Ratings and Reviews
Really glad I chose this uni for my illustration course! All the lectures are so lovely and I have absolutely loved my experience and can’t wait for what’s to come in the future! Thankful for the support I’ve been getting for mental health also.
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Arts University Plymouth Hall Rankings
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Students' Union at Arts University Plymouth
StudentCrowd Students' Union score: 2.94 / 5
Ratings and Reviews
Really glad I chose this uni for my illustration course! All the lectures are so lovely and I have absolutely loved my experience and can’t wait for what’s to come in the future! Thankful for the support I’ve been getting for mental health also.
Applying to Arts University Plymouth
- Entry Requirements
144-159 UCAS Points
Average range for Arts University Plymouth entry requirements. Varies depending on the course.
Arts University Plymouth Reputation
Arts University Plymouth is situated in the city of Plymouth, on the Devonshire coast in South West England. 1,035 students are enrolled at Arts University Plymouth:
- 975 of these students come from the UK
- 15 come from EU countries
- And 45 are students from non-EU countries.
(Source: HESA 2022/23)
The graduate outcomes for Arts University Plymouth show that six months after leaving university, 85% of graduates are in work or further study. The typical graduate salary six months after leaving Arts University Plymouth is £18 - £21K a year.
(Source: HESA Graduate Outcomes Data Survey 2023 for 2020/21 graduates)
Updated: 4th October 2024
Read Arts University Plymouth Reviews
The campus is good and have a good variety of food places.
This is so important to know if you're a prospective student. That Freshers 2021 video they use to advertise their students union is incredibly misleading. There are no drag nights, there are no concerts, there is no axe throwing, there is no bbq, there is no rock climbing, and there's not even an egg and spoon race. AUP does not invest in social vibrancy anymore. The false advertisement is really worrying to me when I see excited prospective students, so I will make things crystal clear. Yes there's many amazing facilities, which you can use for free, but the booking system is terrible, many people hate it, and discourages most students from ever bothering to use these fantastic facilities. At least on my course, there are no "live briefs", no work experience, nothing like that. My friend saw a tiktok from them advertising our course as having "guest speakers from Hallmark, Penguin, & more". That's just a straight up lie. Please, look past the glamorous picture, I wish I did.
Really glad I chose this uni for my illustration course! All the lectures are so lovely and I have absolutely loved my experience and can’t wait for what’s to come in the future! Thankful for the support I’ve been getting for mental health also.
Arts University Plymouth (AUP) has fallen far short of my expectations, leaving me disillusioned and deeply regretful of my choice to study here. Higher management seems entirely disconnected from the realities of student life, fostering a pervasive sense of neglect. This detachment is reflected in the university’s broken systems, which students are repeatedly instructed to use despite their glaring inefficiencies. My experience with the course structure and teaching at Arts University Plymouth has been deeply disappointing. Contact with lecturers is minimal and often lacks the substance needed to guide or inspire meaningful creative growth. Tutorials feel rushed, offering little more than surface-level feedback, and there’s an overall sense that the staff are disengaged. While I expected dynamic mentorship from professionals in my field, the reality is a perfunctory approach that leaves students feeling unsupported and directionless.
Overall it’s a really lovely uni, small pretty tight nit community and campus, accessible, nice staff, good workloads. The course facilities are good depending on which course you study. And you get very niche and in depth specialist training. Good cafe/lunch place, SU is great, and all the staff there are nice - run quite a few events like clothes swaps and anti burn out things. Pretty decent, but a lot of stuff that was advertised on the open days such as there being loads of society’s hasn’t happened, and as far as I’m aware the ‘workshop Wednesdays’ either aren’t running, or you need a massive group to book them, and slots fill up fast.
Disappointed by the Lack of Support and Resources I did not expect to attend a university that feels so underfunded and neglected. Many of the teachers have been dropped, and the ones remaining are clearly overwhelmed. Despite paying £9,250 a year, there’s a noticeable lack of support. Lecturers rarely have time to respond to emails, and forget about extra help or guidance. It’s frustrating because you’d expect better from an institution charging such high fees, but it seems like the resources just aren’t there. It’s hard not to feel like I’m paying for something I’m not getting... If you’re someone who values creativity, ambition, or a more vibrant social scene, you might find the Student Union lacking in substance and appeal. Not heard of such boring activities as those such created by this university compared to a large scale university like Plymouth uni. Save your money to go to a better university, I wish I had…
Amazing place filled with staff and technicians who really enjoy their jobs and want to help you. Incredible student support team as well just a brilliant place I'm so glad I get to go there.
Arts University Plymouth is a small university run by artists for artists. It is the place to be as a creative. The facilities are incredible and no matter what course you study, you are able to use any facilities on workshop Wednesday's to experiment your practice further. The tutors care so much about the students and push you to be your best self. Due to it being a small university, I have found that the contact time i have with my tutors is 100 times more than my friends had with their tutors who studied in London, Brighton etc. Nothing is too much for them.
Since becoming a student at the arts university plymouth in September I’ve loved it so much. Everyone is so friendly, staff and pupils. I’d highly recommend this university if you’re wanting to study the arts. The thought of uni always made me feel uncomfortable because they’re so big and intimidating but having a small university like this is perfect for people like me who are a bit shy.
Arts University Plymouth has been amazing for me! I've thoroughly enjoyed my course (illustration), my tutors always offer great teaching and advice for future career plans. The facilities on campus are incredible and I have been able to access all of it, not just course specific facilities! I would really recommend checking out Arts University Plymouth if you're considering a creative course for undergraduate study
Fantastic facilities, better than any other art school I’ve seen. Really friendly community of fellow art students.
Lovely small uni with fantastic facilities
Many parts of the uni are underdeveloped, especially the SU and societies.
State of the art equipment and resources, lecturers are very approachable but some technicians a very one way on how to do things (experimenting for them is not the way, they tell you to do it the way you are going to get a successful outcome, which is great but sometimes you want to learn from your mistakes. There is a lot of fundraising involved within the three years of study. We have had to raise 4000 pounds between a small cohort of 12 students (some don’t even get involved) and there is too much pressure on raising money and giving the university a good publicity image than actually learning and doing what you want. There is also an incredible amount of writing, reports of 6000 words and dissertation of another 6000, proposals of 2000 and they other making modules which research is a must. I think it’s a jam packed curriculum and not enough on making which is odd
Great university, great facilities. Suitable for artist
Great staff that are super friendly and helpful as well as awesome facilities and opportunities!
Amazing university with incredibly helpful staff!!
Good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good
Amazing place to study , having the time of my life there
great art school, talented staff
Could be a partnership between Plymouth uni and PCA to allow students to have access to more societies. Also could get adobe for free for the students.
The facilities at Plymouth College of Art are like no other, and the fact you can try out anything you like, no restrictions, is amazing. You won't find a Students' Union who care more about students; Harriet is the most hard-working person I've ever met, and goes above and beyond for students at every opportunity. The clubs and societies are completely led by students, which I really enjoy, and the ones I've joined have been amazing ways to meet new people. The careers team are small but mighty, Louise is the loveliest person I've ever met and so incredibly helpful. Donna is the Library is amazing too, she'll always make time for you. No matter how busy the Reception team are, they'll always help you. Honestly, all the staff are fab.
They have wasted my time and stolen my money. There courses are shambles and I have learnt the majority of my key skills outside of university. I can only suggest that they invest in improved teaching staff and leadership. Their unwillingness to listen to suggestions and Frank rudeness when receiving complaints is very disheartening. Several staff are brilliant at their jobs I simply have not been able to flourish there.
Great facilities. Not the best for clubs and societies, think I was only ever told of three going on and they weren’t my thing.
Honestly the best university for any creative subjects, the amount of support is really incredible and I'm so thankful for all the staff support during my time here. Resource-wise I was blown off my feet at what was a available to use night and day, free of charge, on and off the campus. Techs and course staff are really knowledgeable and helpful too. Careers and the students union are my two favourite areas of the college despite clearly being the least funded. Both areas do great things with what they've got so I can only imagine how much they'd thrive with the appropriate funds. The clubs and societies are a bit lacking but they are led by students and not everyone has the time to be running them alongside their work and the wifi can be pretty patchy at times, it's basically non-existent in the fine art and masters buildings which isn't ideal. Overall a brilliant experience here and couldn't recommend it enough!
the facilities, technicians and lecturers are truly amazing and everyone is so knowledgeable and friendly.. over covid times we have been sent stuff and the president of the SU ran a food bank from her flat which was amazing. just feel really thankful and supported in my studies here, and would highly recommend the experience to anyone (all ages, genders, everything goes at art school!)
Due to COVID I haven’t used any of PCA equipment or social societies
The University Campus is alright. It's just your average building that has all the creative courses you can think of. I can't say too much about the clubs or the Student Union because I've never been to them. However, the people here are very nice and easy to talk to.
This is probably the worst university I have ever attended. The lack of knowledge in many of these tutors is insane. Especially the hate they have against the foreigners. I can tell you here and now, this is a university that will do anything to keep their staff in place and let the student be wrong. Do you know what is funny? After I worked day and night to finish my work, I received a poor grade and I asked them if they even read my work and my tutor responded: "no, I don’t have time to read everyone’s work." .. is this really a fit university for people to attend?
Just overall a negative experience from tutors and their abhorrent and obvious favouritism to the complete lack of students union. Can honestly say I learnt nothing, when the tutors where challenged on the lack of teaching the course leader explained we should be learning this stuff out of uni time??? So what did we pay for? The library and student support from counsellors and careers advisers are the best part.
Our Students' Union has grown so much over the past couple of years, the staff are all so lovely, the clubs and societies are really accessible and I can't wait to see how much it develops this year.