit your work publicly alongside the work of classmates across the arts.

Key Details

• Recruiting to: UK / RoI / Settled in UK, EU / EEA / International
• Course Location: Carlisle - Brampton Road
• Institute: Institute of Education, Arts and Society
• UCAS Code: W640
• Delivery Style: In-Person
• Course Duration: Full-time: 4 Years
• Course Start Point: September
• Award: BA (Hons)

Minimum entry requirements

• 48 UCAS Tariff points

Tuition fees

• £9,535 - UK | year
• £14,900 - International | year

Related Courses

• BA (Hons) Photography
• BA (Hons) Wildlife Media

Course Structure

What you will learn

Photography is a fantastically versatile discipline and as such offers many routes into employment within the creative industries.

At the University of Cumbria, we have designed a programme that allows you to experiment with techniques, develop your practical skills, study through critical thinking and enquiry.

Informed by the clear integration of practice and theory, and by an expectation of your intellectual engagement in Photography practice, you will develop transferable skills.

Year one

Your introduction to photography will see you exploring a variety of lens-based and other creative media through contemporary and traditional ways of working. You will be experimenting and exploring photography using a variety of techniques and processes.

• Making Images
• Making Objects
• Visual Enquiry
• Environment
• Portfolio and Progression

Year two

In your second year, you will focus on The Photographic Environment which deals with the cornerstone craft of photographic image capture, both analogue and digital, in application to and investigation of, your photographic interests.

Research and contextual skills will be established at this level as we introduce the work of significant photographers and explore how influences and themes can be tracked through history, thereby setting the stage for the development of your own work.

• Photographic Image Capture
• Cultural Contexts
• Picturing Place: Culture & Identity
• Collaborative Practice

Year three

In your third year, you will explore the Relevant Photograph. This attends to socially engaged practice. Working with the local community and culture with input from industry professionals you will learn to apply your craft to a greater purpose. You will also develop your contextual explorations into photographic theory, critical thinking, and analysis.

We have developed an enrichment module in year two where you can experience and practice traditional techniques and cutting-edge technologies.

Creating the space for experiment and play is enormously valuable in promoting creativity, problem-solving skills, risk-taking, and imagination. The module is intended to expand your practice skills midway through your degree enabling you to explore your own potential and readying you for a more focused journey through your final year and employment beyond that.

• Networks & Narratives: Photography in the Community
• Immersive Image-Making
• The Photographic Interface: Industry Experience
• Theorising Photography

Year four

Your final year will revolve around an Independent Showcase where you will take full charge of your own practice and bring it into the public domain.

Research, practice and professional skills come together in the final year of study to refine and showcase your personal vision and expression of photographic practice. At this point, you will be an independent, intelligent and competent practitioner with a personal portfolio representing the breadth of your skill and the depth of your engagement.

• Blueprint of Practice
• Independent Research Paper
• Resolution of Practice

Teaching & Assessment

How you will learn

Your foundation year will help you prepare for working independently as an artist and photographer, and get you ready for year one of the degree course.

Throughout the course, you will learn through a variety of approaches to ensure the development of skills, concepts, and knowledge. In this time you will develop both social and independent learning techniques through:

• Lectures and seminars
• Tutorials
• Practical Workshop Sessions
• Problem-based Learning
• Group work
• Independent Learning
• Briefs

How you will be assessed

A key feature of this IFY programme is the opportunity to work closely with a range of specialist creative staff, as well as alongside students studying fine-art, graphic design and illustration.

By learning as an integrated member of this creative community you will experience, first-hand, the methods and techniques used by other visual practitioners. This will foster an appreciation of how your work fits into the wider world of the visual arts and provide you with greater confidence, knowledge and skills as you progress to Level 4 of the programme.

Most of your studies will be centred around practical projects that have been designed to not only help you practice and improve visual skills, but also develop your study skills, methods of research, critical and analytical abilities, and your ability to manage your time and plan your work.

A range of graded and non-graded assessments will take place throughout the course. Our programme is designed to encourage inquiry, curiosity, and the exploration of personal interests, allowing you to tailor briefs as you become more confident in your practice. Work and learning outcomes are in tune with industry demands, preparing you for professional practice through portfolios, exhibitions, photo books, and mock interviews.

You’ll be continuously involved in the assessment of your own work and that of your peers; developing critical interpersonal and team-working skills. Examples of the assessment types you will tackle include: Class critiques, written essays, peer review, portfolio reviews, mock interviews, and exhibitions.

Entry Requirements

• 48 UCAS Tariff Points
• A-levels: All subjects are accepted for entry to this course.
• T-levels: P (D or E)
• Access to HE: 45 Credits at Pass
• CACHE Technical Level 3 and Level 3 Extended Diploma: D
• OCR Cambridge Technical & Edexcel/Pearson BTEC Level 3 (National) Extended Diploma: PPP
• Scottish Highers: 48 UCAS Tariff Points
• Irish LC Highers: 48 UCAS Tariff Points
• Other experience: Pearson Level 3 National Diploma MP

Fair Admissions

When you apply, our Admissions specialists will review your whole application. We are looking for your potential to succeed so will assess your qualifications, any relevant work experience, your personal statement, and references.

When we review your portfolio, we are assessing your ability to benefit from the course you have applied for. Any offers are based on your whole application and the review of your portfolio of work

Where you have received a conditional offer subject to achieving particular grades/UCAS tariff scores, and do not quite meet these scores, please try not to worry, where vacancies exist our Admissions specialists will review your whole application again and take account of any mitigating circumstances and reassess your suitability for the course.

Selection Criteria

As part of the application and selection process, we are looking for your commitment to this programme. In your personal statement, you should demonstrate your motivation for choosing Photography and reflect upon any experience you have gained.

All places are offered subject to successful interview and portfolio. Please prepare your portfolio carefully to show evidence of your photography, creativity, art work and idea development. There is no one, ideal portfolio and we are used to looking at the work of students from many different courses and colleges.

At interview you have the opportunity to demonstrate what inspires you and what interests you in life and this is what will inform your work and your career as a photographer.

The Integrated Foundation Year programme supports your return to education and are specifically designed for students who have the ability to study for a degree but may not have all the necessary qualifications, skills or experiences to join the degree in Year 1

Contextual Admissions

Going to higher education can transform a person’s life. We use contextual admissions to make sure that we are accessible to everyone who has the potential to succeed. Qualifications and grades are important, but they are considered alongside other information that helps universities to identify potential and widen access to university level study. For some individuals, the disadvantages they have experienced in their life mean that they have not been able to demonstrate their full academic potential. Where a person lives and their personal circumstances can all affect their educational attainment.

We take this context into account and look for an applicant’s potential when making admission decisions. The University of Cumbria will make offers to applicants that live in postal code regions with the lowest participation in Higher Education (Polar 4 quintile 1 – you can check your postcode here) and care leavers, offers will be made at the bottom of any UCAS Tariff range. Attendance at our Masterclasses and Summer Schools will also allow applicants to receive an offer lower within the tariff range. (T&Cs apply)

Language requirements

Please follow the link to check language requirements for this programme here.

Fees & Funding

Tuition Fees

2025 - 2026

• £9,535 - UK
• £14,900 - International

2024 - 2025

• £9,250 - UK
• £13,575 - International

The figures above don't include accommodation and living costs.

Tuition fees are set annually and are subject to review each year. The University may therefore raise tuition fees in the second or subsequent years of a course, in line with inflation and/or the maximum permitted by law or Government policy. Students will be notified of any changes as soon as possible.

International Finance

At the University of Cumbria, we offer affordable tuition fees for international and EU students looking to study at one of our main four campuses. No matter your choice of course or career path, our International Team is here to support you.

Read More

Funding

£6,125 for integrated foundation year.

More Information

We have a wide range of scholarships, bursaries, grants and funds available to support you throughout your studies with us. This includes the Cumbria Bursary - a non-repayable bursary designed to support first year students with a household income of less than £25,000.

Student Finance

Additional Costs

There will be some additional costs. For example all students will need to purchase stationery and may wish to purchase some text books. Extra costs may also be applicable to cover field trips, membership fees etc. although such features are usually options within the course.

Books are reviewed annually and are therefore subject to change, course welcome information will provide you with an indicative list for the year.

Books and Journals

Most core text books are available via the University's library, however students may wish to buy copies of any texts used to support your learning on your course. This could cost between £50 - £100 per year.

Stationery

Students should budget for stationery and consumables for your own personal use. This should include notebooks, pens and pencils for taking notes in class and/or in the field. Students should also budget for the purchase of USB pen drives, as well as occasional printing and photocopying costs incurred in the preparation or submission of coursework. Whilst you will choose how much you need, expect to pay around £30 - £40 per year for these items.