This course is built around your personal interests and aspirations. It allows you to push the boundaries of creativity, within a framework of academic rigour and contextual research. Given the strong practical element in the course, we invite applicants to share their portfolios and aspirations with us at interview stage. We are eager to explore how to develop each person’s individual interests and passions in Fine Art. During the course we encourage you to develop your personal practice through research, critiques, analysis and questioning. We also tackle issues that face Fine Art professionals, from fundraising to self-presentation, as part of boosting your employability. At Masters level, the specialisms of tutors are an important factor. Sunderland’s research expertise includes, painting, printmaking, studio-based drawing and collage, sculpture, collaborative practice, art in architecture, video and digital art. By the end of the course you will have prepared and participated in a public exhibition. Your work will form a Masters-level portfolio that excites and impresses potential clients, collaborators and employers. Graduates from Sunderland have gone on to work throughout the creative industries. A Masters qualification not only opens doors in the workplace, but also helps you progress more rapidly once your career is underway.

Postgraduates are highly employable and, on average, earn more than individuals whose highest qualification is an undergraduate degree. On completing this course you will be equipped for roles throughout the media and cultural industries, for example as a practitioner, curator or educator. Opportunities could include arts development, public arts projects, community art organisations, social and art therapy support units, galleries and festivals. Recent Sunderland graduates have also set up their own creative businesses, undertaken commissions and exhibited their work regionally and nationally. During the course we encourage you to gain industry experience which will enhance your skills, build up a valuable network of contacts and boost your employability. Past placements have included exhibition work in a range of public contexts such as galleries, schools and hospitals. A Masters degree will also enhance career opportunities within Higher Education and prepare you for further postgraduate studies.