Dance

You’ll find yourself immersed in a world of exciting choreographic opportunities, broadening your understanding of performance making. You’ll regularly present your work in a variety of performance projects, with lots of opportunities to work alongside professional artists and companies. We’ll encourage you to develop a critical and analytical mindset that will support your creative enquiry.

Technique forms an important part of the course, full-time dance students benefit from four to five classes in the studio on a regular basis. Cunningham and Limon­ based classes, somatic practice and contact improvisation are all part of your technical training and give you the chance to develop into a strong and confident dancer.

Each year you’ll take performance modules with visiting professional companies. As part of this, you’ll take part in intensive projects that build your skills as a maker and performer. We’ll introduce you to the exciting world where dance intersects with other art forms to make performance work.

Please note, if you choose to study dance as a combined award, you won’t study all the available modules. You can choose to study a joint degree, or you can place greater emphasis on one subject by taking it as a major.

Year one
Your first year will be a fast-paced, challenging experience that builds your skills in the key areas of performance, creativity and critical thinking. You’ll work on regular performance projects, creating solo, small group and large ensemble work. We introduce you to new ways to think and move that will help you to broaden your skills as a dance artist.

Regular sessions with visiting companies and artists will help you expand your understanding of the dance industry and inspire you to think about your own career aspirations.

Year two
You’ll stretch your creative and performance skills in exciting new directions. A wide range of practical sessions will deepen your understanding of how performance work can be created for different contexts; we encourage you to see yourself – and the work you make – within a broader perspective.

The visiting guest artist programme continues to provide you with inspirational workshops and residencies that help to build your knowledge of the field and inform your artistic practice.

Year three
You’ll focus on developing a specialist area. Modules allow you to follow a specific pathway that supports your interests, such as performance, choreography, teaching or dance movement therapy. You’ll embark on a large scale performance project, as well as completing a work placement with a professional dance organisation and undertaking an independent project that you design and manage to completion.

Regular individual tutoring, with specialist dance careers staff, will help you build a plan for after you graduate. We pledge to continue to support you as part of our graduate alumni scheme, no matter how long ago you graduated.

We’ll assess your work in a variety of ways such as practical performances, presentations, portfolios and essays. Practical projects may be assessed on your creative process, the final product or both.

The course has a strong practical focus with workshops, technique classes and choreographic laboratories. These are led by qualified staff and visiting choreographers and artists.

Digital technology plays a significant role in the course; we apply it to creative practice as well as using it to teach. Screendance, and the integration of digital media in live performance work is a distinctive feature of the course.

• Creative Dance Practice 1
• Digital Performance Practice 1
• Body in Performance 1
• Creative Dance Practice 2
• Somatic Improvisation
• Body in Performance 2
• Creative Collaborations

• Creative Dance Practice 3
• Performance in Context 1
• Performance Project
• Creative Dance Practice 4
• Digital Performance Practice 2
• Performance in Context 2
• Professional Placement Year

• Professional Project: Dance Performance
• Body in Performance 3
• Somatics for Performance and Wellbeing
• Dance Research Project
• Dance Independent Study
• Dance Independent Study
• Professional Practice
• Creative Enterprise Project 1

You’ll have the opportunity to study in a wide range of locations around the world. Our students have completed Erasmus+ and Exchange programmes in a variety of countries including the USA and Spain.

Our students have worked with professional dance organisations including Earthfall Dance, Bath Dance, ICIA, Hofesh Shechter, Pavilion Dance, ITV, Dance Voice, The Egg Theatre, Impermanence Dance Theatre, Circomedia, B&NES Youth Dance Company, and Jean Abreu Dance.

Previous guests who have worked with our students include: Jasmin Vardimon Dance Company, Bedlam Dance Company, Earthfall , Impermanence Dance Theatre, Lila Dance, Karla Shacklock Dance, Wendy Houston, Alexander Whitely, Protein Dance, Maresa von Stockert, Jean Abreu, Laila Diallo.

Our dance graduates work in a range of professions including:

• Performance
• Choreography
• Community dance work
• Teaching
• Dance movement therapy
• Arts management / administration

Graduates have been employed by organisations including: Earthfall Dance, Maresa Von Stockhert, Bath Dance, Institute for Contemporary Interdisciplinary Arts, Hofesh Shechter, Pretty Good Girl Dance Theatre, Theatre Bristol, Karla Shacklock Dance, Royal Academy of Dance, Zinc Arts, Citrus Arts, Kapow Dance and numerous schools, colleges and universities.

As a Bath Spa dancer, you'll be part of a busy events calendar that will allow you to both participate in and watch professional dance performances. We’ll encourage you to participate in dance festivals and exhibitions, and you’ll have the opportunity to apply for choreographic platforms and screen dance festivals. 

This optional placement year provides you with the opportunity to identify, apply for and secure professional experience, normally comprising one to three placements over a minimum of nine months. Successful completion of this module will demonstrate your ability to secure and sustain graduate-level employment.

By completing the module, you'll be entitled to the addition of 'with Professional Placement Year' to your degree title.

Before your Professional Placement Year, you'll work to secure your placement, constructing a development plan with your module leader and your placement coordinator from our Careers and Employability team.

On your return to University for your final year, you'll submit your Placement Portfolio, detailing your development on your placement.

The course is taught at our Newton Park campus.

You’ll work in our dance studios, which are fully equipped for choreography, performance and work with digital media. We regularly host professional performances and workshops from leading dance artists in the University Theatre. 

Bath Spa University offers many other excellent facilities including:

• Amphitheatre
• Mac editing suite
• TV studios
• Green screen facilities
• Virtual Learning Environment
• Libraries

You can hire out equipment using SISO, Bath Spa University’s free equipment loan service. We provide a huge variety of equipment including laptops, ipads, projectors and cameras.

Our greatest resource is, perhaps, the professionalism and experience of the tutors who teach on the course and our professional associates and partners.