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To find out more details about the transfer to The Open University see A New Chapter for OCA.

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Study tips


What if… thumb

What if…

What if … I can’t go outside to photograph. Below are some tips and suggestions of some aspects to explore and photographers to look at.  The list is by no means exhaustive, so please do add and share. Some courses/assignments are more dramatically impacted than others, so do talk to your tutor.  Use the forums to share and connect with other students. 

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Age of the image thumb

Age of the image

It’s important for all art students to explore and understand the potency of images. A good deal of that rests on understanding the way that image-making has changed and been changed, by whom, and to what purpose. It’s a complex subject with technology, psychology, politics, science, and artistic vision all playing their part.

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Starting a creative practice PhD thumb

Starting a creative practice PhD

When I started my first module with Open College of the Arts, I hadn’t even committed to a Undergraduate degree let alone considered the possibilities of going on to study at master’s or PhD level, but here I am! My time studying with OCA allowed me to start believing in myself giving me the opportunity to fully explore materials and techniques that lead eventually to a very research-based approach to my practice.

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Starting a new course – ways of getting stuck in and finding your feet.  thumb

Starting a new course – ways of getting stuck in and finding your feet. 

As a tutor within Further and Higher Education for the past 7 years, I am familiar with the logistics of starting a new course, seeing it all happen behind the scenes from the tutor’s perspective. This year however, alongside teaching at the OCA, I am starting a new course of my own – an MA in Textile Design.

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Submitting for Assessment: FAQs thumb

Submitting for Assessment: FAQs

We’re fast approaching the next assessment event, and OCA students are collating all their hard work and preparing to submit. While it can feel daunting, it doesn’t need to feel complicated. We’ve noted your frequently asked questions and hope the following information will help make the assessment process a little smoother. G-Drives Any digital work […]

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Plagiarism and citation : A guide for students thumb

Plagiarism and citation : A guide for students

Plagiarism is a scary word, with connotations of academic malpractice, cheating in exams, and dodgy essay-writing websites. In practice, however, plagiarism is just as often accidental as deliberate, and can easily stem from some simple misunderstandings about research practice.

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The courage to use what is near at hand thumb

The courage to use what is near at hand

Found items cost little or nothing but can also have another, deeper level of meaning. Using recycled materials could help strengthen an environmental message, maybe a piece of clothing could hold some form of memory. Think about what you are trying to convey, could a different choice of materials help strengthen your ideas?

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Critical thinking: Developing a model as an approach to problem-solving thumb

Critical thinking: Developing a model as an approach to problem-solving

Critical thinking and reflection are powerful tools which add validity and credibility to qualitative research, but they can be challenging to apply because there is no single ‘right way’ or set of prescriptive instructions which can be followed. Over time, I began to see that the challenge could be used to my advantage, because the tools are versatile and can be adapted and applied to many different situations. 

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