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Arts and Festivals Management (Joint Honours) BA (Hons)

Develop the skills needed for a career in the dynamic arts and festivals sector, and combine your studies with your passion for performing in either Dance or Drama.

Entry Criteria
Structure and assessment
Facilities and features
Opportunities and careers
Take your next steps
Contact us

Overview

Emma, an Arts and Festivals Management graduate speak about her experience at DMU.

The longest-running degree course of its kind in the UK, Arts and Festivals Management boasts enviable industry links to give you the real-world insight and professional edge.

From programming and cultural policy to marketing and management theory, you will gain the skills that you need to become a leader in the cultural arena and festivals sector. With us, you will learn what it takes to run small and large-scale cultural events, including fundraising, business planning, licensing, and health and safety. You will gain expertise in different scales of venues and kinds of programmes, from theatres to music venues, galleries, museums and festivals.

We will also develop your knowledge of the theory and academic debate surrounding a range of topics, from running and promoting a venue to cultural leadership, arts and communities and the key to engaging audiences. 

The events landscape is continually changing and professionals in the sector must be adept problem-solvers, with the ability to handle new challenges and offer dynamic solutions. This programme will help equip you with the skills to adapt to the diversification and developments of the sector, with practical projects allowing you to experience online event delivery and digital arts and cultural content.

At DMU, you can study Arts and Festivals Management with either Dance or Drama as a joint honours course. This will complement your understanding of the cultural sector by enabling you to acquire practical skills and critical knowledge of performance arts, opening up career opportunities in this sector. You will choose 50 per cent of your options from Arts and Festivals Management and 50 per cent from Dance or Drama.

Key features

Arts and Festivals Management at DMU is ranked number one in the UK in the ‘Hospitality, event management and tourism’ subject area (Guardian University Guide 2022)
Links with the Leicester Comedy Festival have provided students with the opportunity to organise and run a venue, manage the acts and promote events. The festival founder is DMU alumnus Geoff Rowe.
In your final year you can be part of the team producing, programming and running the high-profile annual Cultural Exchanges Festival. Previous events have featured inspiring guests such as Benjamin Zephaniah, Grayson Perry, and Meera Syal.
Gain meaningful international experience through DMU Global. Students have benefited from trips to Amsterdam, and New York, where they saw a rehearsal and behind-the-scenes of Il Barbiere di Siviglia at Manhattan’s Lincoln Center.

Valuable real-life experience is offered though a placement module with a professional organisation. Students have previously worked with the Joseph Papp Public Theatre in New York, Universal Music, Curve theatre and Glastonbury Festival.
Our graduates are highly practical individuals who are equipped with business planning, engagement and delivery skills, which are hugely attractive in the arts sector. Graduates hold key positions across a wide range of industries and roles, including The Barbican, Ballet Rambert, Wembley Arena and the BBC.

Scholarships:

DMU Global High Flyers Award
Our dedicated DMU Global High Flyers Award offers ambitious students a discount of up to £1,000 towards a DMU Global opportunity (terms and conditions apply).

UK
EU/International

Institution code: D26

UCAS course code:

Arts and Festivals Management and:

Dance: WW59
Drama WW94

Duration: Three years full-time, four years full-time with a placement. Six years part-time.

Fees and funding:

2024/25 tuition fees for UK students: £9,250

Find out more about tuition fees and available funding.

Additional costs: Here at DMU we provide excellent learning resources, including the Kimberlin Library and specialist workshops and studios. However, you should be aware that sometimes you may incur additional costs for this programme.

Contact us: For more information, call us on +44 (0)116 2 50 60 70.

How to apply

Submit a study-related enquiry

Duration: Three years full-time, four years with placement

Fees and funding:

2024/25 tuition fees for international students: £15,750

Contact us: For more information, call us on +44 (0)116 2 50 60 70.

How to apply

Application guidance document

Submit a study-related enquiry

Entry criteria

Typical entry requirements

112 points from at least 2 A'levels or
BTEC Extended Diploma DMM or
International Baccalaureate: 26+ Points

Plus five GCSEs grades 9-4 including English Language or Literature at grade 4 or above.

Pass Access with 30 Level 3 credits at Merit (or equivalent) and GCSE English (Language or Literature) at grade 4 or above.

We will normally require students have had a break from full-time education before undertaking the Access course.

We also accept the BTEC First Diploma plus two GCSEs including English Language or Literature at grade 4 or above

English language requirements

If English is not your first language an IELTS score of 6.0 overall with 5.5 in each band (or equivalent) when you start the course is essential.

English language tuition, delivered by our British Council-accredited Centre for English Language Learning, is available both before and throughout the course if you need it.

Interview and audition

For Arts and Festivals Management and Dance BA (Hons), applicants with relevant qualifications will be invited to submit an audition clip. Please see our digital audition advice for full details.

Non-standard applicants may be invited to attend an online interview via MS Teams with an audition clip.

Structure and assessment

First year

Running and Promoting a Venue
Creative Arts Manager: Policy and Practice

Second year

Research Methods: Dissertation
Research Methods: Placement
Programming and Planning Festivals
Engaging Audiences

Third year

Dissertation*

*As a Joint Honours student you can choose to do your dissertation in Arts and Festivals Management or your other subject

You will take the above module and choose from:

Arts Management Studio
Music Industry Management
Event and Festivals Management

Click here for more detailed module information

Note: All modules are indicative and based on the current academic session. Course information is correct at the time of publication and is subject to review. Exact modules may, therefore, vary for your intake in order to keep content current. If there are changes to your course we will, where reasonable, take steps to inform you as appropriate.

Joint honours degree students will study available modules from 50 per cent of one subject and 50 per cent of another.

Structure

Practical modules are also delivered via workshops in our dedicated events office and the venues where the events are taking place. They entail group meetings and supervised sessions for planning, preparation and delivery of your events above and beyond the timetabled classroom teaching.

Assessment is tailored to the module contents and learning objectives and in Arts and Festivals Management this is predominantly coursework - essays, reports, critiques; finance exercises; case study analysis; group work - practical work/reports/presentations and a final year dissertation. One level 4 module has an exam.

Contact hours

Arts and Festivals Management and Dance
You will be taught through a combination of lectures, tutorials, seminars, group work and self-directed study. Assessment is through coursework (presentations, essays and reports) and usually an exam. Your precise timetable will depend on the optional modules you choose to take, however, in your first year you will normally attend around 14 hours of timetabled taught sessions (lectures and tutorials) each week, and we expect you to undertake at least 25 further hours of independent study to complete project work and research.

Arts and Festivals Management and Drama
You will be taught through a combination of lectures, tutorials, seminars, group work and self-directed study. Assessment is through coursework (presentations, essays and reports) and usually an exam. Your precise timetable will depend on the optional modules you choose to take, however, in your first year you will normally attend around 8 hours of timetabled taught sessions (lectures and tutorials) each week, and we expect you to undertake at least 28 further hours of independent study to complete project work and research.

Overview

We have a wide range of contacts with arts organisations including Festival Republic, the Leicester Comedy Festival, Curve Theatre and the London South Bank Centre.

Facilities and features

Library and learning zones

On campus, the main Kimberlin Library offers a space where you can work, study and access a vast range of print materials, with computer stations, laptops, plasma screens and assistive technology also available.

As well as providing a physical space in which to work, we offer online tools to support your studies, and our extensive online collection of resources accessible from our Library website, e-books, specialised databases and electronic journals and films which can be remotely accessed from anywhere you choose.

We will support you to confidently use a huge range of learning technologies, including the Virtual Learning Environment, Collaborate Ultra, DMU Replay, MS Teams, Turnitin and more. Alongside this, you can access LinkedIn Learning and learn how to use Microsoft 365, and study support software such as mind mapping and note-taking through our new Digital Student Skills Hub.

The library staff offer additional support to students, including help with academic writing, research strategies, literature searching, reference management and assistive technology. There is also a ‘Just Ask’ service for help and advice, live LibChat, online workshops, tutorials and drop-ins available from our Learning Services, and weekly library live chat sessions that give you the chance to ask the library teams for help.

More flexible ways to learn

We offer an equitable and inclusive approach to learning and teaching for all our students. Known as the Universal Design for Learning (UDL), our teaching approach has been recognised as sector leading. UDL means we offer a wide variety of support, facilities and technology to all students, including those with disabilities and specific learning differences.

Just one of the ways we do this is by using ‘DMU Replay’ – a technology providing all students with anytime access to audio and/or visual material of lectures. This means students can revise taught material in a way that suits them best, whether it's replaying a recording of a class or adapting written material shared in class using specialist software.

Campus Centre

The home of  De Montfort Students' Union, (DSU) our Campus Centre offers a welcoming and lively hub for student life. Conveniently located at the heart of campus, it includes a convenience store, a Subway and a Starbucks. Here you can find the DSU-owned charitable accommodation service Sulets and DSU’s shop, SUpplies, selling art supplies, stationery and clothing, and printing and binding services. The building is also home to the DSU officer team.

Opportunities and careers

Placements

During this course you will have the option to complete a paid placement year, an invaluable opportunity to put the skills developed during your degree into practice. This insight into the professional world will build on your knowledge in a real-world setting, preparing you to progress onto your chosen career.

Previous  placements include the Joseph Papp Public Theatre in New York, Universal Music, Curve theatre and Glastonbury Festival.  

Our  excellent industry links  ensure  you work on relevant projects and  briefs to grow your experience and build your external reputation before you graduate. This invaluable experience can enrich student capabilities as well as their final-year projects. Our careers programme DMU Works can help to hone your professional skills with mock interviews and practice aptitude tests, and an assigned personal tutor will support you throughout your placement. 

DMU Global

Our innovative international experience programme DMU Global aims to enrich your studies and expand your cultural horizons, helping you to become a global graduate, equipped to meet the needs of employers across the world.

Through DMU Global, we offer a wide range of opportunities including on-campus and UK-based activities, overseas study, internships, faculty-led field trips and volunteering, as well as Erasmus+ and international exchanges.

Students on this course have  visited  Copenhagen to explore and experience the city’s cultural and historical performance landscape, as well as Berlin, Amsterdam and New York.

While overseas DMU Global opportunities are not currently possible, DMU will continue to review government advice and if travel is permitted, we hope to offer a small number of extra-curricular opportunities in the summer of 2021.

Graduate careers

Our graduates  are highly practical individuals who are equipped with business planning, engagement and delivery skills - all hugely attractive to employers in the arts sector.  Many  go  on to forge successful careers in music, theatre, TV, film, charity sectors, community arts organisations and education.  

Recent  graduate destinations  include the South Bank Centre, Save the Children, the prestigious Ambassador Theatre Group, the National Theatre and Arts Council England.

Dominka studied Arts and Festivals Management and Dance, she said: ”During my final year I organised the Cultural eXchanges Festival. It was an amazing opportunity to experience a real-life case of what is waiting for me when I go out there and start a graduate job in festivals management. The highlight of my time was a DMU Global trip to New York. I saw a Broadway musical - that was a dream come true.”

Arts and Festivals Management (Joint Honours) BA (Hons)