Arts University Bournemouth

Arts University Bournemouth was founded in 1880 as the Bournemouth Government School of Art. Over the years it has incorporated science, design and technology and became a full university in 2012, specialising in art, performance, design and media in the creative industries.

It offers courses at further, higher, postgraduate and research levels and also provides a range of short courses. It runs about 20 undergraduate courses and about 10 graduate courses across two faculties: Art and Design, and Media and Performance. The university’s specialist education makes it one of only a handful in the UK and it aims to foster a creative environment in which staff and students share a passion for the arts and design.

Students are encouraged to work together across disciplines on programmes that combine professional practice and research. This experience gained from working with professional industries, along with advice given by the university’s career services, provides students with advice on employability once they graduate. Students can also choose to study abroad as part of the university’s European Exchange programme.

It has one campus, based in the southern coastal town of Bournemouth. The campus covers 3.7 hectares and houses 19 buildings that include specialist workshops, galleries and studios. The university provides housing at three campuses across Bournemouth for about 450 students, with priority given to overseas students and those with disabilities or medical conditions.

Arts University Bournemouth has a number of notable alumni including Simon Beaufoy, the screenwriter of Slumdog Millionaire and 127 Hours, Paul Campion, who did visuals effects on Clash of the Titans and X-Men: The Last Stand, and Edgar Wright, the director of Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz.