Commercial Photography
Entry requirements
UCAS Tariff
Although many of our students do come in with top grades and high UCAS points, these aren’t necessarily essential for entry. We typically ask for a minimum of 104 UCAS points, but we understand that talented artists, designers and makers can have a wide range of relevant strengths and skills beyond formal qualifications. We’re just as interested in exploring your portfolio as we are in seeing your grades.
You may also need to…
Present a portfolio
About this course
This course has alternative study modes. Contact the university to find out how the information below might vary.
**Arts University Plymouth is an arts university for the 21st century, preparing students who are uniquely placed to provide creative solutions to the complex global challenges of a changing world. Formerly known as Plymouth College of Art, we were granted full university title in Spring 2022. We are now the city of Plymouth’s first and only specialist arts university, allowing us to offer our students a dynamic and unique learning experience.**
In May 2022 we were awarded the **Best Small or Specialist University at the 2022 WhatUni Student Choice Awards**, coming top in a list of well-respected specialist UK universities, based on unbiased and honest reviews from students across the UK, in a category that highlights the quality of our provision as a specialist creative university.
**From lighting and framing a dramatic fashion shot to visualising concepts for advertising campaigns, commercial photography has the power to influence and inspire. Our BA (Hons) Commercial Photography course will help you succeed in today’s dynamic and competitive photographic industry, providing you with the knowledge and skills to flourish, combining visual awareness and innovation with technical excellence, professional understanding and business competencies.**
This course will equip you with advanced technical skills in studio and location lighting, digital capture and post-production techniques. This is an integrated programme of study with industry-oriented assignments, hands-on workshops and expert tuition, using sophisticated camera and lighting equipment. You will also develop your industry knowledge and professional skills to enable you to find work in high-end commercial photographic practice.
Our curriculum is geared towards employability and enterprise. We develop photographers who are technically proficient, visually sophisticated and professionally astute – who understand trends in the industry and how to pitch for business, and who graduate with a broad range of transferable skills that enable them to succeed in the creative industries.
Working both individually and in interdisciplinary groups and with real-world mentors, you’ll gain vocational experience to be able flourish both academically and professionally. You will acquire a broad range of entrepreneurial abilities in marketing, self-promotion and business development, enabling you to develop a financially sustainable practice, fundamental to your success in the industry.
With support from our teaching and technical team, as well as practitioners from industry, you’ll develop your confidence in responding to client briefs while demonstrating creative problem-solving and conceptualisation skills. In your second year, you’ll work with real industry clients to build a professional portfolio. You’ll also benefit from our affiliation with the prestigious Association of Photographers (AOP). Our curriculum includes a rich schedule of visiting lecturers and photographers, and we are regularly visited by talented photography alumni, including industry professionals such as Harry Borden, Suki Dhanda, Tom Oldham and Candice Farmer. Many alumni also provide work placement and assisting opportunities. You’ll also be encouraged to enter graduate showcases and awards; one of our recent graduates won Best in Show – first runner-up, at Free Range 2019.
We create an environment in which commercial photographers can develop their professional practice and gain a wide range of skills and knowledge, enabling them to shape their futures and make a positive impact in the photographic industries.
Modules
We provide a distinctive and contemporary programme of study in a learning environment where students with a range of aspirations can flourish creatively, academically and professionally.
We help students to acquire a broad range of entrepreneurial abilities in marketing, self promotion and business development, enabling them to develop financially sustainable practices, and the ability to thrive in the industry.
We also help students acquire the skills, attitudes and behaviours that enable them to apply their learning confidently in different situations, both within the field of photographic practice and in wider creative, professional and collaborative contexts.
Tuition fees
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The Uni
Arts University Plymouth
Arts, Design and Media
What students say
We've crunched the numbers to see if overall student satisfaction here is high, medium or low compared to students studying this subject(s) at other universities.
How do students rate their degree experience?
The stats below relate to the general subject area/s at this university, not this specific course. We show this where there isn’t enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.
Cinematics and photography
Teaching and learning
Assessment and feedback
Resources and organisation
Student voice
Who studies this subject and how do they get on?
Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)
After graduation
We don't have more detailed stats to show you in relation to this subject area at this university but read about typical employment outcomes and prospects for graduates of this subject below.
What about your long term prospects?
Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.
Cinematics and photography
The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.
£13k
£16k
£18k
Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.
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This is what the university has told Ucas about the criteria they expect applicants to satisfy; some may be compulsory, others may be preferable.
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This is the percentage of applicants to this course who received an offer last year, through Ucas.
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This is what the university has told Ucas about the course. Use it to get a quick idea about what makes it unique compared to similar courses, elsewhere.
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Course location and department:
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Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF):
We've received this information from the Department for Education, via Ucas. This is how the university as a whole has been rated for its quality of teaching: gold silver or bronze. Note, not all universities have taken part in the TEF.
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This information comes from the National Student Survey, an annual student survey of final-year students. You can use this to see how satisfied students studying this subject area at this university, are (not the individual course).
This is the percentage of final-year students at this university who were "definitely" or "mostly" satisfied with their course. We've analysed this figure against other universities so you can see whether this is high, medium or low.
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This information is from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), for undergraduate students only.
You can use this to get an idea of who you might share a lecture with and how they progressed in this subject, here. It's also worth comparing typical A-level subjects and grades students achieved with the current course entry requirements; similarities or differences here could indicate how flexible (or not) a university might be.
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Post-six month graduation stats:
This is from the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education Survey, based on responses from graduates who studied the same subject area here.
It offers a snapshot of what grads went on to do six months later, what they were earning on average, and whether they felt their degree helped them obtain a 'graduate role'. We calculate a mean rating to indicate if this is high, medium or low compared to other universities.
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Graduate field commentary:
The Higher Education Careers Services Unit have provided some further context for all graduates in this subject area, including details that numbers alone might not show
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The Longitudinal Educational Outcomes dataset combines HRMC earnings data with student records from the Higher Education Statistics Agency.
While there are lots of factors at play when it comes to your future earnings, use this as a rough timeline of what graduates in this subject area were earning on average one, three and five years later. Can you see a steady increase in salary, or did grads need some experience under their belt before seeing a nice bump up in their pay packet?
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