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Fine Art BA (Hons)
Study level: Undergraduate
Fine Art BA (Hons) is an exciting course that enables you to develop your creative voice, by exploring both, traditional and innovative approaches to contemporary art, reflecting the ever-evolving creative industries.
Year of entry
Location
Coventry University (Coventry)
Study mode
Full-time
Sandwich
Duration
3 years full-time
4 years sandwich
Course code
W100
Start date
September 2025
Course overview
From day one of this practice-based course, the programme team will encourage you to develop your creativity, by challenging and inspiring you to cultivate your technical, critical, reflective and enterprising skills to support you in forging a successful and sustainable career in contemporary art.
On this studio-based course, you:
- have the opportunity to experiment with digital, intermedia and traditional art forms, within our new spacious studios4
- have access to a range of professional workshops, industry-standard software, photographic and media resources4
- will be taught by practising artists and creatives who have exhibited at prestigious venues across the world (staff may be subject to change).
Rated Gold Overall
Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) 2023
5 QS Stars for Teaching and Facilities
QS Stars University Ratings
Top 5 Student City in England (Coventry)
QS Best Student Cities Index 2025Why you should study this course
- Fine Art BA (Hons) is a leading-edge undergraduate programme that is distinctive and innovative in its approach. It critically positions art practice as a catalyst within society, and artists as ‘activators and activists’ in global, social, cultural, political, economic, and civic contemporary and future contexts.
- This practice-based course will challenge and inspire you to develop your creative, technical, critical, and reflective skills through 2D, 3D and 4D art practice. You will aim to gain valuable employability attributes to help support you in forging a successful and sustainable career and you will learn how, as a graduate, you can contribute to and expand traditional roles assigned to artists to initiate cultural change.
- Following the university’s recent major investment in art and design, Fine Art is now located in the newly re-configured Delia Derbyshire building. It benefits from a vibrant array of advanced facilities, including modern teaching spaces and technical workshops, innovative technology, multi-use, lens-based, immersive technology, and hyper studios as well as a public gallery space4.
- You will become part of a community of artist practitioners, who are taught by practising artists, art historians, and writers who have exhibited and published their work internationally (staff subject to change). You may have the opportunity to attend expert guest lectures. In the past we have hosted Simon Pope, Jane and Louise Wilson, John Stezaker, Peta Murphy Burke, Terry Atkinson, Merlin James, Harry Pye, Zineb Sedira, Bob and Roberta Smith, Thomson & Craighead, (guest lectures are subject to availability).
- The course offers you lots of different career paths in fine art, and across the creative industries. Past graduates have won the prestigious John Moore’s Painting prize and the Independent Vision Award for Curatorial Achievement, secured positions such as curator at the Museum of Contemporary Art Antwerp, editor of ‘Madame Wang’ an international journal for collaborative arts practice, and Cultural Events Organiser for Coventry Cathedral, and had artwork selected for the International Neu/Now Festival in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Many graduates have progressed on to post-graduate study inhouse or at other internationally respected institutions.
Art and Design Graduate Showcase 2024
The Coventry Degree Showcase is an annual event to celebrate and showcase our graduating students’ work.
What you'll study
This course has a common first year.
The common first year enables you to work alongside students doing similar courses to you, to widen your knowledge and exposure to other subject areas and professions. You will have the opportunity to collaborate with other students, so you can share your insights and experience which will help you to develop and learn.
If you discover an interest in a specific subject you have studied, upon successful completion of your first year, you could swap degrees with another course in your common first year (subject to meeting progression requirements).
Common first year courses
- Fine Art BA (Hons)
- Illustration BA (Hons)
- Photography BA (Hons)
We regularly review our course content, to make it relevant and current for the benefit of our students. For these reasons, course modules may be updated.
How you'll learn
The School of Art and Design's teaching and learning mirrors the needs of the creative industries. We aim to ensure that our graduates are equipped with the skills and attributes needed to become industry specialists, leaders and innovators to drive social responsibility and design global change.
The creative industries’ ability to be entrepreneurial, innovative and embrace change underpins our art and design courses. Our studio and workshop culture aims to ensure you are socially responsible in our creative community and develop critical thinking in research and ‘make’ processes. Our global initiatives should give you skills to become collaborative communicators and make you culturally competent in the ever-changing world of art or design.
The course provides you with the opportunity to learn how to recognise your strengths and learning needs, how to self-reflect and grow. You will look to identify your personal development and drive your projects for ambitious career aspirations.
Teaching contact hours
As a full-time undergraduate student, you will study modules totalling 120 credits each academic year. A typical 20 credit module requires a total of 200 hours study. This is made up of teaching contact hours, guided and independent study.
Teaching hours:
Teaching hours vary each semester, year of study and due to module selection. During your first year you can expect 15-18 teaching hours each week. You will also have the option to attend optional sessions including time with a progress coach or to meet with staff for advice and feedback. As you progress through your studies, teaching hours may reduce.
Guided and independent study:
Throughout your studies, you will be expected to spend time in guided and independent study to make up the required study hours per module. You’ll be digging deeper into topics, review what you’ve learned and complete assignments. This can be completed around your personal commitments. As you progress through your studies, you’ll spend more time in independent study.
Online learning:
As an innovative university, we use different teaching methods including online tools and emerging technologies. So, some of your teaching hours and assessments may be delivered online.
Assessment
This course is assessed using a variety of methods that recognise module-specific skills and learning. You are predominantly assessed by coursework and assessment methods prepare you for diverse contexts.
Assessment methods may include:
- practical coursework
- digital coursework
- individual work
- group work
- live presentations
- video presentations
- video essays
- academic essays.
The Coventry University Group assessment strategy ensures that our courses are fairly assessed and allows us to monitor student progression towards achieving the intended learning outcomes.
International experience opportunities
Our teaching is underpinned by a contemporary view of art practice; this is reflected strongly in the course curriculum which includes taught sessions on Globalism, Travel and Migration and therefore aims to provide opportunities to engage with students, staff and artists from a culturally and geographically diverse range of backgrounds.
Each year, when possible, we also offer study trips abroad2. Previous trips have been taken to Berlin to visit galleries such as Hamburger Bahnhof and the KW Institute for Contemporary Art, Amsterdam to visit the Rijksmuseum, Stedelijk Museum and Foam Gallery and Venice to view artworks and attend events at the Venice Biennale.
Students may also get the opportunity to engage in Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) projects with participating institutions and other international universities around the world.
Please note that all international experience opportunities may be subject to additional costs, competitive application, availability, and meeting applicable visa and travel requirements, and are therefore not guaranteed2.
Fine art is dynamic. Artists respond to change and contemporary experience, frequently through collaboration with others. It is always a pleasure, therefore, to see students thriving in our vibrant, shared, studio environment, using the facilities to develop skills, explore ideas and establish a visual language.
Jane Ball, Course Director Fine Art (2022)
Entry requirements
Typical entry requirements:
Fees and funding
| Student | Full-time | Part-time |
|---|---|---|
| UK, Ireland*, Channel Islands or Isle of Man | £9,535 per year | Not available |
| EU | £9,535 per year with EU Support Bursary** £19,850 per year without EU Support Bursary** |
Not available |
| International | £19,850 per year | Not available |
If you choose to study this course with a professional placement2 or study abroad year, you will need to pay a tuition fee3 to cover your academic support throughout your placement year. Students commencing their professional placement in the academic year 2027/28 will pay £1,500 if they are paying UK fees, or £1,800 if they are paying international fees.
For advice and guidance on tuition fees and student loans visit our Undergraduate Finance page and see The University’s Tuition Fee and Refund Terms and Conditions.
The University will charge the tuition fees that are stated in the above table for the first Academic Year of study. The University will review tuition fees each year. For UK (home) students, if Parliament permits an increase in tuition fees, the university may increase fees for each subsequent year of study in line with any such changes. Note that any increase is expected to be in line with inflation.
If you choose to study this course with a professional placement, the University will charge the tuition fees stated above for those on a placement during Academic Year 2027/28. The University will review professional placement tuition fees each year. For UK (home) students, the University may increase fees for each subsequent year of study, but such that it will be no more than 5% above inflation.
For international students, we may increase fees each year, but such increases will be no more than 5% above inflation. If you defer your course start date or have to extend your studies beyond the normal duration of the course (e.g. to repeat a year or resit examinations) the University reserves the right to charge you fees at a higher rate and/or in accordance with any legislative changes during the additional period of study.
We offer a range of International scholarships to students all over the world. For more information, visit our International Scholarships page.
Tuition fees cover the cost of your teaching, assessments, facilities and support services. There may be additional costs not covered by this fee such as accommodation and living costs, recommended reading books, stationery, printing and re-assessments should you need them. Find out what's included in your tuition costs.
The following are additional costs not included in the tuition fees:
- Any optional overseas field trips or visits: £400+ per trip.
- Any costs associated with securing, attending or completing a placement (whether in the UK or abroad).
*Irish student fees
The rights of Irish residents to study in the UK are preserved under the Common Travel Area arrangement. If you are an Irish student and meet the residency criteria, you can study in England, pay the same level of tuition fees as English students and utilise the Tuition Fee Loan.
**EU Support Bursary
Following the UK's exit from the European Union, we are offering financial support to all eligible EU students who wish to study an undergraduate or a postgraduate degree with us full-time. This bursary will be used to offset the cost of your tuition fees to bring them in line with that of UK students. Students studying a degree with a foundation year with us are not eligible for the bursary.
How do you know if you need to pay UK or international tuition fees?
Facilities
The Delia Derbyshire building lies at the heart of our Coventry city campus. This multi-million pound investment in the arts is home to the Schools of Art and Design, Media and Performing Arts, Humanities, and Psychological, Social and Behavioural Sciences. First opened to students in 2023, the spaces enable you to mix with like-minded students, getting hands-on with cross-disciplinary projects or immersing yourself in the studios with cutting-edge virtual reality and mixed-reality technologies. Our aim is to bring you sector-leading facilities helping you explore your way to your future career.
- Ceramics, Glass and Casting Workshops - allow you to produce a range of forms from a variety of materials including resin, glass, ceramics, plaster and cement.
- Printmaking Workshops - allow you to explore a range of printing processes from screen printing to etching; cyanotypes to lino cutting.
- Sublimation and Vacuum Forming Studios - allow you to print onto a multitude of surfaces and then form them into the sculptural shapes
Facilities are subject to availability. Access to some facilities (including some teaching and learning spaces) may vary from those advertised and/or may have reduced availability or restrictions where the university is following public authority guidance, decisions or orders.
Careers and opportunities
Professional experience is embedded into our course and as such, throughout this course you will produce professional outputs which can be exhibited in public and used to engage with curators, arts and cultural administrators, publishers, agents, media organisations, and for applications to competitions, residencies, exhibition opportunities and potential employers, as examples2.
The university's Talent Team is on hand to offer tailored career and enterprise support if you wish to gain employment or take advantage of professional practice opportunities within course specific industries. It aims to provide specialist careers information, advice and guidance to all our students from their first year through to final year and beyond graduation, helping them receive the opportunities to reach their desired career outcome (subject to availability)
Many of our past students pursue careers as exhibiting artists or utilise transferrable skills towards creative futures in arts administration, museum and gallery curating, careers within the media, photography, art therapy, design and teaching.
Further study
Some of our past graduates have progressed to postgraduate study here on our suite of MA courses, doing Design Management, Fine Art Painting, Animation, and Illustration. You may be entitled to an alumni discount on your fees if you decide to extend your time with us by progressing from undergraduate to postgraduate study.
Others have gone on to undertake further study at both international universities and British institutions including the Royal College of Art, Chelsea College of Arts, University of Edinburgh, Central Saint Martins, University of Warwick and the Slade School of Fine Art.
Taking a year out of my degree to do a placement with Jaguar Land Rover Group was honestly one of the best things I've ever done for my practice. Working in industry gives you a new perspective, both on your practice, and the way you use your time. I've come back more focused, and the professional working environment has taught me to use my time more effectively. Taking the time away from my degree gave me the space to really think about, and contextualise my work, resulting in development that I don't think would have been achieved without that time in industry.
Tasmin Morgan, Level 6 Fine Art student (2021)
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