Culture, Creativity and Entrepreneurship MA

This innovative programme explores how arts and creative enterprises work in theory and practice, as well as the impact they can have on individuals and communities.

You’ll gain an understanding of the policy contexts of creative work, analyse and apply theories of art and culture and examine the cultural industries that comprise the arts, including theatre, performance, dance, opera, crafts, and museums.

Then you’ll choose from optional modules to focus on topics that suit your interests and career plans, such as arts management or culture and place, and investigate topics like audience engagement and cultural policy. You may even have the chance to undertake a placement or a consultancy project for an external cultural organisation.

You’ll be taught by leading researchers in a city with a diverse cultural landscape. Whether you’ve already started your career or see yourself moving into the sector, this programme will give you the knowledge and skills to support your ambitions.

On and off-campus, you’ll benefit from opportunities to get involved in various cultural activities. The School of Performance and Cultural Industries organises the annual Little Leeds Fringe Festival, a series of cultural events on campus giving you the chance to volunteer in the management and programming team. What’s more, you can join any of the student societies that run events, campaigns and productions throughout the year.

You’ll study in a city with a rich cultural life that’s also a hub for business and entrepreneurship – home to the Leeds International Film Festival and Leeds International Piano Competition, as well as a variety of galleries, museums, theatres and other cultural facilities. Our School also has good relations with cultural organisations in the region such as the BBC, Phoenix Dance Theatre, the West Yorkshire Playhouse, Leeds City Council, the National Media Museum and Opera North among many others.

Course content

Core modules in Semester One will lay the foundations of theprogramme. You’ll explore different theoretical approaches to understand therelationships between culture, creativity, and entrepreneurship, learning aboutcultural industries and how public policy impacts on cultural development.

To help you focus your studies in the areas that suit yourinterests and career plans, you’ll choose one of two optional modules whichallow you to specialise in either the relationship between culture and place ormanagement and leadership in the arts and cultural industries.

You’ll then choose another optional module to complement orbroaden your studies. You could focus on topics such as audience engagement orcultural policy, or you may be able to gain experience of consultancy workingin teams to complete a brief for an external organisation. If you select theCreative Work module, you could spend two weeks on a placement in a culturalorganisation as the basis of a small-scale research project.

Another core module that runs throughout the year willdevelop your understanding of research methods in the arts and culturalindustries. By the end of the programme you’ll demonstrate your skills andknowledge by completing an independent research project on a topic of yourchoice.

If you choose to study part-time, you’ll study over a longerperiod and take fewer modules in each year.

Course structure

Compulsory modules

• Research Project 60 credits
• Theoretical Perspectives: Culture, Creativity and Entrepreneurship 30 credits
• Research Perspectives (Culture, Creativity, Entrepreneurship) 30 credits

Optional modules

• Individual Project 30 credits
• Creative Work 30 credits
• Performance and Collaborative Enterprise 30 credits
• Arts Management and Cultural Leadership 30 credits
• Cultural Policy: Models and Debates 30 credits
• Critical Debates in Culture and Place 30 credits
• Enterprise and Consultancy Practice 30 credits
• Audience Engagement and Impact 30 credits

For more information on typical modules, read Culture, Creativity and Entrepreneurship MA Full Time in the course catalogue

For more information on typical modules, read Culture, Creativity and Entrepreneurship MA Part Time in the course catalogue

Learning and teaching

We use a range of teaching and learning methods to help you benefit from the expertise of our tutors. These include seminars, tutorials, group learning, fieldwork, lectures and practicals, depending on the modules you choose. Independent study is also vital as a chance for you to develop a range of skills.

Assessment

Depending on the modules you choose, you may be assessed by methods such as essays, presentations, reports and project work.

Career opportunities

You’ll gain a variety of in-depth subject knowledge from this programme, as well as valuable transferable skills such as cultural and social awareness, research, analysis and communication.

Graduates have pursued a range of careers that reflect this diversity. They’ve joined international consultancy firms and social enterprises as research associates, become project managers in arts and cultural organisations or worked as policy managers and advisers within cultural policy bodies. Others have gone on to work in public policy, urban regeneration, community development, teaching and more – and some have also set up their own businesses, either during or soon after the programme.

Many other graduates have continued with their research and progressed to PhD study.

Careers support

We encourage you to prepare for your career from day one. That’s one of the reasons Leeds graduates are so sought after by employers.

The Careers Centre and staff in your faculty provide a range of help and advice to help you plan your career and make well-informed decisions along the way, even after you graduate. Find out more at the Careers website.

Visit the Culture, Creativity and Entrepreneurship MA page on the University of Leeds website for more details!