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Green stone craft installation by Bekky May

Craft MA

  • Intro
  • Course
    content
  • Careers
  • Entry
    criteria
  • Fees
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Intro

Learn to think about your craft in new ways, understand research as a craftsperson and become expert in your chosen practice and profession.

On this specialist MA you will develop both your creative skills and your ways of thinking, working with tutors who understand craft both as a profession and as personal expression. Module options can include extensive practical work with a wide range of materials including metal, ceramics, polymers, wood and more.

While focusing on the physical act of making, the Craft MA also covers the theory of craft, allowing practitioners to conceptualise and contextualise their practice with deeper insight. The history, theory and traditions of craft form a core component in every module, and are delivered through lectures, presentations and studio discussion groups.

You will learn from experienced professionals in a welcoming atmosphere that allows craftspeople to discuss and develop their ideas as a community.

Our MA strives to help you towards exemplary creative output. Through exploration of the traditional discipline categories, to the evolution of future interpretations and directions, you will be encouraged to fully engage with what the craft scene is today.

Key facts

Location Brighton: City campus 

Full-time 1 year 
Part-time 2 years

Join an online event

Apply online

Please review the entry requirements carefully and if you have any questions do get in touch with us.

Apply now for your place

Art and design at Brighton is ranked 8th in the UK and 51st globally by the QS World University Rankings 2020.

Ceramic head by Emma Harding 2018
Ceramic head by Emma Harding 2018
Black necklace maquette by Harriet Laurence 2018
Black necklace maquette by Harriet Laurence 2018
Student Clare Heath making with found clay in woodland 2018
Student Clare Heath making with found clay in woodland 2018
Enamelled vessel by Amy Lowe 2018
Enamelled vessel by Amy Lowe 2018

Course content

How this course is delivered

We've made some changes to the way our courses are taught to keep everyone safe, connected and involved in university life.

At the moment, students have a blend of on-campus and digitally enabled remote learning that provides lots of opportunities to interact and engage with lecturers and other students.

Find out what these changes mean for this course

Why study with us?

  • Professional opportunities across the craft industry, with options in business and entrepreneurial practice, community outreach and work placements.
  • You'll join a sociable and inclusive community in a vibrant art school environment.
  • Students benefit from opportunities as a result of the course’s close relationships with local organisations such as Ditchling and Haslemere Museums and European field trips to craft exhibitions and fairs.
  • Tutors and visiting lecturers are dynamic and active researchers, creative designers and craft practitioners with expertise across a range of materials and professions, including furniture, ceramics, jewellery, product, polymers and metals.
  • Cross-disciplinary exploration of sustainability, craft heritage, material experimentation, and environmental, medical and digital technologies
  • We have fully equipped workshops and digital technologies, supported by a highly skilled team of technical demonstrators.
  • Our department recognises, nurtures and demonstrates craft's role in and capacity for cultural, social, economic and environmental benefit.
Handbuilding techniques

Syllabus

While focusing on the physical act of making, the Craft MA also covers the theory of craft, allowing practitioners to conceptualise and contextualise their practice with deeper insight. The history, theory and traditions of craft form a core component in every module, and are delivered through lectures, presentations and studio discussion groups.

Craft Practice

This module provides a reflective and productive environment for you to create new and innovative approaches to combine theory, concept and practice through your own craft work. Together with your supervisors, you will formulate a written proposal to guide you towards your own working practice, while undertaking a set project to explore and identify audience and context.

Craft in Context

The Craft in Context module exposes you to contemporary craft debates, allowing you to explore and critically reflect on the process, context and definition of craft as a creative pursuit and investigative methodology. You will investigate how craft practice can relate to and affect cultural and social issues such as the environment, health and wellbeing, the economy, sustainability, ethics and education. You will test and challenge the value of your ideas within a wider social context.

Research Skills and Training

This module offers a broad-based introduction to research and introduces its relationship to your practice. The module seeks to place your own practice and academic work in context. A series of seminar/workshop sessions will introduce you to the range of key research methods and help you develop your own research plans.

Creative Enquiry

Through this practice-based module you will develop a personal portfolio of research – digital or conventional – to inform the creation of artefacts and/or products relevant to your own creative practice. You will be introduced to a range of creative research methods – notational, physiological and improvisational – which will critically challenge and further develop your current practice.

Masters project

The masters project represents the synthesis and culmination of the modules taken on the programme. You will undertake a rigorous investigation into your personally defined area of craft practice, with the final body of work realised through three-dimensional artefacts, objects or other related forms.

Your work will be defined and structured through the personal research statement and plan, which you will develop together with a member of staff. This process of informed individual authorship and ownership enables you, as a creative practitioner, to move forward and pioneer distinctive territories of expertise and insight.

Options

You will be able to choose from a range of modules from across our arts and humanities courses. Options include:

  • Sustainable Design Presents
  • Political Economy of Globalisation
  • Professional Entrepreneurial Development
  • Fine Art: Mentoring
  • Historical and Critical Studies Dissertation
  • Professional Entrepreneurial Development
  • Professional Experience with Industrial Placement

Making sure that what you learn with us is relevant, up to date and what employers are looking for is our priority, so courses are reviewed and enhanced on an ongoing basis. When you have applied to us, you’ll be told about any new developments through Student View.

Staff profile

Patrick Letschka

Course leader

Patrick Letschka is a designer and crafts practitioner with a focus on design and making in wood. He has a background in patternmaking and wood carving and employs drawing and moving image as methods of visual research. Patrick has collaborated with leading craftspeople and is particularly interested in the making of objects that function within ritual.

Read Patrick’s full academic profile

Philippa Lyon
Tutor

Philippa Lyon's main research focus is on a range of drawing practices, including in art and design education and health contexts. She has a particular interest in manual drawing that takes place within clinical settings, in the pedagogy of drawing in higher education, the uses of drawing within visual methodologies and approaches to arts/health research. She has a background in literary criticism and literature teaching.

Read Philippa's full academic profile

Student views

Louise Bell, graduate

Following her MA, Louise Bell was chosen to be part of the Crafts Council's 2019 Hothouse programme. Here she explains her experience of studying the Craft MA at Brighton:

"I chose Brighton for my Masters because I was attracted to the syllabus. Making work was a priority, however I also had a desire to look into the way that craft and ceramics in particular can relate to emotional and social issues.

"The course was very special and I felt very privileged to be there. I learnt something new every day: ways to improve my technical skills, how to be an artist and a researcher, new directions and inspirations.

"We worked quite a bit as a whole group. We were taught in a very interactive way. We went to Munich as part of the International Craft and Trades Fair and took part in a group residency at the Ditchling Museum of Art and Craft.

"The year encapsulated what education should be about - learning from others, challenging yourself and having a good time!"

Zahra Priddle, graduate

Opportunities are created for our Craft students to work with students in other discipline areas who have shared interests. Here, graduate Zahra Priddle talks about a shared project with Occupational Therapy students:

"I found the opportunity to collaborate with the Occupational Therapy students an interesting and stimulating experience. The aim of the project was to consider how the impact of craft-making could potentially affect well-being.

"The brief provided a platform to develop a short project that could benefit a particular group or community. Our focus was a group of young adults of 12+ who had suffered trauma, mental health problems and low self esteem and based on research into how origami contributed to positive well-being.

"We designed a short craft project that was based on floating paper wish lanterns used in the East to ‘wish away’ negative feelings and worries. Our project was both biodegradable and easily transportable, requiring minimal tools and using edible, biodegradable rice paper."

Our latest news

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In year 9, 10 or 11? Join our free online Printmaking workshops

If you or someone in your family is in year 9, 10 or 11 and interested in maybe taking art at university, why not join our series of online printmaking workshops.

Thinking about preparing your portfolio?

Thinking about preparing your portfolio?

Watch these two short films where art students talk you through how they put theirs together.

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School of Art lecturer is part of UoB team delivering pioneering research into sanitation crisis

Alice Fox from the School of Art is among an interdisciplinary team of University of Brighton academics delivering pioneering research to help address the sanitation crisis across Asia and Africa.

Follow 3D Design and Craft BA(Hons) and Craft MA on Instagram

Follow 3D Design and Craft BA(Hons) and Craft MA on Instagram

Run by our students, technicians and staff, these Instagram accounts show you what it’s like to study our design and craft undergraduate and postgraduate courses at Brighton.

Read more from our blog

Careers

After completing the course successfully, you will be able – as a master of your craft – to take opportunities across the craft professions, either in your own practice as an entrepreneur or in the use of craft for social and community engagement. Craftspeople find these opportunities in a range of fields including fine arts, design, museum curation, teaching, prop making and interior design. The course also provides a route into academia, teaching and research.

Year 2 student forging
The course was very special and I felt very privileged to be there. I learnt something new every day: ways to improve my technical skills, how to be an artist and a researcher, and new directions and inspirations.

Louise Bell, graduate

Entry criteria

Entry requirements

The entry requirements listed here are our typical offer for this course if you wish to begin studying with us in 2021. They should be used as a general guide. 

Degree and experience

Normally an honours degree in a related discipline, a recognised equivalent qualification or professional experience. 

English language requirements
IELTS 6.5 overall with a minimum of 5.5 in each element. Find out more about the other English qualifications that we accept.

International students whose language skills do not match the IELTS scores set out here should consider applying for this course through the Extended Masters programme at the university's Language Institute.

International requirements and visas

International requirements by country
Country name
Albania
Algeria
Argentina
Australia
Austria
Bahrain
Bangladesh
Belarus
Belgium
Bermuda
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Botswana
Brazil
Bulgaria
Burma (Myanmar)
Cameroon
Canada
Chile
China
Colombia
Croatia
Cyprus
Czech Republic
Denmark
Ecuador
Egypt
Estonia
Finland
France
Germany
Ghana
Greece
Guyana
Hong Kong
Hungary
Iceland
India
Indonesia
Iran
Iraq
Ireland
Israel
Italy
Jamaica
Japan
Jordan
Kazakhstan
Kenya
Kosovo
Kuwait
Latvia
Lebanon
Liechtenstein
Libya
Lithuania
Luxembourg
Macedonia
Malaysia
Malawi
Malta
Mexico
Moldova
Montenegro
Morocco
Namibia
Nepal
Netherlands
New Zealand
Nigeria
Norway
Oman
Pakistan
Palestinian National Authority
Philippines
Poland
Portugal
Qatar
Romania
Russian Federation
Saudi Arabia
Serbia
Sierra Leone
Singapore
Slovakia
Slovenia
South Africa
South Korea
Spain
Sri Lanka
Syria
Sweden
Switzerland
Taiwan
Tanzania
Thailand
Tunisia
Turkey
Uganda
Ukraine
United Arab Emirates
United States
Uzbekistan
Venezuela
Vietnam
Yemen
Zambia
Zimbabwe

We can help you meet our English language or academic entry requirements.

Visit our language centre

For English language preparation courses.

Visit our International College

For degree preparation courses.

Visas and immigration advice

Applying for a student visa

Check out our step-by-step guidance.

Portfolio and interview 

Portfolio

Your portfolio, together with the 500-word project proposal, enables us to assess your abilities to carry out your chosen project. It should include selected examples of work from projects you have carried out, accompanied by examples of visual research and development work. It can include brief explanatory notes and relevant diagrams, notes, rough sketches, models and mock-ups you used.

Please note that your portfolio does not need to include work that relates directly to the project proposal you are submitting for your application. It is designed to give us information on how you approach your work to help us assess your potential.

 

Interview

Due to COVID-19, we expect interviews to be online and the processes may change slightly – check back here for updates. If you've already applied, we will tell you about any changes.

Find out more about how to create and submit your portfolio.

Project proposal 

You are required to write a 500-word project proposal to accompany your application form. This is a provisional proposal as an example of your thinking. If accepted, you would have the opportunity to develop and change this by agreement with your tutors.

The following headings are suggested as a guide to writing your proposal:


  • the topic or theme of your project

  • the aims of your project

  • the form your project might take and the main materials you are likely to use

  • a very brief description of what the project might involve

  • possible technical requirements or methods that you might use

  • any other information you think is relevant

Fees

Course fees

UK (full-time) 7,704 GBP

International (full-time) 15,300 GBP

Scholarships, bursaries and loans

We offer a range of scholarships for postgraduate students. Bursaries and loans may also be available to you.

Find out more about postgraduate fees and funding.

What's included

You may have to pay additional costs during your studies. The cost of optional activities is not included in your tuition fee and you will need to meet this cost in addition to your fees. A summary of the costs that you may be expected to pay, and what is included, whilst studying a course in the School of Art are listed here.

  • For most courses you will need to budget for the cost of specialist materials, equipment and printing and are likely to spend between £50–£300 per year.
  • Costs in your final year of study are very likely to be higher than in earlier years as you bring together your final body of work and portfolio, and you may need to budget between £200 and £1,000.
  • For some courses you may also need to budget up to £100 for specialist personal protective clothing which, with care, will last for the whole of your course and beyond.
  • For most courses you will have the opportunity to attend field trips and off-site visits, for example to galleries, exhibitions and studios both in the UK and overseas. These are optional and are not required to pass your course. The amount spent would be based on location and number of trips taken, and typically range between £100 and £700 across the duration of your course.
  • You will have access to computers and necessary software at City campus and at other locations across the university. However, many students choose to buy their own hardware – usually a laptop, software and accessories. The amount spent will depend on your individual choices but this expenditure is not essential to pass any of our courses.
  • Course books and a wide range of magazines and journals are available in the university libraries. You do not need to have your own copies, but if you wish to, you should budget up to £200 over your course to buy them.
  • For courses in which there is an optional placement year, you will need to budget for living costs (rent, food, travel etc) in that city/country, as if you were on site at the university.

You can chat with our enquiries team through the Stay in touch panel at the end of this page if you require further information. Or check our finance pages for advice about funding and scholarships, as well as more information about fees and advice on international and island fee-paying status.

Info

The fees listed here are for full-time courses beginning in the academic year 2021–22.

Further tuition fees are payable for each subsequent year of study and are subject to an annual increase of no more than 5% or RPI (whichever is the greater). The annual increase for UK students, who are subject to regulated fees, will increase no more than the statutory maximum fee.

You can find out more about our fees in the university's student contract and tuition fee policy (pdf).

The tuition fee you have to pay depends on a number of factors including the kind of course you take, and whether you study full-time or part-time. If you are studying part-time you will normally be charged on a pro rata basis depending on the number of modules you take.

Location

Local area

About Brighton

The University of Brighton is at the heart of our city’s reputation as a welcoming, forward-thinking place which leads the way when it comes to the arts, music, sustainability and creative technology. Brighton is home to a thriving creative community and a digital sector worth £1bn a year. Many of the work-based learning opportunities offered on our courses such as placements, live briefs and guest lectures are provided by businesses and organisations based in the city.

We provide support and venues for key events in the city’s arts calendar including the Brighton Festival, the Festival Fringe, the Great Escape, the Brighton Digital Festival, Brighton Photo Biennial and the CineCity Brighton Film Festival. Other annual highlights include Pride, the Brighton Marathon, and Burning the Clocks which marks the winter solstice. Our own Brighton Graduate Show transforms our campus into the largest exhibition space in the South East as we celebrate the outstanding talent and creativity of our students.

As a student you’ll get lots of opportunities to experience these events at first hand and to develop your skills through the volunteering and other opportunities they offer.

You'll find living in Brighton enriches your learning experience and by the end of your course you will still be finding new things to explore and inspire you.

It's only 50 minutes by train from Brighton to central London and less than 40 minutes to Eastbourne. There are also daily direct trains to Bristol, Bedford, Cambridge, Gatwick Airport, Portsmouth and Southampton.

Map showing distance to London from Brighton
Brighton Beach sunset

Campus where this course is taught

City campus

Located in central Brighton, this campus is home to 3D design and craft, fine art, graphic design and illustration, digital music, digital media design, fashion and textiles, history of art and design, humanities, media, photography and film.

The facilities for making and designing, the theatre, galleries, workshops, studios, archives and the independent arts organisations based on site provide a unique and inspiring environment where creativity thrives.

St Peter’s House library and Phoenix halls of residence are close to the exhibition and learning facilities in the Grand Parade main building where you will also find the student centre with careers, counselling, student advice service and disability and dyslexia support. Edward Street provides extensive teaching and gallery space for media, photography and film.

Also on site are Photoworks, Screen Archive South East and University of Brighton Design Archives. Leading visual arts agency Photoworks runs the Brighton Photo Biennial and a national programme which frequently features the work of our graduates, staff and students. Screen Archive South East holds a wealth of material capturing life, work and creativity from the nineteenth to the twenty-first centuries. Our Design Archives received the Sir Misha Black Award for Innovation in Design Education in recognition of our contribution to design history scholarship and the quality of primary materials about British design held in the archive.

The Brighton Pavilion, Brighton Museum and Art Gallery, the iconic pier and beach are a very short walk away. The independent shops and businesses of the North Laine and Kemptown, and Brighton main line station, with frequent express services to London, are 10 minutes walk.

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Grand Parade exhibition space

Accommodation

Brighton: City campus

We guarantee an offer of a place in halls of residence to all eligible students.

Halls of residence
We have halls of residence across Brighton in the city centre, Moulsecoomb, Varley Park and Falmer.

  • You'll be prioritised for accommodation in the halls that are linked to your teaching base, subject to availability.
  • City campus is linked to Phoenix halls.
    • Phoenix halls are self-catered, but if you prefer you can add in a food and drink plan.The halls are a short walk from City campus in the centre of Brighton. Public transport in the city is excellent, and there's a shuttle bus between our Brighton campuses during term time.

Want to live independently or in a university-managed house? We can help – find out more about unihomes and unilets or private renting.

Phoenix Brewery Halls Accommodation

Accommodation for City campus is in the nearby Phoenix Halls

Student kitchen in Phoenix Halls

Student kitchen in Phoenix Halls

Relaxing in nearby Pavilion Gardens

Relaxing in nearby Pavilion Gardens

Maps

City campus map

Stay in touch

Join an online event

Ask a question about this course

If you have a question about this course, our enquiries team will be happy to help.

01273 644644

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