We encourage a strong sense of ethical purpose; lectures and seminars provide a forum for debate that questions the role of communications in contemporary society. CA&D has an excellent track record in producing graduates who are making an important contribution to design that engages with social, ecological or environmental issues. A considerable number have been selected to spend a further year in the College as research associates in the Royal College of Art Helen Hamlyn Centre in order to develop projects begun on their MA programmes.

The programme consists of a flexibly structured series of electives, department-set projects, competitions, commercial projects, research projects, lectures, seminars and workshops. At the heart of this programme lies a structure of personal tutorials and group criticisms. The tutorial staff are all professional practitioners covering a wide range of expertise and individual approaches.

There are introductory or advanced courses and workshops in a variety of media: photography, animation, computing, audio-visual techniques, video, printmaking and letterpress typography. The department is committed to retaining a balance between new digital media and traditional craft-based media.

Monthly seminars on film/video and on sound are held by Al Rees and Jon Wozencroft, in addition to regular visits to the department by designers, artists and performers. The increasing number of students following research degrees at MPhil and PhD level also contributes to the rich mixture of ideas, experience and culture.

Visitors contributing to the department’s programme of lectures and seminars in recent years include designers John Warwicker and Dirk van Dooren of Tomato; Kerr|Noble, Åbäke, Daniel Eatock and Neville Brody; cultural historian/curators Rick Poynor, Lorna Boom and Emily King; artist and musician Brian Eno; illustrators Sara Fanelli and Paul Davies; sound-artist and writer David Toop; sound-recordist Chris Watson; sound-artist and musician Biosphere; filmmakers David Curtis and Patrick Keiller; artists Liam Gillick and Futura; musicians Partha Bose and Anthony Marwood; and dancer Mayuri Boonham.

The department is especially committed to the development of an international perspective, reflecting the global nature of the discipline. Students are recruited from a wide range of countries, and there are opportunities for students to travel overseas – in recent years places visited include Warsaw, Thailand, Sweden, Memphis, Shanghai, India, Hebrides, Rome, Paris and Switzerland.

An increasing number of staff, students and researchers are exploring the possibilities created by recent developments in video, audio-visual, sound-works and light-works, and the creative potential this offers, especially in the field of design for the performing arts. Collaborations have already taken place with the Royal Shakespeare Company, the English National Ballet, the Royal Opera House, Rosemary Butcher, the South Bank Centre, Artangel, Laurie Anderson and Brian Eno. Since October 1999, ‘MAP/making’, a major research project in collaboration with the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and the London School of Contemporary Dance, has investigated the potential for bringing together music, art and performance, most notably in an acclaimed series of performances at the Bath International Music Festival in 2002, 2007 and 2009, The City of London Festival in 2003 and 2004 and the Aldeburgh Music Festival in 2005.

The department is known for its close links with industry, and there are regular opportunities for students to produce work in an applied context, either as part of curriculum projects held in collaboration with an industrial partner or by taking the opportunity to pitch for one of the commercial commissions that are regularly available. Projects in recent years have been commissioned by the Barbican Centre, the Royal Mail, the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts (RADA), the Royal College of Music, the Victoria and Albert Museum, the Earth Sciences Gallery, Max Mara and the South Bank Centre. The department also collaborates regularly with the worldwide advertising conglomerate, WPP.

Students have the opportunity to present their work regularly in the College’s excellent galleries, either in group shows of work such as the department’s annual work-in-progress exhibition, or in individual or small group shows in the Hockney Gallery. Students also regularly carry out print commissions for other departments in the College – in particular Architecture, Design Products and Fashion.

Emphasis is placed on the theoretical context within which studio work is pursued and is supported by a programme of lectures, seminars and individual tutorials organised by the Department of Critical & Historical Studies. This work culminates in the submission of a dissertation (see MA College-wide Programme for details).

The CA&D Department supports career development by tailoring professional practice provision for students to the culture of the discipline. Information, training and advice on work and life skills are also available centrally through FuelRCA.