skip to main content
graphics-home-left-green
graphics-home-right-green

Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma in Art and Design Practice

Level 3
Full-Time
25/26
6034667X
Pearson logo

Overview

The BTEC Level 3 qualification in Art and Design Practice introduces students to a range of art and design specialisms and helps build a strong portfolio for applying to Further Education, Higher Education or Foundation & Honours Degree courses.

This two-year qualification is equivalent to three A Levels and is ideal for students who have completed GCSE or A Level Art and want to continue their studies towards a career in the creative industries. One key advantage is that students can focus entirely on art and design based projects, provided they meet the course entry requirements.

Course Structure

Year 1:
Students complete two major projects:

  1. Skills Development, where students will be able to investigate a wide range of Art & Design Skills.
  2. Creative project, where students will produce an Art Project to showcase newly acquired creative skills.

Year 2:
Consists of 2 major projects:

  1. Personal Progression, where students develop a progression portfolio, practise interview and presentation skills, and choose their own specialist subject for the Final Major Project.
  2. Final Major Project Using a set theme, students will create a body of work that is showcased in a student-led exhibition.

Programme Overview

The Extended Diploma provides the skills, knowledge and understanding needed to progress to university, further training or employment in the art and design sector. The reduced number of units allows for larger, more in-depth projects and a more holistic learning experience.

Students are encouraged to experiment, develop technical skills and refine personal ideas while learning to work professionally from concept to final outcome. Assessments focus on practical work supported by planning, analysis, organisation and critical thinking.

Campus Specialisms

Each campus specialises in a broad range of specialist areas including Fine Art: Painting, Drawing, Printmaking, Sculpture and Ceramics, Media, Digital Art, Graphic Design, Illustration, Photography and Visual Communication. The course follows the EPIC framework, with employability at its core, giving students the chance to explore commercial practice in a creative setting.

Learners taking this qualification will study two mandatory learning and teaching modules:

  • Exploring and Developing Art and Design Skills (Year 1)
  • Advancing Creative Practice (Year 2)

This qualification has been designed to enable and encourage multidisciplinary practice and integration of all the relevant skills for learners to develop creative practice. Technical skills have been expressed through the following categories to allow for development and integration of skills across practices, including skills used across art, design and media:

  • image and mark
  • fashion/wearable
  • space and form
  • moving image and lens
  • experience
  • usable/product
  • text
  • sound

Skills are developed through teaching and learning modules and synthesised through projects, producing outcomes for assessment.

  • A1 Skills Development
  • A2 Creative Project
  • B1 Personal Progression
  • B2 Creative Industry Response

  • Four GCSEs grade C or above or equivalent to include Maths, English and ICT and preferably a relevant creative subject or
  • Successful completion of the Level 2 Traineeship in Art & Design Skills with a grade Merit or above to include English at Level 2.
  • Entry is subject to a successful interview with the course co-ordinator.

If you do not have the subjects required you may still be accepted onto the course, but you will be required to study Maths, English and ICT as Essential skills in addition to the main course.

As all units are internally assessed and externally verified, they allow learners to use large-scale projects, workshops and completing assignments as the basis for generating evidence for assessment. Learners must complete all four assessment units and achieve a Pass grade or above in each assessment criterion. The Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma in Art and Design Practice is graded using an overall qualification grading of PPP to D*D*D*, attracting UCAS points in the same way as A Level grades.

As mentioned previously, students can progress to Higher Education, Foundation Degree and Degree courses. Past students have successfully progressed to diverse careers such as Fine Art, Graphic Design, Professional Photography, Interior Design, Architectural Interior Design, Costume Design, Fashion Design, Art Therapy, Ceramic Design, Jewellery and Applied Art, Illustration, Fine Art, Printmaking, Visual Merchandising and other creative industries.

2 Available Sessions

* The fees quoted are per annum and are payable for each year of the course’s duration and are subject to additional examination fees as per fees policy.

Dungannon

Full-Time

P3670DF10A

Session Code

2 Year(s)

Duration

Further Education

Mode of Study

16

Hours per Week

34

Number of Weeks

Interview Required

25/26

Academic Year

01/09/2025

Start Date

Subject to Timetable

Day/s

Paul.Dickinson@swc.ac.uk

Coordinator(s)

Total Annual Fee N/A

Total Concessionary Fee N/A

Full Fee Breakdown

**Concession Fee Breakdown

Fees Payable Each Year

**Am I eligible for concessionary fees?

Applications are currently closed

Enniskillen

Full-Time

P3670EF10A

Session Code

2 Year(s)

Duration

Further Education

Mode of Study

16

Hours per Week

34

Number of Weeks

Interview Required

25/26

Academic Year

01/09/2025

Start Date

Subject to Timetable

Day/s

daniel.coleman@swc.ac.uk

Coordinator(s)

Total Annual Fee N/A

Total Concessionary Fee N/A

Full Fee Breakdown

**Concession Fee Breakdown

Fees Payable Each Year

**Am I eligible for concessionary fees?

Applications are currently closed

Discover Other Courses

Level 3

Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma in Creative Media Practice (Game Design)

View

Level 3

Pearson BTEC Level 3 National 540 Diploma in Art and Design Practice

View

Level 3

Pearson BTEC Level 3 National 540 Diploma in Creative Media Practice (Game Design)

View