Arts, creative arts & humanities - an overview

• Graduate destinations
• Types of Work
• References
• Contacts and resources
• Case studies
• Quotes

View destinations of specific subjects:

Courses in arts, creative arts and humanities continue to be popular choices with students who, according to recent research conducted by the Higher Education Academy (HEA, 2006), rated interest in the subject as the dominant factor in their choice of undergraduate study.

» Graduate destinations

The Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education (DLHE) survey reveals there are many paths open to these graduates following either vocational or non vocational courses:

• Direct entry into employment including jobs and careers which are open to graduates from ‘any discipline’. Apart from academic skills, it is important that other life and work experiences can be identified and the related skills and attributes demonstrated to prospective employers.
• Training or further study. These are popular routes for many of these graduates, often leading to a chosen vocational qualification.
• Enhancing their experience either in a workplace or via opportunities at home or abroad. This may be a transitional path for many graduates in their first year beyond university.
• Self-employment is another option particularly for arts and creative students to explore, either during, or in the immediate years beyond, their studies.

According to the HEA report, “The HE experience furnishes (humanities) graduates with many skills they need in the workplace” (HEA, 2006). Preparation and steps towards deciding and planning career choice are encouraged from the early stages of undergraduate study. Most higher education institutions now provide:

• Personal Development Planning support and activities enabling students to gain ‘a knowledge of their own employability skills which can facilitate their transition’ (HEA, 2004).
• Skill enhancement and enterprising activities to research and support self-employment.

Students should engage with these practices or programmes which may be integral to their course, optional resources or activities.

Table 1 shows the first destinations of 2006 arts, creative arts and humanities graduates.

The ‘creative’ areas of media studies, design and performing arts have employment rates at 71.2%, 70.9% and 63.6% respectively, which are above the 62.9% average figure for all first degree graduates. These subjects, however, also have higher rates of unemployment when compared to the ‘all subjects’ figure of 6%. It is widely acknowledged that in some of these areas, it may take longer than the first few months after graduating to secure initial entry to a chosen field.

Unemployment for history (6.3%) and performing arts (6.1%) graduates have both seen a 0.5 percentage points year-on-year decrease. Unemployment for modern languages graduates, however, was up by 0.4 percentage points.

Although English, modern languages and history have below average employment figures, they show a higher rate of further study and training as a sole activity, at 21.2%, 19% and 22.1% respectively, compared with 13.8% average for all first degree subjects.

» Types of Work

Arts, creative arts and humanities graduates enter a vast range of occupations, including:

• Marketing, sales and advertising - there has been a slight increase from last year in the percentages of arts, creative arts and humanities graduates entering these occupations. They are particularly popular for media studies and modern languages graduates, with one in ten graduates from each of these subjects working in the UK entering these types of work.
• Commercial industrial and public sector managers - history and modern languages graduates both show higher than average entry figures for these occupations, at 11.4% and 12.3% respectively, compared with the all subjects average of 9.6%. Modern languages, in particular, has seen a 1.1 percentage points increase into these types of work compared with a year ago.
• Other occupations - relatively high percentages of the graduates covered in this section are employed in the ‘other occupations’ category, reflecting the diversity of the work and interests of these graduates. Many skilled craft occupations undertaken by design and fine arts graduates lie within this category. For some, these may be interim activities, as during this early period after graduation, decisions and actions may be somewhat fluid for a variety of reasons.

» References

A wider perspective and more options: investigating the longer term employability of humanities graduates. Higher Education Academy, March 2006.

English Subject Centre: Student Employability Profile. Higher Education Academy, October 2004.

» Contacts and resources

Websites

Resources on this site

• Your degree in art and design
• Your degree in graphic design
• Your degree in fine art
• Your degree in music
• Your degree in performing arts (dance/drama)
• Your degree in English
• Your degree in history
• Your degree in media/communication studies
• Your degree in modern languages
• Explore types of jobs - occupations especially relevant to arts and humanities graduates can be found under arts, design and crafts, administration (specifically arts administration), advertising, marketing & PR and publishing, media & performing arts.
• Industry insights - again, a range of titles are appropriate to arts, creative arts & humanities graduates including advertising & PR, broadcast, film and interactive media, creative and cultural arts, fashion and textiles, local, regional and national government, publishing and SMEs (small- medium-sized enterprises).

General links

• a-n: The Artists Information Company - resources for those looking for work in the visual arts
• Arts Council England
• BBC Jobs
• Broadcast Journalism Training Council (BJTC)
• Careers A-Z
• The Conference of Drama Schools
• The Design Council
• Chartered Institute of Linguists (CIOL)
• Incorporated Society of Musicians (ISM)
• The National Centre for Languages (CILT)
• Netgain
• Skillset: The Sector Skills Council for Creative Media

Publications

• Careers Using Languages, Edda Ostarhild, Kogan Page, ISBN 0749437316
• Handbook for languages and careers. Languages Work (CILT) ISBN: 1 904243 39 8
• BFI Film Handbook 2005, Eddie Dyja (ed.) ISBN 1844570428
• BFI Television Handbook 2005 : the essential guide to UK TV, Alistair D. McGown (ed.) ISBN 1844570274
• The MediaGuardian Media Directory 2007:: an essential handbook, Janine Gibson (ed.) ISBN 9780852650592
• Careers & Jobs in the Media, Simon Kent, Kogan Page, ISBN 0749442476
• What Can I Do With…an Arts Degree?, Beryl Dixon, Trotman, ISBN 0856607223
• What Can I Do With….a Media Studies Degree? Margaret Mc Alpine, Trotman. ISBN: 0856608661

» Case studies

Gary - BA in Arts. Independent animator

"I studied for an arts degree because I was interested in the arts industry, mainly animation. I have always liked drawing from as far back as I could remember and wanted an opportunity to combine this with new technology. This is what attracted me to this particular course. I was not quite sure whether I could get a job when I graduated, but the degree sounded interesting so I applied.

Towards the end of the degree, I started to apply for positions advertised. I soon realised it was going to be difficult to get a job because competition was so fierce. I started to look for other jobs in the business world, but found that none of them really appealed to me. Whilst completing my degree, I took part in lots of exhibitions and it was during my last exhibition that someone suggested working as an independent animator. They said my work was very good and would attract a lot of interest. I didn't feel very confident about running my own business, so did nothing about it for a long time.

Part of my degree programme looked at setting up a business as an independent artist although I paid very little attention to that aspect until after graduation, when I got a phone call from an organisation that had seen my work on display. I did some work for them and was paid handsomely. I started to look more into working as an independent illustrator and found that it was possible to earn a living. Actually, by the time I sorted myself out I had carried out three other commissions for different organisations. So you could say I was forced into business really.

I have produced work in 3D images for the games/film industries, business and the media. I have also worked on the web creating all sort of images with landscape, people, still life, streets, wildlife, plants etc. I really enjoy my job. I like the idea of creating new things using different platforms and tools. You also get to meet lots of people. The downside, well, that has to be sitting down for long hours.”

Donna - BA in English. Secondary school teacher

"I finished my degree and decided to find some way of going abroad. I had heard about Teaching English as a Foreign Language and I enrolled for a five-week intensive course which I found quite challenging. I went to China for just under a year and worked in three schools, teaching children aged five to adults. This was a fantastic experience.

Before I went to China, it seemed to make sense to apply to do a Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) the following year. I wasn’t entirely sure this was what I wanted to do but I thought it couldn’t do any harm to make an application. When I got back, the Graduate Teacher Training Registry (GTTR) had been in touch to say that there were still places available on PGCE courses. I had enjoyed teaching abroad and, in particular, I liked the variety of each day. I took the plunge and decided then that it would be the right job for me at home too.

Teaching English is very different to studying it. However, I was lucky that my PGCE tutor demonstrated most teaching models by initially using our class as an example of a secondary level class. The teaching placements were essential in consolidating what we learnt at university, and really built up my confidence in the classroom. Many of the texts taught are very different from my own experiences at school, but in general I think pupils have a much more contemporary range of literature to look at.

On a good day, teaching English is great as you have a variety of pupils every day, studying lots of different texts. I have fun with classes, and extracurricular book clubs and theatre trips give school life another dimension. On the down side, the work load can be high, especially at certain times of the year, so it’s always busy and sometimes stressful. Behaviour can sometimes be problematic depending on your school but there are lots of good strategies around which really do work.”

» Quotes

Rowena - BA English - Marketing and communications executive

During my studies my writing skills improved substantially, which has been crucial in my career. I developed my analytical abilities, which have helped me to adopt a practical, problem-solving approach to my work. My degree involved a great deal of independent study and research, which taught me to be organised and self-motivated. I also learnt to formulate coherent arguments and discuss concepts with others, which have helped me work more productively in a team.

Keisha - BA Graphic Arts and Design - Artworker for a graphic design and art direction company

Keisha’s advice to current students of art and design is:

Subscribe to relevant journals and magazines to give you a good grounding of what’s fresh in the industry.

Push your tutors to teach you more about technical and other skills needed in the creative industry. It'll save you a lot of panic when you’re looking for and starting your first job.

Don't be arrogant. So many students enter the world of work full of their own self-importance. Don’t do it. Your employer has to like you, and nobody wants to spend a 45-hour week with an unpleasant person.

Be realistic about how much you can earn. It’s not necessarily a big pay profession. If you love what you do and feel there’s no other path you'd rather take, then great, but be prepared for a lot of hard slog and high pressure for an initially moderate wage.