Hereford College of Arts
Photography BA (Hons)
Hereford College of Arts

Key Course Facts

Student Reviews

Below you can see course specific reviews of 65 graduates of Photography BA (Hons) and other courses in Creative Arts and Design at Hereford College of Arts for each of the survey questions in comparison to the average for all UK degree courses in Creative Arts and Design.

Overall student satisfaction
69 /100
65 total respondents

Primarily based on data from undergraduate degree students.

The NSS is commissioned by the Office for Students

Salary

Salary of Graduates in Creative Arts and Design

Important: Salary data below is not course specific, but contains data of all students of Creative Arts and Design at the university. Due to data collection methodology, salary data is mainly based on data related to undergraduate students.

  15 months after graduation 3 years after graduation 5 years after graduation
Median salary £21000 £15500 £18000
25-75 percentile range £16000 - £23500 £11500 - £18500 £14000 - £22500


Salary of all UK Graduates of Creative Arts and Design

  15 months after graduation 3 years after graduation 5 years after graduation
Median salary £20933 £18108 £21051
25-75 percentile range £18375 - £24906 £13095 - £22569 £15928 - £26889

Course Description

Photography is universal with a trillion pictures now taken round the globe a year. It has an importance to individuals, groups and businesses like no other art form, capturing stories, representing dreams, driving political change, promoting ideas and brands. Professional photography, that stands out in this age of the image, is at a premium in a host of different sectors.

Our course is wide-ranging and flexible, giving you the skills and experience to find the areas that excite you most, and you’ll be able to work in moving image as well as still. Great photography requires much more than technical learning; we’ll give you pathways and inspiration to develop a powerful, individual, creative approach. You don’t need to have studied photography previously to join this course but you need a photographer’s hunger to explore your world and imagine or discover others through a lens.

You will have access to the latest equipment and facilities as well as traditional darkrooms and film cameras. Our team of experienced lecturers and technicians have rich and varied professional experience. They will empower you with creative and technical skills, and a deep understanding of the context and potential of your own practice. After exploring a range of genres within studio and location photography, you can choose to pursue either the Editorial Photography pathway which includes: Documentary, Fashion, Portrait; or the Photographic Art pathway with a focus on: Landscape, Constructed Image and Fine Art.

You will take part in exhibitions and visit photo festivals both in the UK and abroad to broaden your horizons. We have collaborative projects with USA photography courses as well as projects at community level.

You will be supported by a team of experienced Lecturers and Technicians all talented photographers in their own right who bring rich and varied professional experience to the learning environment. We teach in small groups and provide individual tutorials and tutor support throughout your studies. Live projects and industry links with image agencies such as Alamy and Troika provide a professional edge to your studies.

Industry Links

You will work on live projects for a variety of clients such as HSBC, Mind & Alamy and engage through specialist lectures with some of the best UK photographers such as Simon Roberts, Anna Fox, Zed Nelson, Chloe Dewe Mathews and others. Final Year Students have opportunity for portfolio reviews from important industry insiders such as Bridget Coaker of Troika Editions and Lorentz Gullachsen. Our fellows include world class photographers Don McCullin and John Bulmer.

After this Course

Our graduates have a diverse range of photographic practice including: documentary, travel, wedding and events, architectural, advertising and fashion, photo retouching, magazine features editor, television camera operation, fine art and curation. Many graduates have also continued to postgraduate MA study or developed careers in teaching and arts administration.

Highlights

  1. A stimulating creative media studio environment

  2. Excellent facilities including two photographic studios and a traditional darkroom.

  3. Small group teaching with great access to tutors and expert technical support.

  4. Professional exhibition experience, at regional or national level.

  5. Opportunity to work alongside media professionals on live briefs and participate in national photographic competitions.

  6. A range of inspiring modules to enable you to experience the diversity of photography.

  7. Visiting lecturers including some of the most successful UK photographers.

  8. Visits to exhibitions and visit photo festivals both in the UK and Abroad.

  9. No house style – we value your creativity and individuality.

Jobs & Career Perspectives

15 months after graduation, graduates of this course were asked about what they do and, if they are working, about their current job and their perspectives.

Current jobs

Required skill level of job after 15 months

Jobs of graduates of this course (15 months after graduation)

Example below based on all graduates of Photography BA (Hons) at Hereford College of Arts

35% Design occupations
25% Sales occupations
25% Administrative occupations
10% Artistic, literary and media occupations
10% Business and public service associate professionals

Grading & Study Time

Entry Requirements / Admissions

International applicants must be 18 years of age as at the 01 September in the year of entry.
Get advice on which foundation courses are best for you to still study Photography, BA (Hons), if you do not meet the minimum requirements in terms of UCAS score, A levels, or English language requirements.

Costs

Tuition Fees Photography BA (Hons)

England UK £9000 year 1
Northern Ireland £9000 year 1
Scotland £9000 year 1
Wales £9000 year 1
Channel Islands £9000 year 1
Ireland £9000 year 1
International £13475 year 1

Additional fee information

In addition to the degree fees, the nature of creative arts practice means you will need to allow for additional costs, such as the materials you choose to use in your work and for trips to external events & exhibitions. The courses at HCA have been designed to minimise the impact of additional costs; all course leaders have an annual budget with some trips & materials fully funded by the College or heavily subsidised. However, typically, a student will choose to spend an additional £250 in the first year, £375 in the second year and £400 in their final year, depending on nature of their work and materials chosen.

We appreciate that not all students will be able to invest the same money in their work, and staff assessing it will not judge work by the cost of materials or resources. The college shop includes many specialist materials at good value and digital equipment can be borrowed from the media stores at no cost to students.

Students are offered an optional Adobe Creative Cloud subscription for use outside of college. In the 2022-23 academic year this cost £16.24 per month. NB: Adobe Creative Cloud is provided free to use for any student working within the college.

Students on all courses will also have the chance to take part in optional trips that require payments towards their costs. Again, non-attendance will not incur assessment penalties, though trips are designed to help students develop their practice. There is an optional annual cross-course residential trip abroad. In the 2023-24 academic year, the trip was a four-day visit to Paris at a cost to students of £425. This fee included a shared dorm room and all travel costs from Hereford to Paris including Eurostar tickets.

Support Available from Hereford College of Arts

The HCA Cash Bursary: is designed to benefit students who are starting Higher Education for the first time; are ordinarily resident in England; the student must be liable to pay the full £9,000 tuition fee for their course and be from a low-income family (£25,000 a year or less). The student must also be in receipt of the full Higher Education Maintenance Loan. Each cash bursary is £1,000 which students receive in their first year only.

Care Leaver Bursary

Care leavers will be offered free accommodation with City Heart at Station Approach accommodation for their first year only. Care leaver students will be able to stay there until the end of their first year (not over the Summer) and will also receive the Cash Bursary of £1,000. Care leaver students will also receive a Care Leaver Bursary of £1,000 in both their second and third year. Evidence of being a care leaver must be in the form of an original letter showing Care Leaver Status from your local authority.

Partner Colleges Progression Bursary

A Progression Bursary of £500 is available to students from our progression partner colleges*, in their first year only, who have successfully completed a Level 3 or equivalent course within the last 2 academic years and progress on to a degree programme at HCA.

*Partner Colleges:

Bath College, Belfast Met College, Bourneville, South & City College, Cirencester College, City of Bristol College, Coleg y Cymoedd, Dudley College, Evesham College, Gloucestershire College – ALL Campuses, Gower College, Grantham College, Halesowen College, Heart of Worcestershire College, Hereford College of Arts, Herefordshire & Ludlow College, Hereford Sixth Form College, Malvern Hills College, Newent Sixth Form College, NWRC Derry, NPTC group, Plumpton College, Shrewsbury College, South Gloucestershire & Stroud College, Stratford Upon Avon College, Swindon College & Worcester Sixth Form College

Internal Progression Bursary

All students who have studied & successfully completed a Level 3 course within the last two academic years at HCA and progress to undergraduate study at HCA will be eligible to receive a bursary of £500 in their first year.

Average student cost of living in the UK

Rent £518
Water, gas electricity, internet (at home) £50
Supermarket shopping £81
Clothing £35
Eating out £33
Alcohol £27
Takeaways / food deliveries £30
Going out / entertainment (excl.alcohol, food) £24
Holidays and weekend trips £78
Transport within city £17
Self-care / sports £20
Stationary / books £13
Mobile phone / internet £13
Cable TV / streaming £7
Insurance £51
Other £95
  
Average student cost of living £1092

London costs approx 34% more than average, mainly due to rent being 67% higher than average of other cities. For students staying in student halls, costs of water, gas, electricity, wifi are generally included in the rental. Students in smaller cities where accommodation is in walking/biking distance transport costs tend to be significantly smaller.

How to apply

Application deadline:

January 1, 2025

This is the deadline for applications to be completed and sent for this course. If the university or college still has places available you can apply after this date, but your application is not guaranteed to be considered.

Possible Entry Points:

  • year 1 (Default entry point)
  • year 2

About Hereford College of Arts

Hereford College of Arts is a specialised art school located in the West Midlands of the United Kingdom. Students can expect to work in an environment that values and respects their artistic vision, thanks to the college’s philosophy of interfering as little as possible with the work that students wish to create.

List of 21 Bachelor and Master Courses from Hereford College of Arts - Course Catalogue

Student composition of Hereford College of Arts

undergraduates:
postgraduates:
Total:
0
  • HCA Student Experience Video 2021
  • BA Textile Design Student Experience
  • BA Fine Art Student Experience
  • Hear from our students
  • Hear from our students
  • BA Graphic & Media Design Student Experience

Where is this programme taught

Main Site
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