Fine Art BA
Develop your skills as a professional artist or creative professional by embarking on this four-year degree at the prestigious UCL Slade School of Fine Art. The practice-based Fine Art BA incorporates painting, fine art media and sculpture, as well as history and theory of art. You’ll be taught by practising artists and scholars, enjoy dedicated studio space, and have access to London’s vast cultural resources. Graduates go on to careers as artists or find employment in the performance and creative arts sector.
Key information
Entry requirements
- Grades
- ABB
- Subjects
- A portfolio of work is required.
- GCSEs
- English Language and Mathematics at grade C or 4
Contextual offer
- Grades
- CCC
- Subjects
- A portfolio of work is required.
- GCSEs
- English Language and Mathematics at grade C or 4
At least two A level subjects should be taken from UCL's list of preferred A level subjects.
- Points
- 34
- Subjects
- A total of 16 points in three higher level subjects, with no higher level score below 5, a portfolio of work is required.
Contextual offer
- Points
- 30
- Subjects
- A total of 15 points in three higher level subjects, with no higher level score below 5, a portfolio of work is required.
The English language level for this programme is: Level 1
Information about the evidence required, acceptable qualifications and test providers can be found on our English language requirements page.
A variety of English language programmes are offered at the UCL Centre for Languages and International Education.
The Undergraduate Preparatory Certificates (UPC) prepare international students for a UCL undergraduate degree who do not have the qualifications to enter directly. These intensive one-year foundation courses are taught on our central London campus.
Typical UPC students will be high achievers in a 12-year school system which does not meet the standard required for direct entry to UCL.
For more information see: ucl.ac.uk/upc.
About this course
The course offers expertise in three practice areas: Painting, Fine Art Media and Sculpture. The course is practice-based, and you explore each area on rotation during the first term, attending crits (critical feedback) in each area. You select one area and initiate and develop your own programme of work with tutorial guidance and technical support.
Cross-area seminars and tutorial groups ensure that the three practice areas have a forum for the exchange of ideas. You also benefit from a programme of visiting artists, gallery visits and other events that aim to develop exciting and rigorous debate. Areas/years are mixed together in the studio spaces, providing a lively cross-fertilisation of ideas and practice.
History and Theory of Art
The History and Theory of Art courses are integral to the course. You take taught courses in History and Theory of Art in Year 1 and 2 which develop your knowledge of art history and theory, enabling a critical awareness which in turn supports your studio practice. You then write an independent study in Year 3, supervised by a member of the History and Theory teaching team.
You are expected to participate actively in the History and Theory courses by reading set texts in preparation for seminars and by contributing to discussion. Through lectures, seminars, tutorials and assessments, you develop your intellectual capacities and confidence in articulating your ideas through writing and speaking.
Additional Subject
You take an additional module from another UCL department for one term, usually in your second year. This will be your own choice (subject to availability within the other department) and can either be related to studio work or to develop a further interest.
Please refer to our website for further information.
We seek to select candidates who, in addition to academic achievement, have the potential and passion to develop a critical awareness and an understanding of Fine Art and its contexts. We look for candidates who are self-motivated to take initiative and keen to experiment within our studio-centred learning environment.
Course structure
The Fine Art BA is a non-modular course.
Workshops and seminars will develop your skills and technical abilities, supplemented by visiting artists, contemporary art lectures and gallery visits.
In Years 1 and 2, you will complete courses in History and Theory of Art, assessed by written assignments. In Year 3, a longer Independent Study is written. You must also pass an additional subject module taken in another department.
You may apply for a period of study abroad as part of the Slade’s exchange programme. Places are available on a competitive basis.
The BA is practice-based, with an emphasis on self-initiated work. This is supported by one-to-one and group tutorials, cross-school events, crits critical feedback contemporary art lectures and the History and Theory of Art courses.
The crits provide a forum for you to present your work to students and tutors. The aim is to relate the work to a broad context beyond the year groups and subject disciplines in which it is produced. The crit also aims to develop your understanding of how to locate, place and present your work for exhibition, performance or public setting. Technical inductions, workshops and one-to-one technical instruction are provided according to each student’s academic needs.
The History and Theory of Art courses are structured to encourage increasing independence in research and writing. In the first two years the courses are thematic, and provide a grounding in key practices, debates and methods, enabling you to contextualise your practice and engage with how contemporary and historical art is made, interpreted, displayed and circulated. In the third year, you work on an Independent Study focused on a topic of your choice, closely supported through regular supervision with a member of the History and Theory team.
You receive an annual tutorial report and present a portfolio of practice-based work for assessment at the end of each year.
You will be assessed through tutorial reports, annual assessment of your practice-based artwork, and coursework in History and Theory of Art. Your final assessment will be based on a combination of your History and Theory of Art coursework results and a final exam when you present your work in the degree show. Please see our website for previous years’ degree shows.
The Fine Art BA course is a full-time course taken over four years, totalling 40 hours per week during term time.
In Terms 1 and 2, contact hours are a combination of area meetings followed by group crits and seminars of 3 hours, one-to-one tutorials between 45 minutes to 1 hour each and group tutorials between 3 hours to 5 hours. In Year 1, Term 1, you also attend lectures and seminars with additional reading material within the History and Theory Core Programme, and these are timetabled every week for 3 hours.
Continuing from Year 1, Term 2 onwards until the end of Year 2 Term 2, you attend History and Theory lectures and seminars each week for 3 hours. In Year 2, Term 1, you attend an additional module in UCL, (choice and place is dependent on availability). This will run alongside History and Theory. In Year 3 Term 1 and Term 2, you work on your Independent Study with five one-to-one supervisions, and group supervision of 30 minutes and 2 hours respectively.
Each year in Term 3, you are expected to take part in assessments and either degree show support or degree show preparation, depending on your year of study. You have regular contact with your personal tutor and Head of Area and can request any number of tutorials with any member of staff across the Slade, subject to availability.
You are expected to use time outside the scheduled contact hours to develop your practice through self-directed study. Self-directed study takes place in the studios, workshops and technical areas through the production of work during times when programmed teaching is not scheduled. Self-directed study each week can range from 25-30 hours.
The department will endeavour to make reasonable adjustments for students with disabilities, including those with long-term health conditions, neurodivergence, learning differences and mental health conditions. This list is not exhaustive. If you are unsure of your eligibility for reasonable adjustments at UCL, please contact Student Support and Wellbeing Services.
Reasonable adjustments are implemented on a case-by-case basis. With the student's consent, reasonable adjustments are considered by UCL Student Support and Wellbeing Services, and where required, in collaboration with the respective department.
Details of the accessibility of UCL buildings can be obtained from AccessAble. Further information about support available can be obtained from UCL Student Support and Wellbeing Services.
For more information about the department and accessibility arrangements for your course, please contact the department.
Fees and funding
| Study mode | UK fee (2026/27) | Overseas fee (2026/27) |
|---|---|---|
| Full time | £9,790 | £42,700 |
UK undergraduate fees for 2026/27 are subject to parliamentary approval and are for the first year only. Fees for subsequent years may be subject to increase: Student Terms and Conditions. UK fees are in line with the Government announcement on fee cap increases. Fees for 2027/28 entry will be published in August 2026.
International undergraduate students benefit from a cohort guarantee unless indicated below, meaning that their tuition fees will not increase during the course of the programme, but UCL reserves the right to increase tuition fees to reflect any sums (including levies, taxes, or similar financial charges) that UCL is required to pay any governmental authority in connection with tuition fees.
International fees shown are the fees that will be charged to 2026/27 entrants.
Full details of UCL's tuition fees, tuition fee policy and potential increases to fees can be found on the UCL Students website.
Additional costs
The Slade strives to keep additional costs low and has a media store where media equipment can be borrowed. You will need to supply your own materials, including for the final exam. Costs of making coursework vary in relation to the artwork you choose to produce and the materials required.
As an aspect of your research, you may also wish to visit museums that charge entry fees and visit other sites within central London and/or beyond which incur travel costs. There are also many galleries and museums that students visit for research purposes that do not charge entrance fees. Some of the galleries and museums may accept the Student Art Pass which offers students free entry to 240 museums, galleries and historic houses across the UK, as well as 50% off major exhibitions at big national museums from Tate, National Gallery and the Science Museum to Cardiff Castle and Blenheim Palace. The Art Pass costs approximately £10, and you can apply online. The Student Art Pass scheme is run by the Art Fund.
In addition, please note that if you wish to study abroad during your course at UCL, this is likely to incur additional costs. Studying abroad may cost between £200-£1,000 per month, depending on where you choose to study. The cost of studying abroad can be difficult to predict as it will depend on your priorities and choices. There is more information available on the UCL Study Abroad website.
For in-person teaching, UCL's main teaching locations are in zones 1 (Bloomsbury) and zones 2/3 (UCL East). The cost of a monthly 18+ Oyster travel card for zones 1–2 is £119.90. This price was published by TfL in 2026. For more information on additional costs for prospective students and the cost of living in London, please view our estimated cost of essential expenditure at UCL's cost of living guide. If you are concerned by potential additional costs for books, equipment, etc., please get in touch with the relevant departmental contact (details given on this page).
The Slade School of Fine Art has a number of scholarships, prizes, awards and bursaries, which are awarded annually by nomination. All applicants will be considered for any awards for which they are eligible during the admissions process.Our donors set up specific criteria for their awards. These criteria could be one or a combination of conditions, such as specific year group, specific area of study, merit-based or financial need-based. We usually nominate the most suitable candidates for these awards based on the information collated via application forms and portfolio inspections, or encourage students to nominate themselves for specific awards. Where necessary, we may invite applicants for our awards and scholarships to provide us with further information.
Why study this course at UCL?
The Fine Art BA is based at UCL’s Slade School of Fine Art. Founded in 1827, the school has a world-renowned reputation, the Complete University Guide by subject 2026 ranks UCL 1st for Art and Design, and makes a significant contribution to the field of contemporary art both nationally and internationally. All practice-based staff are practising artists and scholars with significant exhibition experience and public profiles.
We have excellent facilities in film and media, print and sculpture. These include studios, editing suites, sound studios, dark rooms and digital facilities. Our printing workshop has facilities for most forms of printmaking and bookbinding, and our sculpture workshop has a wide range of metal-working, wood-working, casting and moulding, plastic and ceramic facilities. You are allocated your own studio space each year and you can find more information about our facilities on our website.
First year students explore each area on rotation during the first term, attending crits (critical feedback) in each area.
The Slade’s location, close to many of London’s galleries, museums, libraries and theatres, provides opportunities to access a wide range of learning resources and research.
Distinguished former students include Jenkin van Zyl, Marianna Simnett, Zeinab Saleh, Sofia Mitsola, Emma Hart, Jadé Fadojutimi, Danielle Brathwaite-Shirley and Phoebe Boswell.
All undergraduates may apply for international exchanges. The Slade has exchange agreements with art schools in Europe and the United States, which are offered on a competitive basis and are subject to availability and travel/visa permissions.
Discover Uni
To see official information about this course and others visit Discover Uni.
What this course will give you
The course aims to enhance our students’ employability by: developing individual intelligence, research interests and the skills you bring with you to the Slade; developing your critical awareness and understanding of fine art and its contexts; providing the intellectual and practical resources to enable you to realise your creative potential as a professional artist.
As well as many becoming practicing artists, the majority of Fine Art BA graduates have become employed in careers in the performance and creative arts sectors (48.9%) in roles that include arts officers, producers and directors, graphic and multimedia designers, and pre-press technicians. They have also become employed in related fields, such as teaching and education (4.3%), PR, advertising and marketing (2.1%), and media (2.1%), with 5.8% pursuing postgraduate study.
*Graduate Outcomes survey carried out by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), looking at the destinations of UK and EU graduates in the 2017-2023 cohorts.
- Manufacturing
- PR, advertising and marketing
- Academic research and HE
- Media
- Arts admin; libraries, museums and heritage
- Hospitality, leisure and tourism
- Teaching and other educational activities
- Retail and wholesale activities
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Register your interest in undergraduate study and become part of the UCL community.
Register nowHow to apply
Application for admission should be made through UCAS (the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service). Applicants currently at school or college will be provided with advice on the process; however, applicants who have left school or who are based outside the United Kingdom may obtain information directly from UCAS.
Step 1: UCAS
Application for admission should be made through UCAS (the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service). Applicants currently at school or college will be provided with advice on the process; however, applicants who have left school or who are based outside the United Kingdom may obtain information directly from UCAS.
Step 2: Portfolio Submission
Along with your UCAS application, you will also submit your portfolio.
For further information on Slade’s portfolio submission see: BA/BFA Fine Art Portfolio Guidance.
Portfolios should comprise a selection of current and recent work including self-initiated work. Applicants should submit a PDF with up to twenty pages. The maximum size of the PDF is 450MB. Titles should be included for each image, including the date the work was made, size and materials. Applicants with time-based or performance elements to their work may include a showreel with a maximum duration time of five minutes. We also encourage applicants to upload a short video featuring pages from sketchbooks. The video can be a maximum of 450 MB and have a maximum duration time of five minutes.
You will receive precise instructions regarding your portfolio submission following submission of your UCAS application. Shortlisted candidates will be invited to interview in late February or March.
Selection
For further information on UCL's selection process see: How we assess your application.
Apply for this course
You are applying for the Fine Art BA course. For application guidance please visit Application guidelines.Course starts: September 2027
UCAS applications open for 2027 entry on 12 May 2026.
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Slade School of Fine Art
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