Progression & Careers

A crowd of guests and students in the courtyard at Palace Court watching the Extended Diploma Fashion Show 2025 photo by Luke Frost

Pre-Degree

The Pre-Degree Progression & Careers plan provides a bespoke, tailored and scaffolded Careers Information Advice and Guidance (CIAG) model embedded within our curriculum.

At Arts University Plymouth we aim to align the learners' experiences, views and ambitions with the academic and vocational skills needed to future-proof learners for the 21st-century industrial landscape. Discover how we are raising aspirations and connecting young students with meaningful encounters in Higher Education and employment environments.

Arts University Plymouth Pre Degree Learner Journey Map Careers

Students benefit from impartial careers advice and guidance. A qualified careers guidance adviser visits the university weekly and is available for individual consultations with students.

Ofsted Report (Rated "Good"), June 2023

Arts University Plymouth student in printing studio

Pre-Degree Progression & Careers Year Plan Glossary

ARTiculation

The ARTiculation competition is a nationally-acclaimed annual event designed to promote the appreciation and discussion of art. The competition seeks to engage all full-time students aged 16-19 - and regardless of background or experience - with art, and to develop their confidence and ability to express their opinions and thoughts through critical thinking and problem solving techniques.

The Skills Project

The Skills Project continues to provide an embedded methodology to develop personal development, British values and progression readiness through the recognition and collective ownership of a set of values required to meet these important demands. The Project allows our teachers and students to track and communicate progress in relation to employability and soft skills via regular progress checks. In terms of impact, we continually assess Pre-Degree learners through progress checks to measure the demonstration of character traits and attributes that mirror expectations of working in higher education or industry.

Design to Sell

This project is designed to enhance your professional practice and our learners maturity as an artist, maker or designer. The skills and knowledge they gain in this project will be transferable in any chosen academic or career path. They will explore elements of a business focused environment, this brief is about creativity, collaboration and commercialism.

NEETs

NEET stands for "Not in Education, Employment, or Training". It refers to a person who is unemployed, not in school or in a meaningful training programme.

NSSW

Next Steps South West (NSSW) is a collaborative Uni Connect programme funded by the Office for Students that supports young people and adult learners in Cornwall, Devon, and Somerset in their higher education journey.

Design To Sell, our long-running fair and marketplace where Pre-Degree students sell their work, takes place annually in our dedicated Pre-Degree buildings.

Information for our learners, parents, guardians, employers and other providers.

Learners

The Arts University Plymouth, Pre-Degree Progression and Careers year plan is achieved via two platforms of engagement within each learners study programme. The first platform of activities are embedded within the enriching and diverse curriculum model delivered in sessions and includes University progression workshops, the Design to Sell project where we turn our whole campus into a shop for three days, national competitions such as ARTiculation and Worldskills. The second platform exists as activities that sit outside the formal curriculum model and includes Work Placement opportunities, the Pre-Degree enrichment programme, our Year 2 GAP year club, and weekly careers interventions that start in January and continue through to June. In addition to these platforms of engagement, we intricately track and thread the Pre-Degree Skills Project throughout the course of each learners study programme. The Skills Project continues to provide an embedded methodology to develop personal development, British values and progression readiness through the recognition and collective ownership of a set of values required to meet these important demands. The Project allows our teachers and students to track and communicate progress in relation to employability and soft skills via regular progress checks.

Parents and Guardians

We continually develop and improve on our Pre-Degree progression and careers provision. Our intention is to continually keep working towards the university’s ethos of continual creative learning and social justice via the Pre-Degree Skills Project, whilst also driving toward 100% achievement of the Gatsby Career Benchmarks. The Gatsby Benchmarks are a framework of 8 guidelines that define the best careers provision in schools and colleges.

Employers and other providers

Our university provides a number of qualifications, we offer a Foundation Diploma in Art and Design course, a suite of 6 UAL Art and Design Extended Diploma courses including Graphics, Illustration and Game Arts, Film, Animation and Media Production, Photography, Fashion and Textiles and Art and Design. Our students are able to engage with a number of work experiences from across a multitude of industrial sectors including: Construction, Engineering, Design and Technology, Visual Communication, Architectural design, Fashion, Media and Marketing, Radio as well as in the Public and Health sectors. Which helps them to build upon new and existing skills to align these with professional practice and industry expectation.

Leaders and governors have established ambitious curriculums for students that enable them to develop their creative knowledge, skills and behaviours [and] that align closely with the strategic skills needs of the city. They ensure that students learn about immersive technologies and entrepreneurial skills to support the growth in creative and digital microbusinesses. Leaders plan curriculums to ensure that students are taught the digital skills they need to work remotely and flexibly to prepare them for work in an industry that no longer requires professional creatives to live in larger cities.

Ofsted Report (Rated "Good") June 2023

BBC Spotlight interviews student Ceri Louise Prowse during the first year of the BFI Film Academy

Gatsby Career Benchmarks 2026/2027

The Gatsby Benchmarks were developed on behalf of the Gatsby Foundation by Sir John Holman, which aimed to highlight what "good careers work" looked like. They provide us with a clear framework for organising our careers provision, and have been accepted as best practice by the Government. Find out more about the Gatsby benchmarks <a href="https://www.careersandenterprise.co.uk/schools-colleges/understand-gatsby-benchmarks" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">here</a>.

Gatsby Career Benchmark	Brief description
1. A STABLE CAREERS PROGRAMME	A structured, embedded careers programme, backed by leadership/governors, with a trained Careers Leader, clear learning outcomes, published programme and regular evaluation. Parent/carer engagement should be built in.
2. LEARNING FROM CAREER AND LABOUR MARKET INFORMATION	All learners should access and use current careers, pathway and LMI information during their programme to inform study and next-step decisions. Parents/carers should also be supported to use it. Information should cover academic, technical, vocational and employment routes.
3. ADDRESSING THE NEEDS OF EACH YOUNG PERSON	Careers provision should be genuinely personalised, including targeted support for disadvantaged, vulnerable and SEND learners. Colleges should maintain records of careers participation, advice, aspirations, intended destinations and actual destinations, including longer-term destination data.
4. LINKING CURRICULUM LEARNING TO CAREERS	Throughout the programme, every learner should see how the knowledge and skills in their subject/course relate to occupations and progression. Subject staff should be involved and supported through CPD.
5. ENCOUNTERS WITH EMPLOYERS AND EMPLOYEES	At least two meaningful employer encounters per year for every learner, with at least one delivered through their curriculum area. Encounters should be purposeful, interactive, varied and followed by reflection.
6. EXPERIENCES OF WORKPLACES	Every college learner should have at least one meaningful workplace experience by the end of their programme, in addition to any part-time job. It should involve preparation, meaningful activity, interaction with employees, employer feedback and reflection.
7. ENCOUNTERS WITH FURTHER AND HIGHER EDUCATION	Learners should experience the full range of progression routes. By the end of their programme, every learner should have a meaningful encounter with relevant next-stage providers. Those considering Higher Education (HE) should have at least two HE visits by age 18.
8. PERSONAL GUIDANCE	Every learner should have access to guidance from an appropriately trained careers adviser at key decision points. The expectation is at least one meeting by age 16 and a further meeting by age 18.