Bachelor of Arts (Hons) in Anthropology and Visual Practice

at Goldsmiths, University of London United Kingdom

The BA in Drama and Theatre Arts is designed to foster creative, radical theatre-makers and thinkers. It is adventurous in form, international in scope and hands-on in practice.

The Complete Theatre Maker

• This degree supports you to become the complete theatre maker. At the heart of the programme is a balanced integration of theory and practice. Knowledge gained through making and doing adds to your conceptual understanding, while the insights gained in writing about theatre and society inform the choices you make in your practice-based work.
• Tutored by our diverse and talented team, you will develop technical skills in acting, directing, writing, sound, lighting, scenography, and costume. Bringing these skills together, you will learn how to collaborate and operate in companies, ready to take your own show on the road.
• You will be introduced to a wide range of theatre thinkers, and explore the history and cultural diversity of performance. You will develop a complex understanding of what it means to make theatre in an increasingly global 21st-century society. And with London’s rich theatre culture on your doorstep, you can draw on an exciting range of contemporary practice to inform your thinking and making.

The BA Drama and Theatre Arts is a radical and innovative degree. The curriculum is responsive to the global reach of our teaching staff, including expertise in African, American, Francophone, Japanese, and South Asian performance, as well as British, European, and Russian theatre traditions. We prepare theatre-makers who are socially, culturally, and politically engaged.

The degree explores what it means to perform in contemporary culture, mobilising a range of theatre and performance practices from the interpretation of play texts to devised ensemble work and the possibilities opened up by political protest, live art, and the avant-garde.

This challenging and ground-breaking degree introduces you to core ideas and issues in politics, philosophy and economics (PPE). It will help you understand how the economy is governed, how public policy gets made, and the ideas which shape our world.

Why study BA Politics, Philosophy and Economics at Goldsmiths?

• We offer a distinctive, fresh and critical take on the well-established combination of Politics, Philosophy and Economics (PPE), drawing on our strengths in social science and theory. You'll gain an introduction in the ideas and concepts that have shaped the world you live in, and learn to challenge established political and economic policies, institutions and methods.
• As one of the top political universities in the UK as voted by students (Which? University 2019), Goldsmiths offers a dynamic undergraduate culture, with active student media and politics groups. By the time you graduate, you will have gained a wealth of practical experience, and discovered what excites you for your career ahead.
• You’ll be taught by highly engaged lecturers working across politics, philosophy and economics, all of whom are active researchers and accomplished writers in their fields.
• The programme includes a basic introduction to economics, so you don’t need any prior experience of economics or an A-level in Mathematics before you start.
• Over the three years, you’ll be introduced to alternative approaches to the economy, drawn from anthropology and sociology. You will be encouraged to think more broadly and imaginatively about the way in which markets, states and public policies operate in the 21st century.
• You’ll focus on contemporary, real-world problems, such as financial and environmental regulation, which will prepare you for a career in public policy, NGOs, media, consulting or social innovation.
• In addition to the taught curriculum, you will have the opportunity to hear from experts and policy-makers at special guest lectures.

Our English degree gives you the opportunity to develop the critical and verbal skills needed for confident, effective reading of literary texts and criticism.

It develops your core skills in analytical and imaginative reading and writing and places a strong emphasis on social and cultural diversity. The flexible programme allows you to choose topics related to American literature and culture, comparisons of literature across different cultures and art forms (also known as Comparative Literature), and study all aspects of language use in linguistics modules. Throughout, your literary studies will be complemented by a series of lectures and activity-based seminars which will help you develop and consolidate your practical academic skills and research techniques.  

Why study BA English at Goldsmiths?

• We’re not just focused on the classics. You’ll leave us with a solid understanding of key literary texts, but you’ll also have the chance to look at less traditional subjects including surrealism, Hollywood cinema, fairy tales, and writing by migrants and refugees.
• We’re inclusive. We embrace literature from a variety of cultures, giving you the chance to study writing from America, Europe and the Caribbean.
• We also offer modules on the study of authentic language use in a range of everyday, professional and media communication, exploring topics such as language and gender, raciolinguistics, digital media discourse, language learning and teaching, attitudes to (non)standard language use, political correctness and the linguistic construction of identities. Watch a short discussion between our linguists.
• Our option modules offer a historical view of writing and also let you specialise in areas of interest, including thematic and genre-based approaches to literature, comparative analysis, and literary theory.

The MA Digital Media is unique in its combination of practical and theoretical approaches to contemporary media and technology.

This established and exciting degree is designed to help you understand digital transformations in media, culture, and society and apply this understanding in practice, in the media and creative industries and in further research. The programme will equip you with skills that can be applied to current and future developments in digital media, social media, computing, and other aspects of technology.

The MA Digital Media educates aspiring media practitioners and academics as well as early and mid-career professionals who seek to reflect on their roles in a structured and stimulating learning environment designed to give all students up-to-the-minute knowledge of digital media and the skills to apply that knowledge to future developments.

This programme offers three pathways:

• Pathway 1 is a Theory programme where you learn about developments in digital media and technology.  This pathway draws on media theory, critical theory, continental philosophy, science and technology studies, gender studies, critical race studies, the posthumanities, software studies and cultural studies to diagnose our present digital condition.
• Pathway 2 (Image Making) is a theory and practice programme.  Alongside engaging with digital media theory you will work with one or more of the following – animation, photography, video and other forms of moving image – to create installations, apps and single/multi-screen work that is responsive to a continually changing, and conceptually understood, digital landscape.
• Pathway 3 (Critical Computing) is a theory and practice programme where you will interrogate technical objects through critically learning a technical subject and by collectively criticising the results and processes involved – for example, by studying the racialisation of algorithms or exploring non-proprietary databases, operating systems, software licensing, programming, networking and open hardware in the shape of physical computing.

A unique programme for dramaturges and playwrights, this programme concentrates on the process of writing for live performance, together with an ongoing evaluation of the work in process.

Why study MA Dramaturgy and Writing for Performance at Goldsmiths?

• This Masters will help you establish a distinctive, individual approach as a writer and dramaturge. You will work on projects including site-specific work, writing for a specific audience, verbatim theatre and interdisciplinary collaboration.
• You will develop texts for performance, and refine your intellectual understanding of the diverse forms and contexts in which live performance can be made.
• You will be taught by experienced permanent staff, as well as visiting tutors, including Goldsmiths alumnus Ian Rickson (former Artistic Director of the Royal Court), April De Angelis, Duncan Macmillan, Penny Black, and Hanna Slattne.
• You will have the opportunity to work on an interdisciplinary project with MA Performance Makers and composers from the Department of Music. Your final project texts, performed and directed by industry professionals at the Soho Theatre in London, and attended by key industry representatives.

Do you want to advance your knowledge of contemporary art and pursue a professional career in the field of curatorial practice?

Curating refers to a wide range of activities including the care of collections and the development of exhibitions, festivals, screenings, digital platforms and more. Curators engage with historical knowledge and respond to urgent social issues, staging culture as a way of bringing together multiple publics.
Visual Cultures at Goldsmiths has been at the forefront of curatorial research for well over a decade, helping to redefine the profession. Drawing from this research, taught by leading curators and researchers, BA Curating combines a strong grounding in art history and contemporary cultural theory with the development of practical know-how and industry experience.

Why study BA Curating at Goldsmiths?

• Visual Cultures at Goldsmiths is internationally renowned for its research on Curatorial Practice and you will be learning from leading theorists and practitioners.
• You will study compulsory modules on curatorial history, theory and practice alongside option modules in art history and visual culture that allow you to focus on your particular interests.
• You will be mentored to develop the know-how and practical skills necessary to practice as a contemporary art curator through a number of practical assignments as well as an industry placement in your second year.
• You will develop your ability to work collaboratively and will work with your peers in your third year towards your degree show.
• You will be supported to develop student-led projects and will have access to our dedicated Curating Room to host your events.
• You will benefit from the rich programme of events at Goldsmiths as well from world-class exhibitions at the newly opened Goldsmiths Centre for Contemporary Art.
• Our London location means you’ll never run out of galleries, events, museums and visual culture to explore in the capital.

Computation consists of all the changes brought about by digital technology. Art is an open set of ways of acting inventively in culture. Mixing the two together in a systematic way gives us computational art. This is a very open field, and one that is set to expand enormously in the coming years. It is where the most exciting developments in technology and in culture can already be found. This degree will place you in the middle of this fast-evolving context.

This degree develops your arts practice through the expressive world of creative computation. Over a two years (full-time) or four years (part-time) you will develop your artistic work and thinking through the challenge of developing a series of projects for public exhibition which will explore the technological and cultural ramifications of computation.

You will learn the fundamentals of programming and how to apply this knowledge expressively. You will work with popular open source programming environments such as Processing, OpenFrameworks, P5.js and Arduino, and will learn how to program in languages such as Java, Javascript and C++.

Since computational artworks don’t necessarily involve computers and screens, we also encourage students to produce works across a diverse range of media. Supported by studio technicians in state-of-the-art facilities, our students are producing works using tools such as 3D printers, laser cutters, robotics, wearable technologies, paint, sculpture and textiles.

You will also study contextual modules on computational art and the socio-political effects of technology. Modules provide students with the historical foundations, frameworks, critical skills and confidence to express their ideas effectively. You will have the opportunity to learn the cultural histories of technology, to reflect on computation in terms of its wider cultural effects, and to understand the way in which art provides rigorous ways of thinking.

The MA Luxury Brand Management equips you with the management, entrepreneurial, marketing and professional skills to work in the luxury goods and experiential luxury industry.

The luxury brands sector encompasses the fashion and retail industry, as well as sectors such as tourism, hospitality, food and beverage, film, digital media, dance, music and theatre. This MA debates the concept of luxury in a historical and cross-cultural context, and offers a strong academic underpinning on theories of luxury and consumption.

You will explore the role of luxury in conserving traditional arts, especially with regard to Europe, Asia, Africa and the Americas.

The programme combines formal teaching with dissertation research, underpinned with visits to key luxury brand enterprises in London and elsewhere, and draws on Goldsmiths’ alumni for inspirational talks. This programme offers practice-based assignments and voluntary intern opportunities in various cultural organisations and luxury corporations that have established links with Goldsmiths.

This degree provides a grounding in some of the major aspects of politics and international relations. You'll learn about international systems and global governance political theory, UK, European and US politics, international political economy and undertake area-based studies of Asia, Africa and the Middle East.

Why study BA Politics with International Relations at Goldsmiths?

• We offer a distinctive approach that combines the study of politics and international relations, giving you the opportunity to gain broad knowledge and experience of both disciplines.
• The Department of Politics and International Relations provides a lively interdisciplinary environment, specialising in the study of institutions and conflicts in a way that crosses boundaries between traditional understandings of political phenomena.
• You’ll be able to choose from an unusually wide range of module options which explore the aesthetics of terrorism, critical approaches to security, the politics of development, US politics and foreign policy, the geopolitics of the Middle East, and contemporary movements from the Arab Spring to ISIS. We offer a range of area-based modules covering the Middle East, China and East Asia, Africa and Latin America.
• We have a lively events programme that attracts renowned speakers, meaning that you'll have the opportunity to hear the latest political arguments, theories and ideas.
• Our unique work placement module gives you the opportunity to gain work experience relevant to the degree and we also give you the opportunity to study abroad.

Radio and audio have the potential to be transformative, to further the human experience. It’s a medium that creates a sense of intimacy while continually generating questions. This is a programme that empowers you to create something permanent, something with a life beyond your own – something only sound can achieve.

The MA poses questions about the influence of radio as a medium and the power it has to stir emotions, evoke feelings, and conjure vivid mental images. We look at the ways in which recording technologies can preserve and hold on to an aspect of our existence – be that a cultural exchange or an artistic communication – and how we can inspire future generations with the work we create.