Fine Art (Placement Year)

BA Hons

  • UCAS code W101
  • Entry year 2026 or 2025
  • A level requirements ABB
  • Duration Full time 4 years
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We welcome applications from the United States of America

We've put together information and resources to guide your application journey as a student from the United States of America.

Overview

Top reasons to study with us

  • 5

    5th for graduate prospects (Art and Design)

    The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide (2025)

  • 7

    7th for Art and Design

    The Complete University Guide (2025)

  • Your own studio space, available 24/7

Unleash your ideas and develop your artistic expression through Fine Art at Lancaster. You will develop a unique contemporary art practice that engages with current ideas and issues to make valuable contributions to environment, culture and community. Through hands-on workshops and technical demonstrations, you’ll deepen your understanding of materials and techniques, ready to turn your ideas into impactful contemporary art. Join our thriving creative community, working with experienced artists, and build connections to shape your future in the art world and beyond.

Why Lancaster?

  • Take a highly distinctive programme that combines fine art practice with the study of contemporary ideas and art movements
  • Take advantage of your own dedicated studio space available 24/7 from day one, with expert technical support on hand
  • Work with tutors who are practicing artists and scholars, exhibiting and publishing their work across a range of fine art ideas and mediums
  • Join a supportive community of staff and students committed to making art relevant today, helping you build connections that will shape your future in the art industry
  • Study in Lancaster, a vibrant and inspiring hub of award-winning arts festivals, events and places of cultural significance

Bring your vision to life

Fine Art at Lancaster is about finding your voice and deciding what matters to you in today’s art landscape. With engaging seminars in art history and theory, we’ll support you in shaping your values and understanding the evolving role of art. As you develop these ideas in your own studio practice, discover how contemporary art can be bold, disruptive, and meaningful.

You will be challenged to broaden your understanding of contemporary Fine Art, via a wide range of hands-on projects and skills-based workshops. Previously, students have worked on live briefs in partnership with arts organisations such as Deco Publique, Good Things Collective, Maritime Museum, FACT Liverpool and Lancaster Arts.

Discover how experimenting with painting, drawing, sculpture, installation, video, digital art, and their many hybrids, can drive your creative impulse. Work with diverse mediums in our purpose-built studios that include high tech seminar facilities, a digital art lab, installation spaces, and fully equipped workshops. Tailor your learning experience by picking how you want to specialise, focusing on one or two art mediums or continuing to explore different mediums. Study cutting-edge techniques along the way and preparing to make an impact in your own way.

A thriving creative community

Your tutors are professional artists who are exhibiting, curating and writing across a range of art and ideas, including high profile residencies and commissions in museums, galleries and cultural industries worldwide.

Your tutors have exhibited at the likes of the Henry Moore Institute, the Foreman Art Gallery Canada and Hong Kong Art Fair. Some have won awards such as The Royal Scottish Academy William Littlejohn Award 2024 and the John Muir Trust Creative Freedom Award for 3d work 2024, as well as commissioned work for organisations such as The National Trust, FutureEverything and the Dumfries House Royal Drawing School.

You’ll join these experienced academics in a community of creative thinkers and makers, that is both highly creative and intellectually vibrant.

Lancaster is a hub of art and cultural activity, home to award-winning festivals such as, Lancaster Words and Litfest literary festivals and the stunning Light Up Lancaster festival of art and light. Many art events take place on Lancaster’s inspiring campus, and the University regularly partners with independent theatre The Dukes and The Storey arts centre to host exhibitions.

Whilst building lifelong connections with artists, external partners, tutors and other students in the School of Art, you’ll also develop your own distinct and independent style.

Creative futures

Exhibition opportunities throughout the course will help you develop the professional skills needed for a career in the arts whilst building your confidence in your work. As well as refining your practical studio skills, you’ll also become a critical reader, able to examine how contemporary art is constantly evolving to create new and exciting ways of looking at the world.

With sustainability and accessibility at the core of this course, you’ll be equipped to make valuable and creative contributions in your future career. Recent graduates have gone on to pursue rewarding careers at companies such as International Conservation Services, Science Museum National Collections Centre, Holocaust Centre North, ITV, United Colours of Benetton India and The National Festival of Making.

Creative Arts Facilities at Lancaster University

Whatever creative arts subject you choose, you’ll find we have specialist spaces and equipment to inspire your studies.

Your Placement Year

Sometimes known as a year in industry, your placement year will take place between your second and final year of study and this will extend your degree to four years.

Placements and Internships

Hear from students and employers on how Lancaster University could support you to gain real-world experience and bolster your CV with a placement or internship as part of your degree.

A student working on a piece of stained glass.

A placement year is an excellent way to...

  • try out a role that you may be interested in as a career path
  • start to build your professional network (some placement students are offered permanent roles to return to after they graduate)
  • develop skills, knowledge and experience to put you ahead of the field when you graduate

You'll spend your third year...

in a graduate-level position, where you’ll work for between nine and twelve months in the type of role that you might be considering for after you graduate. A very wide range of companies and organisations offer placements across all sectors.

As a full-time employee, you’ll have a job description with specific responsibilities and opportunities to access training and development, the same as other employees.

A whiteboard showing a diagram of 'how to create a CV'

Our Careers and Placements Team...

will help you to search and compete for a suitable placement with expert advice and resources, such as creating an effective CV, and tips for applications and interviews.

You will still be a Lancaster University student during your placement and we’ll keep in touch to check how you are getting on.

Students drinking coffee in a campus coffee bar

The university will...

use all reasonable effort to support you to find a suitable placement for your studies. While a placement role may not be available in a field or organisation that is directly related to your academic studies or career aspirations, all offer valuable experience of working at a graduate level and gaining a range of professional skills.

If you are unsuccessful in securing a suitable placement for your third year, you will be able to transfer to the equivalent non-placement degree scheme and continue with your studies at Lancaster, finishing your degree after your third year.

Careers

This degree supports you in developing the ambition, confidence, and skills to produce fine art at a professional level. You will understand the key entry points into the diverse pathways that artists' careers can take, from your first experiences of installing and documenting your work, to the construction of portfolios, presentations and high-quality applications.

Graduates of Fine Art go on to pursue careers in the following:

  • Professional Artist
  • Curating
  • Gallery Education Programmes
  • Exhibition Management
  • Digital Communications Manager
  • Museum and Gallery Management
  • Teaching
  • Artefact Conservation
  • Video and Media Production
  • TV and Film Scenography
  • Arts Event Management

With a deep understanding of fine art and a diverse skill set, you’ll also be well-prepared to pursue a broad range of postgraduate study, with some graduates branching into fields such as material engineering, design, advertising and marketing.

Careers and employability support

Our degrees open up an extremely wide array of career pathways in businesses and organisations, large and small, in the UK and overseas.

We run a paid internship scheme specifically for our arts, humanities and social sciences students, supported by a specialist Employability Team. The team offer individual consultations and tailored application guidance, as well as careers events, development opportunities, and resources.

Whether you have a clear idea of your potential career path or need some help considering the options, our friendly team is on hand.

Lancaster is unique in that every student is eligible to participate in The Lancaster Award which recognises activities such as work experience, community engagement or volunteering and social development. A valuable addition to your CV!

Find out more about Lancaster’s careers events, extensive resources and personal support for Careers and Employability.

Careers

Find out about some of the careers our alumni have entered into after graduation.

Entry requirements

These are the typical grades that you will need to study this course. This section will tell you whether you need qualifications in specific subjects, what our English language requirements are, and if there are any extra requirements such as attending an interview or submitting a portfolio.

Qualifications and typical requirements accordion

Help from our Admissions team

If you are thinking of applying to Lancaster and you would like to ask us a question, complete our enquiry form and one of the team will get back to you.

We also have more details about other qualifications that we accept and information about how to apply and what happens after you've applied.

International foundation programmes

Delivered in partnership with INTO Lancaster University, our one-year tailored foundation pathways are designed to improve your subject knowledge and English language skills to the level required by a range of Lancaster University degrees. Visit the INTO Lancaster University website for more details and a list of eligible degrees you can progress onto.

Contextual admissions

Contextual admissions could help you gain a place at university if you have faced additional challenges during your education which might have impacted your results. Visit our contextual admissions page to find out about how this works and whether you could be eligible.

Course structure

Enhancing our curriculum

We continually review and enhance our curriculum to ensure we are delivering the best possible learning experience, and to make sure that the subject knowledge and transferable skills you develop will prepare you for your future.

We will publish more detailed information about the structure of this degree course for 2026-entry in June 2025, ahead of our summer undergraduate open days. This will include overviews of the core modules you will take and examples of optional modules which may be available to you.

Fees and funding

We set our fees on an annual basis and the 2026/27 entry fees have not yet been set.

As a guide, our fees in 2025/26 were:

Home International
£9,535 £24,700

Fees and funding information

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Scholarships and bursaries

Details of our scholarships and bursaries for students starting in 2026 are not yet available.

You can use our scholarships for 2025-entry applicants as guidance.

Important information

The information on this site relates primarily to 2026/2027 entry to the University and every effort has been taken to ensure the information is correct at the time of publication.

The University will use all reasonable effort to deliver the courses as described, but the University reserves the right to make changes to advertised courses. In exceptional circumstances that are beyond the University’s reasonable control (Force Majeure Events), we may need to amend the programmes and provision advertised. In this event, the University will take reasonable steps to minimise the disruption to your studies. If a course is withdrawn or if there are any fundamental changes to your course, we will give you reasonable notice and you will be entitled to request that you are considered for an alternative course or withdraw your application. You are advised to revisit our website for up-to-date course information before you submit your application.

More information on limits to the University’s liability can be found in our legal information.

Our Students’ Charter

We believe in the importance of a strong and productive partnership between our students and staff. In order to ensure your time at Lancaster is a positive experience we have worked with the Students’ Union to articulate this relationship and the standards to which the University and its students aspire. View our Charter and other policies.

Undergraduate open days 2025

Our summer and autumn open days will give you Lancaster University in a day. Visit campus and put yourself in the picture.

Undergraduate Open Days
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