Arts Policy and Management
Entry requirements
You should have a second-class honours degree (2:2) or above in an arts subject, or in any subject together with experience of administration/management in an arts/cultural organisation, or three years’ relevant experience, for example in a senior management role in an arts/cultural organisation.
On the basis of prior learning and achievement, exemption may be possible for up to 50% of Year 1 elements of the MA.
Applications are reviewed on their individual merits and your professional qualifications and/or relevant work experience will be taken into consideration positively. We actively support and encourage applications from mature learners.
Months of entry
October
Course content
The course provides you with a comprehensive overview of the sector. It balances theory and practice within the context of the current social, political, economic and technological environments. We invite you to develop and expand your key critical-thinking skills in smaller discursive seminar groups focusing on public and voluntary sector arts organisations, but also address key commercial sector issues.
For those who want to deepen their sector experience, we offer a placement option that encourages students to work on their own research interests within an arts organisation. Past students have had valuable experiences in organisations ranging from the Greater London Authority to the Hackney Museum, and from the Big Dance Project to the Wallace Collection.
We offer this course as a Master’s and Postgraduate Certificate. For the Certificate you study fewer modules and do not complete a dissertation.
This course is part of our new Birkbeck Flexible Master’s UK, which gives you the choice of how you want to study - on campus, online or via flexible learning, which combines both.
- Birkbeck was ranked as one of the top four universities in the UK for its Art and Design research in the 2021 Research Excellence Framework.
- We offer a one-to-one mentoring scheme, where students are paired for six months with alumnae from the MA Arts Policy and Management that have become well-established leaders in the cultural and creative industries. Mentors are based in a variety of art organisations, such as Arts Council England, Craft Council, Tender Pixel, BBC, Camden Cultural Partnership and Boundless Theatre, or have pursued a successful freelance career.
- Birkbeck has established a growing international reputation combining cultural studies with the latest ideas and techniques across film studies, journalism, screenwriting, arts management, digital media. You are welcome to attend events at BIRMAC (Birkbeck Interdisciplinary Research in Media and Culture) as well as the Birkbeck Institute for the Moving Image and the Vasari Research Centre for Art and Technology.
- We run the Lorraine Lim Prize, a yearly essay competition that rewards outstanding written work related to cultural flow and creative work. The best dissertation is also rewarded with a prize at the end of each academic year. We also offer a number of bursaries for postgraduate students.
- Follow us on Twitter, read our news feeds on FMACS and Birkbeck Arts and explore MAPS, our practice-based resource collection.
On this MA Arts Policy and Management we take a sustainable approach to career development that allows you to enjoy your studies and apply innovative and creative thinking for years to come.
Graduates can pursue career paths in the national and international arts and cultural sectors in, for example:
- development and marketing
- audience development
- strategic planning
- programming and curating
- management of art collectives and networking hubs.
Jobs gained by some of our graduates include:
- Director of the Jerwood Foundation
- Co-ordinator at Nordic Council of Ministers
- Tour Manager at Sadlers Wells
- Development Officer at Bow Arts Trust
- Executive Producer at Strelka Institute for Media, Architecture and Design
- Marketing Officer at the opera company Teatro Real, Madrid
- International Programmer at Taipei Performing Arts Centre
We offer a comprehensive careers service - Careers and Enterprise - your career partner during your time at Birkbeck and beyond. At every stage of your career journey, we empower you to take ownership of your future, helping you to make the connection between your experience, education and future ambitions.
Information for international students
If English is not your first language or you have not previously studied in English, the requirement for this course is the equivalent of an International English Language Testing System (IELTS Academic Test) score of 7.0, with not less than 6.5 in each of the sub-tests.
If you don't meet the minimum IELTS requirement, we offer pre-sessional English courses and foundation programmes to help you improve your English language skills and get your place at Birkbeck.
Qualification, course duration and attendance options
- MA
- full time12 months
- Campus-based learningis available for this qualification
- Online learningis available for this qualification
- part time24 months
- Campus-based learningis available for this qualification
- Online learningis available for this qualification
- PGCert
- part time12 months
- Campus-based learningis available for this qualification
- Online learningis available for this qualification
- MA
- full time12 months
- Campus-based learningis available for this qualification
- part time24 months
- Campus-based learningis available for this qualification
- PGCert
- part time12 months
- Campus-based learningis available for this qualification
- MA
- part time24 months
- Online learningis available for this qualification
- full time12 months
- Online learningis available for this qualification
- PGCert
- part time12 months
- Online learningis available for this qualification
Course contact details
- Name
- Student Advice Service
- studentadvice@bbk.ac.uk
- Phone
- +44 (0)20 3907 0700