Preferred · age 16+
Extended Diploma
Two years after F.4 / Year 11 / Grade 10. The studio equivalent of A-level, then a CSVPA BA. Do not wait for F.6 or a Canadian Grade 12 diploma if the arts path is already clear.
Cambridge School of Visual & Performing Arts
A specialist college, fifteen years a UAL centre.
CSVPA sits in the heart of Cambridge. Diploma, foundation, undergraduate and master’s — art, design, fashion, music and performing arts. Principal Karin Askham. It is not the University of Cambridge. It is the professional school next door.
Ask about a place128
Graduates in the latest cycle
462
University offers received
3+
Offers per graduate, on average
50%
From the world’s top 50 art schools
What makes it stand out
100% pass rate on the Level 3 Foundation Diploma in Art & Design and the Extended Diploma in Creative Practice. IELTS 4.5 (no band below 4) is the Extended Diploma English floor.
Small class teaching
A 1:15 tutor ratio, with courses shaped around the student rather than the timetable.
International student support
Five days of on-site teaching, 20+ contact hours, one-to-one tutorials, five hours of EAL, and full UCAS guidance.
A studio of your own
Dedicated studio space for every student, open seven days a week — the rooms you will work in after you leave.
Best value of money
Essential tools, materials and unlimited printing included. Students typically save over £3,000 a year — with no extras for making the piece properly.
Industry faculty
Tutors from institutions including the Royal Academy of Arts and University of the Arts London.
UAL awarding body
Fifteen years and more as a UAL centre. UAL even holds a pre-review admissions evening on the CSVPA campus.
Who can enter, and from where
Extended Diploma from 16 — after Hong Kong F.4, UK Year 11, typically Grade 10 in Canada, or MYP 5. Foundation from 17, after F.5, A-level / BTEC Level 3, a Canadian Grade 12 diploma, or IB 24. A portfolio — or a monologue, a song, a piece of music — is always part of the file. IELTS 4.5, no band below 4, is the Extended Diploma English floor. A Canadian Grade 12 diploma is not a skip into the BA.
| Course | Age | Canada | UK · GCSE, A-level & BTEC | Hong Kong | IB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Extended Diploma · Art & Design | 16+ | Typically after Grade 10 + portfolio | Year 11 / 3 GCSEs at grade 4 (C), preferably a creative subject + portfolio | Completion of F.4 / S4 at 50% + portfolio | Typically after MYP 5, age 16+ + portfolio |
| Foundation Diploma · Art & Design | 17+ | OSSD / BC Dogwood + portfolio — not a skip into the BA | 1 A-level or BTEC Level 3 + 3 GCSEs at 4 (Maths, English, one creative) + portfolio | Completion of F.5 / S5 at 40% + portfolio | IB Diploma 24 points + portfolio |
| Extended Diploma · Performing Arts | 16+ | Typically after Grade 10 + a monologue, song, or music piece | Year 11 / 3 GCSEs at grade 4 + audition material | F.4 / S4 at 50% + a monologue or song in English, or one music piece | Typically after MYP 5, age 16+ + audition |
| Drama / Music Foundation | 17+ | OSSD / BC Dogwood + audition | 1 A-level or BTEC Level 3 + 3 GCSEs at 4 (Maths, English, one creative) + audition | HKDSE min. level 2 in core subjects + monologue, song, or music piece | IB Diploma 24 points + audition |
Later door · age 17+
Foundation year
After F.5 or a Grade 12 diploma — including OSSD and BC Dogwood. One specialist year, then the BA. This is the standard bridge from a North American diploma; it is not a skippable extra.
Six terms, then a portfolio
The UAL Extended Diploma is two years. Year 1 is process, practice and a set brief. Year 2 is the pathway, live briefs, and a final major project that becomes the university file.
Year 1 · Term 1
The creative process
Visual language, research, critical and contextual awareness, materials and technical skills.
Year 1 · Term 2
Developing creative practice
Integrated 2D, 3D and time-based problem solving.
Year 1 · Term 3
Responding to a set brief
An independent personal project: identify a problem, research it, and leave ready for Year 2.
Year 2 · Term 4
Chosen pathway
Architecture & interior · fine art · communication / animation / illustration · fashion / fashion communication.
Year 2 · Term 5
Live briefs
Projects inside the specialism, plus environmental, social and political themes — and university-interview preparation.
Year 2 · Term 6
Final major project
Initiate, research, complete and evaluate a project in a professional context. This is the portfolio.
Or three terms — the Foundation year
Term 1
Induction into a specialism
A specialism chosen before arrival; collaborative projects with other pathways in the first weeks.
Term 2
Live briefs
Apply the first term to projects inside the discipline, and prepare university interviews.
Term 3
Final project
A self-initiated project that becomes the university portfolio.
Fashion is two conversations
Design makes the garment. Communication makes the brand. They sit next to each other in Cambridge — and they are not the same student.
Fashion design
Cloth, pattern, collection. The BA and MA Design routes, with 2D/fashion workshops and a Graduate Fashion Week catwalk in view. For students who think in garments.
Read the pathway
Fashion communication
Brand, campaign, editorial. BA Fashion Branding & Creative Communication and the matching MA — plus the Hearst Magazines UK internship (ELLE, Esquire). For students who think in stories as much as in cloth.
Read the pathway
A Hong Kong story
“Applying to Oxford is no mean feat. I love CSVPA’s courses for the creative freedom they give you.”
Olive Au · Hong Kong · Foundation Diploma in Art & Design
Offer: Ruskin School of Art, University of Oxford
UAL offers, one cycle
128 graduates, 462 university offers. 135 offers across the six UAL colleges — an average of one UAL offer per student. Plus destinations at GSA, SCAD, RISD, Goldsmiths, RNCM, Trinity Laban, Guildhall, UCL and the Russell Group.
| College | Offers |
|---|---|
| Central Saint Martins | 25 |
| London College of Communication | 32 |
| London College of Fashion | 23 |
| Chelsea College of Arts | 12 |
| Camberwell College of Arts | 25 |
| Wimbledon College of Arts | 17 |
| Creative Computing Institute | 1 |
| UAL total | 135 |
And beyond UAL
A further spread of offers in the same cycle — Kingston, Westminster, Glasgow School of Art, Goldsmiths, Southampton.
| School | Offers |
|---|---|
| Kingston University London | 67 |
| University of Westminster | 38 |
| The Glasgow School of Art | 31 |
| Goldsmiths, University of London | 31 |
| University of Southampton | 7 |
Art & design
- University of the Arts London
- The Glasgow School of Art
- SCAD
- Goldsmiths
- Rhode Island School of Design
Performing arts
- Royal Northern College of Music
- Trinity Laban
- Royal Central School of Speech & Drama
- Royal Holloway
- Guildhall School
- Goldsmiths
Wider university
- UCL
- University of Edinburgh
- University of Leeds
- University of Sheffield
- University of Southampton
The Cambridge network
Work leaves the classroom. Students have shown at the Fitzwilliam Museum, collaborated with the Museum of Zoology for the Cambridge Festival, partnered with University of Cambridge researchers since 2021, and made art-science work with the UCL Cancer Institute and the PIPgen network.
Exclusive access
Collaborate with University of Cambridge researchers. Portfolios that solve problems, not just decorate.
Elite networking
A professional network with PhDs and academics — and the skill of turning complex data into visual stories.
Real-world impact
AR, VR and interactive media, shown in public exhibitions and on digital platforms.
Industry partners in the CSVPA orbit include Falmouth University, Vivienne Westwood, ELLE, Hearst Magazines UK, Superdry and Esquire — plus an internship programme with Hearst.
Sister schools in the same family
CSVPA Arts Academy can be taken on the Boston campus in Grades 10–12, with a guaranteed CSVPA undergraduate place on completion. A Stafford House or CSVPA summer in Cambridge is often the first look.