Making & Material Science - BA (Hons) Degree

You’ll begin the course by exploring a broad range of approaches to contemporary making, developing creative, technical, and material skills through hands-on experimentation across workshop, studio, and digital fabrication environments. As the course progresses, you’ll deepen your understanding of how makers, designers, and creative practitioners work with materials, processes, technologies, and systems while developing your own independent approach to making.

You’ll spend time in studio spaces and workshops, building practical skills and exploring a range of creative and technical processes, which may include:

• Material experimentation and prototyping
• Fabrication, construction, and model making
• Digital fabrication and emerging production technologies
• Workshop processes across a range of materials
• Object design and spatial making
• Sustainable and circular approaches to making
• Design thinking and iterative development
• Technical drawing, modelling, and visual communication
• Creative problem-solving and applied making
• Hybrid physical-digital practices
• Installation, exhibition, and public presentation
• Professional practice and portfolio development

Alongside studio and workshop practice, you’ll investigate the cultural, environmental, and technological contexts shaping contemporary making today, considering how materials, production, and sustainability influence the future of creative practice.

Through lectures, seminars, tutorials, technical workshops, critiques, and independent studio practice, you’ll develop the confidence to experiment, collaborate, and position your work within contemporary creative, technical, and professional contexts.

Year 1

Materiality & Skill – 40 credits

Start your first year with workshops that introduce you to the materials, processes and equipment you’ll need for creative practice – from ceramics, wood, metal and glass to CAD applications and digital fabrication. You’ll also explore the key concepts in practising art and design through making.

Design & Making – 20 credits

Design & Making introduces students to the application of creative and technical skills through studio and workshop-based projects. The module develops core principles of design thinking, material experimentation, and iterative making, encouraging students to realise resolved outcomes while exploring the cultural, environmental, and professional contexts shaping contemporary creative practice.

Research Basics – 20 credits

This module aims to develop students’ core academic research skills including locating sources, evaluating credibility, and analysing information. It will provide the foundations from which students will cultivate their confidence to engage in theoretical discourse and idea-driven dialogues which will be required throughout their undergraduate studies.

Interdisciplinary Understanding – 40 credits *

This module aims to introduce you to the principles of Interdisciplinary working: collaborative working, critical thinking and reflection. Projects within the module will challenge you to work with another discipline to explore a societal and cultural theme or challenge.

Year 2

Applied Design & Making – 40 credits

Applied Design & Making develops students’ ability to apply material, technical, and conceptual knowledge within increasingly independent and professionally aware studio practice. Through research-led experimentation, students explore contemporary approaches to making, sustainability, technology, and public presentation while developing ambitious, contextually informed outcomes that prepare them for level 6 study.

Engineering Science – 40 credits

You’ll explore a number of topics in a series of lectures, seminars and laboratory and workshop sessions.

Real-World Contexts – 20 credits *

The Real-World Contexts module challenges you to apply the situated awareness and future-thinking skills to deploy your own practice in the creation or promotion of value for a variety of external stakeholders and communities.

Research Proposal – 20 credits *

The Research Proposal offers you an opportunity to strengthen your research skills, consolidate your research experience and orientate your level 6 contribution around an enquiry of your choosing that is inspired by your learning across all modules at level 4 and 5. This research proposal will be used to continue your personal and professional development at level 6 where you will identify a route for your own enquiry.

Year 3

Making a Maker – 60 credits

This module is designed to help you further your creative practice. Depending on where you want to take it, you could base your work around your professional development or opt to enter it in competitions. You may decide to refine your studio practice – using a self-directed brief to lay the foundations of a large body of work, to complete during your final year.

Positioning in Practice – 30 credits *

The module aims to support your readiness in developing your unique professional career. It will embed attributes reflective of the requirements of real-world practice aligned to your specialist discipline.

You will have the opportunity to reflect upon how your experiences over the last 3 years have allowed you to position yourself as a professional in preparation for graduate level work, continued study, research, and entrepreneurial ventures.

Contribution – 30 credits *

Your practice is underpinned by your knowledge. Demonstrate your research and analysis skills in your final research submission, where you explore ideas in both written and practical forms.

* Modules available through the medium of Welsh.

All undergraduate programmes within the School of Art & Design are taught within an interdisciplinary learning environment.

Our sector-leading curriculum has been designed in relation to current literature and best practices across the UK and Europe, providing students with authentic learning opportunities with a focus on real-life situations and solving real world problems. Our graduates are ready for, and adaptable to, 21st century working and living, driven by creativity, social responsibility, futures literacy and entrepreneurial thinking and behaviours. You can read more about our undergraduate curriculum here.

Studio-Based Learning

All programmes are delivered through a studio-based learning approach, with an authentic environment that encourages collaboration, independent exploration, and a shared learning experience. Studio spaces are designed to meet the specific needs of your discipline, offering a range of learning opportunities such as group seminars, critiques, presentations, one-on-one tutorials, technical workshops, and guided independent study. This environment supports the development of student-led learning, where you can shape your research focus and expertise, working autonomously with guidance from expert academic and technical staff.

Hands-On Practical Workshops

You will engage hands-on in practical studio sessions and workshops, building core skills in materials and processes relevant to your discipline. Lectures provide a theoretical framework that complements your studio practice, while smaller group seminars offer targeted support for practical growth. Collaborative group projects create opportunities to build connections and develop teamworking skills that may extend into extra-curricular or personal projects. Regular critiques (studio crits), briefing sessions, and presentations are designed to develop critical thinking, effective communication, and build confidence to present work both visually and verbally.

Project-Based Learning

Learning strategies aim to develop professional competencies while promoting critical and creative thinking. A strong focus is placed on project-based and problem-based learning, where you will tackle projects that vary in scope: from set briefs to student-led and real-world live projects. Each project challenges you to analyse problems, conduct research, make decisions, and develop both technical and creative solutions. Projects will have defined objectives, but you are encouraged to develop an individual interpretation.

Self-Reflection

Students are further supported through a structured Personal Development Plan (PDP), which encourages self-reflection and professional development. This document serves as both a record of growth and a portfolio, highlighting your evolving body of work. Throughout your studies you will be introduced to real-world scenarios, often collaborating with external industry professionals, guest speakers, or on placements, giving you valuable exposure to industry standards and practices.

Virtual Resources

Additional support is available through personal academic tutors, who provide guidance on academic matters and your journey through the degree, contributing to student well-being and helping you to find a professional path within the programme. A Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) complements in-person learning by offering a range of resources, discussion forums, and self-assessment tools. This platform also enables formative assessment and facilitates communication within the programme.

This integrated learning and teaching approach ensures that students acquire both foundational knowledge and advanced, discipline-specific skills. By blending theoretical understanding with practical application, the course prepares students for sustained, lifelong learning and equips them with the competencies to navigate and contribute to their chosen fields.

Throughout your studies, assessment will focus equally on the development of practical and technical ability, critical understanding, and creative thinking. You will be encouraged to develop strong material and process skills alongside an awareness of the wider cultural, historical, environmental, and ethical contexts shaping contemporary creative practice. Assessment also values your ability to generate, test, and communicate ideas through both practical and written work.

This balanced approach is designed to support the development of well-rounded practitioners who can combine technical competence with independent thinking, experimentation, and critical reflection.

You will receive ongoing formative feedback throughout each module to help you track your progress and refine your work before submission. Feedback may take a number of forms, including tutorials, critiques, peer discussion, and self-evaluation. Assessment methods are designed to encourage experimentation, support risk-taking, and help you develop confidence in evaluating and articulating your own creative practice in relation to the learning outcomes of each project.

Throughout the duration of your studies, you will be evaluated on three main criteria, which underpin all the disciplines being taught at CSAD:

SKILLS: The practical, technical and conceptual skills you acquire during your course.

CONTEXT: Your understanding and knowledge of broader intellectual context within which your discipline and work is located. This includes historical, environmental and ethical issues and will often be explored in your ‘Theory and Context’ modules.

IDEAS: Your understanding of intellectual and creative ideas from within and beyond your discipline; plus, your ability to acquire new concepts and form new ideas. Ideas will be explored in your written work, as well as being evident in your practical progress.

Each of these criteria is given equal weighting during the assessment process. That is to say that they are seen as equally important and critical to your development; an emphasis which is designed, for example, to enable a more well-rounded skill set from a student who may be skilled technically, but weak in generating ideas, or a student with much creative flair who may struggle to hone a broad concept into a strong, individual design.

We provide a number of ways for you to track your progress en route to submitting your work for marking. Understanding that the emphases will revolve around the core areas of skills, context and ideas, you will also become familiar with the structured assessment form used by your tutors and learn to relate to your work back to the intended learning outcomes of each brief.

The main types of formative assessment are; academic (feedback from your tutors); peer (from your course-mates or project partners); and self-assessment (which is your own critique, in light of other forms of feedback). You won’t just be receiving feedback at the end of a brief, however – your tutors will often assess your progress as your work develops, providing formative feedback at crucial moments where it is hoped to encourage you to take risks, maintain your motivation or shape-up your ideas ahead of deadline.

Graduates from the programme will be well placed to pursue careers across the creative and cultural industries, including independent artistic practice, digital content creation, exhibition and installation work, creative technology, and broader roles within digital media and contemporary art contexts.

Throughout the course, you will have opportunities to engage with live projects, exhibitions, collaborative activities, and public-facing work. This may include building professional networks, engaging with external partners, and learning from visiting artists and creative practitioners through talks, workshops, and mentoring opportunities. You will also receive support in developing professional practice skills and establishing independent or freelance creative careers.

Some graduates may progress into teaching through further professional qualifications such as a PGCE, while others may continue their studies at postgraduate level through master’s degrees or research opportunities in art, design, digital media, and related creative fields.

Typical Offers

• Tariff points: 96-120
• Contextual offer: See our contextual offers page.
• GCSE: Preferably five GCSEs at Grade C / 4 or above to include English Language / Welsh First Language, Mathematics / Mathematics – Numeracy.
• English Language Requirement: Academic IELTS 6.0 overall with at least 5.5 in all elements, or equivalent.
• A level: Minimum three A levels. No specific subjects required. Welsh Advanced Skills Baccalaureate considered as a third subject.
• BTEC National / Cambridge Technical Extended Diploma: MMM-DDM
• T Level: No specific subjects required.
• Access to Higher Education Diploma: No specific subjects required.
• International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma: 24 points. No specific subjects required.
• Irish Leaving Certificate: No specific subjects required. Higher level subjects only considered with a minimum grade H4.
• Scottish Advanced Highers: No specific subjects required.
• Other requirements: Successful portfolio review. For more information please read our Advice for Applicants page.

Combinations of the above qualifications are accepted if they meet our minimum requirements. If your qualifications aren’t listed, please contact Admissions or refer to the UCAS Course Search.

Further information on Overseas qualifications can be found here.

If you are a mature applicant, have relevant experience or RPL that you would like us to consider, please contact Admissions.

How to Apply

Further information on how to apply can be found here.

What’s included?

We offer a wide range of specialist facilities for our creative programmes, with dedicated studios, purpose-built workshops, and extensive technical equipment. You will have access to these workshops following successful inductions, and will be supported by a highly skilled technical team.

You will not be charged a studio fee and will be provided with all the essential materials that you need to learn the processes that your course requires.

Cardiff Met is an Adobe® Creative Campus, and CSAD students have access to the full Adobe® Creative Cloud at no additional cost.

We pride ourselves on leading the way in sustainable studio and workshop practices. Whether that’s carbon literacy, re-use, waste reduction and material science, you will be encouraged to use materials consciously as you develop your own way of working. You will also get:

• Dedicated studios for independent work or group study
• UK-based study trips that are core to your learning experience
• Creative digital facilities tailored to your course, such as specific software, print facilities or digital visualisation tools
• IT and library facilities, which include an extensive range of artists’ books, publications, journals, magazines, and digital resources to support your learning and research

What is an additional cost?

When developing individual projects, you will select and provide your own materials, many of which can be purchased at cost price on campus. We will support you in sourcing additional materials depending on your creative ambitions and budget, and in keeping with our sustainable and safe practices.

You may require course-specific equipment and tools, but this will vary depending on your practice. A joining pack will be sent to you before you start, containing detailed information about any recommended equipment including laptop specification advice. We recommend that you don’t make major purchases before receiving the joining pack or speaking with a member of staff.

Some examples of additional costs:

• Students will find a laptop or tablet helpful and will need to allow for the purchase of apps and software
• Optional UK or overseas study trips and exchange programmes
• Placements and associated costs such as travel and accommodation
• Optional access to Cardiff FabLab which is subject to charges for equipment use and materials
• Material costs when opting to use specialist equipment independently, such as digital fabric printing, 3D printing and laser cutting
• Other costs such as printing, copying, and the purchase of textbooks

For up-to-date information on tuition fees and financial support that may be available whilst at Cardiff Met, please visit www.cardiffmet.ac.uk/fees.

If you have any questions in the meantime, please contact us.

For general enquiries, please contact the Admissions Team on 029 2041 6010 or email askadmissions@cardiffmet.ac.uk.

For course specific enquiries, please contact the Admissions Tutor: Material Practice, Laura Edmunds:

• Email: artistdesignermaker@cardiffmet.ac.uk