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University of Bedfordshire
Park Square
Luton
Bedfordshire
UK, LU1 3JU
This course concentrates on the focal areas of performance and choreography as the central tenets of contemporary, professional dance practice. It is ideal for dance artists who wish to re-appraise their current dance portfolio and explore new frontiers and for emerging dance artists who want to pursue advanced training and push their own performance skills to new levels.
The course aims to closely replicate the conditions and demands of the dance industry in a variety of contexts. You will have the opportunity to perform through the model of a professional-level touring dance company, as well as show-case your work as part of the Test-Beds initiative, which provides a platform for practice-led research by visiting artists, as well as staff and students
You will enjoy access to modern, professional standard facilities including a £4.5m 280-seat purpose-built performance theatre on our Bedford campus, which is fully equipped with state-of-the-art lighting and sound systems. In addition we have three large dance studios complete with sprung floors and AV equipment, an 80-seat studio theatre, two large gym spaces for practice and rehearsal and a suite of science labs complete with specialist movement equipment.
The course also draws on and builds links with regional and national dance organisations including professional dance companies, colleges and schools.
The MA: Dance Performance and Choreography course:
- Focuses on your development as a professionally-equipped, independent and self-sufficient dance practitioner and scholar
- Offers flexibility of opportunity to engage in professional-level repertory performance practice, and to create and present choreographic work within a professional context
- Finesses your practical, theoretical and professional skills in performance and/or choreographic practice as a means of enhancing and sustaining access to employment
- Immerses you in high-quality practice-led learning and teaching that is located in excellent studio, theatre and library facilities, in addition to full access to on-campus professional performance work
- Is led and taught by tutors with internationally significant experience as academics, practice-led researchers and dance artists
- Sits within a suite of Masters-level dance courses which explore current and emerging academic and professional practice, thus enhancing your learning and growth within a community of advanced dance scholarship and practice
- Utilises existing vocational and professional working relationships with key organizations such as; Arts Council England, Regional and National Dance Agencies, Youth Dance England, Dance Development Organisations, Performance Venues, Professional Dance Companies, Independent Artists, Community Arts Organisations, Colleges and Schools, as a means of enhancing access to realistic learning experiences and future employability.
Assessment drives the curriculum, and responds to course aims and learning outcomes by creating opportunities for students to demonstrate skills, knowledge and abilities through a diverse range of practical, creative and critically informed contexts.
Assessment of practice mirrors professional working environments and expectations as far as possible, and tests skills and abilities as a means of enhancing and preparing for the demands of future employment. This strategy emphasises the course teams concern with student acquisition of professionally equivalent skills and abilities, and it places a premium on testing independent critical thinking as a catalyst for developing reflective and articulate artists, and independent and confident researchers.
Methods of assessment typify expectations of post-graduate study in advanced dance performance and include; public and in-studio performances, practical examinations, choreographic presentations, seminar presentations, oral examinations, literature reviews, essays, teaching practice and case studies. This range and diversity of testing offers opportunities for you, and for the staff team, to explore your relative strengths and weaknesses, and to respond positively to individual challenge through a supportive and personalised learning environment.
Feedback is an essential part of the learning and assessment process, and key to your improvement and development. Feedback will take several formative and summative forms, and formative responses to your work will be used to enable you to review and improve in advance of summative assessment wherever possible. Feedback methods, both summative and formative, may include; verbal commentary on ongoing practical explorations, peer and tutor response to work in progress showings, in-tutorial response to emerging written work, and summative feedback on final projects and submissions.
For students, assessment identifies:
- Achievement against Learning Outcomes
- Successful application of learning and understanding
- Areas of development and improvement
- Areas requiring specific further study
For tutors and the course team, assessment provides opportunity for:
- Reflection on currency and validity of the Course Aims
- Monitoring of individual student progress
- Identifying individual learning problems and areas of concern
- Feedback on teaching, learning and assessment strategies
- In the (Co-Lab): Interprofessional Working Project unit you will work in partnership with course-peers, and with students from the MSc Dance Science and MA Community Dance Leadership programmes, to develop an innovative and in-depth research project addressing areas of shared interest. Typically this project will draw on the expertise of the different sectors involved, and reflect the scope and nature of creative partnership-working in the professional sector. The opportunity to work as part of a group will help you to develop transferable skills such as taking initiative, communication, team working and decision making. Where group-work is used all students will achieve an individual grade for their contribution to the work.
Your ability to carry out independent research is underpinned and developed throughout the assessment tasks of the core and elective units on the course, but culminates in the design and delivery of your independent Dance Research/Dissertation project. This provides you with the opportunity to utilise your skills, knowledge and abilities as an artist-scholar, and to research and manage a large-scale project.
Upon successful completion of this course, you should be able to:
1) Evidence the ability to deliver professionally-orientated technical, creative and practical skills, knowledge and understanding in dance and performance practice.
2) Generate creative, innovative and articulate responses to complex and challenging theoretical and practical situations
3) Demonstrate the ability to apply informed critical judgement to the interrogation of current and emerging issues in dance and contemporary performance
4) Synthesise your knowledge and understanding of theoretical and practical concerns in dance and performance practice with reference to broader cultural, social and political contexts
5) Show leadership, enterprise and industry awareness in the management of cultural products, and take responsibility for safe and effective delivery with respect to agreed deadlines and parameters
6) Sustain in-depth reflection and enquiry, and demonstrate rigorous and ambitious attitudes towards the pursuance of cultural products, knowledge and information
7) Offer expertise in the selection and synthesis of ideas and information, and use an appropriate range of media to communicate effectively to specialist and non-specialist audiences.
8) Be enterprising, professional and generous in collaborative approaches and relationships towards the development and dissemination of your work and that of others
Specific benchmarking criteria are not currently established for M-level dance-based subjects.
However, the University of Bedfordshire has adopted the governments Quality and Curriculum Authority (QCA) skills descriptors for all levels of studies, and the proposed course incorporates the recommendations of the Quality Assurance Agencys publication, Master's Degree Characteristics (March 2010).
The course aims to equip you with professional-level skills, abilities and knowledge in dance, and to foster self-sufficiency and scholarship to an advanced and post-graduate level. In addition, the course aims to improve your performance in core employment-related areas and you will be encouraged to frame all aspects of your work with respect to professional expectations, and to develop a confident approach to creative risk-taking and enterprise. Emphasis will be placed on increasing your ability to manage your own learning both as an individual and as part of a team, and to be able generate innovative solutions to complex problems.
Specifically, with reference to the subject discipline of dance, the course aims to:
- Develop and refine your embodied skills, knowledge and abilities as an independent dance practitioner and artist to an advanced and professional standard.
- Enhance your ability to be selective and strategic in utilising information, ideas and knowledge in response to a range of technical, aesthetic and performative challenges in dance
- Create opportunities for you to develop and disseminate your work through a range of professionally orientated, rigorous and challenging contexts.
In-line with general expectations for Masters level students, the course aims to:
- Develop your expertise in applying reflective and critical approaches to the interrogation of your own practice and that of others as a means of sustaining development and continuing future growth.
- Enhance your ability to autonomously evaluate existing, current and emerging research and scholarship as a means of informing and contextualising your own practice.
- Foster sustained and rigorous approaches in pursuit of solutions to complex challenges.
- Extend your ability to communicate and disseminate information effectively both orally and through a range of written and audio-visual formats.
- Establish confidence in your ability to generate critical responses, ideas and information in relation to both collaborative and autonomous learning situations.
- Provide a basis for ongoing enquiry and personal and professional development through knowledge of and access to emerging fields and areas of practice.
You will have an Induction session before your course fully begins. Here you will meet your fellow students and tutors, and be introduced to the course and to university facilities. You will also find out more about academic and financial arrangements within the university, and be directed towards a range of student services, including the Students Union.
For international students, there is a dedicated International Students' Support Team. The team is there to help you settle into University life and give advice on a range of issues. There is also an international student induction programme which is designed to enrich your time of study at the University as well as help you settle in, adjust to your surroundings and get to know your way around.
Upon commencement of studies you will be assigned a Personal Tutor who will monitor your academic progress and offer support throughout the degree. Initial support with individual assessments and units is provided by unit tutors and the unit leader. Additionally, students may refer issues to the Course Manager and Academic Director.
In the event that you have an illness during the course or have significant personal or family problems the Corporate Academic Advisory Service (CAAS) offers independent and confidential advice. They are also the only people who can give you extensions to hand in dates for assignments, but they will only do this if you have a good reason.
CAAS also will make decisions on what are deemed `extenuating or `mitigating circumstances. If students have genuine extenuating circumstances that are likely to prevent them handing in an assignment, CAAS will authorise short-term extensions of an extra few days with a maximum of 2 weeks extension. If this option is not feasible and the problem is longer term, then CAAS can grant the right for a student to take the assessment at the next available opportunity. Students must have valid reasons supported by clear and appropriate evidence for any claims submitted.
You can find out more about CAAS and the services they provide at www.beds.ac.uk/studentlife/current/academic
Professional and Academic Development (P.A.D.)
It is not unusual for students to need some extra advice and guidance on developing their academic skills at some point during their studies. If you feel that you would benefit from some additional help with your studies you are able to contact the P.A.D. team via http://lrweb.beds.ac.uk/pad
P.A.D. can advise and help you to improve in many ways, including; the quality of your written assignments, organisational skills and approaches to study, time management, strategies for reading, language and IT skills.
Student language support
The University is committed to ensuring that students are confident in their communication skills and has a dedicated language support team qualified to Masters level in language and communication. Support for International students includes a Language Lab to help you improve your pronunciation and listening skills, offering access to specialised teaching rooms, an independent study centre and specialist software.
The Health Centre at Beford campus offers you care during your time as a student. The provision includes organizing access to doctors, nurses, clinics, prescriptions, travel vaccinations, telephone advice and outofhours emergency services. You will be offered the opportunity to register with one of the two General Practitioner (GP) Practices providing student health services to the University.
The University also provides a free and confidential Counselling Service, which is available to all full and part-time students.
International students are well cared for at the University. The International Support Team are available to provide practical help and support in a number of areas.
For further information and contact details of the services above go to www.beds.ac.uk/studentlife/support
Collaboration and team-working are essential skilled practices in the study of dance. The ability to acquire and utilise these transferable skills is vital to the success of much of the working practice that you will encounter in the dance and creative industries; and in wider employment contexts generally.
Therefore, throughout your course, you will have opportunities to work in groups of varying sizes, with peers from various courses, and with external agencies, to develop the skills needed to be able to operate effectively in these contexts. You are invited to consider peer response to your work as a vitally important learning resource. Issues of collective group responsibility for the development of products, group dynamics and compromise, and leadership and management within groups, are addressed in several units.
From very early on in the course, you will be working in collaboration with others and therefore emergent issues of shared responsibility, mutual trust and flexibility in response to complex situations will be addressed as central to your academic and professional development. The ability to respond intelligently and professionally to group working and collaborative situations informs the course Learning Outcomes, and in certain units is reflected in the Assessment Criteria.
The course provides regular opportunity for group discussions and feedback in classes and workshops, and through debate in response to seminar presentations and lectures. The university values diversity of background in the student body and celebrates the benefits that cultural difference can generate through varied perspectives and opinions.
The course foregrounds your development as a professionally equipped and skilled dance practitioner and scholar, who is realistically able to pursue a range of career options in dance, and in wider creative and cultural industries. Additionally, it focuses on developing your reflective, enterprising and independent management skills as an underpinning for future self-sufficiency and career longevity.
In recent years significant research has been conducted into issues concerning graduate employment in dance and the creative arts industries. The Academy Subject Centre for Performing Arts, PALATINE, and Arts Council England, have both produced influential and detailed publications on dance ecology and infrastructure, including; Susan Burns Mapping Dance: Entrepreneurship and Professional Practice in Dance Higher Education (2007) PALATINE, and Burns and Harrisons sponsored report; Dance Mapping: A Window on Dance (2008) ACE. You will make use of such publications in the course as a key resource in gaining currency and knowledge of the professional field.
Career management information is offered to you as part of the course at Induction, where you will attend an introduction to the Universitys Centre for Personal and Career Development, and be made aware of the support services they can offer. These include; one-to-one careers advisory sessions, on-line tools to develop your career management skills, assistance with constructing and editing CVs, interview techniques, opportunities for volunteering and work placements, and job searches.
The course has a professional focus and you will be expected to demonstrate equivalent and relevant professional skills and attitudes throughout. You will utilise these skills to enable you to design and manage academic and creative projects, and be responsible for critical assessment of the outcomes against intended goals. These learning opportunities reflect professional working contexts and expectations, and demand ambitious and sustained scrutiny on your part as preparation for future roles in project management and delivery.
The course is staffed by academics whose career profiles include Internationally significant roles practice-led researcher, dance and theatre performance, choreography, dance education and dance science. Additionally your learning experience is enriched through invitations to guest artists and visiting lecturers to contribute in their areas of particular specialism to the course. The work of the staff team therefore extends into a range of elite, vocational and recreational settings and it is anticipated that you will be able to take advantage of opportunities to engage in this professional network through, for example, roles as research assistants and performers. This opportunity builds and extends your knowledge and access to professional contacts and is an important resource in developing professional profile.
The course prepares you for the following career options:
- Performer: independent/freelance dance artist, focusing on independent practice and small/middle scale touring work
- Interdisciplinary Performance Practitioner: collaborative and interdisciplinary performance work, self-generated movement-based practice
- Choreographer: independent dance maker/artist, choreographer to specific brief and/or group/project, collaborative artist in interdisciplinary projects
- Educator: lecturer/teacher/leader in a range of formal HE, FE and schools context, in addition to freelance work in wider community and professional environments
- Independent Portfolio Worker in the Creative Industries: consultant and researcher
- Screen-based Performance: performer in film/video industry, commercial sector, independent film production
Further study:
This course primarily aims to prepare students for employment in the dance and performing arts sectors, but the award enables students to continue studies to Doctoral level, and/or to pursue ongoing training and continuing professional development in a diverse range of associated somatic, performative and teaching contexts.
Additional:
All applicants will be required to attend for audition and interview.
Overseas students will be enabled to submit applications via DVD submission or web-based evidence of practical performance work. Overseas students will be expected to have a strong command of English with an overall score of IELTS of 6.
A foundation degree will be of particular interest if you have completed a Modern Apprenticeship, vocational A levels, BTEC National or equivalent.
Foundation degrees are also particularly suitable if you want to qualify while working.
Many students studying for foundation degrees come to us through work-based routes so you can apply for a foundation degree even if you don’t have traditional academic qualifications.
We welcome applicants with relevant work experience.
We will consider you as an individual and take into account all elements of your application, not just your qualifications. We are looking for both breadth and depth in your current studies as well as enthusiasm for the subject you wish to study.
The general requirement is one of the following:
Postgraduate applications (MA/MSc) should be made direct to the University using the standard University application form. There are some exceptions, please see individual course descriptions for details.
As a general guide, to apply for a place on an undergraduate course (BA/BSc) at the University you need to have completed your high school education and have the required English qualification.
We have students from all the European Union member countries so we are quick to make decisions on most qualifications.
(Please note that applicants on a full student visa are not eligible for part-time study)
We recommend that you apply directly to the University where possible, as this allows us to offer the quickest turnaround time for your application.
Please read the Direct application instructions before completing the course application form.
Application forms for accommodation in the student halls at Bedford campus and Luton campus are available in the Student life section
APL is available for international students applying for undergraduate (Bachelor degree) study. Please do not use this APL form to apply for postgraduate courses.
Use the APL form to tell us about any non-standard qualifications and/or work experience you have that you think should be taken into consideration with your application. `
The APL form should be submitted at the same time as the course application form.
We regret we are unable to process APL forms from students who have not submitted a formal course application form.
Return your completed application to:
University of Bedfordshire
International Admissions
Park Square
Luton
Bedfordshire
LU1 3JU
United Kingdom
T: +44 (0)1582 489326 (non-EU Students)
F: +44 (0)1582 743469
E: international-admissions@beds.ac.uk
Teaching and learning within the course applies external QAA guidance on best practice by adopting an integrated teaching, learning and assessment strategy that demonstrates the appropriateness of the learning, teaching and assessment methods used in relation to the intended learning outcomes being developed. www.qaa.ac.uk/academicinfrastructure/benchmark/masters
The course foregrounds studio-based and practice-led enquiry, informed through critical and reflective practices, as a primary model for the development of post-graduate artist-scholars who posses advanced embodied skills and knowledge and the ability to intelligently contextualise their work.
In this respect the course responds to current and emerging research in the area of practice-led enquiry in the arts and humanities, and embraces learning through both collaborative and independent processes. It utilizes a range of approaches to creative and technical development including; researching, devising, editing, rehearsing, refining, contextualizing, presenting, discussing, interrogating, documenting, sharing, editing, selecting and performing.
Students will experience a mixture of intensive in-studio periods of development of repertory material, together with more autonomously driven experiences of independent research and self-directed study. Workshops and rehearsals provide students with a forum in which to engage in ongoing and detailed discussion, comment and critical response both to their own practice, and that of others, as a primary site for acquisition of critical and reflective skills.
Whilst requirements to work as part of a team are central and embedded throughout the course, the learning strategy also emphasises the need for effective individual communication across a range of practical, presentational, oral and written forms, and towards dissemination of ideas, information and practice to both specialist and non-specialist audiences.
Learning on the course is also enhanced through the universitys virtual learning environment, BREO. This web-based resource provides you with opportunities to engage and communicate with tutors and peers, and to access course documentation and literature, and library resources. BREO also provides students with links to further areas of university-wide learning-support, and to assistance with areas of academic and pastoral concern.
Rationale for PT Structure:
The part-time structure offers opportunity to students wishing to extend their period of study over two-years.
The key delivery strategy is the separation of the two major 60 credit units into each of the two years. This creates workload balance, and scaffolds the curriculum towards preparation for the independent Dance Research/Dissertation project.
In the first year students focus on practice-led approaches and complete 75 credits through the major core unit of Repertory and Performance, and through a 15 credit selection from the available electives.
In the second year the core units of Researching Dance and (Co-lab): Interprofessional Working project prepare students for Dissertation study through a focus on interrogating academic disciplines, collaborative practices, information gathering and literacy, and critical thinking, reflection and dissemination of research.
The Dissertation itself is the final submission point and culminates specific interests and pursuits.
The University welcomes students with disabilities. During the application process disabled students are invited to discuss their needs with the Disability Advice Team who can provide services and offer confidential advice and information about academic and personal issues, and applying for Disabled Students' Allowances (DSA).
The course will follow the general guidelines set out by the University policy on disability. (http://www.beds.ac.uk/studentlife/support/disabilities/policy).
Skills development within this course utilises the Quality Assurance Agencys (QAA) publication on Master's Degree Characteristics (March 2010) www.qaa.ac.uk/academicinfrastructure/benchmark/masters, as a benchmark for generic post-graduate achievements and abilities. Additionally, the course references current research in the areas of student-employability and graduate skills by the HE Academy Subject Centre for Performing Arts, PALATINE ( http://www.palatine.ac.uk/scpublications/palatine_publication) as a means of framing graduate expectations and aims.
Communication
Effective communication across a broad range of embodied, verbal, practical, technological and written contexts is essential to your ability to be able to demonstrate advanced scholarly and artistic achievement. Communication skills are also key factors in successful transition into employment, and in terms of sustaining careers and diversifying into further learning environments.
To help with the development of this key skilled area, you will engage directly throughout the course with tutors, peers and external bodies in the design and delivery of cultural products. You will be required to present technically adept and highly considered performance material, and to justify research and critical reflection both orally and in writing.
Teaching strategies are designed to help you develop communication skills, and throughout the course you will be engaged in the process of communicating ideas and information in a variety of forms including; rehearsals, devising and making processes, performances, design and delivery of practical workshops, seminar presentations, improvisational contexts, and in essays and other forms of writing.
In the Repertory and Performance unit, you will frequently be engaged in group discussion and reflection on your own practice and that of others, and you will be expected to offer critical, informed, and appropriately judged responses to both specialist and non-specialist audiences.
In the Dance Research Project/Dissertation unit you will take more responsibility for the management of your own research, and you will be required to communicate effectively with tutors, and peers, in negotiating roles and responsibilities with respect to parameters and deadlines.
Information Literacy
Developing confidence and skills with respect to information literacy is an important facet in improving your ability to employ a diverse range of approaches to your learning. Documenting process, communicating ideas and disseminating outputs can all be enhanced by improved skills in this area.
To help with this you will engage throughout the course with forms of writing and oral and audio-visual presentation that will enhance your skills in gathering and disseminating information with confidence and clarity. You will collect and synthesise research materials and develop cogent arguments in order to deliver seminar presentations and respond effectively in viva voce examinations. You will also become conversant in the use of key terminology and vocabulary in teaching and professional performance contexts, and an extended Dance Research Project/Dissertation project will engage you with advanced research methodologies and consolidate your skills in the utilisation of information.
You will be introduced to the various resources that the University has to offer as part of the course Induction programme. Here you will encounter the Universitys Virtual Learning Environment, BREO, which is a web-based learning and communication resource designed to aid your independent study and course management. You will also be introduced to the universitys Library, and to dedicated Library staff who are able to help with various issues in accessing and using print and electronic resources.
In the Induction process, and through the Researching Dance unit, you will explore how to; construct appropriate search strategies to find relevant information, select and evaluate resource material based on relevance and suitability, acknowledge and cite information appropriately and ethically, and organise, synthesise and present information effectively.
Research and Evaluation
The ability to engage positively and with confidence in processes of research and evaluation is a key skill in the creative arts industries and an invaluable strategy for continued development and improved learning. It is fundamental to your ability to be self-sufficient and ambitious for your work, and to enable you to challenge assumptions and investigate new areas of practice.
To help with the development of these skills you will engage throughout the course in a range of assessments and learning experiences requiring you to consider appropriate research methodologies and evaluation strategies with respect to your own practice, and to that of others. The process of performance creation, delivery and evaluation of that activity will be central to this area of skills development and you will be expected to plan and execute cogent and appropriate research processes in order to develop practical, analytical and critical skills. The Researching Dance unit will support your acquisition of these skills and you will be expected to synthesise and apply that information across all areas of the course.
Creativity and Critical Thinking
Creativity is a central tenant of artistic practice and is an essential catalyst for the development of cultural and artistic products, ideas and information. The ability to critically respond to creative impulse and action is a key skill, enabling reflective and reasoned progression of ideas towards appropriate goals. The ability to integrate skills in creative and critical thinking is key to future employability and self-sufficient learning and is a vital element within the course.
To help with the development of these skills you will explore a synthesis of practice and theory through reflective and critical writing about your own experiences of studio-based work and how that inter-relates with research on key stylistic and aesthetic approaches to the development of repertory and compositional materials.
You will have the opportunity construct your own responses to improvisatory challenges, and to lead improvisations should you select compositional options within the course structure. Other units within the course will focus on developing skills and understanding in project management, professional working processes, critical judgement, and personalised creative methodologies. Here you will fully test your ability to engage in the creative development of ideas, images and action; whilst also engaging in critical reflection on that development.
The course fosters your ability to be active and responsible in the development of your skills, knowledge and abilities, as a means of sustaining future growth and continuing your potential for learning in professional contexts. In this respect it responds to the Universitys learning initiative, S.O.A.R, which seeks to create a dynamic, reflective process for personalised learning and development through a focus on the inter-relationships between the key project-focuses of Self, Opportunity, Aspirations and Results. http://www.beds.ac.uk/bridgescetl/through/soar/soarcard.pdf
Within the course you will be encouraged to engage fully and positively in collaboration with tutors and peers, and with relevant University support services and external bodies. This will encourage you towards taking responsibility for identifying and managing areas of need and improvement. You will also consider your primary interests, motivations and strengths in relation to prospective employment opportunities, and become increasingly aware of how to effectively articulate your achievements and skills towards future employment.
At Induction you will be allocated a personal tutor who will meet regularly with you to review progress and consider ways in which you can improve; for example, through accessing the services offered by the Professional and Academic Development (P.A.D) team.
Responding to formative feedback, both from tutors and peers, is a key feature of the learning experience in the course. This form of critical response will occur regularly within practical sessions, and in seminars and tutorials, and through written forms of communication. You will be expected to respond positively and intelligently to such feedback, seeking clarification where necessary, and sustaining contributions to group discussion and debate in a professional and generous manner.
In response to summative feedback, you will be encouraged to reflect on your work in relation to the relevant assessment criteria and to explore strategies for improvement and, where necessary, how you may benefit from additional learning support. You will be given the opportunity to develop personalised approaches to study, building on strengths and addressing perceived weaknesses. You will be encouraged to take responsibility for setting realistic targets and negotiating effective ways of monitoring progress against those. You will also be engaged in advanced scholarship requiring contributions to the management of often complex collaborative learning and assessment situations.
The Progress File is a multi-perspectival document charting your development as a student. It is effectively made up in three parts:
- A formal transcript of your academic achievements which is provided and accredited by the University of Bedfordshire.
- A personal record of learning and achievement. This might include extracts from performances, choreographic practice, education packages and workshop materials, samples of written feedback, personal evaluative reports, or plans detailing the self-management of projects.
- Personal Development Planning. This is a structured and supported university-wide process, which will help you think about your own learning and achievement and plan for continuing education and career development.
In your first weeks of study you will be introduced to the use of Progress Files through meetings with your Personal Tutor, who will give you the opportunity to reflect on your current skills and consider ways in which you might improve in areas of perceived weakness and build on existing strengths. It will be your responsibility to maintain your Progress File and you will be supported in this by the generation of materials through assessment and coursework. The Progress File will allow you to consider the wider relevance of your studies, the knowledge and skills you have acquired and the value of reflective practice to personal and professional development.
Throughout the course you are actively developing your reflective skills through critical and evaluative response to your work and that of others, and through engagement with ongoing documentary practices around work-in-progress. These may take the form of learning journals in response to tutor-led or self-managed creative projects, and digital records of processes leading to the dissemination of finalised performance products.
Career and personal development workshops will be scheduled into your course, and you will have access to specialist advice from across the University including; Professional and Academic unit, the Centre for Personal and Career Development, and the Teaching and Learning Directorate. Your personal tutor will also discuss development opportunities with you during regular personal tutorials, and advise you on how to best prepare yourself for your chosen career within the structure of the course.
You will be asked to construct and maintain an active CV which will develop as a document in response to your engagement in activity both within the curriculum and through voluntary and extra-curricular opportunities.
Professional values and standards are expected of you throughout the course, and are central to developing your skills towards future employment. Adherence to professional expectations ensures that you will make best use of the resources available to you, and enable you to develop the trust and respect of peers. Since the course will involve you with external bodies and individuals, you are also expected to take responsibility for your role as an ambassador for the course and for the University generally in all public-facing environments. In order to demonstrate professional standards we expect:
- A consistently positive and respectful engagement with the course.
- Curiosity about your subject area, and ambition with regards to the success of your work
- Generosity and engagement with respect to the work of peers
- Strict attendance and punctuality in all areas of the curriculum and in additional rehearsal and development sessions.
- Thorough preparation before sessions, with the completion, on-time, of requested reading, viewing and/or rehearsal of material.
- Positive participation and engagement in all external and internal visits and projects.
- Appropriate clothing for classes, rehearsals and workshops.
- A responsible and informed attitude towards health, fitness and wellbeing.
- Adherence to health and safety protocols and constraints.
- Preparedness to undergo a Criminal Records Bureau Check where required.
- Submission of work to agreed deadlines.
- You to take responsibility for understanding and applying University regulations with regards to academic practice.
The Induction programme at the start of your course will play a central role in articulating and initiating professional standards and expectations. Informal group discussions of specific expectations and etiquette, and introductions to appropriate University support systems such as the Corporate Academic Advisory Service (CAAS), will serve to underline the importance of this area of engagement.
Expected professional standards are made explicit in key course literature, including Course and Unit Handbooks, and are re-iterated through daily practice and engagement with tutors.
Assessment processes within units will test professional standards and you will frequently encounter specific assessment criteria that address issues of engagement, attitude and responsibility. Adherence to these standards will be monitored throughout the course through attendance registers, formative and summative feedback, personal tutorials and individual and group discussions.
If you are considered to be underperforming academically, or in terms of professional attitudes, this will be highlighted at a StAR Board, where you will be requested to see your personal tutor to determine the underlying cause and to establish any extra support that you may require.
