Bachelor of Creative Arts (Visual Arts)

Course summary for local students

Note: You are seeing the 2018 view of this course information. These details may no longer be current.
Year2018 course information
Award granted Bachelor of Creative Arts (Visual Arts)
CampusOffered at Burwood (Melbourne), Waterfront (Geelong)
Length3 years full-time or part-time equivalent
Faculty contacts

Arts and Education Student Services and Enrolment Enquiries

Waurn Ponds (Geelong)
Tel 03 5227 1359
artsed@deakin.edu.au

Burwood (Melbourne) 
Tel 03 9246 8100
artsed@deakin.edu.au

Deakin course code A359
Approval statusThis course is approved by the University under the Higher Education Standards Framework.
Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF) recognition

The award conferred upon completion is recognised in the Australian Qualifications Framework at Level 7.

Note: Geelong Waterfront campus students can take units of study at the Waurn Ponds Campus.

Course overview

Develop your skills as a contemporary art practitioner to engage critically and creatively with the world in new and traditional media including painting, drawing, printmaking, 3D, digital and multi-disciplinary forms.

Combine cutting edge theory with specialised studio practice when you enrol in Deakin’s Bachelor of Creative Arts (Visual Arts).

Incorporating digital technologies, traditional techniques and interdisciplinary practices, this course focuses on the curious, the critical and creative student. Students are introduced to contemporary art through a program that contextualises their work in theory and practice through lectures, workshops, tutorials, collaborative and independent studio. Critical thinking and collaboration are key to developing the technical skills of the 21st century as students need to be adaptable, articulate and creative practitioners, no matter the vocation they choose.

In internships you’ll have access to important arts organisations, events and galleries to enhance your curatorial, educational and administrative skills, while you will have numerous opportunities to exhibit in Deakin’s own gallery spaces. Showcasing your work through festivals, exhibitions and award programs is a great way to launch your career, gain professional experience and network.

By coupling your major with units in other creative arts disciplines your design skills will be sought after in areas like marketing, media, and communications. You could work on creative designs for websites, packaging, printed material, company branding, video games, advertising, exhibitions and displays. Combining your art specialisation with teaching studies can also qualify you to teach visual arts in schools and other educational settings.

Graduates can enjoy creative roles as artists, in arts administration, curation, academic research, illustration, design, video, advertising, film production and teaching. There are further opportunities within the arts and cultural communities.

Career opportunities

As a graduate of the Bachelor of Creative Arts (Visual Arts) you will be readily equipped with skills appropriate to the expanding arts industries in fields including illustration, design, video, advertising, film production, education, and community arts. The course will also equip you to pursue an independent studio career working towards exhibitions in: commercial galleries; publicly run arts spaces; experimental, collaborative and interdisciplinary exchanges; and higher degree research. 

For more information go to DeakinTALENT

Course Learning Outcomes

Deakin Graduate Learning Outcomes

Course Learning Outcomes

Discipline specific knowledge and capabilities

Demonstrate a working knowledge of Visual Arts studio practice.

Demonstrate knowledge of art theoretical and historical content through studio practice. 

Demonstrate particular depth of knowledge in the studio practice of painting and drawing.

Adapt knowledge to analyse and interpret art and cultural products within the art world and within a broader context of cultural production.

Apply discipline knowledge and problem solving skills to reflect on, engage with, and reshape cultural/societal practices

Communication

Express ideas and opinions cogently through oral, written, and nonverbal (visual) channels.

Engage critically with ideas through technically sophisticated and theoretically informed art practice. 

Demonstrate an understanding of the art industry and its cultural contexts through written and oral communication.

Digital literacy

Employ a range of digital media technologies to create art works.

Demonstrate a high level of skill in both the manipulation of digital technologies as well as  the creative extension of such technologies

Critically engage with the interaction of old and new media technologies through scholarly writing and creative arts practice.

Critical thinking

Analyse and interpret cultural products (including the student’s own work) and make informed judgements about their meaning, value, and efficacy.

Use visual arts practice to develop self-reflexive habits that both develop and critically re-examine personally held views.

Problem solving

Develop skills in identifying, analysing and solving creative (ill-defined) problems through studio practice. 

Employ visual arts methodologies (ways of making) to define and explore new problems or re-frame existing ones.

Self-management

Use personal initiative and judgment to produce creative solutions to set creative briefs

Demonstrate initiative and autonomy in researching, developing and solving self-directed creative problems in the visual arts.

Demonstrate skills in objective critical self-assessment.

Teamwork

Collaborate with peers within and across disciplines to generate creative outcomes in art practice and professional situations.

Effectively negotiate interpersonal and creative differences through engagement in group projects.

Global citizenship

Demonstrate an awareness of ethical issues, cultural diversity, and social responsibility when engaging in Visual Arts scholarship. 

Demonstrate an awareness of the ethical and inter-cultural issues involved in the production and interpretation of visual representations.

Approved by Faculty Board October 2015

 

Course rules

Students must complete 24 credit points including:

  • 18 credit points of core units
  • 6 credit points of electives
  • no more than 12 credit points at level 1
  • AAI018 Academic Integrity (0-credit-point compulsory unit)
Students are required to meet the University's academic progress and conduct requirements. Click here for more information.

Course structure

Electives

Complete six electives, of which at least three must be 2nd or 3rd level

We suggest students complete at least 4 units in a subject area different to their degree, preferably a linked sequence of study in the same area. This choice can include units from any degree in the University but is best chosen from the subject areas in the Bachelor of Arts (https://www.deakin.edu.au/course/bachelor-arts). We do recommend students complete at least two more selectable core units listed above.

Course structure

Complete five 1 credit point units chosen from the following list with at least 1 level 3 unit:

ACV210Unit description is currently unavailable

ACV214Unit description is currently unavailable

ACI201Unit description is currently unavailable

ACI204Unit description is currently unavailable

ACI202Unit description is currently unavailable

ACV310Unit description is currently unavailable

ACV311Unit description is currently unavailable

ACI301Unit description is currently unavailable

ACP323Unit description is currently unavailable

ACC317Unit description is currently unavailable

Course structure

Course structure

Level 3

ACV307Unit description is currently unavailable

ACV312Unit description is currently unavailable (2 credit points) (Commencing 2018)

Course structure

Level 2

ACV205Unit description is currently unavailable

ACV206Unit description is currently unavailable

ACV207Unit description is currently unavailable

Course structure

Electives

In choosing electives, students are encouraged to consider taking a major sequence or individual units from the following Creative Arts major sequences listed in:

Animation

Drama

Film Studies

Photography

Visual Communication Design

Dance

The following units are also available as elective options:

Trimester 3

ACV300Unit description is currently unavailable

Trimester 1, Trimester 2 or Trimester 3

ALX321Unit description is currently unavailable

Course structure

Melbourne Burwood Campus - Elective cognate creative arts sequences

The following units are strongly recommended to students as part of their electives.  Students may choose more than one cognate study area which must include units from at least 2 year levels (eg 1st and 2nd year OR 2nd and 3rd year).

Animation

ACN108Unit description is currently unavailable

ACM132Unit description is currently unavailable

ACM138Unit description is currently unavailable

ACN203Unit description is currently unavailable

ACM240Unit description is currently unavailable

ACM308Unit description is currently unavailable

Creative and Media Arts Theory

Students intending to study at honours level should complete the units listed below:

ACT102Unit description is currently unavailable **

ACT203Unit description is currently unavailable

ALC208Unit description is currently unavailable

Creative Entrepreneurship

ACC301Unit description is currently unavailable **

ALX321Unit description is currently unavailable *

* ALX321 also offered in trimester 3

Cultures and Contexts

AAM219Unit description is currently unavailable *

AAM220Unit description is currently unavailable

ACN108Unit description is currently unavailable

ACT102Unit description is currently unavailable **

ACT303Unit description is currently unavailable

* AAM219 also offered trimester 3

Dance (Via Audition)

ACD101Unit description is currently unavailable

ACD102Unit description is currently unavailable

ACD105Unit description is currently unavailable

ACD110Unit description is currently unavailable *

ACD203Unit description is currently unavailable

ACD204Unit description is currently unavailable

* ACD110 does not require an Audition

Drama

ACP101Unit description is currently unavailable

ACP177Unit description is currently unavailable

ACP279Unit description is currently unavailable

ACP280Unit description is currently unavailable

ACP323Unit description is currently unavailable

ACP378Unit description is currently unavailable

Film

AAM219Unit description is currently unavailable *

ACM112Unit description is currently unavailable

ACM116Unit description is currently unavailable

ACM120Unit description is currently unavailable

ACM236Unit description is currently unavailable

ACM237Unit description is currently unavailable

* AAM219 also offered trimester 3

Visual Communication Design (formerly Graphic Design)

Note: Students who commenced studies prior to 2011 may need to contact Student Support office for course advice. Melbourne Burwood Campus Tel 03 924 43843 or 03 924 43910 artsedstudentsupport@deakin.edu.au

ACG101Unit description is currently unavailable

ACG102Unit description is currently unavailable

ACG103Unit description is currently unavailable

ACG204Unit description is currently unavailable

ACG207Unit description is currently unavailable

ACG208Unit description is currently unavailable

Interdisciplinary Practice

ACC308Unit description is currently unavailable

ACV211Unit description is currently unavailable **

Motion Capture

AMC101Unit description is currently unavailable

AMC202Unit description is currently unavailable

AMC303Unit description is currently unavailable

ACN310Unit description is currently unavailable **

Photography

ACM101Unit description is currently unavailable

ACM102Unit description is currently unavailable

ACM203Unit description is currently unavailable

ACM204Unit description is currently unavailable

ACC308Unit description is currently unavailable

ACM328Unit description is currently unavailable

Professional and Creative Writing

ALW101Unit description is currently unavailable

ALW102Unit description is currently unavailable

ALW227Unit description is currently unavailable

ALW225Unit description is currently unavailable

** ACT102, ACV211, ACC301 and ACN310 are not offered 2013, re-offered 2014 subject to approval.

Course structure

Level 1

ACA101Unit description is currently unavailable

ACA100Unit description is currently unavailable

ACV101Unit description is currently unavailable

ACV102Unit description is currently unavailable

Course structure

Waterfront (Geelong) - Elective cognate creative arts sequences

The following units are strongly recommended to students as part of their electives.  Students may choose more than one cognate study area which must include units from at least 2 year levels (eg 1st and 2nd year OR 2nd and 3rd year).

Photography

ACM101Unit description is currently unavailable

ACM102Unit description is currently unavailable

ACM203Unit description is currently unavailable

ACM202Unit description is currently unavailable

Creative and Media Arts

ALC101Unit description is currently unavailable *

SRA143Unit description is currently unavailable (to be confirmed)

EEA211Unit description is currently unavailable

ACC301Unit description is currently unavailable **

ALC102Unit description is currently unavailable

EEA212Unit description is currently unavailable

* ALC101 also offered in trimester 3 - Cloud (online) mode only.

** ACC301 is not offered 2014, re-offered 2015 subject to approval.

Course structure

Course structure

Complete three 1 credit point units chosen from the following list:

ACG103Unit description is currently unavailable

ACF103Unit description is currently unavailable

ACP109Unit description is currently unavailable

ACP103Unit description is currently unavailable

ACI101Unit description is currently unavailable

ACI102Unit description is currently unavailable

Course structure


Transition to University study 

The faculty offers two units AIX160 Introduction to University Study and AIX117 Professional Writing for Work which are specifically designed to ease the transition into university study. New students are encouraged to enrol in one or both of these units as electives in their first year.







Course duration - additional information

Course duration may be affected by delays in completing course requirements, such as accessing or completing work placements.


Other Course Information

Assessment
Assessment within the award of Bachelor of Creative Arts varies from written assignments and/or examination to practical and technical exercises and performance. In some units assessment may also include class participation, online exercises, seminar exercises and tests.

Work experience

Elective units may provide the opportunity for Work Integrated Learning experiences.

Participation requirements

Reasonable adjustments to participation and other course requirements will be made for students with a disability. Click here for more information.

Mandatory student checks

Any unit which contains work integrated learning, a community placement or interaction with the community may require a police check, Working with Children Check or other check.