Arts into Employment Conference

Date: 15 Jun 05
Venue: University College Chester, Warrington Campus
Host institution: University College Chester, Warrington Campus

 

If you don’t know something exists, how can you aspire to it?

The Journey

The Journey© Sophie Fergusson-Taylor and Sarah Chadwick, 2004

PALATINE and Arts CouncilArts Learning ConsortiumArts Learning North West


 

1. Welcome and Introduction
(Dr Peter Harrop Dean of Arts and Media, University College Chester)

 

Peter opened the conference and set the theme of the day, 'Arts into Employment', in the context of the experiences of staff at University College Chester.

The School of Arts and Media is a relatively new department; its separation from the Humanities reflects the recent rapid growth of student numbers in arts and media subjects, as well as the development of new art forms and media technologies.

Peter also highlighted the discrepancies between the statistics showing that far more students are participating in higher education and being awarded higher grades, with 22% of the population now getting 2:1 degrees, and employers still talking about a shortage of skilled graduates.

The conference was addressing some of the issues in this middle ground between employers, higher education and government agencies, focusing on the area of making a living in the cultural and creative sector.

 

2. Aims of the conference
(Simon Taylor Arts Learning Consortium)

 

Simon discussed the work of the North West's Arts Learning Consortium, funded to promote collaboration between schools, Local Education Authorities, further and higher education.

University College Chester is one of the partners in this initiative.

Simon discussed some of the ways the arts are regarded as important in schools, including:

Yet there was still relatively little awareness of and emphasis on the opportunities to develop careers in the arts, which is an important factor in the Arts Learning Consortium supporting this conference. There are many misconceptions held by teachers and parents and a need to make people more aware of the pathways into working in the arts and creative industries.

 

3. Thinking Fluidly about Arts Into Employment - a perspective
(Helen Baron University College Chester)

 

Helen argued that employability was more important than employment, just getting people into jobs.

Employability is what's left when you have lost your job and higher education should avoid taking a narrow view of the issues involved.

Helen cited figures from the 2002 study What Graduates Do? in which design and drama compared well with other subjects in terms of employment in 'graduate jobs', though the numbers directly involved in 'the industry' immediately on graduation are very low. To some extent, this reflects the widely publicised limitations of 'First Destination' statistics, as well as the rapid growth in graduate numbers. Many graduates also work in other areas while developing arts interests and there is a fluid relationship between the arts and employability.

The Skills Plus project was an example of a flexible, student-centred model for employability and learning. This type of approach is all the more necessary because of the move towards mass higher education - prior to the 1980s there had been clearer career paths available to graduates, now graduates often need to be able to move between jobs and sectors.

 

Documents

4. Breakout session 1

 

Employability Isn't Working: higher education, skills, and the creative industries
Paul Kleiman (Associate Director, PALATINE)

This session explored some of the consequences and contradictions of the UK higher education 'employability agenda' in relation to the performing arts in higher education, and asked how can we move towards a more customised student experience that combines the pursuit of knowledge and the acquisition of skilful practices with an understanding of the complexities and realities of employment in the creative industries.

“Art?, My mates would kill me!” A consideration of specific barriers to widening participation in Art and Design, and some of the solutions
Chris Green (Manchester Metropolitan University, Faculty of Art and Design

This session looked at the reasons given by some prospective students for not considering studies in Art and Design, in particular the requirement for most undergraduate courses to undertake a one year pre entry Foundation course.

New Ways of Working with Technology: how I became a video jockey
Gemma Briers

This session offered delegates the chance to discover how one recent graduate from University College Chester is exploring the new opportunities opened up by technological advances.

How can educational institutions develop awareness of skills needed by creative industries and knowledge of the range of opportunities available in the sector?
Paul Roots and Deborah Davidson (CRISP, Creative Industries Support Project)

This session explored opportunities for enhanced collaboration between Creative Enterprises, Further and Higher Education, drawing on work of the Creative Industries Support Project and Mid-Cheshire College’s Centre of Vocational Excellence in New Media and Design.

C.M. Ltd and Creative Renewal
Gawain Hewitt (Senior Technology Lecturer, Community Music)

This session presented information about Community Music’s “Step Up” course and their partnership with “Skillz”, a community music organisation set up with support from Community Music to run music projects in East London and Suffolk.

 

5. Breakout session 2

 

Careers in Film
Linda Ludwin (University College Chester)

A discussion on careers in film, focusing on key skills and abilities for freelance success.

Working in Dance
James Hewison (Professional Choreographer and Senior Lecturer in Dance and Performing Arts, De Montfort University)

The session considered how dance works in a university context and how students are prepared for work and employment. It discussed current examples of the use of various forms of dance and movement as a commercial and tele-visual tool, exploring the potential impact of that exposure on issues of employability within the arts sector.

Design Management for the Creative Industries at Undergraduate and Postgraduate Level
Leslie Arthur and Carol Jones (Nottingham Trent School of Art and Design)

The session explored collaborative practices and the use of creative approaches in industrial contexts as well as addressing the subject of building bridges and establishing learning and professional interfaces between educational institutions and industry.

I’ve never had a career plan in my life but I’m still here talking to you aren’t I?
Brian Machin (Senior Lecturer - TV Production and Postgraduate Programmes Co-ordinator, University College Chester)

This session offered an individual response to the notion of usefulness as generally applied to arts education - in this particular case, a Fine Art education.

The Missing Piece - Creating Change in Performance Training
Graeae and Creative Renewal
Jamie Beddard (Associate Director Graeae Theatre Company) & Claire Hodgson (Senior Lecturer, Performing Arts Dept, London Metropolitan University)

The course seeks to address the exclusion of, and barriers to, disabled people accessing mainstream training provision, and entering the creative arts industries.

The Humanities Advanced Technology & Research Institute, Glasgow University -
Adele Redhead (Deputy Course Director - MPhil IMP, HATII, Glasgow University)

A session focused on the combination of the creative arts and computing.

 

Documents

6. Creative Careers - Case Studies

 

Allan Owens (Senior Lecturer in Drama and Theatre Studies, National Teaching Fellow, University College Chester) chaired a panel of recent arts graduates talking about the careers they have chosen:

 

7. How Professional Networks Support Employability
(Jonathan Meth Chair, Creative People and Director of Writernet)

 

Jonathan discussed the role of networks and network culture support professional arts practitioners, not just as graduates but throughout a portfolio of careers.

These networks help graduates to make informed choices, giving them access to people and knowledge, settings in which they can create work. They can also support the entrepreneurial process for arts practitioners.

The Arts into Employment Conference provided a forum for connecting these networks with higher education and the arts practitioner base.

 

8. Group Discussions

 

 

9. Building Arts Careers Skills and Knowledge into Education from School to University
(Geraldine Walkington Fulwood High School and Arts College, Preston)

 

The Learning Lab

Geraldine's presentation featured the Learning Lab which provided pupils (aged 5-11) opportunities to develop their artistic talent on creative projects involving employers including the Spar supermarket chain and HSBC bank.

As well as developing personal skills, these activities are planned to encourage children to have broader career choices.

Geraldine concluded by emphasising that higher education needed to be more involved in developing creative talent from school level.

 

Developing Skills in HE
(Judith Done University College Chester)

 

Judith asked how can employability be the business of universities?

Graduate employability is about enabling graduates to be better prepared, more confident and successful at work, through promoting initiatives like work based learning. It's also about developing more constructive links between schools, further and higher education of the type highlighted at today's conference.

 

10. Reflection on the Day

 

Ben Broughton (Senior Lecturer in Media for Performance, University College Chester) and Simon Piasecki (Senior Lecturer, University College Chester)

Ben and Simon produced a short performance reflecting on the themes and issues of the day.