Dance students at De Montfort University

Dance (Joint Honours) BA (Hons)

Through fusion, improvisation, and daily dance classes in contemporary techniques you will develop technical and performance skills in a range of practices, alongside in-depth study of the dynamic arts and festivals sector with Arts and Festivals Management.

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

Overview

This course is intellectually and artistically demanding and offers daily dance classes in contemporary techniques, such as ballet for contemporary dancers, and fusion and improvisation. You will learn from internationally recognised teachers and benefit from great facilities that have contributed to DMU being recognised as a Centre for Excellence in Performance Arts, reflecting our commitment to excellent, innovative teaching and learning.

With strong industry links and opportunities to gain real-life experience, this course will prepare you for a range of dance-related careers as educators, performers, choreographers, managers and producers. Our graduates are creative, entrepreneurial practitioners who are able to respond to the ever-changing demands of the dance profession.

In your second year, you may choose to explore your career aspirations in more depth by specialising in either Choreography and Performance, where you will learn about performance and choreographic practices and develop technical and artistic skills, or  Education and the Community, to gain a thorough knowledge of arts education and dance pedagogy. This second area of specialism is ideal for students who wish to pursue a career teaching and leading dance.

At DMU, you can study Dance and Arts and Festivals Management as a joint honours course, with 50 per cent of your modules taken from each course. Alongside studying dance, you will develop an understanding of running and promoting a venue, cultural leadership, arts and communities and engaging audiences.

Key features

Gain industry experience and contacts with daily classes from our extensive network of professional dance artists and  companies.
Our graduates go on to a variety of work and performance opportunities. Recent graduate destinations include a role as head of dance in a school, music video performances, and participating in Channel 4’s First Acts and  Let’s Dance International Frontiers festival.
Enhance your employability through excellent links with local, national and international dance organisations and artists such as Maverick TV,  Akram  Khan Company and Serendipity Arts. These enriching experiences ensure that the curriculum is current and reflects industry practice.
Real-life experience  is offered though a placement module in your final year where you  can  gain valuable  knowledge  with a professional organisation or artist of your choice, with support from a mentor.  Students have recently worked with Moving Together, Fuelled Dance Theatre and New Art Club.
Arts and Festivals Management at DMU is ranked number one in the UK in the ‘Hospitality, event management and tourism’ subject area, according to the Guardian University Guide 2021.
DMU is recognised as a Centre for Excellence in Performance Arts  with  great  facilities  providing specialist studios and rehearsal spaces designed specifically for dance and performance learning activities.
Take part in our international experience programme,  DMU Global.  Our students have visited the University Dance Festival in Kiev, Ukraine,  and  performance venues in New York,  furthering their international outlook and  shaping  their  creative ideas.

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

Duration: Three years full-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

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 Practical Workshop

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

Dance Techniques 1
Understanding the Dance Profession

Second year

Dance Techniques 2
Performance Project
Choreography for Live Performance
Choreography for Screen
Dance Contexts
Teaching and Leading Dance 1
The Healthy Practitioner
Promoting Dance

Third year

In your final year you choose from a range of modules, listed below. This enables you to personalise your studies in line with your interests and career pathways.

Modules offered may include:

Dance Techniques 3
Dance Technique and Performance
Choreography
Dance Company
Screen Dance: Concept to Production
Teaching and Leading Dance 2
Dance Research Project 1
Dance Research Project 2
Placement 1
Placement 2
Education and the Performing Arts

Click here for more detailed module information: Year one - Year two - Year three

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

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.

Structure

Teaching and learning takes place in practical classes, workshops, performances, lectures, screenings, demonstrations, small group discussions and one-to-one tutorials. In your independent study time you will undertake research by viewing, reflecting, analysing, writing and in practical explorations.

All assessment is via coursework and includes classwork, presentations, choreography, written assignments and portfolios.

We have one of the largest teams of dance staff in the UK and, as they are practising artists and researchers, you can be assured of keeping up-to-date with current research and trends in dance. Our excellent teaching and research was acknowledged when DMU was designated a Centre for Excellence in the Teaching and Learning of Performance Arts.

Our academic dance staff have international reputations for performance, choreography, research and innovative teaching. World-renowned choreographer and former student, Akram Khan, has acknowledged the “inspirational teaching” he experienced at DMU.

Dance staff work closely with local, national and international dance organisations including Dance 4 and People Dancing. We also enjoy close links with artists and professional organisations, such as the Akram Khan Company, New Art Club, Moving Together and Serendipity Arts who have offered students work experience and internships.

In your final year you have practical opportunities to work with professional, educational or community organisations to develop skills in dance teaching, leading and promotion.

Contact hours
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.

Facilities and features

Performance facilities

Recognised nationally as a centre for excellence in performance arts, DMU has outstanding courses, teaching and facilities. Our Performing Arts Centre for Excellence (PACE) building provides sector-leading spacious studios, rehearsal rooms and fully equipped performance spaces. There are further fully equipped performance spaces in our Campus Centre and the Venue@DMU, a purpose-built space created to host events, performances and celebrations.

All of our spaces can be transformed to turn your ideas into a reality. Your creative work is supported by expert technicians and you can book rehearsal space and equipment such as digital video cameras, sound recording equipment and editing suites.

Take a look at our stunning showcase of the PACE building and facilities at dmu.ac.uk/perform

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. 

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.  Recent  placements at Moving Together, Fuelled Dance Theatre, New Art Club, the Joseph Papp Public Theatre in New York, Universal Music, Curve theatre and Glastonbury Festival have allowed our students to  gain  valuable  knowledge  within  a professional organisation. 

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  previously  undertaken DMU Global trips to  Copenhagen, to explore and experience the city’s cultural and historical performance landscape, Berlin and New York. Students have also been to Amsterdam to meet with cultural sector policy makers, leaders and practitioners to discuss digitalisation at the Van Gogh Museum and music licences at the Paradiso live music venue.   

Graduate careers

Graduates of this course are creative, entrepreneurial practitioners who are able to respond to the ever-changing demands of the dance profession. They are equipped to successfully work in a range of dance-related careers as educators, performers, choreographers, managers and producers. You will also be equipped with business planning, engagement and delivery skills, which are hugely attractive in the arts sector.

Recent graduate destinations include a role as head of dance in a school, music video performances, participating in Let’s Dance International Frontiers festival, the South Bank Centre and the prestigious Ambassador Theatre Group and Paintings in Hospitals, the UK's leading national arts in health charity.

Graduate, Rosie Russell, is now undertaking a master’s degree after the course opened her eyes to the career possibilities in the dance sector and praises DMU for teaching her to be entrepreneurial as a dance artist. She said: “The range of techniques offered means that I am now a more versatile dancer and the structure of classes over the three years helps you develop your own dance identity.”

Dance (Joint Honours) BA (Hons)