Photography with foundation year - BA (Hons)

University of Greater Manchester

Photography has the power to connect with people around the world, sharing moments that inspire, inform, communicate a point of view or capture the passing of time. The University of Greater Manchester’s BA (Hons) Photography with Foundation Year degree prepares you for professional practice and careers across a wide range of specialist areas within photography and the wider creative industries.Photographs are the most exciting and important visual form of global communication, forming a significant part of everyday life. The image has become the most widely used international language, and the ability to communicate concise visual statements that engage audiences is at the heart of our course and teaching. You will experience student life at our supportive, student-focused, multicultural campus while developing essential knowledge and skills ready for a career in photography.Your foundation year allows you to discover and strengthen research, design, practical and communication skills that are essential for success as you study photography. You will expand your creativity beyond photography by experimenting with drawing, painting, sculpture, printmaking, ceramics, installation, performance, AI, digital 3D, video and sound art. These skills will give you a multidisciplinary approach to producing visuals that can go beyond lens-based media. The foundation year will build your confidence in academic skills such as research, academic referencing, and written and oral communication techniques.Following the foundation year, you will develop a broad underpinning in both analogue and digital photography, developing the technical, critical and creative skills needed to establish your own distinctive photographic voice. Through experimentation, research and making, you will be encouraged to explore photography's expanding possibilities, from traditional image-making processes to emerging technologies and contemporary visual culture.As part of a vibrant creative community, you will work on collaborative, sustainable and public-facing projects that explore the social, cultural and political value of photography. Alongside developing professional skills, you will gain the confidence to shape a meaningful creative identity and position your practice within local, national and international contexts.The course encourages interdisciplinary working, offering opportunities to collaborate with students across the School of Arts and Creative Technologies. You will discover how photography can be used to tell powerful stories, challenge assumptions and create new ways of understanding the world around us.Throughout your studies, you will have access to purpose-built photographic studios, specialist darkrooms, digital imaging facilities and professional exhibition opportunities, enabling you to push the boundaries of your practice and prepare for a wide range of careers within the creative industries and beyond.

Media and Photography