Overview
Creating new worlds through storytelling and conversation
Key details
- 180 credits
- 45 (FT) or 90 (PT) week programme
- Full-time study with part-time option
School or Centre
Next open day
- 24 Mar 2023
- Book or view all open days
Application deadline
- Still accepting applications
Develop new ways of experiencing, interacting and communicating on this new Master of Fine Arts (MFA)
The RCA will be launching a new MFA Communication programme for the start of the 2023/24 academic year. The information and programme title are subject to validation.
The MFA Communication programme interrogates the fundamental ways in which communication shapes our lives, and uses this knowledge to develop new ways of experiencing, interacting and communicating with the world. The programme makes space for conversation, inter-cultural exchange, new ideas and diverse voices. You will explore social, political, environmental and philosophical implications of communication practices and how these may be manifested within the your chosen field of practice.
When you enter the programme you may have an existing practice in creative disciplines such as Visual Communication, Illustration, Animation, Film and Television, Digital Direction, Extended Reality, User Interface Design, Information Experience Design, or Sound Design. You will be encouraged to take a critical approach to your discipline, as the programme invites you to locate your existing practice in interdisciplinary contexts, and to innovate in ways that challenge disciplinary boundaries.
The programme also provides opportunities to extend professional networks and to locate your professional work in the context of your study, through the option of industry-embedded and Research Project units, where you carry out projects embedded in industry, supported by tutors at RCA.
Teaching will include burst teaching and hybrid delivery, within the School of Communication and across the RCA's Battersea and Kensington campuses where students are encouraged to choose electives from other Schools. Students are encouraged to consider themselves part of an multi-disciplinary network of students spread across the RCA's Schools and the programme will stress the importance of opportunities to network and collaborate with peers on different programmes.
If you would like to be contacted once the MFA is open, please complete our enquire to study form.
Gallery
Facilities
The RCA has facilities at Kensington, Battersea and White City. MFA students will also benefit from being supervised by world-leading academics at the forefront of arts and humanities research and practice .
View all College-wide facilitiesYou will also have access to College-wide workshops on an individually planned and negotiated basis. Please note, this programme isn’t for those who want to try out a range of bespoke technical resources.
What you'll study
The teaching will be delivered by a combination of core and elective areas of study, which will include an extended independent research project, and may also include work-based learning such as placements or action research projects.
What you'll cover
How you'll learn
This information is subject to validation.
The MFA Communication programme will be delivered using burst-teaching and hybrid delivery. Burst teaching takes place on campus, and provides you with opportunities to form a community of peers and develop a sense of belonging at RCA. Outside of these periods, online group and individual tutorials will support your learning and ensure that you have regular remote contact.
Programme structure (full time)
This information is subject to validation.
Terms 1 and 2 will include common Communication units within the School of Communication, alongside electives that may be chosen from any of the College’s Schools. In the common units you will come together with other Communication students to collaborate on projects addressing the UN’s Sustainable development Goals. Alongside the common units, your choice of electives will provide opportunities to personalise your journey, and broaden your horizons by exploring subjects beyond the School and critically reflecting on their relationships to your own discipline. In term 3, you will apply what you have learnt in a substantial Research Project, where you will also be supported to independently disseminate and position your work in public contexts.
By choosing electives, you will be able to determine your own journey through the programme. You will graduate with a unique set of experiences and expertise, enabling you to locate yourself at the forefront of new and emerging industries, and to contribute to leading and shaping new industries as they emerge. You will be given the tools to become a pioneer in emerging sectors, applying your skills at the intersection of disciplines and with multi-disciplinary teams. You will also be supported to identify and pursue opportunities for public output during and beyond your programme of study.
Programme structure (part-time)
This information is subject to validation.
The part-time programme is delivered at a rate of two units per term, across two years.
Terms 1 and 2 include common Communication and elective units within the School of Communication. In the common units you will come together with other Communication students to collaborate on projects addressing the UN’s Sustainable development Goals. Meanwhile, a choice of School electives will allow you to deepen your engagement with a chosen practice within Communication. During term 3, part-time students engage in professionally-oriented units including an industry-based project with the option to embed this project in your current place of employment, recognising that many part-time students will be currently employed in relevant industries.
In the second year of study, you will study two electives from across the RCA. Your choice of electives will provide opportunities to personalise your journey, and broaden your horizons by exploring subjects beyond the School and critically reflecting on their relationships to your own discipline. Meanwhile, you will propose, develop, and realise a Research Project, which is spread across the second year of study in order to structure your journey towards your final project.
By choosing electives, you will determine their own journey through the programme. You will graduate with a unique set of experiences and expertise, enabling you to locate yourself at the forefront of new and emerging industries, and to contribute to leading and shaping new industries as they emerge. You will be given the tools to become a pioneer in emerging sectors, applying your skills at the intersection of disciplines and with multi-disciplinary teams. You will also be supported to identify and pursue opportunities for public output during and beyond your programme of study.
Requirements
What you need to know before you apply
Candidates are selected entirely on merit and applications are welcomed from all over the world, as well as from mid-career artists and career changers. The selection criteria will consider creativity, imagination and innovation as demonstrated in your portfolio or equivalent professional experience, as well as your potential to benefit from the programme and to achieve high MFA standards overall.
Fees & funding
For this programme
Fees
Fees for September 2023 entry on this programme are outlined below. From 2021 onward, EU students are classified as Overseas for tuition fee purposes.
Home
Overseas and EU
Deposit
New entrants to the College will be required to pay a non-refundable deposit in order to secure their place. This will be offset against the tuition fees for the first year of study.
Home
Overseas and EU
Progression discounts
For alumni and students who have completed an MA or MA/MSc at the RCA within the past 10 years, a progression discount is available for MFA, MDes, MArch and MEd study. This discount is £2,000 for full-time study, or £1,000 per year for two years of part-time study. This also applies if you have taken an MRes qualification between 2013 and 2023.
Scholarships
Scholarships
Scholarships are awarded for a specific programme and entry point and cannot be deferred without consent from the academic Programme and scholarships panel.
The RCA Career Progression Bursary
The RCA Career Progression Bursary supports UK mid-career applicants with no prior connection to the RCA applying with a partial fee bursary
Value: Bursaries of £3,500 each, awarded on a first-come, first-served basis. Part-time students will receive the fee discount pro-rata over their two years of study.
Funding category: Mid-career applicants, with preference for those over 50; returning after a career break; career changes; parents returning to work after parental leave; applicants with a disability.
Eligible fee status: Home students, full or part time
More information
External funding
There are many funding sources, with some students securing scholarships and others saving money from working. It is impossible to list all the potential funding sources; however, the following information could be useful.
Start your application
Change your life and be here in 2023. Applications now open.
The Royal College of Art welcomes applicants from all over the world.
Before you begin
Make sure you've read and understood the entrance requirements and key dates
More information about eligibility and key datesCheck you have all the information you need to apply.
Read our application process guideConsider attending an Open Day, or one of our portfolio or application advice sessions
See upcoming sessionsPlease note, all applications must be submitted by 12 noon on the given deadline.
Ask a question
Get in touch if you’d like to find out more or have any questions.
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