Program Overview

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Acting - MA / PgDip

Overview

The PG Dip/MA Acting course is designed for graduates who wish to undertake advanced studies to further their knowledge and widen their experience of acting in order to take up a professional acting career upon graduation. The course seeks to create independently minded performers and practitioners who are able to apply a variety of methodologies to their creative work.

What's covered in this course?

The MA Acting course is a full-time programme delivered intensively over one year (4 terms – September to September) that provides a fast track to entering the industry in the UK. Whilst there is a specific focus on entering the UK industry, the focus of work within the repertoire is, initially, European, and later widens to include repertoire from World theatre. Studies focus on the ensemble, the tools of Psychological Realism, and the demands of classical texts, professional preparation, and personal research.

Why Choose Us?

• Royal Birmingham Conservatoire staff have vast experience, both within the UK and internationally. Staff have worked with well-known individuals, projects and companies such as the BBC, the RSC, the NHS, British repertory and festival theatres, and much more.
• To ensure high quality tuition, we normally have a maximum of 16 students enrolled onto the course each year.
• By joining Royal Birmingham Conservatoire, you will also be part of Birmingham City University, meaning you’ll have access to all the University’s state-of-the-art facilities, including TV and radio studios and a green screen, all of which you’ll have the opportunity to experience.
• Our graduates include Nicola Coughlan, who have gone on to perform in prestigious shows such as Bridgerton and Derry Girls.
• One of the most unique things about our programme is the solo performance project, performed as part of our yearly MA FEST.
• For the final part of the year, our students perform a solo project as part of MA Fest. These performances go on to venues such as the Edinburgh Fringe, Camden/Brighton Fringe, the Birmingham Comedy Festival and the Strawberry One Act Play Festival in NYC, where former students have won major acting awards.

Where our students go

• Our students have gone on to perform in shows such as:
  • Magic Mike in the West End - James Percy
  • The National Tour of Life of Pi - Lilian Tsang
  • Deborah Tracey created roles in the musicals Fisherman’s Friends and Standing at the Sky’s Edge and is currently in Matilda at the West End.
• Our students have also gone on to work with companies such as:
  • Leicester Curve Theatre
  • UK National Tours
  • Channel 4
  • The Royal Shakespeare Company
  • The Royal National Theatre

Entry Requirements

Essential requirements

Applicants will normally be expected to have a 2:2 honours degree, or equivalent, in Acting or a related subject. The MA option is designed for those with suitable academic abilities.

The course is also suitable for professional actors seeking a refresher course.

Admission to this course is by audition. For full details and advice about auditions and interviews, please visit the Acting Auditions and Interviews section of the Conservatoire website.

We ask that applicants only apply for one RBC postgraduate Acting course in an application cycle.

Applying with international qualifications

See below for further information on applying as an international student.

International qualifications

Please see our international pages for further details of the entry requirements for our courses and information relevant to applicants from your country.

English language requirements

IELTS 7.0 overall with no less than 6.5 in each band, or equivalent. See details of accepted qualifications.

If you have a qualification that is not listed, please contact us.

Fees & How to Apply

UK students

Annual and modular tuition fees shown are applicable to the first year of study. The University reserves the right to increase fees for subsequent years of study in line with increases in inflation (capped at 5%) or to reflect changes in Government funding policies or changes agreed by Parliament. View fees for continuing students.

Award: MA

Starting: Sep 2025

• Mode: Full Time
• Duration: 1 year
• Fees: £14,600 in 2025/26

Award: PgDip

Starting: Sep 2025

• Mode: Full Time
• Duration: 9 months
• Fees: £9,735 in 2025/26

International students

Annual and modular tuition fees shown are applicable to the first year of study. The University reserves the right to increase fees for subsequent years of study in line with increases in inflation (capped at 5%) or to reflect changes in Government funding policies or changes agreed by Parliament. View fees for continuing students.

Award: MA

Starting: Sep 2025

• Mode: Full Time
• Duration: 1 year
• Fees: £19,970 in 2025/26

Course in Depth

PG Dip

In order to complete this course a student must successfully complete all the following CORE modules (totalling 120 credits):

• Acting Exercises 40 credits
• Acting Skills 20 credits
• Workshops 1 and 2 20 credits
• Professional Studies 20 credits
• Production 20 credits

MA

In order to complete this course a student must successfully complete all the following CORE modules (totalling 180 credits):

• Acting Exercises 40 credits
• Acting Skills 1 20 credits
• Workshop 1 and 2 20 credits
• Professional Studies 20 credits
• Production 20 credits
• Major Project 60 credits

Employability

Enhancing employability skills

This MA Acting course is designed to not only develop your practical performance skills but to help you expand your intellectual knowledge of the creative industries. You will finish this course with the skills expected of the contemporary actor, by studying the theory and practice of key acting processes. You will be able to engage critically and creatively, mapping out the performance possibilities of a production text.

Facilities & Staff

Our Facilities

• Location: School of Acting students are primarily based in the idyllic location of Bournville, south Birmingham, near to Cadbury World, Stirchley, and the student community in Selly Oak. Facilities include rehearsal and teaching spaces, a resource room with a range of plays, and a student common room.
• Performances: Students regularly perform at professional theatres across the West Midlands, including The Birmingham Central Library Theatre; Crescent Theatre; Hippodrome Studio (Patrick Centre); The Old Rep Theatre and The Drum.

Our staff

• Alex Taylor: Course Director, MA and MFA Acting | Head of Postgraduate Studies
• Stephen Simms: Vice Principal - Acting, Professor of Actor Education