Program Overview

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Overview

The Photography MA is part of the School of Art and Humanities MA Art & Design Suite, an innovative approach to postgraduate taught education that brings together disciplines from across art and design to produce a collaborative programme of courses that foreground the shared practices, processes and values of art and design in the 21st century.

Photography opens up a transformative space. As a subject it is at the forefront of the global design world – creating brand imagery, fashion styles, art direction and product representation for a global audience. It also documents issues and presents trends, creating new visual languages to mediate on prevailing global contexts.

The Masters course provides an opportunity for you to challenge and hone your professional approaches to the discipline for a range of creative platforms and contexts.

Our course aims to enable you to:

• Critically appraise the importance of social, ethical, technological and cultural dimensions of photography as applied to your personal practice and that of others.
• Evidence advanced knowledge and understanding of photography and its current and emerging global applications such as, but not limited to, advertising, architectural commercial, editorial, fine art, fashion and photojournalism.
• Systematically plan, negotiate and implement topical research to substantiate a coherent body of advanced photographic practice.
• Contribute to the principles and processes of photography in supporting innovation within commercial or creative industries.
• Evidence awareness and relevance of your work in relation to professional standards in photographic practice through high-quality post-production skills, sector awareness and self-promotion through marketing, social media and portfolio development.

Key Information

Entry requirements

Entry requirements for this course are normally:

• An Honours degree (2:2 or above) in a relevant subject or an equivalent professional qualification.
• Alternative qualifications and/or significant experience may be accepted, subject to approval.
• International students with qualifications in 'creative' or 'practice' subjects should submit a digital portfolio (pdf) of work with their application.
• All suitably qualified applicants are normally invited in for an informal chat with a portfolio or considered for admittance under alternative arrangements.

If your first language is not English, you will need to meet the minimum requirements of an English Language qualification. The minimum for IELTS is 6.0 overall with no element lower than 5.5, or equivalent.

Start dates

• 22 September 2025
• 12 January 2026

Duration

1 year full-time

Course Detail

• Modules
  • Research Methods and Project Proposal
  • Creative Innovation and Entrepreneurship
  • Creative Studio
  • Professional Platforms Art and Communication
  • Photography Major Project
• Teaching and Assessment
  • The course is delivered through a combination of lectures, seminars, practical workshops and a programme of design projects.
  • Your module specification/course handbook will provide full details of the assessment criteria applying to your course.
• Teaching excellence
  • Our teaching staff rank first in England for the proportion with higher degrees and teaching qualifications, as well as being top five for those holding doctorates.
  • We are second in the country for National Teaching Fellowships, which mark the UK’s best lecturers in Higher Education, winning a total of 24 since 2008.
  • We won the first Global Teaching Excellence Award, recognising the University’s commitment to world-class teaching and its success in developing students as independent learners and critical thinkers.

What can I research?

Research plays an important role in informing all our teaching and learning activities. Through research our staff remain up-to-date with the latest developments in their field, which means you have the opportunity to benefit and develop knowledge and skills that are current and highly relevant.

Facilities

The University of Huddersfield offers a range of facilities to support your studies, including:

• Virtual Reality Lab
• Barbara Hepworth Building
• Mac suite
• Printing Facilities
• Photography studio
• Phidias Lab for VR

Fees and Finance

• Tuition Fees - full-time: In 2025/26 the full-time tuition fee for UK postgraduate students on this course will be £8,900 (Band 2).
• Materials: You will need to cover the cost of manufacturing and printing your work during the course. The approximate cost of these items in recent years has been approximately £500.

Career Support

We know you’re coming to university to undertake your course, meet new people and broaden your horizons. However, we also help you to focus on life after you have graduated to ensure that your hard work pays off and you achieve your ambition.

So while you’re here (and even after you graduate) the Careers and Employability Service offer professional help, support and guidance, including industry-supported workshops, careers fairs and one-to-one guidance sessions.

Further Study

Following successful completion of your Master’s course, there are opportunities to progress onto research study such as your PhD.

Research Excellence

Our researchers carry out work that makes a real difference to people's lives:

• We are in the top 50 UK universities for Research Power.
• Three quarters of all our research is world leading and internationally excellent.
• Over 60% of our research environment was classified as world leading and internationally excellent, especially in Music, Biological Sciences, Architecture and Built Environment, Social Work and Social Policy, History and Communication and Media Studies.