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BA (Hons) Drama

  • Placement year available
How to apply Come to an Open Day

Introduction to our Drama degree

Two students in glitzy costumes on stage Watch our 2023 showreel

Studying Drama at ARU

Explore drama and performance making in professional theatre venues and a wide range of community and industry contexts with our BA (Hons) Drama degree in Cambridge.

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Study at an award-winning university

We're the Times Higher Education (THE) University of the Year. We've also been awarded a Gold rating in the Teaching Excellence Framework – a reflection of the outstanding education we offer our students.

If you dream of running your own theatre company, applying your creative skills to community or educational work, or developing as a performer, stage manager or theatre technician our BA (Hons) Drama degree is for you.

With a strong focus on practice-based learning, you will explore contemporary theatre and screen performance making. You will be supported and inspired to develop a portfolio of professional skills for working in the creative industries through collaboration with other creative students, your specialist tutors, community partners and industry professionals. Making performance for a range of professional and public contexts will also give you the confidence and knowledge to transfer your talents into a wide range of career options.

We’ll encourage you to create innovative and daring performance practice as you develop specialist subject knowledge and an awareness of how you might fit into and lead contemporary trends. We recognise each Drama student’s unique gifts and experience, valuing everyone’s contribution to the work we make together and to the success of the course. We will enable you to explore your own talents and to shape our Drama degree to fit your aspirations.

Course options

Course options

Key facts

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Entry Requirements

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Fees and Paying for University

Facilities and showcase

A grand piano spotlighted on a stage

Professional Facilities

As part of your studies at ARU, you’ll have access to all of our creative industries facilities including:

  • Dedicated drama studio, with highly flexible black-box performance space
  • Full-size on-campus professional Mumford Theatre
  • Large rehearsal space with audio playback facilities, piano, LED lighting rig, portable dance mirrors, gym mats and rostra/modular staging
  • Students’ Union-run dance studio
  • Podcast and video capture system
Students around a table discussing a model of a moose

Futures Lab and workshop equipment

Our new digital workshop includes a variety of computer aided manufacturing machines, helping you learn up to date manufacturing and design processes as well as supporting many traditional techniques. These technologies include:

  • 3D printers and scanners - FDM printers; material-specific extruders; SLA Formlabs printers; SLS Formlabs Fuse1; structured light 3D scanners
  • 2D printing and cutting machines - laser cutters; Roland BN20 vinyl printer & cutter; Gerber substrate cutter; Mimaki TX300P sublimation printer.
Drama student Manny, lit by purple spotlights

Opportunities

During your time at ARU, you’ll have the opportunity to:

  • develop your technical and production skills.
  • put on productions on campus, in our Mumford Theatre, and at a commercial venue in Cambridge
  • volunteer with our Anglia Ruskin Community Theatre Company, and experience being part of a professional ensemble
  • gain valuable work experience through placements and live briefs.
Artwork by Cami Rouhonen - a person' s head seen in profile with the top of the head portrayed as a mountain peak; on the mountain a person is looking through a telescope

Take a closer look

Our Creative Showcase shines a spotlight on what makes ARU creative and cultural – our spaces, places and people. Find out more about our community, the difference we make, the stories we tell, and the things that inspire us. You can also explore the work of our graduating students in our digital graduate showcase.

Careers

Not only will you develop your performance skills during your time at ARU, our BA (Hons) Drama degree will give you practical experience as a stage technician, and the academic understanding you need to be a director or a teacher.

Graduation doesn’t need to be the end of your time with us, of course. You might decide to stay at ARU and study for a Masters, such as our MA Dramatherapy. Take advantage of our Alumni Scholarship and get 20% off your fees.

Employability and personal career development

Informed by employers, our courses support an integrated approach to employability. You’ll have opportunities to develop the skills and abilities they are looking for and gain a deeper understanding of how your academic learning relates to the world of work through Live Briefs and Ruskin Modules.

To amplify your career ambition, you will need to actively dedicate time outside of your studies, whether you choose to explore placements, internships or volunteering. Or you could make a social impact by collaborating with our partner organisations through our volunteer scheme Students at the Heart of Knowledge Exchange (SHoKE). These all give you an edge, providing you with experience that you will be able to evidence on your CV and talk about in interviews.

Our Employability and Careers Service offers a range of expert advice and support to build your unique professional profile, including tailored career appointments, advice on writing your CV, and help to complete job applications. You’ll have 24/7 access to the Careers Centre, our comprehensive online digital resource, which empowers you to start building a Personal Career Development Plan from the very start. Design your future at ARU.

Drama student Laura Mackie in school uniform next to Michael the Recycling Superhero, with bin-lid shield

LAURA MACKIE

I took part in Anglia Ruskin Community Theatre Company's 'Theatre in Education' Production... creating a performance for primary-age students and working with a professional director. I have learnt many valuable skills as a result

LAURA MACKIE

BA (Hons) Drama

Laura's story

Apply now for BA (Hons) Drama

Buildings and courtyard on Anglia Ruskin University's Cambridge campus

Life in Cambridge

Our friendly, bustling campus is a stone’s throw from the centre of Cambridge, often described as the perfect student city.

Our favourite places in Cambridge Did you know...? Facts about Cambridge Watch: Our Cambridge

Want to talk to someone?

Do you have a question that we haven't answered so far? Talk to our application experts. You can also ask our Student Ambassadors about life at ARU.

We're here Monday-Thursday 9am-5pm (please note we close at 3.30pm on the first and third Thursday of the month for staff training), and Friday 9am-4.30pm.

Drama student in front of a rehearsal on stage

Prepare for your audition

Applying for one of our music or drama courses? Get information and insider tips on preparing for your audition.

Audition information by course

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