Bath School of Music and Performing Arts

#1 in South West for Student Experience and Teaching Quality

We’re #1 in the South West and #8 in the UK for Student Experience and Teaching Quality for Drama, Dance and Cinematics.*

_{*Sunday Times Good University Guide 2023.}

#2 in the South West

We’re #2 in South West overall for Drama and Dance.*

_{*Guardian University Guide 2023.}

Top 15 in UK for Student Satisfaction

We’re in the UK top 15 for Student Satisfaction in Drama, Dance and Cinematics.*

_{*Complete University Guide 2023.}

We teach

Our staff are practitioners and researchers who work in the industry and can offer you a real-world understanding of the music and performing arts professions.

Through our teaching and practice we will give you the skills and knowledge to achieve this: we will develop your practice, encourage an enterprising and entrepreneurial mindset and nurture your creativity, preparing you for the demands of your chosen career and much more.

We research

Our approach to research in the performing arts connects inter-disciplinary practice with current theoretical contexts. Our research specialisms within theatre, dance and music span a wide range of interests - from choreographic practices to screen dance and digital performance to performance and the medical humanities, to name a few.

We innovate

Bath Spa Productions is a major producer of Dance, Music and Theatre events across the city. This exciting innovation project links you with professional artists and companies from the real world. SparkFest is our annual and ever-growing festival of new work.

Theatre and Performing Arts venues

Students perform or work regularly at venues such as: Theatre Royal Bath, Wiltshire Live Music Centre, Moles, and the Bristol Old Vic.

Partnerships in the City

We are committed to working with the city of Bath as part of its cultural life. We work with many local companies and institutions, including: Bath Dance, The Bath Festival, Visit Bath, The Holburne Museum and The Southgate Centre.

Working with industry

Across all of our programmes we connect to industry through placement offers, co-production and advisory bodies. A few examples are our work with Theatre Lab, Wiltshire Rural Music, Bay Productions and Salisbury Playhouse.

International partners

We offer international exchanges with universities such as Columbia College Chicago, SUNY Geneseo and Oklahoma City University. We connect you to the global arts community.

Adobe Creative Campus

As an Adobe Creative Campus, all Bath Spa students have access to the entire Adobe Creative Suite of elite industry-leading apps, including Photoshop, InDesign, Adobe Express and more.

With the ability to amplify your digital fluency from the moment you join Bath Spa, you’ll have the space to develop a wealth of indispensable skills to help you in your studies, and in the world of work.