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BA (Hons) Curation, Exhibition and Experience Design
- Duration: 3 or 4 years full-time
- Placement: Optional 1 year
- Course code: W290 (UCAS)
- Institution code: A66 (UCAS)
Overview
The BA (Hons) Curation, Exhibition, and Experience Design course is designed for creative individuals who can envision and design immersive and engaging exhibitions that'll captivate, inspire and educate audiences.
BA (Hons) Curation, Exhibition and Experience Design course information
Curation, Exhibition and Experience Design is a growing area for not only the arts and creative industries, but also for businesses and brands.
Curation creates a cohesive narrative that aligns with brand values, identity, and target audience. It's a careful selection, arrangement, and presentation of content, experiences, and visual elements to communicate a story effectively. It plays a crucial role in conveying a brand's identity and personality. By doing this, curation helps to differentiate the brand from competitors and build a distinct brand identity.
On the BA (Hons) Curation, Exhibition and Experience Design course, you'll learn about the fields of creative design, curatorial practice, marketing, and project management to develop your own skills exhibition and experience design. You'll be equipped with the knowledge and skills to conceptualise, curate, and design exhibitions and experiences across both cultural and creative industry contexts.
Graduates from this course will develop highly transferable skills applicable to a broad range of situations and across the industry.
There's evidence that demand for trained curatorial staff is on the rise, whether that's in the retail fashion industry in the UK or internationally.
On BA (Hons) Curation, Exhibition and Experience Design, you'll developing an understanding of both the theoretical and practical aspects of curation, exhibition design, and experience creation. You'll explore the historical and contemporary theories of curatorial practice, gain insights into exhibition planning, audience engagement, and the conceptualisation of narratives. There'll also be opportunities to delve into the principles of spatial design, sensory experiences, storytelling, and how technology creates immersive exhibitions too.
Key areas of study include curatorial theory and methodologies, exhibition design principles, museology, audience engagement strategies, cultural heritage preservation, art and artefact conservation, digital media integration, project management, marketing, and communication strategies. You'll also explore the ethical and cultural considerations involved in curatorial practice, such as inclusivity, representation, and accessibility.
Throughout the course, you'll also have the chance to collaborate with real-world museums, galleries, cultural institutions, and industry professionals – regionally, nationally, and internationally. You'll actively enhance your understanding of industry practices and meet practitioners who'll help you build a professional network.
Graduating from BA (Hons) Curation, Exhibition and Experience Design, you'll be equipped with the skills and knowledge to pursue a variety of career opportunities. You could become an exhibition curator, museum professional, gallery manager, experience designer, cultural consultant, or even pursue a freelance or agency-based career.
Placement year
All undergraduate courses at AUB offer an optional placement year, to be taken between your second and third years of study.
If you’re unsure about this optional placement, you don’t need to decide now. Once you’re here and studying with us, the course team will discuss the placement options with you, so when the time comes, you can make a decision that’s right for you.
If you’re required to have a Student Visa to study in the UK, it won’t be possible to undertake the one-year placement option; there’ll be other opportunities for you to engage with industry during your study at AUB.
Level 4 (first year)
Forming small production teams with support from course tutors and the technical team, you'll learn to design and deliver creative projects; with the first project being delivered during the first semester of first year.
With guest lectures from specialist speakers, you're introduced to different sectors of the creative industries and the way they operate. We'll also take some time to research and understand the potential impacts of creative work on the environment and the communities and stakeholders that engage with it. Finally, creative projects will be delivered to an external audience during the summer term.
Level 5 (second year)
In the second year of the course, you progress to more specialist study, building on experience gained in your first year. Creative projects provide an opportunity for you to work with an external client, designing a solution that responds to their needs alongside developing their research skills and enhancing industry insights. At this point, you'll also learn how to pitch for investment for a new creative enterprise.
You can choose between undertaking a six-week work placement during the final semester of second year, or spend a whole year on placement before returning to complete the course. The work placement opportunity allows you to put your skills into practice, working in an industry setting.
Level 6 (third year)
In the third year, the focus is on independent learning, preparing you to transition into the world of work. You'll design a major creative project and pitch your ideas to colleagues, stakeholders, and alumni. Working as part of a production team with funding from the course, support from course tutors and the technical team, the culmination of learning will be to conceive and deliver a project that helps each student to stand out from the crowd and becomes a source of inspiration to those that'll follow them.
You'll also choose between either working with an organisation from industry, researching their business to operate as a consultant and make recommendations for their future strategic planning; or researching a topic in depth and producing a dissertation that allows you to become an expert in your chosen field.
Awards achieved by students of a similar course, which shares learning with this new course, include:
- AEME Student Event of The Year 2022
"The Curation, Exhibition and Experience Design course is an opportunity to be involved in hands-on projects, collaborative exercises, and practical workshops that reflect cutting edge industry practice. You'll learn the process of curating and designing exhibitions and experiences from concept to completion."
Application process
Once you've found the perfect Undergraduate course, you can apply to study via UCAS, including direct entry applications to second and third year.
When applying through UCAS, use the institution code A66 for courses taught at Arts University Bournemouth. For courses based at Bournemouth and Poole College, use code B49. We'll then use your completed UCAS form to make decisions about your application. You can find out more on entry requirements in our apply section.
When you apply to one of our courses, it's important that you help us get a good picture of both you and your work – so you'll need a great personal statement. We want to know more about why you're interested in the course, your key influences, and what you hope to do after your studies.
If you're invited for an interview, many of our courses will ask to see a portfolio of your work so we can get more insight into your ideas and abilities. To help you, we've created guidelines outlining what we expect from your portfolio for each course.
The fee that you pay the Arts University Bournemouth provides the necessary equipment and training for you to complete your course.
You may also choose to buy some items of personal equipment such as a laptop or tablet computer, but this is not required; desktop and laptop computers are available for you to use in common study areas, including a loan system in the Library.
If you decide to undertake an optional placement year, the tuition fee is £1,850. This is subject to inflationary increases based on government policy, and providing you progress through the course in the normal timeframe (no repeat years or breaks in study).
This course doesn't require a portfolio as part of the application process.
There are only a few courses where you'll be asked to attend an interview or audition.
The courses currently requiring interviews are BA (Hons) Make-up for Media and Performance and BA (Hons) Textiles. BA (Hons) Acting and BA (Hons) Dance require auditions. If you're invited to one you'll have at least 10 days notice.
Studios and resources
You'll learn in flexible spaces with the very latest in technology, with equipment sourced specifically for your projects, including audio visual, the latest digital technologies, and sector leading printing facilities.
We provide all the resources that you'd expect to find in a real creative business. Our exhibition spaces include TheGallery, a major resource for contemporary art and design in the South of England with exhibitions that've received both national and international recognition. It hosts several artist talks, panel discussions and other events to support the exhibition programme and is open to the public.
Students on BA (Hons) Curation, Exhibition and Experience Design will also have access to AUB's specialist arts library, print workshop, dedicated Mac suites and a base room.
The Library
The Library at AUB holds an excellent range of print and online collections
Lecture Theatres and Seminar Rooms
We have a number of lecture theatres and seminar rooms scattered around campus to assist students with their studies.
TheGallery
Our in-house gallery, TheGallery, is a major resource for contemporary art and design in the South of England
3D Workshop
Our 3D workshops with manual and digital manufacturing equipment and computers
Drawing Studio
Our iconic blue Drawing Studio is used by student from all courses and was designed by alumnus Sir Peter Cook...
Digital Suites
Our Digital Suites offer a digital post-production facility and digital teaching space.
Central Media Store
The Central Media store houses a diverse array of equipment, offering students the means to craft and capture...
Innovation Studio
The Innovation Studio operates as a lab for creative technologies, a nucleus for start-ups and enterprises and an industry engagement hub.
Printroom
Our printmaking facilities are a hub of creativity on campus and have been inspiring students since 1964.
Letterpress and Bindery
The Letterpress and Bindery studio is a central resource, where students can learn and explore bookbinding and letterpress printing.
Teaching, learning and assessment
In consultation with the Course Developer, staff are responsible for co-ordinating individual units of study, and for selecting appropriate methods of delivery, according to subject matter and student experience. The methods employed introduce you to the disciplines required of a creative practitioner and promote the development of transferable skills.
The study time allocated to each unit in the course incorporates a balance of formal teaching, tutorial support and independent learning. The course is structured progressively to provide increased opportunities for independent learning as you reach the later stages of the course.
Teaching is directed at supporting individual engagement in learning, and there'll be opportunities for you to work in teams to enable you to learn the value of peer co-operation.
Lectures, seminars, and tutorials are by team members, as appropriate, in the creative environment of the Events Management course spaces.
The progressive promotion of independent learning reflects your anticipated maturity as a student and allows you to direct your learning towards individual goals. The teaching in Level 4 is directed at providing you with the knowledge, concepts, and skills to take increasing responsibility for the management of your own learning.
Contact hours include all scheduled teaching sessions, but also supervised time in the workshop or studio. In line with national guidance, we include in our calculation of contact hours all the time that's scheduled in the studio for independent study, which is also supported by staff (either academic staff, or technicians).
The information provided below gives the proportion of your study time which constitutes contact hours. Where there are optional routes through the course, we've used the figures for the most popular option.
You'll receive a final mark for each unit in the form of a percentage, which'll be recorded on your formal record of achievement (transcript). Each component of assessment is graded using a notched marking scale, whereby only certain marks are used within each grade. The only marks available within any 10-point band are *2, *5 and *8 (e.g. 62, 65, 68). These marks correspond to a low, mid, and high level of achievement within each grade band.
All learning outcomes must be passed to successfully complete the unit.
On successful completion of your Honours degree course, you'll be awarded a degree classification based on your unit marks. The final classification is determined using all unit marks at Levels 5 and 6 using two different algorithms, which are detailed in the HE Student Regulations. If the two algorithms produce different results, you'll be awarded the higher class of degree.
If you've joined Level 6 through either the Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) route or having completed a Foundation Degree (FdA), the final classification is determined using only your unit marks at Level 6.
For further information on assessment, progression, awards, and classifications, please visit viewpoint.aub.ac.uk.
All assessments reflect the world of work and are designed to accurately reflect typical tasks that you'll undertake regularly upon graduation and embarking on their careers. The core of the course is based on practical project-based assessments with some reflection and evaluation of your learning via reports and presentations. You'll also have to pitch ideas to colleagues and clients. Finally, students will undertake research tasks which have a written output either as a report or extended essay.
What our students do
Roles achieved by graduates of a similar course, which shares learning with this new course, include:
- Head of Operations at Designwerk
- Global People and Development Manager at Moving Brands
- Marketing Manager at Spotify
- Owner, Founder, Director, Jimmy’s Iced Coffee/Entrepreneur
Upon successful completion of the BA (Hons) Curation, Exhibition and Experience Design course, you'll be equipped with the skills and knowledge to pursue a range of exciting career paths. Graduates typically go on to find opportunities as creative directors, art directors, brand strategists, advertising managers, marketing consultants, or digital content creators in a wide variety of sectors, including advertising agencies, design studios, marketing departments, media organisations, and as self-employed consultants.
Trips and visits
The academic year is planned to include educational visits. During the year, at least one excursion to London or another UK cultural hub is available. Due to Bournemouth's proximity to London, excursions can easily be planned to London’s art galleries and museums to supplement academic work. Professional progress as practitioners depends on primary research; trips give you confidence, promote independence, and present opportunities for your future professional and personal development. Any additional trip fees are disclosed before the visit.
You'll be introduced to a range of industry experts over the course of your BA (Hons) Curation, Exhibition and Experience Design studies, who'll deliver their view of the latest thinking in their field. This ensures that your studies reflect current best practice in industry. You'll also visit relevant professional organisations and creative businesses and be provided with opportunities to network with practitioners who'll be useful contacts for when you graduate.
