Bachelor of Fine Arts (Dance)

The Bachelor of Fine Arts (Dance) builds on the Victorian College of the Arts' outstanding reputation for performance-focused dance education.

The course develops kinetically strong, culturally and conceptually aware dance artists through specialist education in an inclusive range of contemporary dance practices, dance science and somatics, critical dance studies, choreography and performance.

In a vibrant and stimulating atmosphere, you will train to meet the technical demands, kinaesthetic awareness and creative challenges of a career in dance. New works by professional Australian and international choreographers and repertory studies provide invaluable performance experience and interaction with the dance profession.

There is some flexibility within the degree, allowing you to choose elective subjects in dance or from other artistic disciplines at the VCA. You can also complete electives from outside of the VCA's offerings, to prepare you for other pathways, such as teaching.

Breadth subjects at each year level enable you to explore cross disciplinary studies from the wider University community, accessing multi-disciplinary knowledge and skills that will build on existing knowledge or present opportunities for you to investigate and develop new interests.

You will have access to state-of-the art facilities, including five purpose-built dance studios and a range of on-campus theatre and performance spaces.

The Bachelor of Fine Arts (Dance) is a three-year full-time degree centred around studio practice, expanded dance thinking and performance. Throughout the course you will develop an integrated practice as a dance artist. Expertise in dance as a way of knowing opens doorways for careers as performers, makers, leaders, activists, collaborators and cultural partners in a global world.

The program focuses on the rigorous preparation of dancers as artists and cultural leaders working across all areas of the profession including performance, community, arts management, health and wellbeing sectors. It recognises that contemporary dance takes many forms and flourishes in diverse contexts, so it prepares you through an emphasis upon dance within an arts ecosystem. The course structure also equips you with the professional skills for ensemble and autonomous careers in dance.

The course matrix emphasises the following core graduate capabilities: Practice; Make; Interact; Perform; Connect; and Reflect. These competencies are developed throughout the degree towards a graduate profile that is industry-ready whilst equipping you with skills for life-long learning and creative resilience. The learning of dance as an arts practice is a core component in the preparation of a professional dancer, and knowledge of diverse movement techniques and the concepts that underpin them, is considered essential to flexibly adapt to different choreographic ideas and opportunities.

Coordination, movement memory and performance qualities (expressiveness and focus), are fostered through embodied learning, open enquiry and exchange within a cohort experience of dancing together. Intensive skills development and practice take place alongside workshop and rehearsal processes for a range of performance situations. You will gain experience and know-how in performing for stage, art gallery and museum, gardens and outdoor sites, screen and digital spaces.

Deepening your artistic knowledge through acquiring mastery and craft, you will energetically engage with the creation of dance in both a local and international context. During the degree you will have the opportunity for placements with local Melbourne dance organisations and to participate in a Global Atelier, a travelling studio programme through which students learn from leaders in the dance field and cultivate arts citizenship. Such collaborative skills and intercultural competencies are integral to your training.