BA (Hons) Furniture: Design & Make (top-up year)

Study mode:	Full-time (equivalent to 4 days a week) or part-time (equivalent to 2 days a week)
Programme length:	1 year full-time / 2 years part-time
Programme location:	Oxford & Cherwell Valley College (Oxford campus)
Year of entry:	September 2013
Home/EU fee:	£6,900 per year (full time) / £3,450 per year (part time)
International fee:	£7,800 per year
UCAS code:	W26A
Institution code:	B94/O

Why choose this programme?

The main aim of the programme is to develop graduates who are highly competent individuals with proficient knowledge in the discipline and professional skills for a career in furniture designing and making.

The Rycotewood Furniture Centre at Oxford & Cherwell Valley College has been actively engaged in the training and education of students entering the Furniture Industry for more than 70 years, with successful delivery of Higher Education for over twenty years. In this time it has actively engaged with employers with respect to placement, bespoke training and in seeking external advice in the design of its programmes. It has thus established a reputation beyond its local roots and enjoys a position of national pre-eminence in the field, uniquely located in Oxford close to the UK's traditional furniture making industry of High Wycombe.

Summary of programme

The programme provides a work-related Honours top-up progression route from the current FdA Furniture Design and Make. The programme will consist of two key elements focussing on Independent and Industry linked projects.

Independent (personal)
Establishing a self initiated brief through a significant written research project and directly linking this with a major design and make project. Modules will include Personal project: Written and Personal project: Design and Make.
Industry Linked (professional)
Developing links with industry and supporting them to build business and enterprise skills relevant to furniture designer makers. Modules will include Professional Development and Professional Design and Make (an industry linked 'live' project).
Upon successful completion you will be awarded a BA (Hons) Furniture: Design & Make from Buckinghamshire New University.

Programme content

Please note that as programmes are reviewed regularly, the module list may vary from that shown here

Modules:

Professional Design & Make – 30 Credits
Professional Development – 30 Credits
Personal Project written – 30 Credits
Personal Project Design & Make – 30 Credits

Teaching and Learning experience

Projects are the principal vehicle for teaching and learning; comprising of the presentation of a creative problem, resolved as a result of information delivered by lecture, seminar, personal and group tutorial, practical demonstration and workshop guidance. Learning is further developed through formative critiques designed to promote critical but supportive discussion and feedback on individual project work. Group tutorials give students the opportunity to share learning experiences with their peers and to encourage them to evaluate themselves and their peers.

Assessment methods

Students will be asked to participate in formative assessment procedures which require them to consider their own work against the agreed assessment criteria. This allows them to reflect upon their own practice, with tutors, and to take responsibility for acknowledging areas of strength and areas for further development in their work. All assessment is coursework or project based. Students will have the opportunity to present design proposals and practical outcomes for formative and summative assessments.

Formative assessment

Formative assessment and feedback occurs formally and informally during every project. It could take place informally during individual and group tutorials or formally at set times including submission of a written project first draft or presentation of design concepts. The feedback is part of an essential dialogue between tutor and student about their progress indicating clearly opportunities to improve.

Summative assessment

Summative assessment occurs at the completion of each individual component of coursework. This involves the scrutiny of all completed project work submitted. The assessment criteria applied are clearly stated on the assignment briefs and in the programme handbook. Tutors will be looking for evidence that students have met the learning outcomes of the assignment and carried out all the elements of the required submission. It is on the basis of this summative assessment that a final grading is made for any module. Written feedback will be provided against each of the assessment criteria with clear links back to the learning outcomes for each module.

Resources

Students will be provided with a suitably equipped place to work when attending college, which will include access to specialist staff, dedicated IT facilities/software and other learning resources which will be appropriate for the nature of work students will be required to undertake. Each student will be allocated their own work bench and space in the HE workshop and access to dedicated space within the design studio. Key resources available include;

Dedicated workshop space and work bench
Large wood machine workshop with dedicated technician support
Wood veneering/laminating/wood bending workshop
Wood finishing workshop
Design studio with dedicated IT suite
Wood and Tool store
Learning resource centre (with excellent furniture section)

Access to other OCVC workshops including Metal fabrication, Composites centre, Jewellery/Silversmithing and Ceramics is possible by appointment through the course leader. Access to Bucks New University workshops and facilities including Upholstery, Metalwork and CNC is also possible by prior agreement with the Course Leader and Link Tutor.

Additional support in upholstery and CNC is regularly provided by our industry partners whilst furniture fixings are sponsored through a partnership with Hafele.

Study Support

If you do not have a recognised disability or specific learning difficulty, but feel that you require additional support with your studies, you may be eligible to access some discrete sessions in one of the following areas:

Assistive software training
IT upskilling
Essay planning and structure
Proof reading and editing written work
Bibliographies and referencing
Time management and personal organisation
Revision and exam tips
Presentation techniques

N.B. Your eligibility for any of the above support will be reviewed with your course tutors and a member of the study support team.

Entry requirements

The majority of students will have usually completed a Level 5 qualification in a related subject i.e. HND or foundation degree, prior to application. It is anticipated that further applicants will be limited to a few exceptional cases. We would welcome applications from mature students with design or woodworking experience who may not have formal qualifications.

Applicants whose first language is not English must also demonstrate that their level of English is acceptable, by achieving a score in a recognised test such as an IELTS score of 6 overall.

All applicants are required to attend an interview before admission to the programme.

English Language requirements

Applicants whose first language is not English must also demonstrate that their level of English is acceptable, by achieving a score in a recognised test such as:

an IELTS score of 6 overall

What you can progress to

Upon successful completion of the BA (Hons) Furniture Design & Make, there are opportunities for progression to postgraduate study within the National School of Furniture at Bucks New University; several students have progressed to the MA Art and Design practice (leading to an award in MA Furniture). There is also the possibility of progression to other postgraduate courses, such as the MA RCA.