Art, design, music and drama courses may require interviews

COLLEGE CHOICE: RESTRICTED APPLICATION programmes are those for which colleges will only consider applicants who apply for the courses by February 1st 2010.

Most involve interviews or portfolio presentations.

ART AND DESIGN

The National College of Art and Design (NCAD) design faculty offers honours bachelor degrees in ceramics, glass and metals, fashion design, textile design and visual communication; its fine art faculty offers programmes in fineprint, media, painting and sculpture. Its education faculty offers honours bachelor degrees in art and design education.

All these courses start with a common first year – course code AD111. Application is through the CAO by February 1st and a portfolio must be submitted directly to NCAD by February 6th. There is no interview. Joint courses combining history of art with studio specialisations are also offered.

NCAD also offers industrial design – AD012 – for those interested in the design of products for manufacture. Applicants are called for an interview with portfolio assessment, which will take place during the week beginning April 20th.

Places in NCAD are not awarded on Leaving Certificate points but applicants must meet NUI matriculation requirements. Selection is based on portfolio assessment only for AD111 and interview and portfolio assessment for AD012.

TEACHING ART

For those who wish to teach art, students can qualify by completing the BA Honours in art and design education or by first completing another level 8 degree in art and design, then taking the postgraduate diploma in art and design education at NCAD, or the diploma for art and design teachers offered by some institutes of technology.

DÚN LAOGHAIRE INSTITUTE OF ART, DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

The college offers nine honours degree programmes in animation, photography, visual communication (print, screen and 3D spatial), visual art practice aimed at those aspiring to become practising artists; film and TV production aimed at aspiring directors, producers, scriptwriters, editors, cameramen and women, web developers and digital effects specialists; model-making for film and media for those interested in artistic illusions and special effects, and design for stage and screen in production, design and make-up.

All nine programmes involve portfolio assessments in March with interviews where necessary in April.

THE DUBLIN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

DIT offers four honours degree programmes within its faculty of applied art: design – interior and furniture (DT544); design visual communications (DT545) aimed at those wishing to become graphic designers, typographers, image-makers, illustrators and digital media designers; fine art (DT546) in painting, sculpture, print media, and in photography (DT559).

It also offers an ordinary degree in design display (DT515), for those who wish to pursue careers as display designers in the retail industry.

OTHER COLLEGES OFFERING ART AND DESIGN

Athlone IT has an honours degree programme in design and visual communications (AL052,) and a design communications ordinary bachelor degree (AL020).

Cork IT offers, visual communications (CR600), fine art and ceramic design (CR220) and ordinary degrees in design communications (CR036), and art and design (CR201) delivered at Crawford College of Art.

Galway-Mayo IT offers art and design (GA270) and film and television (GA271).

Limerick IT offers art and design (LC102).

MUSIC

For those interested in teaching, Trinity College offers music education (TR009); DIT has music education (DT501), which it runs in conjunction with TCD TR009.

Traditional Irish musicians are catered for on this programme. Mater Dei offers music and religious education (MD401) while Maynooth, UCD and UCC have single arts subject music in first year.

UCC has a four-year music degree (CK103) and a three-year art and music option (CK104) with two arts subjects in first year.

UCD (DN011), Trinity (TR002), Maynooth (MH103), DCU through the Royal Irish Academy, Music (DC211) and Composition (DC212), Dundalk IT (DK860), Waterford IT (WD027) and CIT (CR121) offer honours bachelor degrees in music.

For those interested in Irish traditional music, University of Limerick (UL) has an Irish music and dance option (LM030) and a voice and a dance option (LM031).

DIT offer a music foundation programme (DT527).

DRAMA AND THEATRE STUDIES

There are restricted application programmes in drama and theatre studies at Trinity (TR025), UCC (CK112), and drama performance (DT529) at DIT. Galway-Mayo IT offer film and theatre (GA271). IT Tralee offer honours degrees in folk theatre studies (TL170) and performing arts (TL175), while LIT offer acting and performing arts (LC971).

OTHER RESTRICTED COURSES

Architecture degrees at the DIT (DT101) and UL (LM099); fisheries management at Sligo IT (SG402); primary teaching at the Church of Ireland College (CE001); dental technology (TR803) and dental hygiene (TR802) at Trinity; and community and youth work (MH 116117) at NUI Maynooth.

Finally, all five undergraduate medical degrees and mature application nursing programmes are restricted application programmes.

TOMORROW: mature students

Brian Mooney’s daily column will examine your CAO options until January 20th , the deadline for “early bird” online applications.

Listen to Brian Mooney’s podcast for both Leaving Certificate and mature students at irishtimes.com/education