Visual Practice MA – choose your discipline from Contemporary Fine Art, Photography, Glass, or Ceramics

Visual Practice MA

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About the University of Sunderland

Located in the north-east of England, Sunderland benefits from the perfect combination of city and seaside living and is a friendly, diverse, and affordable place to live and study.

Our courses are career-focused and professions-facing, ensuring you have a head start in the workplace when you graduate. Many of our courses are co-designed by employers, affiliated to professional bodies and our lecturers are closely linked to their sectors. We also offer postgraduate conversion courses that enable you to start on a new career.

We’re pleased to be placed within the top 50 UK universities in The Guardian University Guide 2023. We are proud to be recognised for the first time as a World Ranked University by The Times Higher Education World Rankings 2023.

Visual Practice MA

Overview

This Masters will enable you to develop your personal visual practice and follow your own interests and aspirations. You’ll follow a chosen pathway for the duration of your MA study, with the option to be awarded with one of the following:

• MA Visual Practice: Contemporary Fine Art
• MA Visual Practice: Photography
• MA Visual Practice: Glass
• MA Visual Practice: Ceramics

We do not have a ‘house style’, instead you’ll be encouraged and supported to uncover your own focus through independent creativity. You’ll improve your technical ability through expert support, using our excellent facilities, and will develop academic skills in research and communication.

You’ll work alongside a diverse range of established artists, theorists, writers, curators, and specialist technicians to develop your practice and professional career, and you’ll meet, share practice, and collaborate with staff and peers from a variety of disciplines as part of the MA Visual Practice community.

Scholarships and Bursaries

We offer a range of scholarships and bursaries that are available to postgraduate students including subject-specific cash scholarships and tuition fee discounts:

• The Robson Art and Design Masters Award – 3 x  £1,000 cash scholarship for students studying MA Design or MA Visual Practice
• The Mike Davies Innovation Scholarship – 2 x £1,000 scholarship for students studying BA (Hons) Artist Designer Maker: Glass and Ceramics and MA Visual Practice : Glass and Ceramics pathways
• The Richard Lynn Studham Scholarship – 1 x £2,000 scholarship for students studying MA Visual Practice: Ceramics
• Aziz Foundation Scholarship – full tuition fee scholarship plus extra benefits from the Aziz Foundation for British Muslims studying eligible masters level programmes (including MA Visual Practice)
• Alumni Loyalty Scheme – 20% waiver on the full cost of course fees to reward loyal alumni who return to study a postgraduate degree at the University
• North East Postgraduate Discount – 20% fee waiver on the full cost for postgraduate taught masters programmes for students impacted by cost-of-living challenges who have a local connection to the north-east region
• International Scholarship £900 tuition fee reduction

See terms and conditions for postgraduate scholarships and bursaries.

Career opportunities

Many recent Sunderland graduates are now working as independent self-employed artists and are successful practitioners around the world, while some have moved on to teaching in schools and lecturing positions at universities. Others have chosen to move into other areas, including jewellery, architecture, interior design, engineering, photography, painting and sculpture.

Find out more about the course, facilities, teaching staff, industry links and scholarships available