Bath Spa University must halt the closure of its Art & Design Foundation Year, keep this longstanding Year Zero course open and publish the data behind this decision. We call on the Vice-Chancellor, the Academic Board and the Board of Governors to stop the closure immediately and work with staff and students before any final decision is made.
This course is not being lost because there is no demand. The problem appears to be a mismanaged recruitment process. Bath Spa University removed portfolio interviews and replaced them with automatic email offers, then pointed to low conversion rates as if that proved the course was no longer needed. When applicants were actually invited into the studio space, over 90% converted onto the course. That shows the issue is not lack of interest but a flawed admissions approach.
Closing this pathway would also weaken access in a region where options are already shrinking. Nearby courses in the region, including UWE integrated foundations and RWA, have closed or suspended admissions. Bath Spa’s Foundation Year has been a vital route for students across Bristol and the South West, especially for non-traditional, mature and portfolio-building applicants who need a strong first step into higher education.
For a decade, this course has helped students build confidence, develop their work and move on to BA degree programmes with strong foundations. If it is removed, BA staff will face more pressure to cover basic studio preparation inside already full degree structures.
We ask Bath Spa University leadership to reverse this closure, release the underlying data, consult properly, and reinvest in the studio-based recruitment that built the course’s reputation.
22 Comments
It has such a crutial and unique philosophy around its teaching style you won’t find in any other art course, it holds so much richness and is a gate way into the art world for many students who can’t join a course like fine art without it
I went to a foundation course at a different uni but it was the reason I came to Bath Spa. It was a window into an art world of expression and acceptance and I wouldn't have felt smart enough for higher education if I didn't do my foundation. Without it students won't be grounded in the space, wont have the same confidence in themselves and their abilities, and feel even less agency in creating community and reaching out to others across BSU. Sending all my love to the Foundation team.
Foundation year at Bath Spa University is SO important. Jonathan is an amazing tutor and his team are fabulous and supportive. Learning how to get ideas out of your head and onto the page, embracing the messy and imperfect as a starting point to build from. Unlearning the destructive tendencies to try and be perfect off the bat. Mashing things up to find the new and interesting. I’m so so grateful I got to do this course before starting CAP. I feel like other people r missing out!
It draws people together from across the many diffreny course and expands creative horizons that we may not have thought of. Many if not all of my freinds were made during foundation and if we had not met there i doubt we would have ever met.
Daughter attended Bath Spa
Foundation 2022-2023. Foundation was so valuable to me, especially as an international student. It’s where I made my first friends in a new country and learnt how Uni and schooling operates in a different country. Foundation was the most important thing to help me dream big and have outrageous and fun ideas. I know this course meant a lot to me and a lot of other people. So many people on the course learned what they love. It would be a shame to not give future students the same experiences.
foundation group 2022-2023. this is an amazing programme and the uni would be losing a hugely useful course. I still use skills i gained in IFAD to this day
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Bath Spa University must halt the closure of its Art & Design Foundation Year, keep this longstanding Year Zero course open and publish the data behind this decision. We call on the Vice-Chancellor, the Academic Board and the Board of Governors to stop the closure immediately and work with staff and students before any final decision is made.
This course is not being lost because there is no demand. The problem appears to be a mismanaged recruitment process. Bath Spa University removed portfolio interviews and replaced them with automatic email offers, then pointed to low conversion rates as if that proved the course was no longer needed. When applicants were actually invited into the studio space, over 90% converted onto the course. That shows the issue is not lack of interest but a flawed admissions approach.
Closing this pathway would also weaken access in a region where options are already shrinking. Nearby courses in the region, including UWE integrated foundations and RWA, have closed or suspended admissions. Bath Spa’s Foundation Year has been a vital route for students across Bristol and the South West, especially for non-traditional, mature and portfolio-building applicants who need a strong first step into higher education.
For a decade, this course has helped students build confidence, develop their work and move on to BA degree programmes with strong foundations. If it is removed, BA staff will face more pressure to cover basic studio preparation inside already full degree structures.
We ask Bath Spa University leadership to reverse this closure, release the underlying data, consult properly, and reinvest in the studio-based recruitment that built the course’s reputation.
22 Comments
Foundation is not only important to local students, but also valuable to international students. It allows an insight into and preparation for the grading system, standards, and expectations of higher education in a country that does things potentially completely differently. That aside, when I did foundation, I formed bonds that were stronger than any other since. Most of my current friends I found while building my skills and connections through the Foundation course.
It has such a crutial and unique philosophy around its teaching style you won’t find in any other art course, it holds so much richness and is a gate way into the art world for many students who can’t join a course like fine art without it
I went to a foundation course at a different uni but it was the reason I came to Bath Spa. It was a window into an art world of expression and acceptance and I wouldn't have felt smart enough for higher education if I didn't do my foundation. Without it students won't be grounded in the space, wont have the same confidence in themselves and their abilities, and feel even less agency in creating community and reaching out to others across BSU. Sending all my love to the Foundation team.
Foundation year at Bath Spa University is SO important. Jonathan is an amazing tutor and his team are fabulous and supportive. Learning how to get ideas out of your head and onto the page, embracing the messy and imperfect as a starting point to build from. Unlearning the destructive tendencies to try and be perfect off the bat. Mashing things up to find the new and interesting. I’m so so grateful I got to do this course before starting CAP. I feel like other people r missing out!
It draws people together from across the many diffreny course and expands creative horizons that we may not have thought of. Many if not all of my freinds were made during foundation and if we had not met there i doubt we would have ever met.
Daughter attended Bath Spa
Foundation 2022-2023. Foundation was so valuable to me, especially as an international student. It’s where I made my first friends in a new country and learnt how Uni and schooling operates in a different country. Foundation was the most important thing to help me dream big and have outrageous and fun ideas. I know this course meant a lot to me and a lot of other people. So many people on the course learned what they love. It would be a shame to not give future students the same experiences.
foundation group 2022-2023. this is an amazing programme and the uni would be losing a hugely useful course. I still use skills i gained in IFAD to this day
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Foundation is not only important to local students, but also valuable to international students. It allows an insight into and preparation for the grading system, standards, and expectations of higher education in a country that does things potentially completely differently. That aside, when I did foundation, I formed bonds that were stronger than any other since. Most of my current friends I found while building my skills and connections through the Foundation course.