Education and Design or Fine Art
Are you the type of person who likes to work with other people, to improve the quality of peoples’ lives, to make a difference? Are you interested in using art, craft and design as a way of exploring how we live?
Do you like to solve problems and to think ‘outside the box’? If so, a career as an art teacher might be just the right choice for you.
The BA in Education and Design or Education and Fine Art is a Joint Honours award. That means you follow the full degree course in Fine Art or Design as well as taking a dedicated teacher education programme as a professional qualification. This Joint Honours course takes four years to complete, as compared to the three-year single discipline Fine Art or Design degree.
In First Year, your course of study will be largely focussed on the development of your capacities in Fine Art or Design. In Year 2 you will continue to follow the degree programme you have chosen in Fine Art or Design but you will also follow certain modules that will introduce you to aspects of education and begin to prepare you for teaching in various settings. For the first half of your Third Year, you will continue your Fine Art or Design studies, along with some Education elements.
Then for the second half of your Third Year, you will be engaged full-time in Education. You will have an extended placement in a school where you will be supported in learning the role and functions of a teacher. There will be some college-based work as well, providing you with a theoretical base for your teaching.
In the first half of your fourth year, you will continue on a full-time education programme. This will involve another extended placement in a recognised school as well as further education studies and space for reflection, based in college. Finally, for the second half of your fourth year, you will re-engage with your studio practice in Fine Art or Design, and will bring your studies to conclusion with your final end-of year exhibition of work.
How will I be Assessed?
Assessment throughout the course, in both your studio practice and in education studies, will be on a continuous basis, usually taking place over each semester (half-year). Formal assessment results will be issued at the end of each academic year. Modes of assessment will include practical and written assignments, oral and visual presentations, and some written examinations.
Download NCAD Prospectus
Most Education graduates go on to teach in secondary, vocational or community and comprehensive schools. The teaching qualification is recognised internationally, and some graduates choose to travel abroad to find employment in other countries.
Art teachers work in a variety of settings – in second-level schools, in further education, with very young children, with adults, in museums and galleries, in prisons and in many other places where education takes place.
Many education graduates choose to continue their specialist art or design area of work, through further study or employment in those disciplinary areas. In some cases, they might decide to return to teaching at a later stage in their lives, knowing that their professional qualification will still be valid. Art teachers can pursue a range of higher education awards at graduate level, including Masters awards in various aspects of art or education, such as visual art education, inclusive education, educational management and other aspects of education. Similarly, Joint Honours Education students may choose to develop their art or design studio practice through MA or MFA work in those disciplines.
Please see the Study at NCAD section for full application details.
| Duration | 4 Years |
| Places | 35 |
| Applications |
CAO Course Code: AD202 Design/ Fine Art & Education |
| Entry Requirements |
Leaving Cert: 6 Subjects (2 X H5 and 4 X O6/H7) Subjects must include English, Irish and one of the followiing: a third language or Art or Design & Communication Graphics (DCG)
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| Portfolio Requirement | NCAD Portfolio Submission |
| Degree Awarded | BA Design and Education BA Fine Art and Education |
For further information please contact:
School Administrator
Catherine Creagh
creaghc@staff.ncad.ie
Admissions Queries
admissions@ncad.ie
