Skip navigation Skip to main navigation for this site Skip to navigation for this section

  • Performance (Dance) (Foundation Degree)
  • 2013/2014 entry
  • Contact us
  • Assessment

    • Studio-based practical tasks, rehearsal, performance, oral and practical presentations, research, projects, written assignments, tutor assessment, self and peer assessment, one-to-one and group tutorials, video.

      There is continuous assessment in all practical classes and performances, summative end-of-module assessed work and written assignments for some modules.

  • Attendance
      • Two three-hour meetings a week, usually in the evening.
      • Occasionally you may be required to attend on a third evening or at a weekend.
  • Duration
      • Two years and two terms part-time, starting in September.
  • Entry requirements
      • No formal qualifications required. 
      • Good literacy and basic computer skills.
      • Normally students should be in current training with a minimum of two years' experience of dance, including some performance experience.
      • Holders of Birkbeck's previously offered Diploma or Certificate of Higher Education in Performance: Dance may, at the discretion of the admissions tutor, be admitted directly to Year 2. 
      • There is no upper age limit.
  • Fees and funding
  • Location
      • Central London.
      • Most classes take place at the Urdang Academy (Rosebery Avenue, EC1), The Place (Flaxman Terrace, WC1), and other dance venues.
      • There may be some tutorials, seminars and group meetings at Birkbeck's main Bloomsbury campus.
  • Teaching
    • Studio-based practical classes; tutor-led, student-led, self-directed study; visiting artists-led workshops; student peer mentoring/collaborative learning; solo, duet, small and large group work; individual and group tutorials; tutor, self and peer feedback; visits to outside performances/classes/rehearsals; self-directed research; reflective journal, complemented by observations of company rehearsals; performances.


Need more help?

Leave your email address and get up-to-date information on finance and our free advice sessions.




By registering your email you are agreeing to receive emails from Birkbeck, University of London. We will not share your details with anyone else. Click here for Birkbeck data policy .

Performance (Dance) (Foundation Degree) - 2013/2014 entry

Looking for part-time contemporary dance training that will encourage and nurture your creative practice? In partnership with The Place and Matthew Bourne’s New Adventures and Re:bourne, this Foundation Degree offers regular technique classes, choreography workshops and performances. Embodied critical thinking, movement analysis and dance history are just some of the subjects that will offer you opportunities to explore movement and meaning and deepen your understanding about the body in performance. Teaching is led by practicing artists and takes place in specialist dance studios within central London. On successful completion, you may go directly into Year 3 of our BSc Professional Studies.

  • Course structure

    • This programme offers training that develops technical skills, approaches to movement exploration, dance making and critical understanding. Practitioner-tutors alongside distinguished guests and associate artists from New Adventures will deliver student-centred teaching.

      You will receive regular technique classes and choreographic workshops underpinned by historical context, movement analysis, self and project management sessions with rehearsals leading to informal sharings and public performances. 

      Module subjects:

      Year 1

      • Choreography and Performance 1
      • Choreological Studies – Understanding Human Movement
      • Dance History
      • Managing Oneself as a Performer
      • Personal Development Planning Part 1: Embodied Critical Thinking/Experiential Anatomy and Somatic Practice
      • Personal Development Planning Part 2: Managing Oneself in Performance and Live Art
      • Technical Skills 1 Classical Ballet/Contemporary Dance Techniques.

      Year 2

      • Choreography and Performance 2
      • Dance Repertory
      • Developing a Performance / Live Art Project: Arts Management perspective
      • Technical Skills 2 Classical Ballet/Contemporary Technique.

      Year 3

      • Technical Skills 3 Contemporary Techniques
      • Work-Based Learning: Independent Professional Project
      • option module 1: Meaning and Movement
      • option module 2: Workshop Design and Delivery.
  • Study resources
  • Further study opportunities
    • You can build on your Foundation Degree to get an honors degree. Enter Year 3 of the BSc Professional Studies, and complete this in two years of part-time study. There is also a range of arts and theatre-related BAs, MAs and Postgraduate Certificates available within the School of Arts.
  • Careers information
    • Graduates go on to a wide range of careers relating to performance, creative producing, dance dramaturgy, education, community, and curatorial and arts administration. 
    • To speak to an independent careers advisor, booking onto one of our Future Focus — Careers Workshops
  • Apply now
    • Application deadlines and interviews
      • We recommend you apply as early as possible.
      • Auditions and interviews normally run from March until July. Later applications may also be considered, subject to availability of places.
    • Online application
      You can apply online from the link below.
    • Our Application Workshop will give you an overview of what Birkbeck looks for in an undergraduate degree application and includes practical writing exercises to help you write a more effective personal statement
  • Key information set

    • Welcome to Birkbeck, London's evening university: Number 1 in London for teaching and student satisfaction (National Student Survey 2012).

      Birkbeck specialises in part-time, evening study. The Key Information Set has been developed for full-time, daytime courses. We are providing some additional information about our evening courses to help you make an informed choice.

      Fees:
      The Key Information Set (KIS) for this degree course shows the annual fee for a 3-year, full-time degree. This is a 4-year, part-time evening degree and the annual fee is lower than the fee shown in the KIS. See 'Fees and funding' in the left hand menu for the correct fee for this course.